Hi everyone, would love your opinion and/or experience on this topic.
I have a 6-month old Golden Retriever. She is adorable and the joy of my life. When she was younger (2-4 months) she had chronic diarrhea. I always had to “reset” her stomach with boiled super lean ground turkey or chicken, brown rice cooked to mush, a scoop of pumpkin and a teaspoon of probiotic powder. That always did the trick. After everything returns to normal, I would introduce dry food. After many brands, I’ve found a mixture that seems to work. I am currently feeding 20% Orijen Regional Red and 80% FirstMate Pacific Ocean Fish, and she’s doing quite well on it. We haven’t had a diarrhea episode yet.
What is your view on mixing food? I want to make sure she is getting the nutrition she needs, and that it is also tasty. Thank you!
I actually prefer to shop online as long as shipping doesn’t make the price ridiculous! I have checked out Chewy and I love the idea of autoship! I can’t always get out to the stores, and my local stores sell out of quality foods really fast, so online is really my best option. I’ll check out that thread when I get the chance, but I am assuming it’s just a lot of options like the editors choice lists, which leaves me scrambling to check the quality, cost, and availability of each one and weigh the options for each dog and I start losing track of where I started and getting all mixed up! LOL I need a chart for this! LOL
I would like to get Roxie and Kovu on the same food if possible, but I know with her being mature and chubby and him being young and active, that might not be the best idea. I know Dessa needs to be on her own since she’s a puppy and a XL breed mix. I’m leaning towards the Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy Food, but that’s just based on what I’ve been able to find that’s of acceptable quality and I can find easliy from sellers I trust. I’m more than open to other brands though as I really have never used any Fromm products before.
I don’t have a set budget for pet food, I’ll work a bit extra if I need to, but I definitely can’t afford to feed Orijen and the like. I’ve been feeding Kirkland lately because it’s the only acceptable food that I can find reliably locally besides junk. I used to feed Taste of the Wild when Kovu was a pup, but it’s so hard to find locally I couldn’t keep up with hunting it down.
I don’t like most formula’s that are marketed for senior dogs, same as Marie said. They don’t usually meet the protein requirements for senior dogs. I do agree that Orijen Senior is probably the best one out there.
I usually recommend an all life stages food for customers at my job with senior dogs. One with high protein as well. I’d look for an all life stages food that comes in over 30% protein with the first three ingredients being whole meats and meat meals to unsure the protein is coming from animals and not plants. Some foods will have glucosimine and chondroitin in them, which is something else you can look for. Otherwise I’d suggest a supplement like NaturVet Arthrisoothe GOLD, which has Boswellia in it that is suppose to be really good for arthritic dogs.
http://www.chewy.com/dog/naturvet-arthrisoothe-gold-hip-joint/dp/48764
I have no experience with large breed dogs, I don’t know if they need anything special as adults. Senior dogs need a high quality higher protein food. Outside of Orijen senior, I think the rest of the senior foods are too low in protein. With an arthritic dog, I’d find a food without grains & potato as they can be inflammatory.
Is she getting joint supplements? Look into making Golden Paste for her. A large breed dog should be kept lean as opposed to too heavy; can you share a picture of her?
I think we can all agree that none of us are going to now or in the future order food from David T.’s site. It makes absolutely no sense. There is no way possible that he can sell premium foods that we would buy and feed our dogs for the price he claims unless he means the service is $39.00 per month and then the actual food has it’s own price. Also does not make sense. Why would anyone spend $39.00 per month for nothing. He also has on the section of what brands he carries where it clearly states Orijen, Acana and Fromm. Is that just a come on to get one to sign up because now he’s saying in his response to me and others that those are some of the brands he hopes to carry in the future. Well as those are the only brands that most of us would order why would we sign up. None of this makes sense. I will also add that at any point in time were he to be able to offer Orijen or Acana for $39.99 a bag, no way no how would I feed that to my dogs. I don’t trust what would be in the bags or where it came from. Anyway, I’m done on this subject as I think the entire thing, concept, explanations, etc. to not meet any of our standards for food that we would feed our animals. I believe we have given him more than his 15 minutes of fame here.
