Frequent Pooping?

[dab_20]

Molli poops 4 times a day at least, is this usually only caused from the type of food that is fed? I know foods with lots of fillers cause frequent pooping. I feed her Nutro Ultra, is there a different food for around the same price I should be feeding her? ( I pay 35 dollars for 15 pounds) I was under the impression that this is a decent brand. I am a college student and don't have much money to buy the more expensive brands, otherwise I definitely would!

Sam eats Science Diet because it was prescribed by the vet for his chronic colitis, which I thought was not as good quality, but he only poops twice a day. :confused:

[Pawsitive Thinking]

If her "motions" are normal then I wouldn't worry too much about it, maybe gradually introduce a different brand if you can afford it. However if her stools are runny, have mucus or blood in them then I would suggest a trip to the vet just in case

[MonicanHonda]

I would bring in a different brand. Feeding Delta a different food decreased her poops from 4+ times a day to maybe 2. Nutro has menadione which is known to be a carcinogen, so that is why I stopped feeding and refuse to feed anything with that in it... Honda was on it, and I won't feed it again. :(

You can do a lot better with less money... if there isn't so much filler, you don't have to feed as much, so it lasts longer. And I've also just noticed that Nutro is EXPENSIVE! Go grain free.... You can get Taste of the Wild for about 22-28 dollars depending on where you buy it. Stay away from the pacific stream because it does have ethoxyquin in it... which is a bad preservative... the other two brands have fish meal... but in rather small amounts. This is what Remy is on.

You can also look into Blue Wilderness (a bit more expensive), Wellness, Nature's Variety Instinct, Solid Gold Barking at the Moon, Before Grain from Merrick, Canidae Grain free... those are just a few. I believe TOTW is the cheapest though.

[MonicanHonda]

Oh, and if you belong to a Costco near you, there is a pretty decent fish based food that is grain free there... it's like Kirkland... but I forget the name...

[*LabLoverKEB*]

Hmmm.... from what I know, Nutro is a pretty good quality dog food. Maybe try TOTW like MonicaHonda suggested! Science Diet makes excellent pet foods, too!

[MonicanHonda]

Just check out http://www.dogfoodproject.com/

You'll see how the foods add up to what is considered a good dog food.

[dab_20]

Thanks you guys! Very helpful. Monican Honda... are those brands you can get at Petsmart? Or like those specialty pet stores? I do live in the city so I'm sure I can find them. I had no idea that Nutro contained a carcinogen (cancer causer, right?)!

Lablover, thanks for the info. I have heard Science Diet isn't the best on here somewhere, but I'm glad to know its good! We feed Sam Science Diet Z/D... and I like it... He's got energy and a super shiny coat!

[MonicanHonda]

I know the ones I named can be found at Pet Supplies Plus and most at Petco. As for Petsmart... I would try Blue Buffalo....

[*LabLoverKEB*]

Science Diet is used widely in the veterinary field! Z/D is awesome, but man, is it expensive!! One of my instructors feeds her pit bull, Luna Z/D. Luna is allergic to everything! 4 kinds of grasses, cats, and many other things! We call her 'the pink pit bull' because she is mostly white. But due to her severe allergies to everything, she is kinda of hairless on her chest, which makes her skin pink! She's so cute. :)

[MonicanHonda]

Just because it's fed by veterinarians doesn't make it a good food. They are bribed from day one in vet school. Getting free stuff (Dog food, scrubs, stethoscopes, paper, pens, toiletries (yes even in the bathroom!)), and making sure they weasel their way into the vet's office. We don't ask our normal practitioner's about nutrition advice, so we shouldn't expect vet's to know it either. Vet's only get about one training seminar in nutrition unless they specialize in nutrition. Sure, vets should take more time out of their day to learn about nutrition before being led blindly... but they do a lot of studying on how to fix injuries and such, that I don't blame them. So just because your vet has it doesn't make it a good food. Once I finish my DVM, Science Diet will not be anywhere near my clinic. More like Orijen, Evo, California Natural, and premade raw. (If your intructor's pitbull has a lot of allergies, she should try California Natural... very limited ingredients as to not upset an allergic dog. VERY good food for allergies) Just take a look at the ingredients for yourself... Corn shouldn't be the number one ingredient... (This is the #1 thing dogs are allergic to!!!) even bad foods like Nutrish say meat should be #1. (Just because meat is number one, doesn't mean there aren't 5 more corn products down the line to add up to more than the meat)

EDIT: I did just look up Z/D, I have to say, at least it doesn't contain corn!!! :) But starch really shouldn't be the first ingredient. Nor should it have cellulose... they are both fillers. Doggies like meat!!!! :) Basically, Science Diet works for some dogs, and that's great! But there are definitely cheaper, better alternatives out there. (Like Cal Nat is cheaper than SD)

[MonicanHonda]

LabLover... I hope you don't think I am being too confrontational or rude... I by no means mean to. Nutrition is just something I feel VERY strongly about... I even want to become a DVM and specialize in Nutrition. I just think it's sad that vets are expected to know everything about everything... when I don't think they should have to know about nutrition... because they really don't.

