Dani
Posts:9
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| 08/10/2010 12:43 PM |
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Sorry if this has been discussed before. The search engine isn't bringing anything up for me.
I've got a very picky eater on my hands and not sure what to do. I got him at just 6 weeks and he was on Diamond brand puppy food (very cheap from our local farm supply store). He was only just ok on it. He had awful smelling gas and alot of it plus his stool was off and on soft. After a few months I decided to try different food. I switched to Purina Puppy Chow using a gradual method and gave it another couple months but I saw no difference. I then did a gradual change to Iams Puppy for large breeds. He amazingly did very well on it. No stool problems and no more gas.
After a couple of months he decided that he didn't care for the taste or something as it was a struggle to get him to eat. I finally resorted to using the Iams savory gravy to coat the kibble. That worked for approximately 6 bottles then he started turning his nose up at it. I then started mixing the kibble with green beans (including the water). That worked for only a couple weeks. Then I went to the Vitagravy which again only worked for a couple weeks. I've also tried to mix it up just incase he's just after a variety.
I'm in the process of switching him to Beneful puppy but now we have the gas problem back and I'm again looking at his dinner from last night that he's barely touched.
He's 11 months old and otherwise very healthy and active. Vet so far has only suggested switching him to one of the $60+ dollar a bag brands he sells out of his office. Before I do that though I thought I would ask the masses if they've ever run into this before and maybe get some advice. Thanks.
Dani |
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mrspwgunny
Long Island NY
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Posts:224
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| 08/10/2010 12:56 PM |
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| we switched from diamond to taste of the wild,venison and bison, wyatt is almost 11 months and he LOVES it, as for the gas, its much better... still a BOMB dropped once in awhile. |
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Texas Belle
Austin, TX
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Posts:6748
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erikacarrillo
La Honda, CA
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Posts:229
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| 08/10/2010 2:52 PM |
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I had Koda on Nutro Natural Choice, and she didn't like it and had soft stools. I switched her to Innova puppy, and she loved the taste. The stools were OK, but when she turned one I switched her to Orijen adult (grain free) and her stools are very firm. She doesn't seem to really like to eat, but I have been trying to stick to 10-20 minutes of feeding twice a day, and if she skips one she eats at the next meal. I worried when she was little, since she was so skinny, but now she has gained a few pounds and eats when she's hungry. I would switch to a premium dog food and see if that helps.
Trying to hand feed:
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therozypozy
MH
Posts:333
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| 08/10/2010 3:21 PM |
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I have one dog that is a picky eater, a border collie. Our GSP and lab will eat anything. The picky eater did not like the Orijen, but I think it is a really good food. So now we mix the Orijen and Evo Red meat and he loves it. It is pricey, but the amount that I feed is alot less than the other commercial brands you talked about as I could not keep weight on my GSP. I think the other food with grain just went right through her, lots of poop and gas, but no weight. Now she gets 3/4 cup twice a day. But keep in mind, I do alot of obedience and agility training with her, so she is rewarded quite often. For that I typically use Bil Jac frozen dog food as it is a soft food that you can roll up into a ball. |
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zodiakgsps
NW PA
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Posts:1059
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| 08/10/2010 7:41 PM |
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Not all dogs are big eaters, my Mac, Tara and Jesse eat like pigs, while Jet eats very little, sometimes only a mouthful or 2 a meal. She is thin, but not terrible, gets her food for 15 minutes & that is it, I do not "beg" her to eat with treats....this makes it worse. Every few days she will eat a whole bowl (1 1/2 C AM and same PM), so she eats when she is hungry.
She does love raw meat & when I give that eats it right up almost always.
She has high energy and endurance, she just sint a big eater, it is normal for her & many other dogs. I agree with the quality of food as stated by others, I do raw and TOW. |
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gharner
Middletown, PA
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Posts:512
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| 08/10/2010 8:15 PM |
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Our dogs want whatever the other dogs have...my parents dogs get different food from Dax, and my sisters puppies are on a different food as well. When theyre all over at the house they only want what the other ones have and not whats in their own dish. Dax isn't always the biggest eater though...sometimes only a few bites or a half a serving, and just goes and plays or gets distracted with something else. He will do this for a little while, then eat anything in his bowl for a while. It all depends on his mood. He's at a good weight though so I guess its all up to him if he's hungry or not. When it comes down to it...if he's hungry he'll eat but if playing looks more fun, he'll do that instead  |
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jlp8cornell
Ithaca NY
MH
Posts:461
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| 08/11/2010 6:53 AM |
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| Ditto Zodiaks response for my Max. I feed Orijen adult. Chloe eats it in 2 seconds. Max, however is a pain when it comes to feeding. |
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Jen
http://www.perfectpedigrees.com/4genview.php?id=2440 |
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JoeyBean
Albany, NY
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Posts:280
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| 08/11/2010 9:05 AM |
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Ours is simaler to Jen and Zodiak. Some days she eats more than others but she never seems to actually enjoy her dry kibble. She kind of has the "well, I guess this is all i get" look to her.