I’m sorry, but this is not about “lack of open-mindedness”. There are laws that govern federal commerce to make it fair to the manufacturer and the retailer and other retailers as well. Your website is offering foods like Purina Dog Chow for a much higher price than what you could pay for it at Walmart and then claiming you plan to bring in very pricey foods like Orijen and Acana for far less than what they are worth and what YOU yourself will pay for them. Under the policy I just provided for you Champion can refuse to do business with you if you refuse to comply with their minimum retail price, which you are already doing without even having their food available to customers.
I expect to see you having shut your site down fairly soon due to lack of funding since you will not convince manufacturers of actual high quality foods to sell to you based on your non complience with their minimum retail price and I do not think for a second someone will pay 39$ for a bag of Purina Dog Chow (when they can get it cheaper elsewhere) which is also falsely advertised on YOUR site as not containing corn, which it does.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by
Pitlove.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by Pitlove.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by Pitlove.
Dear Pitlove,
Thank you for your response. Why would my business model be “illegal”? I am curious as to pointing out to me the code in the law that you are referring to.
As I explained in earlier replies in this thread, our dog food delivery brands change from time to time, and at the moment we do not offer Orijen/Acana in our availability, however will in the future through agreements we have with our fullfillment partners.
And as a consumer, it’s entirely up to you to have the choice where you would like to procure your dog food, whether it be from us or another preferred vendor.
Ok, have a great Sunday!
David
David- What I’m saying is, your business model is not actually legal and I’m willing to bet that if you try selling anything made by Champion Pet Foods (Orijen/Acana) you’re looking at a lawsuit. Their bags of Tundra cost over 100$ for the biggest bag. There is no way they would allow you to sell Tundra for 39$ without taking some legal action. Also I can’t imagine you would make much money that way given how much it costs you as the retailer to buy such a product.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by Pitlove.
David T,
I went back and read through your links and I still find them unclear, but I may be missing something. I do find several problems with your site. You state that you carry premium foods, yet the only choices you have are very limited (2 choices of dog food, not 4) subpar options, something I would never choose. So I would be paying $39/month for nothing I would buy. You state that you are different as I can schedule whenever when I want. I am signed up on a website for autoship and yet I can go back and change my delivery to a different time, any day I choose, sooner or later than the original autoship date. I can also change the products I want. So how is your ordering policy different?
I find it very difficult to believe that you would carry a true premium brand (Orijen, Acana, Wellness, Merrick or Fromm) as shown on your site and sell that for unlimited shipments of large bags for $39. A medium size bag of many of these brands sells for more than $39, yet you say the customer can order either a medium or large bag. I think most customers would be ordering large bags of the premium food that costs $100+. I see you do have a requirement of ordering 2 days after receiving the shipment. I’ve ordered online from several sites and some delivery times are better than others. Some come in a couple of days and others come in several weeks. Unlimited is without any qualifications but you have qualifed it by adding a requirement that seems to disallow unlimited bags ordered. This in itself is a bit deceiving.
http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/unlimited
I’m sorry, but this still doesn’t make sense as a business, which does appear that either you are very inexperienced in business or it’s a shady operation.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by
C4D.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by C4D.
My boss and I just recently discussed this because she was pricing Zignature when we first got the line in. She ended up contacting Zignature because she usually refers to chewy.com to see what they price something for and then goes a few $ higher than that. Zignature actually told my boss that chewy.com was priced TOO low and they would have to contact them because they could NOT legally do that. That leads me to believe that if David does continue his business and adds Orijen or Acana or any of the more costly brands of food…he probably won’t be in business too much longer.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by Pitlove.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by Pitlove.
I’m sorry David T, but I do not believe this is possible. I fed Orijen for many years and this was several years ago. I can’t even remember when Orijen was $39.99 for the large bag. This seems like a scam. Pedigree is cheaper on several other sites than you’re charging. Links (because it’s me):
Pedigree:
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Pedigree-Adult-Complete-Nutrition-Dry-Dog-Food-50-lbs/42425073
Purina Dog Chow (UGH):
http://www.pet360.com/product/275/purina-dog-chow-complete-and-balanced-total-care-nutrition-dry-dog-food
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Purina-Dog-Chow-Dry-Dog-Food-Complete-Bonus-Size-50-lb-Bag-Dogs/38056050
I’m not going any further. All of these prices are well below yours and I think you’re only on here to promote your website, which is selling garbage at overmarket prices. You are using the good brands as an enticement, and hopefully people will be smart enough to catch on, but I posted this in case they’re not.
