Prescription Dog Food vs Other Dog Food
 

Are any of your dogs on prescription dog food from the Vet~? I took my dog in for his yearly shots earlier today. I bought his bag of the food he's on and questioned about the high protein. The response I got was that they saw a lot of dogs that had G.I. upsets with such food given, such as mine.

For over a year, my dog has been on "Blue Buffalo". For quite a while, he's not really wanting to eat it and I have had to mix wet food to human food in it, like baked potato in his dry. So, with the Vet's suggestion I took a sample thinking it would be a small baggie full. Nope, she gave me a 5 lb of Iam's low residue at no charge. What do you all think~?

My guy has been on w/d canned food for as long as I can remember. He also eats dry food during the day. Canned food is for dinner.

I think Iams is a very poor quality food that vets get a commission for selling.

I didn't quite understand the problem with hisw original food. Is it just that he doesn't like it? or thwe high protein? Yorkies should have about 28% protein.

If/when you have time, it might help to post the ingredients and Guar Analysis...

Hmmmm...so, what is your goal for this baby? Would you prefer dry, wet (or combo), raw, cooking? An Rx diet can be a miracle for some dogs who have issues, and where cooking is tough, or can't be guided by a canine nutritionist. If your kiddo doesn't have health issues, you have tons of options, which is great!

If your dog does well with the level of protein currently, I'm not sure I'd change much...? Do you like the brand he is on right now?

I don't agree with this as a blanket statement. Some dogs do best on higher protein, some do best on higher carbs.

Jeanie, are you selling the Life's Abundance now? If so, a seller can't recommend their food in this section. If this is not your selling link, then it's fine.

My Vet told me that she has seen a lot of dogs coming in with G.I. problems when they have been on such food as mine, as well as the holistic brands too. He has had a recent episode of nausea as well as diarreha, but my concern was that the "Blue Buffalo" was too high in protein. Somewhere on this message board I posted a similar question about food. Someone answered that they had to switch foods since her Yorkie had a G. I. problem, and when I asked the Vet that is what they told me also.

I have no goal for my dog, except to eat. But when it come to eating, it is a problem. He's not the kind of dog to eat when you put food down, but he did when I added this new food to his old food. Normally, he has to play in order to eat.

If Iams is the food that your dog does best on, then that is probably what you should feed. It is not a great food nor do I support their animal cruelty problems, but your pup needs to eat something consistently without nausea.

I'm thinking you have tried many foods b/c I'm remembering a lot of posts about this, If Iams rx is really the only thing that he is going to do consistently well on, then that is what you should use.

Yes, I've posted a lot about food issues :) Thanks for remembering me :) I'm testing the waters on this food and see how he does. She gave me 2 other choices too. It would be simplier for me to get his food at the grocery when I go. I go to Petsmart for his food now and another pet store for his vitamins since Petsmart doesn't carry them.

JMO but I don't think ANY food sold in a grocery store is a good quality food. I was happy with Royal Canin and they make a formula especially for yorkies. I would stick with the lower protein foods. Some dogs tolerate and do well on the high protein foods, but many cannot tolerate them.

It might be more convenient to buy it at the grocery store, but if it is a better quality food the trip to petsmart would be worth it.

Now don't get me wrong, many dogs have live long healthy lives on Purina dog chow. But I think yorkies do better on better foods.

Dogs who are on high protein, or high carb, or med protein/med carb diets can all have GI issues. It has to do more with the individual dog. Like EllieMay said, it's good to stick w/ what you're feeding (or similar) if it is working.

Okay, so you don't care if it's dry/wet/raw...so, one thing to try would be pre-made raw. It can do wonders for some picky dogs. This is why I was asking you what your goal in feeding was, bc I thought you said in the past you did not want to use wet or raw. Am I confused?

Btw, my dogs have been on a higher protein (or 'low carb') diet for about 3+ years now, with no GI issues.

If the food is AAFCO approved, vitamins aren't needed in most cases.

Here's the thing. It sounds like things are changed up so much b/c he is picky that you don't even know which food(s) is causing the problem. IMO, find one food that he does well on and stick with it. Adding one brand of canned plus this vegetable or that fruit, etc., etc. is fine for some dogs, but not for those with GI problems when you need to figure out which food is causing the issue. One food at a time...

Well, the Vet told me that they have seen numerous of dogs on these better quality of foods that have had G.I. problems. She didn't say if it was the small dogs or large ones.


Dry is better for his teeth, as I was told. But when he gets down to not eating the food and when I have to add wet is when I have noticed in the past he's not liking the food. In the past, I've questioned her about cooking for my dog and she told me that isn't good for him. Anyways, I am just confused if Iam's is good since meat isn't the first ingredient. Then again, there were 2 other choices of brands she reccomended.

Both small dogs and large dogs can have GI issues.

Dry food won't make much of a difference in terms of teeth. Teeth health is determined by genetics, over-vaccination issues, chewing frequency, home dental hygience etc....more than the kind of food.

While dry food breaks at the tip of the tooth, giving it less of a chance to 'settle' in near the crevices...it's doesn't make a big difference. Also, dogs can tend to gulp wet food, with it barely even touching their teeth.

An analogy is - does munching on cereal keep our teeth clean? Their teeth are made of the same thing as ours, they just have slightly different enzymes etc in the mouth.

