Need tips for a "food trial" for a sensative tummy - YorkieTalk.com Forums

AlicetheYorkie · 05-19-2011, 04:41 AM

Well, the feeding Alice wars continue

. Apparently not only is she picky, she has a sensative tummy too. Here's a background and I'll try to keep it as brief as possible while still giving the necessary details

:

Started her on Verus puppy when I got her (chicken based with whole grains) - doesn't like it at ALL.

Started Orijen puppy (chicken based grain-free) she ate if for a while, then stopped, but she had alot of gas on it so I think it upset her tummy and that could be why she stopped eating it- poops were good though.

Started raw - my mistake - I did beef first(pre-made NV)- she LOVED it but got pretty wicked poops. Cleared that up with chicken/rice/pumpkin.

Went to Nature's Variety chicken Prairie (slowly with the rice and chicken mixture) - she was pooping like 5 x a day and they were big and mushy.

Went back to chicken/rice/pumpkin for a few days - poop was great - small, firm, 1 or 2x a day and not smelly at all.

Started adding a tiny amount of NV canned lamb Instinct (grain free), she was good so I added more and more of the canned and less chicken/rice - kept doing fine just like on the chicken and rice but smaller poop.

Tried a bit or NV raw lamb yesterday morning - poop still fine.

Picked up a bag of Nature's Variety Instinct Chicken - gave aprox. 1/4 cup last night mixed with the canned NV Lamb - well, this morning she has just a very small amount of "drippy" poop - so I only gave the chicken/rice/pumpkin this AM with like a half tsp. of the canned lamb.

Ugh, I realize that's alot of different things, but other than the boiled chicken and over cooked rice and canned NV Lamb, she's had a problem so I had to try something else. I really would like to do 1/2 pre-made raw and 1/2 kibble with a bit of canned mixed in. I know she can have lamb and she's fine with plain real chicken (I only know about the cooked so far, haven't tried chicken pre-made raw yet).

I know alot of you have sensative tummy babies - how did you go about finding what worked for them? She handles cooked white rice fine, but other than that grains really bulk up her stool significantly, but the grain free kibbles I've tried give her runny stool or lots of gas.

My next thought for kibble is either NV LID (they didn't have it in the store so that's why I grabbed the regular Instinct) or Nature's Logic (I have a sample and the only grain in it is millet to bind the kibble and it's suposably the easiest digested for dogs). My other thought was to go with Natural Balance, but that honestly would be a last resort. I could just stick with the raw and canned lamb since both are "complete and balanced", but I was hoping to do 1/2 kibble to cut cost down since I have 4 other mouths to feed lol.

Oh - stool clear of parasites and every thing else is perfectly fine with her. I've never had a dog with a tummy like this, so this is a real experimentation for me. The vet is obvioulsy no help here - he'd just tell me to give her some SD garbage.

Any tips, similar experiences, ideas?

Ellie May · 05-19-2011, 05:07 AM

It takes 3 weeks of trying a food to know if it's going to help at all. Of course if they get really sick on it, you can't wait that long. Sometimes GI upset around a food change works itself out...

Have you tried mixing the canned lamb with the old food that she didn't like?
Tried a lamb and no grain kibble?

How about feeding the chicken and rice or lamb canned. After a few days and as long as she is doing well, slowly add in the original kibble or a lamb based kibble. Wait a few weeks, make sure she is doing well, and then slowly add raw. Generally, it looks like some of the foods that she doesn't do great on are "high end, holistic". Not all dogs do. Perhaps it's just an ingredient intolerance, but it could also be the make up of these foods. they tend to be a bit higher in protein and/or fat. People could debate all day about how this isn't true or how they are dogs, so they should be able to handle it, but it's very obvious that some Yorkies can't. The last thing you want to do is be so concerned about feeding the best food, that the GI tract is constantly angry, and then other problems will result (including possibly pancreatitis).

