So much for switching to a better dog food!*PICS*

[pitc9]

When I first adopted Sierra it took quite a while to find a food that she could eat. I discovered that any food with poultry made her sick.
I found Pro Plan Sensitive skin and stomach. (Not for the sensitive skin part keep in mind) and she did great with it!!
Along came Buddy almost a year later and he did good on it too.
I know Pro Plan isn’t the best, but it’s not the worst. But recently I started switching them to Wellness by Mother Hubbard (I used the grade your dog food scale and it got 106 points out of 100)
I knew I had to switch veeery slowly to make sure Sierra was okay with it. I kid you not, it’s been almost 2 months now and just this past Thursday I made the most to 25% Pro Plan and 75% Wellness. I’ve been keeping a close eye in Sierra and she’s been doing great with it!! Yesterday and last night I noticed Buddy licking his feet quite a bit but didn’t think anything about it. Until I took a close look at his feet this morning. :(

His back feet are worse than the front.

Left rear
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7ce36b3127ccebd8a9573e98900000026108AaMWTJi1cNT

Right rear
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7ce36b3127ccebd8a957fe98500000026108AaMWTJi1cNT

Right front
http://im1.shutterfly.com/procserv/47b7ce36b3127ccebd8a9577e98d00000026108AaMWTJi1cNT

So... we're back to Pro Plan Sensitive skin (Bud) & stomach (Sierra)
:(

[Ginger's Mom]

I am so sorry to hear that you are having such a tough time finding a food that both you and the dogs can agree on. But it sounds like your dogs are doing well on Pro Plan, so I guess you have to just let them have what they want. They always seem to find a way to get what they want, don't they? :)

I just had to open this when I saw the title because just this weekend I was bemoaning the same problems (finding right food). I slowly switched Ginger over to Evo after Blue Buffalo was involved in the recall, but to be honest, I don't think she has done well on that (soft stools, dryer coat). We are now doing a slow switch to Merrick dry food (which I never thought I would buy). Time will tell.

[pitc9]

Thank you, yes they always do get their way! :D

Best of luck for your switch to Merrick.

[robinh]

I have 5 dogs and only 2 eat the same thing.

Max has horrible allergies to corn, wheat and heaven knows what else so he eats Natures Variety "Instinct". He's been on it for several months and is only slightly chewing his feet probably from a lite allergy to grass. We haven't had a secondary skin infection in months too. (knock on wood). His coat looks good and his eyes are clear. Took him to his holistic vet last weekend and he was stunned to see how good he looked. In fact, he reviewed the chart while we were there and noted how happy he was that Max looks this good.

Carly my 9 yr old GSD mix almost quit eating after her first cancer surgery. I tried all different kinds of food until I found Merrick dry "Senior Medley" I mix it with a slice of Natural Balance Lamb or Beef roll and a little bit of fat free yogurt. She loves it and she gained back all the weight she lost.

Molly (Miss FussyButt) has a really sensitive tummy and if I don't feed her Science Diet "ID" dry and moist mixed with a little fat free yogurt - she yacks up everything. Not crazy about Science diet, but since I've been feeding her the ID, no yacking!!

Kirby and Muffin eat Natures Variety "Beef Meal and Barley" mixed with some veggies and a little fat free yogurt. They are my least fussy eaters with the least amount of problems. Thank heavens!

You out to see me fix dinner :o I think I spend more time feeding the dogs than I do Dick and I. I know I spend more time planning and researching what to feed them than I do feeding us.

[Tollers-n-Dobes]

Not all dogs do better on high quality foods. Poor Buddy - I hope he's better soon.

I have to admit though, I've heard of a lot of dogs that have had problems with Wellness products. Have you ever tried any of other premium foods? Canidae and California Natural (lamb) are both generally great for sensitive stomachs and the California Natural is also made specifically for dogs with allergies/skin conditions. Those are the only two brands Winston can eat without either stomach or skin problems, and I've heard the same from many other people.

[wolfsoul]

I agree with Devan on this one. I've heard about alot of dogs who've had issues with Wellness. I've heard that since the food was sold that the quality of the ingredients has gone down.
I would try California Natural Lamb and Rice. If not that, maybe just go back to the Pro Plan.

[pitc9]

robinh - Wow! I don't envy you at all! Just goes to show ya that people will do anything and everything for their pets! :D

Wow, I'm glad you 2 told me about other people having problems with Wellness. For now I'm going to switch back to Pro Plan to get Buddy back to normal. (as normal as he can get :p )

I may try again, but chances are that I may just leave well enough alone.

Thanks everyone for your replies!

[Animalhouse26]

Falise has VERY Sensitive Skin, and Allergies.. And I have tried LOTS of High quality food .. and she chews herself to bleed on it. I tried Wellness.. and she Was Peeing out the back end.. It was WAY to much for her. She did pretty good on Natural Balance Fish and potato.. But, it was too expensive for me. I now have her on Natural Choice Fish and potato, and she is doing pretty well.

My aunt has 2 dogs, and she is BIG on Health food, and vitamins and such. Well, the old dog Buddy just recently was diagnosed with Bone cancer. They are unsure how old he is.. But has been with them 15yrs I think. He was a stray that made himself home there. Well, after the diagnosis.. the doc said he could PTS to take him out of pain.. My Aunt didn't want too, she still saw life in him. Even if it was just a week. She has always feed decent dry food. But when she got home, she said Never mind, I Will just feed him Alpo Canned to spoil him.. Well, when she did.. he had regenerated more life, he was running some, and playing a little more. She was AMAZED. Well, this was a cpl months ago, and he is starting to go down hill again.. But this prooves that sometimes.. the "Best" foods aren't always what they need.

