Still trying to find the right food!

[vivann]

In true poodle fashion, my miniature bitch has decided she doesn't like cold pressed food after all.  Initially I got Gentle Cold Pressed Goat after discussing it with Beate.  My dog absolutely adored it, kept begging for more (or should I say walked about grizzling and moaning and beating everything up), the suggested 70-80g per day just didn't seem enough for her.  Started adding some cooked veg but had to up the amount of cold pressed food too.  Have ended up reducing it a bit and giving her cooked white fish, chicken breast etc. with the cold pressed.  By the way when I was getting low on it and there seemed to be a supply problem, I ordered some Walker and Drake fish version of their cold pressed - she won't eat it, yet when I got a sample she did!!!!

A few days ago I was looking at the Pure Pet Food (raw food but air dried) site again, tried ringing them to ask questions a couple of times but busy so I didn't leave a message.  Surprised to get a call back anyway (my suspicious mine wondered if they are struggling with sales).  Upshot is I have bought and received a transition box of the Terrific Turkey which is what he suggested for my girl (sensitive tummy, itchy skin etc.) but to my horror there is a lot of carbohydrate in it when checking on AADF information.

Healthwise, my dogs stomach generally isn't too bad but she seems to have more output than goes in.  Being graphic first poo of the day good, next softer and progresses to very soft and a bit of mucus.   She sometimes does four lots during the morning walk although some is so small I don't know why she bothered.  She has always had soft poo right from when I got her - when she was on Purina HA (after being diagnosed with IBD) it went the opposite way, I did wonder if she was able to absorb the nutrients better on that.  When I got her she came with raw food and Purina Opti Start medium puppy kibble.  I didn't want to feed raw so changed to canned dog food and a different kibble.  Her scratching is getting worse but neither the groomer, myself or the vet can see any problem with her skin, apart from a bit of scurf, the skin under where I find it is clean.

I haven't weighed her for sometime but last time she was 7kg.  It was a bit of a struggle to get weight on her when younger but she has matured now (3 in May).

I might add that I asked a question on a poodle Facebook page, I wanted to know if anyone had fed Pure Pet Food to their dogs and did they like it.  Only about four people answered and one said their dog liked the chicken but not the beef.  Ate the chicken for four months then wouldn't touch it.  Another said she had to throw it away, her dog wouldn't eat it and nobody she knew wanted it, someone else said she wanted it for holiday use (as she raw fed) but dogs wouldn't touch it so she bought a small freezer instead.

Has anyone on this site successfully fed Pure Pet Dog air dried raw to their dogs?  UPDATE:  Today my dog won't touch it!

[PurePetFood]

Hi Vivann,

It's great to hear our customer service team got back to you so quickly after the missed call. We've helped thousands of pancreatitis sufferers switch to a healthy long-term diet.

Our turkey recipe has a low fat content which is ideal for pancreatitis. You will see Pure is high in fiber which is a non digestible form of carbohydrate which not only controls blood sugar levels but also prevents constipation too so fiber plays a really crucial role in ensuring their digestive system runs smoothly.
When feeding a complete and balanced diet, the inclusion of healthy carbohydrates can really help them thrive, not just survive 

Because our air dried food is so different to other diets, it does need a little bit longer to ease into it but our customer service team will be able to advise a little better than I can here. Give us a call or drop us an email and we'll be happy to help you 

[vivann]

Firstly, my dog does not have pancreatitis, she was diagnosed with IBD.

Secondly, she hates the Pure and will not eat it now.  I have offered it a couple of times since she first refused it, but no way.  Another waste of my limited funds.

I think the way forward is to continue adding some home-cooked food to her cold pressed and get her allergy tested for the itchy skin as I do not want her on Apoquel - side effects include vomiting and diarrhoea (the vet who prescribed it also diagnosed IBD having opened her up, taken biopsies etc. following her continuous bout of vomiting and diarrhoea!!!!!).

[Dottie]

Vivann - I am sorry that you are still struggling with your dog's health issues. I have the feeling that if you could just find something suitable her skin and gut problems would improve. You have tried so hard. It's not helped by the fact that she is a fussy eater but I imagine that might be something to do with the fact that she rejects what is causing her to feel bad. As mentioned before in previous posts, I can only suggest home cooked food with the proviso that they are formulated properly with the correct supplementation.  One of my dogs had a skin condition and having fresh cooked food has turned things around - her skin is now normal.  However, all dogs are different. I was lucky to find something that worked.

PurePetFood - although Vivann's dog doesn't have pancreatitis, it is such a common problem and it's not always easy to find a low fat food that is nutritious so thank you for your input. I like the look of your Veggi Plus Mixer because I can see it being helpful in dogs that are intolerant or allergic to certain foods. With so many dogs having such conditions it would be good if you could expand this range. It is a good half way stage between commercial and home cooked food. I would like to see the white potato replaced with something like sweet potato or butternut squash.

