Help! What food should I switch to? Dog develoepd problems

lippylulu

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#1
:rolleyes:I have fed Canidae All Life Stages for 15 years, starting with a dog who couldn't eat corn, wheat or soy. One of my little dogs lived to 17 1/2, and the senstive tummy dog (Shepard mix) made it to 15 1/2 on Canidae. I now have a 4 year old medium 44 pound black lab mix who can eat anything and a 3 year old English Pointer Mix who is having massive digestion problems. He was checked for worms (negative) and was on Flagyl (antibiotic) since all indications pointed to infection. He did OK on the Vet prescribed canned food while also on diarhhea medication but no good when reintroducing him back to his normal kibble. The vet suggested it was possilbe he was intolerant to meat based foods so I bought TOTW grain free Salmon food because I am disabled and cost is a big factor. I feel like he needs more fiber to firm things up a bit though it seems like most foods are in the 3-4% range for fiber. To make it more complicated, the lab can eat anything but her stools are sometimes rock hard whereas right now my Pointer mix's poop can't even be picked up. Is there a moderately priced seafood based food? Candiae's fish based food is SO EXPENSIVE. Also, why is grain free so important? Don't they need healthy grain for fiber?:confused:
 

Barb04

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#3
How long have you been feed TOTW? If you don't transistion slowly, they can get the runs. Try give some plain canned pumpkin (maybe 2 tablespoons). This helps to regulate their system.

Once in awhile my friend's dog needs to have a probiotic added to his food for a week to help.

I feed TOTW salmon. In the morning I add a spoonful of plain yogurt for the good bacteria.

The next food that would that wouldn't cost much would be 4Health salmon; they also make grain free. My friend tried this, but her dogs did much better on TOTW salmon. One of her dogs has digestive issues.
 

Saeleofu

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#4
Victor has a salmon and sweet potato food that is a bit cheaper
This is what I use, and I've had wonderful results. It's WAY cheaper than TOTW, and only marginally more expensive than 4Health. My collie has a sensitive stomach and he's never had an issue with this food. My friend's golden also does great on this food despite having loose stool issues in the past.

But if changing foods doesn't work, you may have to dig deeper. My collie had to be on Tylan for 6 months after he contracted a clostridial infection. Other dogs need some B12 injections to get them sorted.
 

Beanie

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#5
Victor isn't available everywhere, the closest place to me is across the state line in Indiana. They have a dealer locator on their website:
http://www.victordogfood.com/

Is the TOTW okay price-wise for you? Otherwise you may consider looking into ordering something online or finding out if a specialty store in your area can special order stuff for you.

Generally speaking, fiber is actually not considered an essential ingredient in a dog's diet. As far as grains go, some dogs have problems with grains, some dogs do okay with grains, some dogs do better WITH grains. I prefer to feed grain free if I can (I avoid grains for myself too) but have a dog right now on a grain inclusive food because he was unable to gain weight on grain free.

You can add pumpkin as Barb said to help firm things up, but careful, because too much pumpkin can give them the runs! Green beans are another thing people often add to help firm stools, I have done that myself. I buy a bag of frozen green beans and chuck a handful into the bowl with their kibble. Most dogs like green beans, only one of mine does not!


I agree with Sael as well, if the diarrhea is persistent you might want to keep digging further. The same dog who is on a grain based food now had persistent diarrhea and was treated for clostridium with Tylan powder for I think three months. Does he clear up at all on the Flagyl or is it still persistent even on the antibiotics?
 

lippylulu

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#6
Not sure if we are making progress

Some things got better after the antibiotic and change of food. He was pooping yellow mush and now at least it is brown. Some is soft but formed, some not formed. He has bad gas too. I expect some of the problem is the change in food (it was more sudden than I would have prefered but he had already been eating the vet prescribed canned food for 4 or 5 days). Money is definitely a big factor as I am widowed and disabled and barely getting by these days. I can order food to be delivered if people think Victor's is a better choice than TOTW and it costs the same or less. At the 3 chain pet stores I checked, TOTW seemed to be the best product for the money but I did not see Victor's anywhere (I am in NYC metro/Northwest NJ). He has not had any accidents or urgency and I was glad to see things change from yellow to brown; but I sure would like to be able to clean up after him properly (firmed, formed stool) and the gas worries me. I cannot believe the price of some of these fish based grain free foods and I really don't know if grain is the problem anyway!
 