So, any bag of food is $39 per month? IE, the big bag of Orijen or Fromm 4 Star Grain Free? However, when I click this week’s selections, there is absolutely nothing I would even consider using. There are a few brands I do use (Orijen, Fromm, Wellness CORE) but i don’t even see those an option for me right now.
Hi Dori,
Thank you for your email and thank you so much for your valuable input on our site. Our brands will change from time to time, and we’ll be adding many more brands, including Orijen, Acana and others in the near future for different pet breed types. At the launch we have at this moment those four types, however, we will maintain that price of 39$ a month, irregardless of the type of brand we sell. You can see the different brands we sell at: http://www.petspectation.com/Dog-And-Cat-Food-Brands-We-Sell-and-Deliver.html and this week’s selections, that we’ll continue to add at: http://www.petspectation.com/Unlimited-Dog-and-Cat-Food-Delivery-Selections.html
Please do not hesitate to contact me at anytime if you have any questions, it would be my pleasure to assist you.
Thank you
David Tartamella
Well, David T. I just checked out your site to see what brands you carry and for the most part, and from being on DFA for a number of years now, the only quality brands that I saw that you carry are, in order, Orijen, Acana and to a much lesser extent, Fromm. Most, if not all, of the other brands you carry are the ones that most of us stay away from for various reasons.
I’m going to check your site out again because I just started wondering how you can sell Orijen and Acana for $39 per month.
Hi! I have a blue brindle pit. I feed
Orijen regional red and he’s had terrible skin/allergy issues since he hit about 1. He’s 4 now. I took him to a dermatologist ($600 for the visit and tests) and he’s now on allergy shots and apoquel. Apoquel has stopped his itching completely and his hives/sores and hair loss. I hear it’s for dogs with severe allergies an is allocated to those cases because there isn’t huge quantities available. It’s expensive – about $155 for 2 Months – I’ve researched it tons. But this have given him such relief. Just a suggestion. Good luck !
I would stick with treats off the iheartdogs top 25 brands. You can’t go wrong with them in my opinion. All of the freeze dried from this list are great for training and most are simple ingredients, like Orijen free range bison treats ingredients are: Bison liver, Boneless bison and bison tripe.
ACANA
Addiction
Annamaet
AvoDerm
Back to Basics
By Nature
Earthborn Holistic
Fromm
Grandma Lucy’s
Hi-Tek Naturals
Horizon
K9 Natural
Lotuz
Nature’s Logic
Orijen
Pinnacle
Precise Holistic Complete
Primal
Stella & Chewy’s
Stewart
Stewart Pro-Treat
The Honest Kitchen
The Real Meat Company
Wysong
ZiwiPeak
It would definitely be easier to feed; however, the puppy has to have “puppy” food for proper growth at least up to a year. The rest can eat the same food but different amounts depending on how active they are & if they’re not allergic to certain ingredients. Orijen is the best though, followed by Acana. Avoid limited ingredient formulas, not enough protein. To make all the dishes seem the same, you can put the same topper on all dishes.
Are you sure you need that much fat in a diet? Ditto on the protein. I agree that a good Senior food is the way to go. It’s a fact that too much protein is as bad as not enough and we all know that too much fat isn’t good. I have a dog that has had stomach problems all of her life. I feed her Annamaet lean and am finally off of RX food. Orijen Senior is a great food too. This is of course my opinion and I hope you find the right mix for your pup. 🙂
Orijen Senior is a good senior dry kibble. Probably the best one out there.
Hello Norene, I have a 9 yo yellow lab that has skin issues and found out wheat was her problem early on. A little over a year ago she began to scratch and bite herself to the point of being bloody and raw. I started researching and this is where I found DogFoodAdvisor. I have found many other sites that have helped too. I looked an environmental issues, allergies, flea/heart worm meds and food. My vet was not able to help much and I took to the internet. I found that grains can greatly effect a dog and we knew that wheat was a problem for her, I went grain free only to find that potatoes are a big fill in for them and she ended up with a widespread yeast infection. I did try raw but she ended up being sensitive to chicken and lamb so that didn’t work. Here’s what helped and I highly recommend to anyone with skin issues. We did a Alternative Sensitivity Test by Glacier Peak Holistics, all done by mail. That gave me a wealth of information and confirmed all my suspects. She is now on Orijen 6 Fish and doing wonderful. I’ve also added a daily probiotic, digestive enzymes, coconut oil to her meals. I have nothing to do with Glacier Peak but there are other companies that perform these tests and sell the same products. I also have found very informative websites such as Dr Karen Becker, Only Natural Pet and obviously you’ve found Dogfood Advisor. Beware of the flea and heartworm products, they can cause a number of issues and there are natural remedies. House hold cleaning products, laundry soaps, fabric softners, fragrance sprays and such can effect your dog. I now have a green home as much as possible. Good luck and hope you find the cure. I can tell you that it will be up to you and not your vet and I do like my vet very much.
