Weird question!?

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by SirPeanut

The vet recommended us Purina for puppies. I don't really trust Purina but my husband thinks that only what the vet says it's good all the time. I made a list of other puppy food based on what I saw here. I just don't know which one is the most trusted. Peanut's vet said that because his breed is so special and needy we should avoid meat as much possible and feed him food based on vegetables mainly. Well, I checked with Pet Smart and everything has meat in it. I wish I knew which brand is best so I could stick with it - my husband is already angry with me that I keep on doubting Purina.

Thank you all again for the advice. Noted!

I really don't know how to respond to this because not all vets know anything about nutrition. The problem here is, this is obviously not correct and any vet should know that.

Whether you believe in feeding high protein, moderate protein or lower protein to Yorkies, the best source of that protein is meat. Dogs are meant to eat meat.

In my opinion, vegetarian diets should be used only for medical problems or ethical/moral beliefs because you just aren't going to talk everyone into feeding meat and that is their choice. I just don't see how it is best though. I do think dogs can do fine on vegetarian food but I don't see why most shouldn't eat meat.

Anyway, Purina is just not good. A few bags of Beneful (Purina) appear to be infested with white bugs and the company hasn't recalled it. Then looking at the ingredients in most of the Purina food doesn't make me think highly of it.

Yorkies are small and need to be watched more closely than other dogs.
They get diseases like liver shunt usually because breeders don't do testing.
I see no reason why a healthy Yorkie can't eat the same as any other dog. It is really about owner preference.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by SirPeanut

YES! I am very serious! He did say that to us when we took Peanut for the very first time in 48 hrs after we picked him up from the breeder.

Now I don't really understand why he would want us to feed him food that contains more vegetables than meat - because of his respiratory infection from the plane ride (the breeder said it's very common for Yorkies to develop this health problem) or just because he's a Yorkie. My puppy is seen by the military vet on base. I hope he is not that of a vet.

I am very happy to be here - it's a wonderful support website for Yorkies and all information here is very valuable to me. I started to understand my puppy a lot better since I joined.

Wow. So, since it's a military vet - are you sort of obligated to go there, then, bc it's discounted? If not, I cannot recommend highly enough that you seek another vet asap.

Purina - in a nutshell - is chock full of fillers, allergens, and poor quality ingredients - that in the end could potentially result in overall poor health in your dog. Which could cause all kinds of health problems (and the vet bills that might follow). I guess the question to the hubster might be, "if you had kids, would you want them to live on junk food?" - bc that's what Purina is, basically.

A good, quality dog food is really inexpensive and for yorkies, lasts a long time bc they're so small. Some brands to think about: Natures Variety Instinct, Canidae, Wellness Core. Taste of the Wild has some good ones.

I would just move your baby off of that Purina asap. Again, so glad you found us!

[SirPeanut]

Originally Posted by jadecomputergal

I'm completely baffled about a vet talking about primarily vegetarian diets for a dog. I'm more baffled about that than I am about a vet recommending something like Purina, a sub-standard, off-the-shelf food.

If it's a Yorkie, his breed is not "special." (Everyone else please hear me out before you start throwing things at me.)

Yorkies are the one of the most widely bred and owned dogs in this country. They're "special" to us because we own them, but they're certainly not uncommon, and they're carnivores like any other canine.

Respiratory infections aren't "common" in Yorkies. I'm not sure from what you're saying if he had Bordetella or an allergic reaction. It could be either, but whichever it was, I very strongly agree with Wylie that you should find a new vet.

As far as hygiene goes, we trim ours under their tails. We don't have problems with diarrhea other than with one of ours, but that's because of a medication she's on for a chronic illness. We have a routine with a sticker on our wall calendar of HeartGard/FrontLine/bathing/etc. The bathing usually includes trimming bangs, nails, butt hairs. I'm not sure how groomers do this, but my DH and I do it together. We won't get scissors near the dogs without one of us holding them and the other doing the trimming, whether it's the face or the butt. They tend to wiggle, so it's much less stressful for all of us if we have one person holding the dog and the other doing trimming, even with the blunt scissors.