Good luck with your babys.

[pitc9]

Oh, poor Falise!

I switched Buddy back to all Pro Plan, but now have to slowly switch Sierra back to it. I also gave Bud some Benadryl yesterday. Hope his feet clear up quickly!

Thank you all for the posts!

[anna_66]

Gosh Angie I'm so sorry to hear about Bud's feet.

I guess it doesn't matter what they eat as long as their doing good!

[lute]

Poor Buddy. Who knew you were already feeding the perfect food for each of your dogs' needs. :D

[pitc9]

Hummm, maybe it's not the food.... :confused:
It's been 5 days now that I've stopped feeding the food and I'm giving him Benydral and his feet are not getting better at all and I've noticed him drinking more water than normal.

Maybe a trip to the white coats is in his near future, or should I just give it more time??

[Lori Jordan]

I hope those feet heal soon,That looks alot like Lacy's feet!I wonder if it is the food that they are on?

I hope all is well with the transformation!

[kallisto4529]

You know my Vet said that Pro Plan is actually a really good food, we had Reilly on that for 6mos and he was doing great, his coat was shiny, no dry skin, no upset stomach. We decided to try him on Nutro natural choice, he hated the lamb one, so I tried the chicken one, he was not crazy about the taste but he ate it, but I did not like what was going on after a month, he is shedding horribly, is very itchy, dry skin, and worse of all upset stomach. So we put him back on Pro-plan, as long as he is ok with it, im sticking to it.

[shais_mom]

have you ever considered RAW?
Keegan has simply THRIVED on Raw for about 13 months.
When I was researching it said that a lot of dogs that have allergy to a certain protein (example: chicken) in a dog food are not allergic to the pure protein source when it is given raw. Now I know that RAW isn't for everyone and I have only one dog. I also know that when Anna fed her girls RAW chicken they got really itchy so they don't get it. I've found a small grocery here in town that sells Amish chicken and it doesn't have all the anti-biotics in it and the chickens are grain fed. It doesn't have the film on them like when I buy them at Walmart. Keegan doesn't seem to be affected either way, Thank GOD b/c she gets Chicken A LOT! (cheaper)
just a thought...
if not - There's a zillion kinds of food out there. GOOD LUCK!! :D

[dukedogsmom]

I'm feeding Dasher Pro Plan and have no problems. This is what I'm feeding him
http://www.petco.com/product/100194/Pro-Plan-Selects-Natural-Turkey-Formula-Adult-Dog-Food.aspx
Now this specific one isn't for senior dogs but until I need to change, I'm not going to. Dasher loves it and you've seen how shiny his coat is. Before Duke had to go to special food, I was feeding the regular Pro Plan to him. I don't see anything wrong with it.

I'm sorry you're having all that trouble. Remember the old saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it"

The homecooked food didn't last long. Dasher loved it but he had gotten bad diarrhea so I gave it up. It was also a little pricey. Had he done well on it, I would have continued, though.

[pitc9]

Kallisto4529-Thank you for your input!! I'm going to stick with Pro Plan, like Val said (and a few others) If it ain't broke.. don't fix it.

Staci... I've thought about it, but I, physically and mentally could not do that. I am such a wuss when it comes to raw meat. (You should see me cooking dinner! :o ) I can't even eat meat off the bone, everything I eat has to be boneless or I'll gag. :o :o

Thank you all for your feedback!
He was still licking his feet last night. It's been 6 days since he's had the old food (except for Saturday night, I was gone for the night camping with my girlfriends and he fed them the mixture of about 50/50 :mad:) And he's been on Benydral for 5 days. Should it be taking this long for his feet to stop itching??

[cyber-sibes]

How's his tootsies today? It usually does take a while for skin to heal, but is he still trying to lick all the time? Maybe call the vet. He might need a shot of steroids. (Star gets them when her hot spots go wild.) Jack was on ProPlan when he joined us, and he was doing well. but Star is SO picky, and after consuming 40+ lbs. of Canidae when Sheman was here, she flat out refused to eat it anymore. Didn't like the ProPlan either, so we went back to our usual Science Diet. I know people here knock SD a lot, but it's what she'll eat. I don't know if you looked at Canidae, but they use terrific ingredients & have a lot of choices of formulas. I especially liked that it contained glucosamine & other good stuff. But if they are doing well on ProPlan, why worry? ;)

[pitc9]

Pat - No, he's not licking his feet as much, and I guess it looks like they're starting to clear up a little.
I'm sure I'm just being impatient! :o
Thanks!

[Catlady711]

If the licking started because of a food allergy it can take quite a while for things to clear up even after removing the offending food. If the licking continues you might want to take him to the vet for something to help with the itching until his system recovers from the food change so he doesn't lick himself into a skin infection in the meantime.

[pitc9]

Looks like we're going to make a trip to the white coats.

His feet aren't looking any better, but he has stopped licking them. So that's a good thing.
But yesterday after I gave him his Benadryl he threw the pills up along with stomach bile.

:(

[cyber-sibes]

:( Poor Buddy! We'll keep paws crossed it's an easy fix.