Go slow.
Put her on what you know works (as long as she is pretty much done growing, she can probably go a couple-few weeks unbalanced - but the lamb sounds like it will work anyway), then slowly transition to another kibble. But a tiny amount of loose stool isn't that uncommon.

Ashley V · 05-19-2011, 05:33 AM

Anytime I've switched to a new food, my dogs get some diarrhea, especially if I start switching to quickly. I just have to stick with it - like someone else said, it takes a couple weeks to get their bodies adjusted to it, so they probably will have some looser stools for a bit. It sounds like she's gone through a lot of food changes recently and her body is probably pretty confused right now. If I were in your shoes, I would maybe stick with the most recent one you tried or the one she had the least amount of issues with and let her get used to it for awhile and give her tummy some time to settle down. Maybe give her a little canned pumpkin/rice with her food and slowly wean her off of that mixture to just the kibble while her stools get better.

AlicetheYorkie · 05-19-2011, 06:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ellie May

It takes 3 weeks of trying a food to know if it's going to help at all. Of course if they get really sick on it, you can't wait that long. Sometimes GI upset around a food change works itself out...

Have you tried mixing the canned lamb with the old food that she didn't like?
Tried a lamb and no grain kibble?

How about feeding the chicken and rice or lamb canned. After a few days and as long as she is doing well, slowly add in the original kibble or a lamb based kibble. Wait a few weeks, make sure she is doing well, and then slowly add raw. Generally, it looks like some of the foods that she doesn't do great on are "high end, holistic". Not all dogs do. Perhaps it's just an ingredient intolerance, but it could also be the make up of these foods. they tend to be a bit higher in protein and/or fat. People could debate all day about how this isn't true or how they are dogs, so they should be able to handle it, but it's very obvious that some Yorkies can't. The last thing you want to do is be so concerned about feeding the best food, that the GI tract is constantly angry, and then other problems will result (including possibly pancreatitis).

Go slow.
Put her on what you know works (as long as she is pretty much done growing, she can probably go a couple-few weeks unbalanced - but the lamb sounds like it will work anyway), then slowly transition to another kibble. But a tiny amount of loose stool isn't that uncommon.

I would keep her on whatever "new food" for a while and I actually did use the NV Prairie Chicken (with grains) for about 2 weeks or so - no diarrhea, but the huge really soft poops 4-5x a day did continue the whole time, so that's why I figured she needed grain free, but you're right - most of the grain-free foods are pretty high in protien and especially fat.

The others recently actually gave her liquidy poops to the point of it truely being diarrhea and once there was even a tinge of red in there, so that was obviously severe enough for me to stop immediatly.

The old food that she stopped eat and had pretty normal poops on (they were at least form and somewhat firm) was the Orijen, but that's the one that gave her bad gas (no gas since she stopping eating that and I stopped giving it). I DID try it once though again - after the raw beef diarrhea cleared up with the chicken and rice combo - I had the same thought - go back to the Orijen - well, that was when she had the diarrhea with the one drop of bright red blood in it.

She just had another bout of liquidy diarrhea just a few minutes ago.

I'm not concerened that she has an actuall problem right now that would need the vet (feel free to correct me if I'm wrong) only because when this happened before and I gave the chicken and rice, she was perfectly fine in less than 24 hrs. and she doesn't seem effected otherwise (good appetite, playing, happy etc.).

Yes, everything I've tried so far is high end holistic. The original Verus (which she wouldn't eat) is not quite as "high end", but still holistic.

I'm going to go strictly chicken and rice for a few days (she's 7 months old only, so I'm afraid to go too many days without something balanced) then start incorperating the canned grain free lamb back in. Then I'll try a grain-free lamb formula kibble, but only a few pices per day mixed in (the 2 I'm looking at - NV limited ingredient lamb grain-free or nature's logic lamb -only grain is millet). If she does well on the lamb formulas, how do you feel about sticking with only lamb as her protien source? I could add some boiled chicken in there every few days too since that goes over fine.