Now I feel like the worst Yorkie owner ever For now my puppy can be seen only by the vet we have now - long story! But that won't mean I will agree with him now that I have this Yorkie support website to educate me a little bit on my puppy.

Today I'm going down to pet Smart and exchange that Purina stuff for Nature Balance or Nature's Variety.

Please, don't misunderstand me, I want only the best care in every way for my little fur baby.

P.S: Thank you for the advice on how to deal with his tiny tush.

[SirPeanut]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

Wow. So, since it's a military vet - are you sort of obligated to go there, then, bc it's discounted? If not, I cannot recommend highly enough that you seek another vet asap.

Purina - in a nutshell - is chock full of fillers, allergens, and poor quality ingredients - that in the end could potentially result in overall poor health in your dog. Which could cause all kinds of health problems (and the vet bills that might follow). I guess the question to the hubster might be, "if you had kids, would you want them to live on junk food?" - bc that's what Purina is, basically.

A good, quality dog food is really inexpensive and for yorkies, lasts a long time bc they're so small. Some brands to think about: Natures Variety Instinct, Canidae, Wellness Core. Taste of the Wild has some good ones.

I would just move your baby off of that Purina asap. Again, so glad you found us!

Yes! We kinda have no choice for now but see just the military vet on base (that's what I meant when I said "long story" above in the other post). My hubby is a little bit of an ignorant because of the money

I noticed that Purina is junk by the smell of Peanut's poop and the smell in the house. Today I'm going to exchange that $#@% for one of the above advised puppy food.

Thank you to all for your patience and understanding!

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by SirPeanut

Now I feel like the worst Yorkie owner ever

You are a GREAT Mommy! Look at you on here, gathering all this information for your furbaby - that's what great Mommies do ! Don't be hard on yourself, you're learning about good foods - and we've all been there!

If you're going to Petsmart to buy food, you won't find Natures Variety - so I'd probably recommend Wellness if Petsmart is your only option. Petsmart also has a lot of crap food, so if you're not sure or can't find Wellness, come back on here and there are a lot of folks who can give advice.

[SirPeanut]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

You are a GREAT Mommy! Look at you on here, gathering all this information for your furbaby - that's what great Mommies do ! Don't be hard on yourself, you're learning about good foods - and we've all been there!

If you're going to Petsmart to buy food, you won't find Natures Variety - so I'd probably recommend Wellness if Petsmart is your only option. Petsmart also has a lot of crap food, so if you're not sure or can't find Wellness, come back on here and there are a lot of folks who can give advice.

My husband went to Pet Smart with that Purina junk and he said they don't have any of the food I listed for him from here. You are right!

However he traded the Purina stuff for Nutro Natural Choice. I hope that's not worse than Purina cause I'll go nuts soon.

I hope this one will be good for Peanut at least until I can convince my husband to buy for him one of the premium food you listed earlier.

Thank you for the re-assurance. I hope I'm doing enough for my little puppy. I love the little guy so much.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by SirPeanut

My husband went to Pet Smart with that Purina junk and he said they don't have any of the food I listed for him from here. You are right!

However he traded the Purina stuff for Nutro Natural Choice. I hope that's not worse than Purina cause I'll go nuts soon.

I hope this one will be good for Peanut at least until I can convince my husband to buy for him one of the premium food you listed earlier.

Thank you for the re-assurance. I hope I'm doing enough for my little puppy. I love the little guy so much.

You are a great mom.

I would absolutely positively not allow Ellie to eat Nutro.
There are lots of reports of illness in dogs that eat that food and even death.
The company won't recall it.

Petco should have Natural Balance and that is a better food.
If you have a Pet Supplies Plus, they carry a few okay foods like Canidae.

[SirPeanut]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

You are a great mom.

I would absolutely positively not allow Ellie to eat Nutro.
There are lots of reports of illness in dogs that eat that food and even death.
The company won't recall it.