lippylulu

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#7
one other option

I don't seem to find Victor's anywhere...even through the home delivery companies. The only other cost effectvie brand I found is Premium Edge Adult Dog Skin & Coat Salmon, Potatoes & Vegetables Formula . I know nothing about this company. Its a little less expensive than TOTW and ingrediants seem right on the petfoodirect website. Feedback?:hail:
 

Saeleofu

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#8
Do you have any locally-owned feed stores near you? They may be able to order it in. It's not sold in big box stores or online.
 

lippylulu

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#9
There is one local place I found (I am new to the area) and can ask about ordering Victor's. Just took dog out and not too happy with what came out of him. I am not sure if he just neds more imte to adjust, if I should go back to Canidae and assume the problem was just an infection, or WHAT to do. He is eatinga nd drinking OK (and lots of peeing) so I am not worried about dehydration...jsut want him to poop like a normal dog and not be gassy so I know he is OK!
 

Barb04

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#10
Has your vet suggested maybe irritable bowel syndrome? My cat out of nowhere got this and needed a single protein food (a protein never fed before) and one for sensitive stomachs; this worked. My vet said he's had this happend with dogs before where out of nowhere they get ibs. Just a thought.
 

lippylulu

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#11
Stil need help!!!!

IBS IS a possibility. This dog happens to be a very serious rescue case. We've had him since he was 10 months old and he is 3 1/2 now. He was rescued from a puppy milll at 10 months when the humane society emptied the place. He was obviously a breeding mistake since he is not a purebreed. He came home with physical scars, injuries, infections, etc which have all healed but he is terrified of people until he really gets to know them. Then he is a total love. He is scared of loud noises, new places, etc except he loves the outdoors and other dogs. He is not aggressive--he pees when he is afraid (its fear-not submission). He has been on Prozac since he was 11 months old and we work with him ALL the time behaviorally. We were able to lower the Prozac dosage about a year ago but we DID just move. He seems happier here (lots of walks--no more just being let into the yard) but the water is different too. My sister has a Cairn with IBS. He eats vet prescribed Royal Canine Venison food that costs a fortune. My guy is 70 pounds and I could never afford THAT. His poop this morning on TOTW Salmon was total yuck so things are not getting better. Suggestions? I really need advice:hail:
 

Zoom

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#12
It sounds like he might have anxiety-induced IBS. I would put him back on the Prozac until he gets used to the new place and add in some Bach's Rescue Remedy.

Are you able to find EarthWise foods at all? It's usually cheaper than Canidae and TOTW (my dog never did well on TOTW and he doesn't have a sensitive stomach). Maybe give that a shot and see what happens, along with adding in some plain yogurt for probiotics and a couple spoonfulls of pumpkin to help the transition.
 

lippylulu

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#13
I can increase his prozac dosage again though it does not seem anxiety related (he is always anxious and actually less anxious in our new palce as it is smaller adn he gets mroe walks). I can get Earthwise delivered and may have even seen it at a store. This TOTW salmon experiment is a failure.
 

lippylulu

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#14
whoops

whoops, I don't see Earthwise on petfooddiret website. So many of hte names are similar.
 

Beanie

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#15
Try this as an immediate solution.
First of all, no food for 24 hours. He can have as much water as he wants but no food, no treats.