Again, I'm sorry, and I don't mean to make it sound like your opinion doesn't matter here, it does. I'm just very passionate and sometimes it makes me become a loud mouth. :-X Lol

[*LabLoverKEB*]

No problem. We had our nutrition portion in school about 3 months ago, and learned about many different kinds of pet foods. I'm not in any way saying science diet is the best food, but I do believe they make great foods for animals that help maintain their health issues!
I agree with corn as an ingredient, many animals are allergic to it, and it's just a filler that really doesn't do anything. I'll mention California Natural to my instructor, thanks!

[wolf_Q]

No idea if it's just my dogs or not but I switched them from Wellness Lamb to Avoderm Lamb and I'm not sure if they actually poop less frequently but they are considerably smaller poops, with all three dogs. They've done really well on it too, its sold at Petco for sure likely at Petsmart too.

[MonicanHonda]

Oh, are you in vet school??!!! Or tech school or something!??!! Ugh, I'm nervous because I apply this summer/fall. >.>

I like Avoderm too... good food, but I don't think it's at Petsmart... I think really the only good foods Petsmart sells is Blue Buffalo and I think they just started selling Castor and Pullox which isn't bad.

[dab_20]

Thanks everyone for the info and comments. I have seen Blue Buffalo there and they have commercials on TV now too... I may look into that!

[dab_20]

What do you guys know about Royal Canin? My brother feeds that to Springen, it has a kind that is especially for Boxers. Good or no?

[king2005]

digi poops once a day & its really small & well formed... I spend about $7/week or less for her raw diet. she lovs it & has no allergy reactions to it cause i can control it 100% this way.

[MonicanHonda]

Well, Royal Canin's breed specific meals are a joke (nothing makes them special), but RC is a bit better than Science Diet I suppose.

*Sigh* I fear I must take back the recommendation of California Natural as a good pet food. I just found out today that Natura has been sold to Proctor and Gamble... the makers of some very bad foods out there. Euk and Iams used to be decent foods but once PandG got their greedy hands on them, they went downhill... Now I fear that Natura may do the same (Evo, Cal Nat, etc.)

[bckrazy]

What do you guys know about Royal Canin? My brother feeds that to Springen, it has a kind that is especially for Boxers. Good or no?

Royal Canin and Science Diet are both VERY BAD foods... they consist primarily of lower-than-cattle-feed-grade fillers, and the little "meats" they use are rejected scraps. Nutro Ultra is just a step above that, as it's still packed with grains and has very low meat content at all.

Corn Meal
Chicken By-product Meal
Animal Fat
Soybean Mill Run

Those are the first 4 ingredients in SD, and it gets worse from there. Chemicals, common allergens, etc. Nutro contains 3 types of rice in the first 4 ingredients, making the food primarily rice!!! That's a nutty price to pay for a rice-based dog food. This just doesn't seem like food that a carnivore should be eating, does it? A canine can only digest at MOST 25% of grains/plants. The rest of it is going to be converted into excessive, yucky poops. When you feed grain free, poops will be small, firm, and much less frequent. My dogs poop once or twice a day, never more, and they're very small.

I love Orijen & Acana... it costs $12 for a 5.5 lb bag of it, so it's about $2/lb. Same as Nutro Ultra! And you will be feeding much, much less of it. The ingredients speak for themselves.

Fresh deboned chicken, chicken meal, turkey meal, russet potato, fresh deboned pacific salmon (a natural source of DHA and EPA), herring meal, sweet potato, peas, fresh deboned lake whitefish, fresh deboned northern walleye

If you can't get Orijen or Acana, Wellness CORE is a low cost, quality grain free option. :)

[dab_20]

Thanks for the suggestions everyone!

king2005, I would love to feed a raw diet, but unfortunately there is no way I could get my mom to prepare it when I am not home. She just wouldn't agree to it :rolleyes:

bckrazy... is Orijen & Acana a good choice for Sam too? Considering he was put on this prescription diet for his allergies? I'm sure I can find it somewhere... I do live in the city... I'll do some googling! I think there is this place called the Dog's Meow that sells dog food that chain pet stores don't offer. My mom will CERTAINLY be happy that she no longer has to pay 70 dollars for a bag of Science Diet dog food! I'm going to send this thread to my bro so he can read about it for Springen.

