Dog food question...

I know alot of us here use Chicken Soup for the Dog lovers soul. I have used it since the day i brought Dale home, but am starting to think i might switch...here are the reasons...anyone else experience this??...

I find that he has alot of gas...(P-U-STINKY)....also, i now have to walk him when i let him outside, b/c we are temporarily living with the in laws, and they dont have a fenced in yard...so i have to walk him on the leash, instead, of what i used to do, is let him out freely into our yard to do his business...well, since i am now walking him, i have paid more attention to his stools, and they seem not as firm as they should...i guess they never were really really firm, and its not diareaha(sp?)...i just loved the ingriedients of the food that we kept with it...anyone else have this happen on Chicken Soup?


ONe more thing...i read some really good reviews on Royal Canin Natural Blend Adult Health Optimizing Formula...anyone use this?

Anyone switch from a food from gas/ softer stools, and found one that they liked much better, and which one?

Thanks for any advise...

Robyn

Keegan was also on Chicken Soup and I am trying to switch to to something different.

I LOVE ROYAL CANIN! I swear by it!!! I think it is an excellant food!!!
I LOVE their Holistic blend formula also.

I don't have any experience with the Chicken Soup brand as it's not sold locally.

I have used the Royal Canin Holistic and I thought it was a good food. The stools did seem somewhat soft with that though.

I have Nebo on Natural Balance http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/products/dogfood.html right now. He's been on it for quite a while now. I haven't noticed much gas and his stools are firmer than before.

I tried Chicken Soup once and my boys stool was loose. I feed Canidee The meat they use in it is USDA Approved for human consumption and has omega 6 in it among other natural ingredients. I love this food and so do my boys. I have also noticed they do not eat as much of the Canidee as the other foods because they get more nutrition (sp) out of it.

Robyn, I wish you luck on deciding which one to use. You already know, through email, what I am doing, and why. Let us know what you decide!

Logan

Max has so many allergies that I had him on Wellness Fish & Sweet Potato. That did wonders for his skin, but his stools were getting looser and looser.

I'm now trying to introduce Natural Balance Potato and Duck. He seems to love it and his stools are starting to firm up. As long as his skins stays clear through the transition, I'll continue to move him over. If he gets worse, I'll switch back and deal with the stool problem.

One thing I can't fix is the gas problem - he's gassy no matter what he eats. We call him our gas pump. If we could harness it we could fuel half the world.
:o

I feed my dog raw food, and, his stool isn't loose, but, his poo and toots do stink. Ha, but, it's worth it. :) And, it's less expensive than a lot of the really good dog food out there. Let us know what you decide to do and how it works out for you!

Harley and Sylvia have been on the Chicken Soup food for months now. Harley's toots are pretty stinky, but he was always like that even on the old food. As for loose stool, I have not noticed it. Every dog is different. Please let us know if you try that other food and how you like it.

I've recently switched Molly and Daisy to Chicken Soup.

I've also noticed their stools are a little soft...but, they love this food; MUCH more than Nutro. The ingriedients are great too.

I've never experimented with Royal Canin, but I'm sure it's great too.

Good Luck! :)

A good hint for gas problems is to put a scoop or 2 of yogurt over their food. They reccommend this for greyhounds who notoriously have methane problems! ;)

My two have been on it for a while now. I don't notice any gas actually so it's very minimal and their stools are normally firm. They get the occasional soft stool but most of the time it's fine.

Quote:

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Originally posted by shais_mom
A good hint for gas problems is to put a scoop or 2 of yogurt over their food. They reccommend this for greyhounds who notoriously have methane problems! ;)

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Staci that is also recommended for helping to prevent bloat. I have been reading a lot on bloat websites and yogurt comes up often. I believe the enzymes in the yogurt help in the digestion and thus reduce the gas. Since standard poodles are on the *high risk* list I have been paying lots of attention to food ingredients. I also read somewhere on one of the bloat websites to avoid food that contain brewer's yeast. Chicken Soup doesn't have any. :) (Sorry to digress. I didn't mean to turn this thread into a bloat subject). So far so good for us with the Chicken Soup. Mine eat it but I can't say they love it. If I serve it dry, they pick at it. If I moisten it or add a little canned they gobble it right up. They have good poops and no gas. I guess I am lucky. I'm still open to trying anything, though, especially any good anti-bloat food.

I have never tried Royal Canin, but when having a discussion about foods, my vet said he didn't like that brand. Not sure why.

Bear is diabetic so he has to have prescription food. The other three eat Nutro. Bella is on the Lite, Scruffy gets Senior with glucosomine and Samson gets 2/3 Senior, 1/3 Lite. They all get plain, fat-free yogurt mixed in, a sprinkle of garlic powder and a quarter cup of chopped green vegetables on top. Sometimes I'm tempted to try it myself.;)

Mary

Quote:

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Originally posted by SandraDee
I have never tried Royal Canin, but when having a discussion about foods, my vet said he didn't like that brand. Not sure why.

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My vet said that he had never heard of this brand either b/c he wanted me to switch to Science Diet b/c that is what he sells.
Personally, I have done a lot of research on dog food and I know that there are better quality foods out there then what they reccommend sometimes. Science Diet is a good brand but has a lot of corn in it.


:p

I just think some dogs have sensitive stomachs and have problems digesting richer dog foods. When I fed Leo Innova his stools were looser and he would have occasional bouts of diarrhea. I loved the ingredients in the food and thought Leo's coat looked great, but didn't want to deal with the consequences. (YUCK) :)

I don't have any experience with Royal Canin, but have only heard good things about it from everyone who has tried it. Leo and Penny are now on Eagle Pack Holistic Formula (Anchovy, Sardine and Salmon variety) and are doing well on it. I really like the ingredients in it, and both dogs have beautiful coats.

Thanks everyone! I am going to keep researching, and see what i come up with, who knows, i may stay with Chicken Soup..i really like the ingredients, and it is hard to find a brand that can beat those ingredients!!
Robyn

My turn. :)

Gigi had Chicken Soup for a little over a month now. The stool do seem softer and they stink anyway, so I am not too concern about the smell. But seems like she's been itching a lot more. And yesterday I discovered she had scratched her ears red. So I am taking her to the vet tomorrow and ask about that... plus I need to know how much it will cost to have her extra baby teeth pulled.

I did have Angus on it for a while and stinky gas is what he had PpppUuuu!!! He also had much looser stools, so we switched him back to Eukanuba senior and he's doing just fine now.
I also give him & the girls yogurt every morning with their food.