My pups were allergic to Orijen and Acana as well. I still wanted the same quality but way less ingredients. I found Zignature Zssentials and they thrived on it. Still do.
I have 2 papillons and feed them Orijen regional. The pieces are small it is 5 star rated and grain free.
I second what C4D said and unforunatly the only senior food I’d recommend (kibble wise) is around 80$ a bag and thats Orijen Senior.
Have you tried the Orijen puppy food? It is pricey so I would check to see if you can get a sample or buy the smallest bag available in case your puppy does not like it.
Well, it’s still good information to have that those 2 are actually ok for large breeds. Though I would never recommend them over my other favorite LBP foods.
Best of luck with Orijen! It’s an excellent food.
I finally heard back from TotW …
Formulation Calcium Phosphorous
High Prairie Puppy 1.4% 1.0%
Pacific Stream Puppy 1.3% 1.0%
for which I calculate Ca/1000cal to be 3.3 & 3.6 respectively. TotW suggested feeding guidelines are sure high however … for a 4mo/40lb GSD pup it is 5+ cups/day! I think I’ll stay with Orijen Large Puppy for which it would be only 3 cups/day.
Cheers 🙂
very smart move to avoid TotW if they wouldn’t out right give you the as fed levels. they should have no problem providing that information if what they say is true.
orijen puppy large is a good choice as well since they finally re formulated the food to be appropriate for LBPs. it was not some years ago. honestly better to avoid taste of the wild anyway because it’s manufactured by Diamond.
Thanks Pitlove … I had contacted TotW and they, without providing their analysis, claimed their puppy foods were suitable for LB pups. I let them know I wouldn’t be continuing with TotW without knowing Ca/P. It’s too bad–they are well known for sourcing their ingredients.
I’ll probably switch to Orijen Large Puppy. Although expensive per bag, it is nutrient dense.
C4D- That might be true, but i’m not just going to up and switch and not give them a chance to hold there word. Especially since it’s a food my dog has been doing great on the past 5-6 months now. Also, it being one that I can afford monthly.
If perhaps something does change, I’m not sure what I would switch too as i’ve tried multiple foods that fit my budget and he did not care for them. I’ve tried, Natures balance, Blue, wellness core, and a few others. I think the only ones I have not really tried are ones that I can’t really afford monthly. Like Orijen, Acana, etc…
I’ve always wondered as I rarely hear much about Natures variety and I know there a top star food. Are they a good company or?
My pups became allergic to Orijen Adult and I switched to limited ingredient formulas to guess my way thru causes (before I did the allergy testing panel). They lost too much weight and still had reactions. I was told one protein diets are not enough for dogs unless they are severely allergic to other major proteins. Then I found Zignature Zssentials, has 4 proteins & not much else that can upset their digestion. Now they’re healthy, lean & muscular. It cleared up other issues as well. I add 2 side dishes with it for variety, some wet & some dry, I don’t mix it so they have fun with new flavors.