We never are around to feed at the same time every day, but shes not much of a morning eater so we usually do one feeding in the evening at some point, maybe 6-7pm, and sometimes if shes hungry again at 10ish. If she doesn't eat, she'll be hungry because we have to take the food bowl away or the cat will eat it all. We've been trying to put weight on Joey lately so are mixing in some EVO wet food. Getting annoying with everyone telling us how skinny she is. I usually say "have you seen the cost of dog food lately?" Seems to be a good response so they leave us alone... haha
Erika- Joey is almost the same size/build as Koda.. is she <40lbs? I really enjoy having a mini GSP for some reason, shes very easy to transport in my truck that doesn't have an extended cab. |
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erikacarrillo
La Honda, CA
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Posts:229
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| 08/11/2010 9:33 AM |
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Kodak is right around 40 lbs. I like her smaller size too. |
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JMSGunner
Bucks County, PA
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Posts:756
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| 08/11/2010 9:54 AM |
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I noticed Gunner wasn't eating when we put his food out and I just chalked it up to a new situation when we first brought him home. But I figured out he's not really all that picky - just won't eat if he's not hungry. So I just switched to filling up his bowl, sometimes it's gone when I get home from work, sometimes he doesn't eat until 11pm. And sometimes he doesn't eat at all it seems, just finicky I guess
I have him on Innova Large Breed Puppy - and he's doing great on it. No loose stools and no stinky farts (well most of the time...) |
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Jackie & Gunner
Impressive Gewehr von Catskill 4/19/2010
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Dani
Posts:9
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| 08/12/2010 8:25 AM |
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Woody is smaller also although not as small as Kodak and Joey. He's right at 50lbs. He's thin and muscular, can see a few ribs but they aren't protruding. I saw one GSP at the pet expo that made me think they weren't feeding him at all. I'm sure he was healthy but wow, didn't look it.
I've also just taken to leaving a bowl out for him. I put 2 measured cups in at a time so I can monitor how much he's actually eating. I kinda like the idea of having a self feeder. All the dogs we had as I was growing up (mostly weimies) were self feeders, when the bowl was empty they got more.
Anyway, thanks for all the advice. I think I will switch him to an adult food now. Now, what to do with an almost full bag of Beneful ........... I guess a trip to the local human society. |
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pixie bee
MH
Posts:3914
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| 08/12/2010 10:58 AM |
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Gas is kinda normal for GSP pups. Soft stool is not. On and off soft stool could indicate some sort of worm - whipworm tends to do this b/c they get the soft stool according to the cycle of the eggs and this is not constant. If his weight is good then he is consuming enough food.
Wish I had a picky eater. My dogs eat... well, let's just say they aren't to picky!
2 dogs - 37.5lbs every 3 weeks. Not to bad.
Where did you get him from and what do they have to say?
Francine |
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"Time with my dogs clears my mind, renews my faith, and lets me see the world as it is. My only regret loving dogs as I do, is the misery of their early departure." Robert G. Wehle
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Dani
Posts:9
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| 08/12/2010 1:25 PM |
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He didn't come from a breeder. He was one of a litter of 11 from an empty nest couple who decided to breed their female. It was her second litter ......... she was 7. It never crossed my mind to contact them as they are quited a distance away. They let the pups go right at 6 weeks which I did find a bit disturbing but I took one anyway cause they had already separated the pups from the mom. I know that used to be the standard years ago but more and more research is telling us 8 weeks is better for the pups. That aside, other than a urinal tract infection around 14 weeks and a bump type reaction to his last distemper booster, he's very healthy.
The gas was always pretty bad until I switched him over to Iams ........... then it disappeared completely ........ at least the smell anyway. I'm going to do some experimenting with adult food ............. just not sure which one yet .......... gotta do a little more research. |
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JoeyBean
Albany, NY
MH
Posts:280
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| 08/12/2010 1:35 PM |
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IMO dependant on your budget... if its very high go with a grain-free food like Orijen, Acana, Wellness CORE, Instinct. Taste of the Wild stands out in the next class below those and is still grain-free. Keep in mind with the higher quality grain-free foods with less fillers more of the food is digested, they don't eat as much, and they dont poop as much so the extra cost is offset to some degree.
If you cant stretch for those, just try to stay away from Proctor and Gamble foods (iams, innova.....). WAY to many recalls. There are decent ones in the lower price ranges. Look at the first five to ten ingredients listed, if they don't sound appetizing to you, stay away. I would stay away from whatever the vet is pushing. They are usually inferior and they are paid to push them. ie. at my vet its royal canin which is.....not that great stuff
my 2 cents |
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coolhandluke
Eau Claire, Wisconsin
JH
Posts:20
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| 08/12/2010 2:25 PM |
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http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/ I found this website and thought it might be of some help. |
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pixie bee
MH
Posts:3914
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| 08/12/2010 6:23 PM |
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My dogs do great on proplan performance.
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"Time with my dogs clears my mind, renews my faith, and lets me see the world as it is. My only regret loving dogs as I do, is the misery of their early departure." Robert G. Wehle
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JoeyBean
Albany, NY
MH
Posts:280
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| 08/13/2010 8:09 AM |
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coolhandluke-
Hadn't seen that site before --I like it. Much more informative and more recently updated than dogfoodanalysis.com which was last updated in 2007 and actually some of the ingredients and percentages they list have changed. It also doesn't have the user comments that dogfoodadvisor.com has. |
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