[dab_20]

I am going to a place called the Dog's Meow tomorrow that sells holistic high quality dog foods and am going to pick out a new one. Hopefully the person working there knows something about them. Thanks so much for your suggestions everyone! I want the food I feed my dogs to be high quality, and yummy! They deserve to live the longest, healthiest life they can :)

[*LabLoverKEB*]

Oh, are you in vet school??!!! Or tech school or something!??!! Ugh, I'm nervous because I apply this summer/fall. >.>

Didn't see this until now.... oops!! I'm in a veterinary technology program. I will be an RVT! (Registered Veterinary Technician).;)

[bckrazy]

I am going to a place called the Dog's Meow tomorrow that sells holistic high quality dog foods and am going to pick out a new one. Hopefully the person working there knows something about them. Thanks so much for your suggestions everyone! I want the food I feed my dogs to be high quality, and yummy! They deserve to live the longest, healthiest life they can :)

That's awesome! LMK what you pick out! :)

Grain free is absolutely ideal for dogs with allergies. Most allergies involve corn, soy, grains, etc, as those as not in the natural diets of carnivores. I would pick of a fish-based grain free food, like Orijen Fish, just to make sure he doesn't have a meat allergy. I've never met a dog with a fish allergy. Then, once he has good poops and no side affects from the fish formula, switch him to a red meat formula, or a chicken/turkey formula. You have to work your way through meat sources to see if any of them give him an allergic reaction. It's called an elimination diet.

You will be amazed with the changes that your dogs go through on grain free. I work with hundreds of dogs every day, and I can pick out a grain free fed dog in a second! It's crazy. Most people just deal with dirty ears, itchies, rough coats, goopy eyes, and dirty teeth because they feel it's just the norm. I can honestly say that I never clean out my dog's ears... I never clean their eye boogers... I RARELY brush their teeth, and feed them raw meaty bones once a week... and they have spotless ears, eyes, and teeth, and soft, shiney, barely shedding coats just from eating a species appropriate diet. The changes are shocking!

[MonicanHonda]

Orijen or Acana should be excellent for allergies. I second the fish! Great food for allergies... and then the red meat. Dogs usually have the biggest allergies to chicken. Good luck hunting! :)

[MonicanHonda]

I will also add the significant changes you will see will be amazing! Lol At the office, I just see dog after dog that has horribly greasy nasty fur, boogered out eyes, heaven forbid you can even see into their ears. It's disgusting!!! But like bckrazy says, (Delta is on raw which I guess would be like a grain free. Lol) Delta never has her teeth brushed, I clean her ears out... maybe once a month???... it's ultimately cheaper (actually super cheap for me because of my co-op) but if she was on kibble, it would be cheaper because she eats less, and she just LOOKS healthy. And everyone just raves about how SOFT she is. Honda (fed Nutro) was soft... but kind of course feeling and always would feel greasy even a couple days after a bath. And she could only have a bath about every four months because it would just dry her skin out and she would ITCH! Delta could get a bath once a week and still have sparkly fur. :) Nutrition is the number one thing. If your dog doesn't have good things going in, it's not going to have good things coming out. Lol

[king2005]

^^ loved the post & agree!

[dab_20]

Thanks for the posts guys you're awesome!

So I went to the Dog's Meow today (awesome place and very knowledgeable people, but unfortunately the guy didn't tell me chicken is a huge allergen?) We actually ended up with California Natural Chicken diet. I may end up switching him to the herring diet now that you guys told me I should try the fish. Most of the foods there were all made by Natura, and they didn't have Orijen or Acana :( (although the guy said the owner is thinking about bringing those in).
I asked about the company MonicanHonda said they sold to. He told me that they are keeping the same building, same employees, same ingredients and sources for those ingredients. He said he understands if people switch for ethical reasons (not sure what that meant?), but nutrition wise it's staying the same. He also recommended Evo (the totally grain free option), but I don't have the money right now to feed that... I may end up switching eventually.

Although it's not COMPLETELY grain free, I'm really hoping that this will do. He said he recommended it for allergens. My dogs definitely have goopy eyes, and Sam has the itches and greasy fur just days after his baths! I'm hoping this will change. I also got some samples for Springen.

There was also this beagle mix there (possibly with lab?), that the owner is fostering and is up for adoption. I wanted to take him home sooooo bad!! Unfortunately my mom won't agree to another dog :rolleyes: hehe, oh well, starting college in the fall I won't have much time for another one anyway!

EDIT: Oh and I looked today and realized Sam isn't fed Science Diet, it is Hill's Perscription Diet z/d (:rolleyes:Don't know what I was thinking..) but I think it's about the same thing? Anyways, I looked and on the bag and on Hill's it says to feed a 20 pound dog 2 1/4 cups a day.... and on California Natural it says 1.5 cups!! BIG difference!