Well, if she still doesn't do well on lower fat/protien lamb kibble I'll just have to stick with the canned and raw lamb and ax kibble all together?, Especially the limited ingredient one (I believe that one is 22% protien and 16% fat - the other lamb one I didn't try yet is 30% protien and 15% fat) - the others I've tried are definatly higher - about 40% protien and 20-22% fat - hmmmm maybe that is the problem?

*sigh* I'm sorry Crystal, I probably just confused the heck out of you LOL. I wish vets were more help in this area - I suppose I can look into seeing if I can afford a consult with a nutritionist over the phone or web (there's none local).

Thanks for the advise, that helped get me thinking in the right direction.

AlicetheYorkie · 05-19-2011, 06:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ashley V

Anytime I've switched to a new food, my dogs get some diarrhea, especially if I start switching to quickly. I just have to stick with it - like someone else said, it takes a couple weeks to get their bodies adjusted to it, so they probably will have some looser stools for a bit. It sounds like she's gone through a lot of food changes recently and her body is probably pretty confused right now. If I were in your shoes, I would maybe stick with the most recent one you tried or the one she had the least amount of issues with and let her get used to it for awhile and give her tummy some time to settle down. Maybe give her a little canned pumpkin/rice with her food and slowly wean her off of that mixture to just the kibble while her stools get better.

Thanks - the diarrhea gets pretty intense though, so that's why I've been too afraid to keep going and give the new food time. I agree there's alot of changes. i have been giving only boiled chicken with white rice slurry and canned pumkin for about 4 or 5 days straight and she was 100% back to normal. Only then I tried incorperating the new food slowly, but even that little bit, one time gave her diarrhea today - perrty good too, not just soft stool. Back to chicken/rice and pumpkin we go and start over

Ellie May · 05-19-2011, 06:47 AM

Wasn't she just fine on the lamb canned alone? I agree. She is very young to keep having an unbalanced diet like this.

She did well on raw lamb?

Well, I'm (of course) not going to say that a vet isn't needed. All puppies with diarrhea for whatever reason should technically be seen. Since this keeps happening, and it has been pretty liquidy, I'd start to be quite concerned about her hydration status even if she looks normal. So I'd say if she starts to look at all dehydrated (even if that is at midnight and you have to go to the ER), then she has to go in. And if she isn't better by morning, then she has to go in. And if she has maybe like more more one bout of this again today, then she has to go in... It's not that I'd be worried about the underlying cause nearly as much as what it is doing to her.

Also, I'm guessing it's just because things keep getting switched, but if the GI problems continue around food, then some testing should be done.

I don't believe a nutritionist would be of help right now. The non board certified won't balance it according to AAFCO and that is way too risky. The board certified are going to stronlgy discourage feeding a pup homecooked food because it's also risky for development. And as far as recommending foods, they will be foods that you don't like...

Lamb as the sole protein source is perfectly fine. You will hear about mixing and rotating and and and. But remember that not all dogs can handle all protein sources. I'd be much more concerned about getting her on something that her stomach agrees with than trying to get several kinds of meats in her diet (which is very debatable anyway).

Hey, my dog does absolutely terrible with meat and even most fish. Right now she eats soy as her protein. Yup, I have a vegan dog. So what... At least it keeps her alive.

viviansnickers · 05-19-2011, 07:23 AM

Oh wow....sounds like you've tried everything. Sounds like a good plan that you're about to implement but I would recommend if you're doing raw---do only raw. If you eventually want to do raw+kibble, incorporate the kibble later once she is good and used to the raw. Raw and kibble digest differently and one or the other in combination can cause tummy troubles and diarrhea. If she likes the raw and eats it and her stool is ok--use it