Petco should have Natural Balance and that is a better food.
If you have a Pet Supplies Plus, they carry a few okay foods like Canidae.

Awww,

I am so disappointed in myself and my husband. All we know is Pet Smart and Walmart about dog food. I will try to convince my husband again to change his food asap.

[Cocoabeaner]

I use a wet washcloth on Cocoa after every poop even though there isn't any visible reason to do so. . I don't find the need to use soap or shampoo. I feed chicken soup for the puppy lover's soul. I did some research before I chose that food and it is working great! I highly recommend it !

[amr333]

Just my opinion..but I would not want my puppy eating Nutro!

Eukanuba Small Bites would be a better choice than Nutro!

I like Canidae the best though

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by SirPeanut

I am so disappointed in myself and my husband. All we know is Pet Smart and Walmart about dog food. I will try to convince my husband again to change his food asap.

Petsmart is now supposedly carrying Wellness - can you call your Petsmart and see if they're carrying Wellness? And, I'll call mine and find out which ONES Petsmart is carrying.

[Ellie May]

We will help you figure this out.
Please don't be upset...it is a lot to learn.
I fed Ellie garbage for the first 5 years of her life because I didn't know any better. Oh well, what is done is done. Hey, if you can't find any good foods you can always homecook.

Ann, have you heard anything terrible about the "By Nature" company?
They sell it at Petsmart and it appears to be fair.

I looked through their list of foods and didn't see Wellness.

They have a few that "may" be acceptable.
Avoderm could work but giving that much avocado to a dog doesn't seem right.
Blue Buffalo could work but I just don't think garlic is okay in dog food unless you are going to watch their blood work.
Science Diet Nature's Best is a fair food but some people don't like it because it is Science Diet and others have a problem with pork in dog food and some people don't want to feed wheat.
Nature's Recipe contains menadione which is best avoided.

[chattiesmom]

Welcome to YorkieTalk. I am so glad that you joined our little family. We are all learning together - it is a process that never ends. At least for me -- if and when I quit reading posts with an open mind trying to find the BEST of everything for my furbutts, then I hope that is the day my funeral is planned.

There are many good quality dog foods on the market. It is important to learn how to read dog food ingredient labels so that you know what you are feeding. It is also important to understand what about the nutritional requirements of dogs. I have had many long discussions with my vet and she gave me some very good reading material from one of her nutrition books. When selecting food, and/or home cooking, it is important to feed the right ratio of protein to energy (meat to carb).

Many of us have found a food that works for our individual dogs and recommend it passionately. Others have had bad experiences with a particular food, or have read about recalls, sick dogs, etc., and are passionate about NOT using those foods. It is very very difficult to separate the propoganda from facts about dog food, recalls, etc.

I am working towards following the lead of many of our members here and start home cooking. I have a mentor here (thank you Yorkiedaze) that has supplied a plethora of information which is very close to the information supplied by my vet.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

We will help you figure this out. Please don't be upset...it is a lot to learn.

Ann, have you heard anything terrible about the "By Nature" company?
They sell it at Petsmart and it appears to be fair.

I looked through their list of foods and didn't see Wellness.

LOL - we're so alike sometimes - I looked at Petsmart website this a.m. and could not find Wellness either, so I called a few on the East Coast (none are open yet here) and none seem to have it, YET.

So, that By Nature looks like a good bet. They seem to claim to be "organic and natural" - what they're meaning by that is hard to say, but hopefully it means something. If it were me, I'd feed this until Petsmart gets Wellness in stock, then switch. I also really liked the Blue Buffalo Wilderness - so you could do By Nature, then switch to BBW when he is 7-8 mths old .

[SirPeanut]

I will just ask my husband to drive us to Petco and Pet Supplies Plus - it's further from where we live but he's got his freakin' Navigon to take us there (yes, now I'm all at my husband and his cheapo phaze he's going through sometimes). I think I'll train Peanut to pee on him and that way when I'm mad at him I know it will be taken care of

I am so done with Pet Smart!