Question of the Day: Something to think about
 

If ya'll feed your dogs raw, would you yourself eat a raw diet~? There is such a thing, ya know. Are ya'll vegetarian that feed your dogs the way you do~? I am a long time, 20+ years vegetarian. There are people out there who feed their dogs no meat, and their dogs are vegan as they are.

Agree with WylieMom on everything :thumbup:

I would never feed Iams, btw. Ever. Their animal cruelty stuff is enough to make me not feed it. I'd feed Purina over Iams, even though I don't like Purina either.

I would never condone feeding a dog a vegan diet. It's completely unnatural for a canine and it cannot be healthy. I do not eat raw food for myself, and probably never would, but it's simply because I don't like it (I don't like the taste of sushi, etc) and have not researched it enough for humans... but I do know some people do the raw diet thing for themselves.

I'm not comfortable with prey model raw simply because I don't have the freezer space, the money, the knowledge, or the time to prepare it. I love pre-made raw because it's all done for me, pretty much, and it's pretty easy and convinenant. I feed pre-made raw a few times a week for breakfast for Jackson, and Orijen or Acana kibble for dinner. So far, he's in fabulous health at a little over 2 years old. His coat is super shiny and soft (and he always gets compliments on it- though he has short hair), his teeth are great, his energy levels are great, he's never had ear infections, or things like that, his bones and hips and everything are in perfect shape. I'm incredibly pleased with his diet and am especially happy w/ it when I see my family members dogs eating Kibbles n Bits and Iams, etc, who have constant rashes, bumps, hot spots, throwing up often, overweight, scabby looking things on their body, bad hips and joints, and disgusting breath.

I'm vegetarian (well I do eat fish rarely, so a pescatarian). My dog is pescatarian because she has to be. She doesn't handle meat or poultry very well at all. Dogs can easily be pescatarian. They can also easily be ovovegetarian (egg is a great protein source for pups and it is okay to use it in place of meat). They can techinically be vegan also and it would be impossible to say that vegan dogs live shorter lives. I don't think that info is even available. I'm pretty sure Purina H/A is vegan. It would be pretty difficult to get this diet correct, but it's still possible. Whether or not an owner wants to force their dog to eat the same way they do is up to them. I'm fine making my dog be a pescatarian or even an ovovegetarian. Anything beyond that and I don't think I'd want to force that on my dog...

BTW, I know rx diets aren't appealing, but when owners get backed into a corner and need to give it a try, it suddenly isn't so bad anymore. Happened to me... I don't like Iams either (and now Innova), but the meat people eat comes from way crueler places. No difference really. :(

Anyway, your dog may not need an rx diet, but if you keep trying things and they aren't working, it is best to give it and get the GI upset taken care of. That becomes a quality of life issue and it is kinder to just give a diet that works for the dog.

Me too :)

I've never heard of Purina H/A, but I know of Purina.I went to a couple pet stores today checking ingredients and asking info from the folks there. It seems like the other brands the Vet reccomended has the same ingredients, but just in reverse somewhat. After all I read & questioned, I felt confused somewhat. I do trust my Vet I have now more than the last one. Everything I questioned the Vet about, they did have a response to regarding the ingredients of this not so healthy choice.

I don't feel I am backed into a corner at all. Just I would like my little guy to eat healthy, but he's had recent eposiodes of nausea and diarreha. It's not the first time, but it isn't often he's had these issues either. The only way he will eat is when he plays ball. He didn't eat this am, nor tonight. After we played a bit of ball, he ate a little bit. Sometimes when he gets his treats (vitamins) is when he eats too.

We feed Bear home cooked.

We try to eat healthy and cook for ourselves every day: chicken, fish, beef and a lot of veggies and fruits, rice, green beens, pasta sometimes. . . .

I take Bear's part out if I am adding any spices ( except for garlic), and he gets whatever we are eating.

Bear eat with us on the dinning table, from his little plate:)

He is 14 months now, 8.2 lb, healthy, happy little boy!

Just had his complete blood work done for the second time, and everything looks great.

I feed Rylie Natural Balance Small Breed Bites Limited Ingredient Diet: Potato & Duck Formula. I feed the LID version, and not the ultra premium, because it is grain free and my cat has allergies (so I want it to be okay if she ever accidentally gets into the puppy food). It chose it after a long debate with myself and research because it is grain free, limited ingredient, and high quality and is also lower protein than brands like Blue Buffalo and Acana. Bonus is that it is smaller sized pieces (around the size of cat food), which I've read is better for our little ones. Rylie is doing fantastic on it!

Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance Pet Foods :1

I know that the protein debate is alive and well, but I decided as an inexperienced owner that I didn't feel comfortable feeding my baby above the recommended percentage in YT for Dummies (see my old threads on food and you can see some of my self debate typed out :P).

Overall, I think you just need to do what works best for your baby. Yes, Iams and Purina and such are "terrible foods" and they are considered so because of their ingredients according to a lot of research. However, if that is what works for your baby I say go for it!

I had a cat when I was little that lived to be old and healthy despite the fact we fed her poor quality food. She was fine on it and did well. I can't do that with my current cat so that's when I actually looked into what was IN their food. I'd never feed those foods as a first resort now, but if they were what worked for my pet I'd be comfortable with it.