[bckrazy]

Cal Nat is still a really good food... HUGE upgrade! If Sam's allergies act up, he's probably allergic to chicken, and the herring would be a good idea. Natural Balance also has limited ingredient diets with a huge assortment of single meat source formulas, but the meat content is lower in those.

[dab_20]

Cal Nat is still a really good food... HUGE upgrade! If Sam's allergies act up, he's probably allergic to chicken, and the herring would be a good idea. Natural Balance also has limited ingredient diets with a huge assortment of single meat source formulas, but the meat content is lower in those.

Thanks for the help :)

[MonicanHonda]

Most of the time the dogs don't even eat what is recommended on the bag. Some eat more, some eat less. Delta, when she ate kibble, ate a whole cup less!

But I think when he said ethical reasons... he just means that P&G haven't been a very reputable company and just because of that, some people don't want to contribute money to their company. I really hope they do keep the kibbles the same... just watch out for adverse reactions to certain bags. A lot of times companies will make tiny adjustments in their kibble and sometimes dogs can't even handle that... and the company won't tell anyone. I would recommend cutting the ingredients off the bag and taking them every time you buy a new bag so you can compare. Even moving an ingredient up and one back can make a huge problem for some dogs.

Cal Nat is limited ingredients especially for allergies, so I hope it helps! Even though it has some grains... they are the better end of grains to give and not things like corn or the such... And I understand about the Evo... SUPER expensive. >.>

[king2005]

Most of the time the dogs don't even eat what is recommended on the bag. Some eat more, some eat less. Delta, when she ate kibble, ate a whole cup less!

To my understanding its just a place to start, not a rule.


A lot of times companies will make tiny adjustments in their kibble and sometimes dogs can't even handle that... and the company won't tell anyone. I would recommend cutting the ingredients off the bag and taking them every time you buy a new bag so you can compare. Even moving an ingredient up and one back can make a huge problem for some dogs.


From what I've learned & seen with many dogs, is when you feed the higher end kibbles, you can switch brands all you want & mix n match for variety, as they have no bad chemicals or doo doo in them, so there isn't any reason for the dogs to become ill. If I'm correct, its the chemical changes in the lower quality of kibbles that cause food change issues.

Before Digi's allergies became severe she was on 2 brands at a time & I use several brands with different fish/chicken flavours. That never made her ill, not even with her sensitive gutt... Well now it'll kill her as her allergies are severe... so I'm not sure if using her as an example is even good... But I've talked to many people at that store & they mixed things up all the time too, just like I did & non of their dogs became ill. So I really do think its all those chemicals that are hard on the gut when it comes to changes.

[dab_20]

Most of the time the dogs don't even eat what is recommended on the bag. Some eat more, some eat less. Delta, when she ate kibble, ate a whole cup less!

But I think when he said ethical reasons... he just means that P&G haven't been a very reputable company and just because of that, some people don't want to contribute money to their company. I really hope they do keep the kibbles the same... just watch out for adverse reactions to certain bags. A lot of times companies will make tiny adjustments in their kibble and sometimes dogs can't even handle that... and the company won't tell anyone. I would recommend cutting the ingredients off the bag and taking them every time you buy a new bag so you can compare. Even moving an ingredient up and one back can make a huge problem for some dogs.

Cal Nat is limited ingredients especially for allergies, so I hope it helps! Even though it has some grains... they are the better end of grains to give and not things like corn or the such... And I understand about the Evo... SUPER expensive. >.>


Yeah, I know it's just a recommendation. Sam will eat the whole bag at once if he could! hehe I just fill Molli's bowl and she eats until she's full and they both have good maintained weight.

Ohhh, I see. I think I will do that, just to make sure the ingredients don't change.

[MonicanHonda]

Well, people usually recommend you rotate brands as they are less likely to become allergic if they have more variety... but the fact is that dogs can still have adverse reactions to switching around in good dog foods. I know quite a few dogs had to get off Natural Balance just because of a TINY little switch around in the ingredients.

And also, every dog is different. I know Honda didn't even need any transition time. That dog could eat anything and be fine. >.> And she did have quite a few times where she ate stuff she shouldn't have... and well, the wrappers came out in her firm poop. Lol We called it her christmas poo. hahahaha These adverse reactions could have just been because they didn't have a 'transition' time and so they had diarrhea or something... I'm not really sure. But once you change the food with your dogs enough times, I think they become use to the transitions and don't need a transition time anymore.

And even if the ingredients do change... just make sure they are good changes and not bad... and maybe do a transition time with the last bag if your dogs aren't used to changing so they don't get upset tummies.

[caseysmom]

Oh, and if you belong to a Costco near you, there is a pretty decent fish based food that is grain free there... it's like Kirkland... but I forget the name...

Yep, I have been very happy with this food, it is Nature's domain.

[MonicanHonda]

Yup! That's it. :)