[vivann]

Thanks for your input Dottie.  I find it frustrating that there is no obvious cause for Mia to be scratching like she does, she does seem to have dry skin but no sores, bites or rashes on the skin itself.  I have noticed that it is worse when she has been outside and nosing around grass, plants and shrubs so maybe a different spot-on flea treatment is called for - a different active that kills on contact.  Trouble is, they don't generally kill ticks and the groomer has found a tick on her muzzle in the past.  I see that Advantix does kill ticks but that has to be prescribed by a vet.  I am changing vets so I will discuss getting an allergy test done for her.  Her stomach seems much better now, just wish she wouldn't keep eating animal poo, it was deer (I think) poop a couple of days ago.  Just let her into the garden as she asked to go out - she wandered about sniffing and liking and chewing what she had picked up - pigeon poop I suspect, cannot stop birds landing in the garden!!

Was speaking with her breeders friend yesterday, she says the breeder would say feed raw and all the problems would be solved.  I would prefer not to feed raw as I do not have the facilities nor space to provide another fridge/freezer.  I had considered the veg version of Pure as I do cook meat and veg to add to her cold pressed food but I notice the pieces (rather than powder) in the food go straight through so assume undigested.  I will stick with the home-cooked additions to her cold pressed.  I currently add some Pooch and Mut Bionitic Biotic to her food.

[vivann]

Out of interest, I have just looked up the amount of Pure Vegi plus needed for my dog, then worked out the amount of calories my dog would get if I fed 1.5 scoops of Pure Vegi Plus with 60-80g protein per day, as recommended.

I have worked out that the k/cal of 1.5 scoops of vegi plus would be 168.8 per day.  Now to the addition of the protein - I assume that is say, a piece of raw chicken breast, I have looked this up on Sainsburys website and there is 30.6 g protein per 100g meat cooked as per instructions, in this case they say oven cooked - no mention of added oil etc.  I would boil it for my dog.  So working on these figures 168.8 k/cal for the Vegi plus with 60-80g protein would work out at between 251 - 278.4 k/cal per day.  My dog apparently needs around 409 k/cal per day according to the pmfa.org.uk adult dog calorie calculator.

It also begs the question, what is meant by 60-80g protein?  I did ask that question when I was considering this product a while back - if it did indeed mean exactly that then I would have to provide  200g - 260g of raw chicken per day.  Bumping up the calories to 442.8 - 525 k/cal.  I believe the answer to my question was 60-80 g piece of meat (or fish).

80g cold pressed is so much easier or 70g with added tasty topper of homecooked meat or fish.

[Dottie]

I admire your ability to do those calculations - well done. I can’t help but feel that this depraved appetite may have something to do with her health issues. I’ve known other dogs that are similar to yours. It’s a nightmare trying to stop them eating poo etc once they have started.

Re the parasite treatments - I assume you’ve tried natural ones? When dogs have skin problems it’s important to keep parasites at bay but worrying because the products contain strong chemicals.

I can see why you are being advised to feed raw. Dogs like yours sometimes respond well to it. I’ve been advising a friend who has an itchy Labrador and it’s helped enormously. However, as you say, it needs freezer space unless you have a pet supplies shop close by. The thing about raw is that it is low in carbs and high in fat. These may be important reasons why it often works for dogs who have itchy skin.

[vivann]

At least she doesn't roll in the excrement!  I did have a puppy that  used to do that

No Dottie, I haven't tried natural products to get rid of fleas, mites and ticks.  I don't have a lot of confidence that they would work, but I could be wrong.  She didn't have her annual jabs in November on the grounds that the basic ones last three years, nor did she get  the Lepto2 or 4.  The vet asked if she swims or goes into ditches, which she didn't, so he said no need for it.  Since then the little mare has gone into ditches a few times - I could strangle her!

I have got some Thornit powder and rubbed some around the inside of her ears, I believe that gets rid of mites that cause grotty ears, hers are ok but a bit of residue around - that has gone after a few  applications of Thornit.  I have tried rubbing some into her skin (when I can find some under her thick hair) I think it does help but it isn't easy to apply on her and she doesn't believe in co-operating.

I will have a look at natural flea products - can you recommend any?

[Dottie]

There are lots of natural products for flea and tick prevention so it's worth doing some research. They are preventive treatments so in the event of an animal becoming infested, veterinary preparations will be needed.

Karla Pearson recently did a video about this on Facebook - Natural Flea and Tick Prevention. She talks about the dangers of toxic products such as Bravecto. Also she mentions various natural alternatives - there are quite a few.

Natural Flea and Worming Treatments (My Pet Nutritionist]
Green’s Don’t Bug Me Spray Their Amber Collars look interesting.
Worm Count.com
Green’s Worm Kit - Lungworm
Green’s Worm Egg Count Kit

Some more suggestions:
Using Neem Oil in Dogs
Ruggle-It
Billy No Mates