If you're going the kibble route--don't incorporate raw. Just my opinion

Viv

Zimasmommie · 05-19-2011, 07:34 AM

I am in the same boat as you with my "parti" girl, Lena. I've been down the long road experimenting with different foods...feeding chicken and rice etc etc etc. She gets gas from most foods, then doesn't eat. It takes almost an entire day before she will even touch the chicken and rice, which we all know is NOT healthy and balanced for a growing puppy, but we do what we have to do. I even tried the EN rx by Purina...GAS. Couldn't figure that one out since it's a gastro rx. Anyway, I started her on Z/D ultra allergen rx...with the permission of nutritionist and she's been good for 2 days now. This is a first! I've been adding a little cottage cheese with a few meals and chicken with one meal. This little girl needs some weight....she's 2.12 lbs...has gained 7 ozs. since we got her which was 3/28. It's very frustrating so say the least. I know this is probably not a "forever" diet, but I need vaccs completed and I couldn't do them when she was having these probs.
Where did you get Alice? Lena came from a breeder in Pa.

Michele

rsz_1rsz_sam_0053.jpg

kjc · 05-19-2011, 07:35 AM

Did you check her stool for bacterial overgrowth? (send to a lab)

Colitis (inflammed colon) will cause small amout of blood in the stool. If you can't find a food that suits her you may need to have her scoped and biopsies taken to get to the cause.

Also, no plastic food or water bowls... is she getting filtered water?

kjc · 05-19-2011, 07:43 AM

If she's bulking up too much on grains, you could add 5-6 green beans or 1 tsp pumpin to help keep her 'going'. Sounds better than the big 'D' to me...lol.

AlicetheYorkie · 05-19-2011, 02:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zimasmommie

I am in the same boat as you with my "parti" girl, Lena. I've been down the long road experimenting with different foods...feeding chicken and rice etc etc etc. She gets gas from most foods, then doesn't eat. It takes almost an entire day before she will even touch the chicken and rice, which we all know is NOT healthy and balanced for a growing puppy, but we do what we have to do. I even tried the EN rx by Purina...GAS. Couldn't figure that one out since it's a gastro rx. Anyway, I started her on Z/D ultra allergen rx...with the permission of nutritionist and she's been good for 2 days now. This is a first! I've been adding a little cottage cheese with a few meals and chicken with one meal. This little girl needs some weight....she's 2.12 lbs...has gained 7 ozs. since we got her which was 3/28. It's very frustrating so say the least. I know this is probably not a "forever" diet, but I need vaccs completed and I couldn't do them when she was having these probs.
Where did you get Alice? Lena came from a breeder in Pa.

Michele

Attachment 345048

Awww, she looks just like Alice in that pic

I got her from my aunt's co-worker who had a litter (in the Wilkes-Barre area). I know, I know BYB, but she was free and honestly , that's how I usually end up with whatever pets I've ever had. They usually just kind of "come to me" vs. me seeking them out lol. The only pet I've ever paid for and actually looked for a breeder for was my Akita since I knew I wanted that breed and they tend to be on the rare side.

Well, she's going to the vet for testing (starting with a BAT and comp/CBC) sometime in the next few weeks. In the mean time I know she does fine on Nature's Variety's canned lamb and raw lamb and the current loose stools already cleared up by having only chicken/rice/pumkpin today. If her tests come back normal I may just stick with the canned and raw lamb since it works for her and it is balanced to feed exclusively. We'll see, maybe she just has a hard time digesting kibble, it's frustrating, that's for sure.

AlicetheYorkie · 05-19-2011, 02:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Wasn't she just fine on the lamb canned alone? I agree. She is very young to keep having an unbalanced diet like this.

She did well on raw lamb?

Well, I'm (of course) not going to say that a vet isn't needed. All puppies with diarrhea for whatever reason should technically be seen. Since this keeps happening, and it has been pretty liquidy, I'd start to be quite concerned about her hydration status even if she looks normal. So I'd say if she starts to look at all dehydrated (even if that is at midnight and you have to go to the ER), then she has to go in. And if she isn't better by morning, then she has to go in. And if she has maybe like more more one bout of this again today, then she has to go in... It's not that I'd be worried about the underlying cause nearly as much as what it is doing to her.