When you start feeding him again, feed him something very mild. Whenever I have an upset belly around here, I get out my crockpot, put some uncooked rice in it, lay chicken breasts on top, cover with water, and leave it on low until the chicken is cooked through and shreds easily with a fork. Store this chicken and rice mixture in your fridge and you will feed it to him for several days. Start off with just a little bit. You are giving his stomach and digestive system a break so don't load up his bowl with food - think about after you've had a terrible stomach bug. You don't want to go right back to eating like you did before, you start with something bland and just a little bit. Same principle here. So just a little bit his first meal. If he does okay with that, feed him a little bit more next meal, then a bit more the next time you feed him.
I make enough that I can feed bland for about three to four days - it should give plenty of time for his system to clear out anything that might still be bothering him from his other diet.

If he is still having diarrhea after having been fasted and then being on chicken & rice for a few days, you are looking at two options:
1) Something else is going on unrelated to diet OR
2) He can't tolerate chicken and/or rice. Both are ingredients in the Canidae ALS, chicken being the first ingredient by weight, so if you completely rule out any other problems and narrow it down to diet, you won't want to put him back on the Canidae.


I would do this first. If he's still sick on this bland diet and you've ruled out anything else, like clostridium, there are a few more diet troubleshooting ideas that come to mind (like feeding canned tuna as his bland diet.) But we can cross that bridge if we come to it...



If he does fine on the chicken and rice, personally I think I would keep him on the TOTW salmon since it does sound like his stools were getting better once you switched him off the Canidae. When you go back to kibble, use the same idea as before... just give him a little bit of kibble to start. Add a little bit more each time you feed him until he is back to what he was being fed before.
Also, make sure you're not overfeeding him. Some dogs need surprisingly little food, and some get diarrhea for no other reason than they are just eating too much.
 

lippylulu

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#16
thanks keep it coming

I really appreciate all the advice. I am one of those people who will do anything for my dog but my finances are pathetically low right now (disabled, widowed, single mom---WE wil be on food stamps soon). The idea of cooking for my dog is a bit funny because I barely cook for myself. I used to be a career woman with a husband who cooked and now my hands are disabled so when I do cook its a special occasion. Rice and chicken in a crock pot or just boiled is certainly doable, and I do have a 16 year old daughter to help.

My sister's dog eats a very expensive Royal Canine kibble from the vet which is venison and sweet potato. I know how people feel about Royal Canine but it works for her dog. I can't afford that food (my dog is 70 pounds--about 5 pounds more than he should weigh so cutting down portions is also part of the plan). What do people think of a commerical brand of venison nd sweet potato like Nutro? I am just trying to brainstorm short term solutions to settle his stomach and then longer term practical solutions I can afford.:confused:
 

Paradis

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#17
If you have a Costco near you, Nature's Domain makes a Salmon and Sweet Potato that I've fed with great sucess. It is I want to say 33.99/30 something pound bag of food. 3% fibre. Last I checked TOTW was about $45/bag so savings of roughly $10/bag of food, average dog eats 1 bag per month so even if you didn't have a costco membership, it would pay for itself in 5 months ($50/year for the membership, 5 months of saving $10 on dog food). That might be an option for a fish based grain free food at a reasonable price for you.
 

Saeleofu

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If you have a Costco near you, Nature's Domain makes a Salmon and Sweet Potato that I've fed with great sucess. It is I want to say 33.99/30 something pound bag of food. 3% fibre. Last I checked TOTW was about $45/bag so savings of roughly $10/bag of food, average dog eats 1 bag per month so even if you didn't have a costco membership, it would pay for itself in 5 months ($50/year for the membership, 5 months of saving $10 on dog food). That might be an option for a fish based grain free food at a reasonable price for you.
Yes, this! If you have a Costco, Nature's Domain IS Taste of the Wild in a different bag, so you can feed the exact same formula for less. I always forget that because the nearest Costco is 3 hours away.
 

lippylulu

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#19
wow costco

That is good to know about Costco as I have been a member in the past at least. The TOTW Salmon didn't work out so I am trying a Venison an Sweet Potato food (Nutro) now. But, we will see. Its good to know there are less expensive ways to get quality dog food and if this Venison works I will see if TOTW has a version of it.
 

Saeleofu

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#20
I may have missed it, but how long has he been on TOTW? It's not going to fix itself overnight, it takes time. Changing foods every few days is not going to help anything.
 

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