Just don't give too much. I always let my guys taste anything they are allowed to have when I'm cooking. Loki sits on his rug in the kitchen every morning waiting for his slice of banana.

I toss a tablespoon or so on their food every day. I freeze it in those tiny ice cube trays - the silicone ones work the best - and then put it in a ziplock bag in the freezer. One can lasts forever!

I have Dezi, a 6 yr old very sensitive girl. She has battled all her life with reactions and as she gets older, it seems to be getting worse. She has always been fine as long as she didn't get anything unusual but when she acts up, it was diarrhea for days. Then as she got older she vomited frequently until I realized that the expiration on the natural kibble came quicker than we used the food. Once I got a grip on that, she hasn't vomited at all!
We now have a new addition and my older one had a hard time with the puppy, so I suspect emotional triggers over the last 6 months made things with her stomach more sensitive.
Now, since YT, I learned to simplify the diet when she acts up. Lately, she has only minor discomfort for short periods every once in a while and I can usually track it back to an addition to the diet.
I have been making her some mostly home cooked food that consists of sweet potato, chicken and ground up kibble for vitamins. I added spinach to the mix and she immediately reacted with loss of appetite and discomfort. Every time I try to adjust the menu she reacts.I added spinach to the mix and she immediately reacted. It seems to be what I think are cramps and abdominal discomfort. It passes as soon as I simplify and revert back to sweet potato or white potato. Then I try to increase nutritional value again, and round and round.
When I try to add more kibble so I don't have to worry about unbalanced nutrition, she usually reacts the same way. I have given her acidophulous (sp) and if I alter the amount, she has discomfort and audible sounds of increased intestinal activity. The vet prescribed a digestive aid with active cultures and ginger and all good stuff. She had a great run. Good poop and no issues until the last bout with food that had started to turn, which escalated into bloody stool and a long bout of food issues. But as I start to add the digestive aid back in, if too much of an increase happens, we end up doing more harm than good.
She's had x-rays to rule out blockage and bloods done every time with all great numbers and no red flags.
I am considering all home cooked but as I determine this, I read more about needing variety. That seems to be her downfall, when I add anything in. Nutrition is baffling me so I just downloaded a e-book on home cooking and supplementing with uncooked bones but I am always terrified of hurting her more by trying this stuff. I do currently sprinkle bone meal on her food but have no idea what the correct ratio is so I keep adding in kibble to supplement but I think I have to stop that now.
Sorry for the novel, but it's gone on for a long time and all of the previous times I post, I get suggestions that I've already tried so I gave you as much as possible off the bat.
Have fun and I'll take any help I can get. :confused:

^^^ You know, Lisa, I don't think I ever asked you....What kind of kibble are you feeding her (ground up)?? You don't think any of this could simply be related to an ingredient in it that she is sensitive to do you? (I'm just wondering if you've tried changing kibble to a kibble with different ingredients since she started having these issues...I know at one time you were worried about doing that because she was already having so much trouble that you didn't want to cause more trouble by changing foods?)

Sounds like a balancing act. lol. We know all about that here but thankfully Ellie doesn't get bloody diarrhea if I don't do it right.

How do you feel about prescription diets?

The diet that she is on now has to be balanced immediately because she is at risk for serious problems if it isn't. If you are feeding 80-85% dog food and just adding a little bit of homecooked in, that is fine. If you start to feed maybe over about 15-20% homecooked, you have to supplement (not just with kibble) with more than just bone meal and it is important to get the calcium/phosphorus ratio correct. I would say go for the homecooking if you don't want to do a prescription diet. A nutritionist can create one for you. Spinach isn't the best for intestinal issues. I would go with green beans or zuccini. Sweet and white potatos are good. Rice might work for some. Have you tried fish as her protein?

I wouldn't waste your time with an e-book unless somebody with excellent credentials wrote it and expect to get good answers because so much of what is on the net is opinions. I'd talk to a qualified nutritionist about this.

Did you try the hypoallergenic diet from Ann's nutritionist?
That might work for you...

I started out her life on Eukanuba. Since learning more about better quality, I have used Praire, (they changed formula and left her in distress) then Canidae and the same thing happened, then I went to California Natural then back to (don't gasp) Eukanuba since early in life she didn't have so much trouble. But all have been complicated.

Oh, and I just ordered Honest Kitchen dehydrated raw, just to exhaust all options. I don't want to home cook because of the supplementation but it seems to be the only thing that doesn't irritate her!:eek:

Mogens Eliasen is the author of the e-book Canine Choice By Nature.

I just Googled him. He is a dog trainer but I don't think he is a nutritionist. What he has to say may be very good but the recipes should meet AAFCO guidelines (or I think some people use the NRC).

He doesn't give recipes, it's more like a guide to percentages of raw meat/protein to veggies etc. I may have wasted my $12.00 but it was info when I needed some. I will update you when I read more. So far I've just skimmed it briefly.

I doubt it was a waste if you enjoy reading it. :)
We do 1 ounce lean meat
88 grams carbs
60 grams cooked veggies
1 tsp. oil
Supplements

How much is 60 grams and 88 grams approximately? What kinds of supplements do you use? I have heard they can have the same vitamins as we use just in smaller doses because vitamin A is vitamin A blah blah blah. I, as usual, don't know what the heck to do. She is so sensitive that even a move in a healthier direction can cause such problems.