Also, I'm guessing it's just because things keep getting switched, but if the GI problems continue around food, then some testing should be done.

I don't believe a nutritionist would be of help right now. The non board certified won't balance it according to AAFCO and that is way too risky. The board certified are going to stronlgy discourage feeding a pup homecooked food because it's also risky for development. And as far as recommending foods, they will be foods that you don't like...

Lamb as the sole protein source is perfectly fine. You will hear about mixing and rotating and and and. But remember that not all dogs can handle all protein sources. I'd be much more concerned about getting her on something that her stomach agrees with than trying to get several kinds of meats in her diet (which is very debatable anyway).

Hey, my dog does absolutely terrible with meat and even most fish. Right now she eats soy as her protein. Yup, I have a vegan dog. So what... At least it keeps her alive.

Yep, she did fine on the canned and raw lamb alone. Both of those by NV are complete and balanced to use exclusively, so she can have ONLY that, why I decided I needed to add kibble, idk. I guess I was more worried about sticking exclusively with lamb because I've seen it said numerous times that it tends to cause pancreatitis in Yorkies? Maybe that was not something I should have worried about if she did well on it? I thought I knew about nutrition pretty well, but this is really making me feel dumb lol information overload

She's definatly not dehydrated, I know what to look for and I'd for sure take her right in if that happened. No vomiting at all and she's drinking and urinating like normal, nice pink gums, no stickyness, CRT less than 2 seconds etc.

Well, this is for sure a lesson to anyone with a picky eater - don't switch around too much. Once she's on what works - from now on forget it - she can eat it or wait till the next meal when she's starving and then she'll eat it for sure lol. I figured going to the Nature's Variety was great because I could switch within the brand without issues, but nope, something's bothering her other than the lamb. *sigh*

I am going to get bloodwork done soon regardless.

AlicetheYorkie · 05-19-2011, 03:09 PM

Oh- she had no more diarrhea today, just one tiny poop but it was formed, just soft about 5 hours ago (it's 7PM here now and she had her dinner of the chicken/rice/pumpkin about 2 hours ago). That's the thing too, it never continues, it's only a once or twice thing then she goes back to normal by the next day after the bland diet. It's like once she gets the food out that bothered her, she's fine, it's not chronic as long as I stop that particular food.

AlicetheYorkie · 05-20-2011, 04:25 AM

Alice is doing fine today

. No more poop at all yersterday and this morning it was perfectly normal. She had the rice/pumpkin/chicken mixed with some of the lamb canned for breakfast, fine so far. Looks like I'll be sticking with that and the raw, at least for quite a while. Once she's done growing I may try to incorperate a kibble, but EXTREMELY slow and we'll see how it goes.
For now, I'm just sticking with what works and since she sems to really love it, that should work out.
I've never fed a dog NO kibble at all so for some reason I can't wrap my brain around the fact that she won't be too hungry without it

. Lol, we're brainwashed

I looked up puppy feeding amounts on the NV web site for 50% raw and 50% canned, so she'll be getting the right amounts

Ugh - stress! LOL

Susan78 · 05-20-2011, 05:57 AM

I am glad you posted this because Kinder was on chicken and rice and started throwing up Wednesday. Poops not normal big and like a hotdog. My vet found no more campylobacter and is keeping her for a week. He said it may be she is allergic to anything that has chicken. X'rays are normal too. He has her on her Fromms Whitefish and Potatoe and we will see what happens here. I hope Alice gets better and keep me posted about her. My vet is stumped on this for a 1 year old puppy. Sometimes he said he gets a dog in with intestinal and stomach upset and can not find out what it is. He said it could be a virus but in time they clear up. He is watching are baby and we visit her. She is full of energy and still chubby but we need to get to the bottom of this. Hope all works out for you. Susan