Ahhh, to be young and hopeful. I used to feed Evo and Orijen in rotation along with several other really good brands. Evo was easily an equivalent food to Orijen in quality and price. It was family owned by Naturapet and even carried by veterinarians. I decided to pull it out of my rotation due to my dog’s weight gain and injury. It was sold off shortly after that to P&G. Within a few months, many people in the dog business (breeders, show people, etc) as well as others were complaining on the internet about their dogs having problems with Evo (as well as the other Naturapet products). Naturapet never had a recall in the entire family history, yet P&G had a massive recall within 3 years of acquiring the company. Here’s just a bit of the history in links:
Link for buyout & brief Naturapet history. Please note that in the first link, the wording is very similar to what Purina and Merrick said about the buyout:
http://news.pg.com/press-release/pg-corporate-announcements/pg-acquires-natura-pet-products
http://www.dailyfinance.com/2010/05/06/procter-and-gamble-natura-pet-products/
Assurance the product won’t change:
http://groovycatsndogs.com/proctor_gamble_buys_natura_pet_products/
1st recall info:
Natura Recall: California Natural, Innova, EVO, Innova, Healthwise Pet Foods for Salmonella Contamination
Many years ago, I also used to feed my new puppy Iams (you were a child back then). It was considered a very good food many years. I was pleasantly surpised (I thought) to find it available at walmart a few years later. A friend who bred, showed and trained dogs told me Iams was not what it used to be. We all know it isn’t.
History of Iams:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iams
History of Ekanuba:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eukanuba
They all say how they’re going to bring their wonderful product to the “next level”. The next level for all of these companies seems to be a step down. It certainly was for Iams, Eukanuba, Naturapet. Innova was one of the flagship foods that people loved. It doesn’t exist anymore since Mars took over. Sorry Pitlove, I’m older and much more doubtful and will definitely say goodbye to Merrick for now. I’ve already let Naturapet become a fond but bittersweet memory. And Zukes is history for me too.
You haden’t mentioned the age of your pet which is why Dori asked why you wanted to use a senior food. I agree that Orijen Senior is a good food.
Given a choice, I would definitely avoid Diamond products. Compare its record with Champion foods that brings in fresh regional ingredients, never frozen, and makes the Orijen on site. If you can spare 12 minutes, watch the Champion video, Our Story. I found it compelling and have since seen the results in my old rescue dogs. People laugh and can’t believe Libby and Annie are 12 and 13, so beautiful and full of life.
Susan,
Senior foods, with a couple exceptions, are way too low in protein. Orijen makes a good senior food. If your dog is overweight, Annamaet Lean & Wellness Core reduced fat are good products. If not overweight, any high quality, higher protein food is fine.
Some dogs don’t do well on raw or an all wet diet. Unless your dog has a severe allergic reaction to the 4 proteins used in Zignature formulas, it’s probably the best on the market because it excludes chicken, egg and potato. I switched my pups overnight to Zignature Zssentials after intestinal issues with Orijen Adult. If they have a bad reaction to any food, I stop it immediately. Cleared up every issue they were having in 48 hours. Side note: their canned food’s not that great, so I use Weruva and ZiwiPeak for soft. The new Zignature Kangaroo formula is a hit as well!
Hi Kathleen,
Take a look at Victor Yukon River, Acana Pacifica, and Orijen Six Fish if you’re looking for a fish-based alternative to the Merrick.
For the most part, senior foods are too low in protein. Senior dogs need hiher protein, not low. The only senior dog food I’d use is Orijen senior.
Glad to here you have some specialists you can reach out to. I definitely think thats the best course of action, as you will probably waste money going to the vet constantly.
What my vet told me was that, itchy ears and rear is a symptom of a food intolerance. My dog was eating a food that was beef and pork meal based at the time and would start vigorsly licking his rear right after eating. I got him off beef and it stopped. He’s been able to eat pork again without doing that. I’m thinking he could very well be intolerant to something in Orijen.
Not sure how long you have had Jack for, and I’m sure he is a bundle of joy, but do you think there could be ANY residual stress from his previous home given that he was a neglect case? Stress is known to cause GI upset as well. Maybe he’s good at hiding it aside from his messy poo’s? I’ve noticed how good dogs are at hiding pain. I was watching Animal Cops Houston this morning and they showed one of their worst cruelty cases where this German Shephard puppy had been left outside on a rusted chain for a collar which had completely imbedded itself into her neck to the point where skin was growing around it. When the officers came up to her to take her, she acted so happy you’d never know she had a chain imbedded in her neck and was probably in agonizing pain. Long story short and to get to my point, he could still have some left over pain from the rehome and the previous neglect. Not saying thats 100% what it is, but it’s something to think about.
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This reply was modified 9 years, 3 months ago by Pitlove.