05-19-2011, 04:41 AM	#1
AlicetheYorkie YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 889	Need tips for a "food trial" for a sensative tummy Well, the feeding Alice wars continue. Apparently not only is she picky, she has a sensative tummy too. Here's a background and I'll try to keep it as brief as possible while still giving the necessary details: Started her on Verus puppy when I got her (chicken based with whole grains) - doesn't like it at ALL. Started Orijen puppy (chicken based grain-free) she ate if for a while, then stopped, but she had alot of gas on it so I think it upset her tummy and that could be why she stopped eating it- poops were good though. Started raw - my mistake - I did beef first(pre-made NV)- she LOVED it but got pretty wicked poops. Cleared that up with chicken/rice/pumpkin. Went to Nature's Variety chicken Prairie (slowly with the rice and chicken mixture) - she was pooping like 5 x a day and they were big and mushy. Went back to chicken/rice/pumpkin for a few days - poop was great - small, firm, 1 or 2x a day and not smelly at all. Started adding a tiny amount of NV canned lamb Instinct (grain free), she was good so I added more and more of the canned and less chicken/rice - kept doing fine just like on the chicken and rice but smaller poop. Tried a bit or NV raw lamb yesterday morning - poop still fine. Picked up a bag of Nature's Variety Instinct Chicken - gave aprox. 1/4 cup last night mixed with the canned NV Lamb - well, this morning she has just a very small amount of "drippy" poop - so I only gave the chicken/rice/pumpkin this AM with like a half tsp. of the canned lamb. Ugh, I realize that's alot of different things, but other than the boiled chicken and over cooked rice and canned NV Lamb, she's had a problem so I had to try something else. I really would like to do 1/2 pre-made raw and 1/2 kibble with a bit of canned mixed in. I know she can have lamb and she's fine with plain real chicken (I only know about the cooked so far, haven't tried chicken pre-made raw yet). I know alot of you have sensative tummy babies - how did you go about finding what worked for them? She handles cooked white rice fine, but other than that grains really bulk up her stool significantly, but the grain free kibbles I've tried give her runny stool or lots of gas. My next thought for kibble is either NV LID (they didn't have it in the store so that's why I grabbed the regular Instinct) or Nature's Logic (I have a sample and the only grain in it is millet to bind the kibble and it's suposably the easiest digested for dogs). My other thought was to go with Natural Balance, but that honestly would be a last resort. I could just stick with the raw and canned lamb since both are "complete and balanced", but I was hoping to do 1/2 kibble to cut cost down since I have 4 other mouths to feed lol. Oh - stool clear of parasites and every thing else is perfectly fine with her. I've never had a dog with a tummy like this, so this is a real experimentation for me. The vet is obvioulsy no help here - he'd just tell me to give her some SD garbage. Any tips, similar experiences, ideas? __________________ Jenn, mom to: Dayton , Alice ,Darla, Miya , Summer & Chooch

05-19-2011, 05:07 AM	#2
Ellie May And Rylee Finnegan Donating Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Metro Detroit, MI Posts: 17,928	It takes 3 weeks of trying a food to know if it's going to help at all. Of course if they get really sick on it, you can't wait that long. Sometimes GI upset around a food change works itself out... Have you tried mixing the canned lamb with the old food that she didn't like? Tried a lamb and no grain kibble? How about feeding the chicken and rice or lamb canned. After a few days and as long as she is doing well, slowly add in the original kibble or a lamb based kibble. Wait a few weeks, make sure she is doing well, and then slowly add raw. Generally, it looks like some of the foods that she doesn't do great on are "high end, holistic". Not all dogs do. Perhaps it's just an ingredient intolerance, but it could also be the make up of these foods. they tend to be a bit higher in protein and/or fat. People could debate all day about how this isn't true or how they are dogs, so they should be able to handle it, but it's very obvious that some Yorkies can't. The last thing you want to do is be so concerned about feeding the best food, that the GI tract is constantly angry, and then other problems will result (including possibly pancreatitis). Go slow. Put her on what you know works (as long as she is pretty much done growing, she can probably go a couple-few weeks unbalanced - but the lamb sounds like it will work anyway), then slowly transition to another kibble. But a tiny amount of loose stool isn't that uncommon. __________________ Crystal, Ellie May (RIP), Rylee Finnegan, and Gracie Boo🐶