I totally agree that there has to be something underlying. Jack is a rescue and was a neglect case that the police confiscated, so there’s really no telling what his history has been. Thankfully, he’s the sweetest, happiest thing you’ve ever met. Gut-wise, he doesn’t act miserable, but something is clearly up. We’ll be making a return trip to the vet pretty quick. Even if that turns up nothing, there is a veterinary specialty practice nearby that all local vets refer the weird cases to. That crew is incredible. My previous Pointer, Tucker, started having seizures and episodes of blindness and ataxia. The canine neurologist at the specialty center diagnosed pancreatic cancer, not a brain mass. He was 100% correct, and sadly, pancreatic cancer is as deadly in dogs as it is in humans.
I find it very interesting that Jack’s itchy ears and bum have gotten so much worse with adding in some Orijen…certainly a puzzle! He was very underweight when I got him, and we slowly got him up to a healthy weight, but I wonder if he has a malabsorption issue. Food seems to just fly though his system, and he has recently become VERY determined to eat every cigarette butt we come across on walks. I have to watch him like a hawk and give a “leave it” and leash correction because I can see him thinking about it the second he spots one. Some nutrient isn’t getting in if he’s that focused on eating those.
He has not been tested for EPI, nor have I given him enzymes. I can contact Hills, but based on the ingredients list, the majority of the ingredients that contribute to the fiber content are insoluble (wheat, corn, etc.). His poops are not great with Hills Light, but that has been BY FAR the most successful food for him. He probably poops 5-8 times a day. First thing in the morning, the stool is formed. After that, it gets softer and softer with each subsequent BM. On any food other than the Hills, his stool is just straight liquid.
I am trying to get him off the Hills (chicken, wheat, corn) because his ears and bum are clearly bothering him. Both of those issues have gotten exponentially worse in the last two weeks with the incorporation of the Orijen (he’s getting half Hills, half Orijen Red). It hardly makes sense!
He has never had a full raw meal, only a couple freeze-dried nuggets (Primal brand) on top of his kibble. Because of that, I can’t say that going raw is the definite solution for him, but I am investigating how to go about that in a way I can afford. The commercially available frozen raw diets are going to run $400 a month, which I just can’t do. Unfortunately, I live in a very large, major US city where all meats are ridiculously expensive. We’re talking about $3/lb for the cheap stuff.
Hi you have to be careful cause he’s old & what did he eat before they rescued him?? a lot of these rescue dogs eat the crappy cheap foods & when you give them a kibble like Orijen with higher protein & higher fat kibble it is too rich & goes thru them (diarrhea) so probably pick a food that’s cheaper but minus the crappy ingredients is best…like the 4Health Mature Adult the fat is 10%…..
I have a 4-year-old, 65-lb English Pointer who has always had very loose, unformed stools (applesauce or unset pudding), regardless of the food or supplements I have given him. He has a clean bill of health, and no medical reason for the loose stools that the vet has been able to find. He does have formed (still soft) stools on Hills Adult Light, which has a 13% fiber content. The vet thinks he is fiber responsive since the high fiber food gives his stool some consistency. I hate feeding him Hills; all my previous dogs have done great on 5-star foods. He is an “ears and rears” dog, and both seem to bug him when he eats the Hills. Currently, he’s getting half Hills and half Orijen Regional Red with a couple Primal freeze-dried nuggets (lamb) and a hard-boiled egg on top. I think the Primal freeze-dried actually firms up his stool a bit. I can’t afford to feed him freeze-dried exclusively.
The freeze-dried contains ground bone, and I am wondering if that is what helps. It’s a minor improvement, as I’m only topping his kibble with these nuggets, but there is a slight difference (mashed banana consistency). Any thoughts on giving him supplemental bone meal? There are human grade options on Amazon, and several reviewers mention it firming up their dog’s stool.
All ideas are welcomed. Below is a list of things we have tried, and that have failed.
– Limited ingredient diets – fish-based (Merrick, Natural Balance)
– Oat bran
– Canned pumpkin
– Diggin’ Your Dog (dried pumpkin fiber powder)
– Yogurt
– Probiotics
– Ground flaxseed (Missing Link supplement)
– Psyllium (aka: Metamucil)
Hello again,
Recently a family member of mine had decided to adopt a Old English Bulldog. Now I’ve tried helping them a ton of the matter of what he should be fed and how to keep a healthy weight amongst so many other things. However, they can’t decide on a basis dry food for him. They apparently researched online on several sites that are about and for English Bulldogs and have read that Diamond or Blue is the best and proper food for Bulldogs. I have argued this statement only because yes they might be good foods (opinions very) However that does not mean it is the proper food for any species of dog.