05-19-2011, 05:33 AM	#3
Ashley V ♥ Chip ♥ Smokey ♥ Donating Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Leesburg Posts: 3,835	Anytime I've switched to a new food, my dogs get some diarrhea, especially if I start switching to quickly. I just have to stick with it - like someone else said, it takes a couple weeks to get their bodies adjusted to it, so they probably will have some looser stools for a bit. It sounds like she's gone through a lot of food changes recently and her body is probably pretty confused right now. If I were in your shoes, I would maybe stick with the most recent one you tried or the one she had the least amount of issues with and let her get used to it for awhile and give her tummy some time to settle down. Maybe give her a little canned pumpkin/rice with her food and slowly wean her off of that mixture to just the kibble while her stools get better. __________________ ~~ Chip ~~ Smokey ~*~ My heart is wrapped around their little paws Karley Marissa born 1/20/12 weighing 8 lbs 11 oz and 21.5 inches long

05-19-2011, 06:47 AM	#6
Ellie May And Rylee Finnegan Donating Member Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Metro Detroit, MI Posts: 17,928	Wasn't she just fine on the lamb canned alone? I agree. She is very young to keep having an unbalanced diet like this. She did well on raw lamb? Well, I'm (of course) not going to say that a vet isn't needed. All puppies with diarrhea for whatever reason should technically be seen. Since this keeps happening, and it has been pretty liquidy, I'd start to be quite concerned about her hydration status even if she looks normal. So I'd say if she starts to look at all dehydrated (even if that is at midnight and you have to go to the ER), then she has to go in. And if she isn't better by morning, then she has to go in. And if she has maybe like more more one bout of this again today, then she has to go in... It's not that I'd be worried about the underlying cause nearly as much as what it is doing to her. Also, I'm guessing it's just because things keep getting switched, but if the GI problems continue around food, then some testing should be done. I don't believe a nutritionist would be of help right now. The non board certified won't balance it according to AAFCO and that is way too risky. The board certified are going to stronlgy discourage feeding a pup homecooked food because it's also risky for development. And as far as recommending foods, they will be foods that you don't like... Lamb as the sole protein source is perfectly fine. You will hear about mixing and rotating and and and. But remember that not all dogs can handle all protein sources. I'd be much more concerned about getting her on something that her stomach agrees with than trying to get several kinds of meats in her diet (which is very debatable anyway). Hey, my dog does absolutely terrible with meat and even most fish. Right now she eats soy as her protein. Yup, I have a vegan dog. So what... At least it keeps her alive. __________________ Crystal, Ellie May (RIP), Rylee Finnegan, and Gracie Boo🐶

05-19-2011, 07:23 AM	#7
viviansnickers Snick&Viv= BFF Donating Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Michigan Posts: 1,755	Oh wow....sounds like you've tried everything. Sounds like a good plan that you're about to implement but I would recommend if you're doing raw---do only raw. If you eventually want to do raw+kibble, incorporate the kibble later once she is good and used to the raw. Raw and kibble digest differently and one or the other in combination can cause tummy troubles and diarrhea. If she likes the raw and eats it and her stool is ok--use it If you're going the kibble route--don't incorporate raw. Just my opinion Viv __________________ -Vivian Mommy to my cuddlebug baby boys-Snickers & Reesie

05-19-2011, 07:34 AM	#8
Zimasmommie Yorkie Talker Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: NJ Posts: 17	I am in the same boat as you with my "parti" girl, Lena. I've been down the long road experimenting with different foods...feeding chicken and rice etc etc etc. She gets gas from most foods, then doesn't eat. It takes almost an entire day before she will even touch the chicken and rice, which we all know is NOT healthy and balanced for a growing puppy, but we do what we have to do. I even tried the EN rx by Purina...GAS. Couldn't figure that one out since it's a gastro rx. Anyway, I started her on Z/D ultra allergen rx...with the permission of nutritionist and she's been good for 2 days now. This is a first! I've been adding a little cottage cheese with a few meals and chicken with one meal. This little girl needs some weight....she's 2.12 lbs...has gained 7 ozs. since we got her which was 3/28. It's very frustrating so say the least. I know this is probably not a "forever" diet, but I need vaccs completed and I couldn't do them when she was having these probs. Where did you get Alice? Lena came from a breeder in Pa. Michele rsz_1rsz_sam_0053.jpg

05-19-2011, 07:35 AM	#9
kjc I♥PeekTinkySaph&Finny Donating Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Posts: 18,866	Did you check her stool for bacterial overgrowth? (send to a lab) Colitis (inflammed colon) will cause small amout of blood in the stool. If you can't find a food that suits her you may need to have her scoped and biopsies taken to get to the cause. Also, no plastic food or water bowls... is she getting filtered water? __________________ Kat Chloe Lizzy PeekABooTinkerbell SapphireInfinity Last edited by kjc; 05-19-2011 at 07:39 AM.

05-19-2011, 07:43 AM	#10
kjc I♥PeekTinkySaph&Finny Donating Member Join Date: May 2009 Location: Baltimore, Maryland Posts: 18,866	If she's bulking up too much on grains, you could add 5-6 green beans or 1 tsp pumpin to help keep her 'going'. Sounds better than the big 'D' to me...lol. __________________ Kat Chloe Lizzy PeekABooTinkerbell SapphireInfinity

05-19-2011, 03:09 PM	#13
AlicetheYorkie YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 889	Oh- she had no more diarrhea today, just one tiny poop but it was formed, just soft about 5 hours ago (it's 7PM here now and she had her dinner of the chicken/rice/pumpkin about 2 hours ago). That's the thing too, it never continues, it's only a once or twice thing then she goes back to normal by the next day after the bland diet. It's like once she gets the food out that bothered her, she's fine, it's not chronic as long as I stop that particular food. __________________ Jenn, mom to: Dayton , Alice ,Darla, Miya , Summer & Chooch

05-20-2011, 04:25 AM	#14
AlicetheYorkie YT 500 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 889	Alice is doing fine today. No more poop at all yersterday and this morning it was perfectly normal. She had the rice/pumpkin/chicken mixed with some of the lamb canned for breakfast, fine so far. Looks like I'll be sticking with that and the raw, at least for quite a while. Once she's done growing I may try to incorperate a kibble, but EXTREMELY slow and we'll see how it goes. For now, I'm just sticking with what works and since she sems to really love it, that should work out. I've never fed a dog NO kibble at all so for some reason I can't wrap my brain around the fact that she won't be too hungry without it. Lol, we're brainwashed I looked up puppy feeding amounts on the NV web site for 50% raw and 50% canned, so she'll be getting the right amounts Ugh - stress! LOL __________________ Jenn, mom to: Dayton , Alice ,Darla, Miya , Summer & Chooch

05-20-2011, 05:57 AM	#15
Susan78 YT 1000 Club Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Hibbing Minnesota Posts: 1,106	I am glad you posted this because Kinder was on chicken and rice and started throwing up Wednesday. Poops not normal big and like a hotdog. My vet found no more campylobacter and is keeping her for a week. He said it may be she is allergic to anything that has chicken. X'rays are normal too. He has her on her Fromms Whitefish and Potatoe and we will see what happens here. I hope Alice gets better and keep me posted about her. My vet is stumped on this for a 1 year old puppy. Sometimes he said he gets a dog in with intestinal and stomach upset and can not find out what it is. He said it could be a virus but in time they clear up. He is watching are baby and we visit her. She is full of energy and still chubby but we need to get to the bottom of this. Hope all works out for you. Susan