I gave them several of the top 5 star brands that I am sure would probably be great far as Orijen, Acana, Natures Variety, Merrick’s, Wellness Core. Though they seem to can’t afford those type of foods, so they’re looking for more of a cheaper route to go. Especially since this is not the only dog they have. They have 5 dogs total to feed.
Also for canned food they were feeding Pedigree and Gravy Train very very cheap foods that almost made me cry inside after hearing about it. I finally got them to switch to Tractor supplys brand 4 health which is still cheap but way better then most cheap canned foods.
Any help or recommendations to let them aware of would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Hi all, I need input. I adopted a 4-year-old, 65-lb English Pointer a few months ago. He is the second Pointer I have owned. He has always had very loose, unformed stools (like Motts applesauce or unset pudding), regardless of the food or supplements I have given him. He has a clean bill of health, and no medical reason for the loose stools that the vet has been able to find. He does have formed (still soft) stools on Hills Adult Light, which has about a 13% fiber content. The vet thinks he is fiber responsive since the high fiber food give his stool some consistency. I hate feeding him Hills; all my previous dogs have done great on 5-star foods. He is an “ears and rears” dog, and both seem to bug him when he eats the Hills. At the moment, he’s getting half Hills and half Orijen Regional Red with a couple Primal freeze-dried nuggets (lamb) and a hard-boiled egg on top. I think the Primal freeze-dried actually firms up his stool a bit. I can’t afford to feed him freeze-dried exclusively.
The freeze-dried contains ground bone, and I am wondering if that’s what is helping. It’s a very minor improvement, as I’m just topping his kibble with these nuggets, but there is a slight difference (mashed banana consistency). Any thoughts on giving him supplemental bone meal? There are human grade options on Amazon, and several reviewers mention it firming up their dog’s stool.
Any and all ideas are welcomed!! Below is a list of things we have tried, and that have failed miserably.
– Limited ingredient diets – fish-based (Merrick, Natural Balance)
– Oat bran
– Canned pumpkin
– Diggin’ Your Dog (dried pumpkin fiber powder)
– Yogurt
– Probiotics
– Ground flaxseed (Missing Link supplement)
– Psyllium (aka: Metamucil)
Thank you in advance!
I wouldn’t feed Pedigree or anything Blue Buffalo. Fromm GF Surf and Turf or Orijen Six Fish would be great choices as would any of the quality raw diets available but you need to transition slowly. You can also add a small amount of quality canned or freeze dried raw. Adding fish or crill oil are great ideas. Honestly, anything you feed that is not grocery store food is going to make a big difference.
You may want to try something other than chicken. Blue Buffalo isn’t a very good food. Some foods I like are Annamaet, Dr Tim’s, Farmina, NutriSource, Acana, Orijen.
Hi- I think there might be a misunderstanding on your part. Orijen does not make a grain inclusive food. All of their formulas are grain free.
Hello,
Was wondering if you will be doing a review/analysis on Orijen’s Grain Free line.
I love how the Orijen stacks up in the existing review but one of my dogs needs grain free and I want to be sure it’s also a superior formula.
Thank you!
All Orijen is grain free, so is Acana Singles. The Honest Kitchen has a few grain free formulas. It has for quite some time.
As for freeze dried grain free foods there is Primal, Vital Essentials and I believe Nature’s Logic makes a grain free freeze dried food. I feed commercial frozen raw diet for my three but I do use freeze dried in a treat jar near the back door when calling them in. They consider it a reason to come flying into the house regardless of what they were up to outside. From time to time the only dehydrated food that I will use is The Honest Kitchen grain free fish formulas. Zeal is one and I believe they have just come out with one that has even less ingredients in it, I believe it’s called Brave (?) something like that. I just got an email about it last week or could have been this week. I don’t care for any of the other dehydrated foods that I’ve tried although Grandma Lucy’s is not bad.
I suggest you go to petflow.com You can chose grain free kibble and it pulls up the grain free it carries. Once you see your choices then you can go to this web site and review its ratings. I generally feed my dogs grain free, they currently are eating Orijen, Arcadia, Wellness Fish, Health Extension and Evo and Solid Gold.
