Need Help-- Need to Change Food NOW
 

Daisy has had a rough time at night with tummy aches/gas. She sleeps fitfully and wakes up panting with scared look in her eyes. This has been going on for a couple of weeks. We have eliminated food/treats one at a time until all that is left is her Blue Buffalo dry kibble (lamb and brown rice).

The onset of her tummy aches seems to coincide with the time we opened the latest bag of dog food. I called the blue buff company today and asked them if it could be the food. I told her that we noticed that there are a LOT more life source bits in this bag than usual. (I have been picking a bunch of the life source bits out of their bowls before I give it to them). I told her that the ratio of kibble to life source bits seems to be about 50/50. She told me that she is sure that this is DEFINITELY, WITHOUT a DOUBT, the reason for her tummy aches/gas. I was shocked that she admitted this.

She told me to return the bag to Petsmart and get another bag that has a different BEST BY date. (12 Sep 15)... She is sorry for Daisy's tummy aches and she is going to send me some treats. What??? Daisy has been in pain and distress almost every night for about two weeks and you are going to send me some treats? She explained to me that the bag of food is filled from two separate spouts, one has the kibble and one has the life source bits. I believe that she said that the life source bits should be about 7 or 8%. She said when the food runs out of one side, the bag fills up with whatever is on the other side.....in our case, life source bits. This seems so irresponsible that no one is catching a mistake like this and my pup had to suffer because of it.

I am pretty upset about this....I will for sure be returning the bag of blue buff but I WILL NOT be buying any more of this food. That seems to be so irresponsible of a company to not inspect or monitor food that is leaving the line. My poor baby has been up at night with a tummy ache and gas and I have been up with her, distressed and not knowing what to do for her.

Can someone PLEASE suggest a kibble that my 10 and 11 year old pups will like.... preferably one that I can get at Petsmart. My husband and I don't want a new bag of Blue Buffalo because we don't trust them now. I don't want to transition her to the new food, but want to start them on a new food today.

Because I feel the need to get them on new food today, I don't think I have sufficient time to do a lot of research on this. I was reading a thread about Royal Canine and I was thinking that might be a good place to start but I don't know if they will like it. They are so used to lamb and rice but I will be willing to try something else.

I mainly want a food/company we can trust will have some quality control or something. My husband suggested Nutro but it looks to me like they have had a lot of problems with recalls in the past. I feel at a loss right now and so disappointed that a company that we trusted let us down in a big way.

Thanks for any help.

Smaller companies with limited quality control are of concern. this is what can happen easily...

Royal Canin would be fine, but a fast switch is usually not a good idea. I would go with a tummy diet for three days and slowly transition from there (chicken and rice or somerhing from the vet).

Thank you for your quick response! Do you have any suggestions for something better? They are older and I always wonder if their digestive systems might be a little more delicate now. But they are pretty picky so I need something tasty for them.

Thanks so much for your comments.

Food
 

I found Wellness to be similar in quality and composition to BB. You would perhaps like to look at the Wellness website for the most suitable food as they have quite a range ( no black bits. LOL!) Could you try a sample before you get the big bag?
If you need to transition slowly you could use some saved kibble minus the black bits before you take the BB back.
There are of course many good food choices, but I chose the one I found similar to BB......as a start anyway.

Thank you for your suggestion, We do give them Wellness treats and they love them.

I hope people who are feeding Blue Buffalo will read my post and take into consideration their lack of quality control on their food. My poor baby has been in pain and scared to death (and me too) not knowing why her tummy was hurting.

I have talked to the reps from Blue Buff in the stores and at the Pet Expos. They always seem to be so concerned about providing a great diet for your dog. Now I see that they don't care about your dog, or they would be doing quality control and not sending out bags of food like this. The company is well aware of this problem with the food because the person at the company tells me that it happens every so often. I feel like it shouldn't happen at all. There is no excuse for ever sending out a bag of dog food that will cause your baby to be in pain. And this took me over two weeks to figure out what was causing the problem. Also, one of my vets told me she does not recommend this food because they do not do any scientific research on their food. Guess I learned my lesson the hard way.

I am soooo very disappointed in Blue Buffalo.

Food
 

Yes it is scary that such a huge variation should be allowed to happen. I have found that most foods leave a lot to be desired in the QC department. A new bag of the same food can look and taste ( to the dog!) different. Even with Prescription food I notice significant variations in kibble appearance and sometimes my dog will not eat from a new bag. QC in dog food sure needs improvement!

I like Royal Canin. I don't know how you feel about Wellness but they came out with a new toy line that the pieces are pretty small and it actually smells pretty good and Callie loves it. http://www.wellnesspetfood.com/produ...49&dm=toybreed

Natures Variety Insinct is also an excellent food and PetSmart started carrying it recently. it comes in kibble or raw and canned. Mine are on it and have no tummy upset, gas and nice firm poops.

We are trying Wellness Core Weight Management formula (turkey). We are going to give them chicken and rice for a few days and transition the kibble into their chicken and rice. I hope they like it. Thanks for your suggestions. Any more suggestions are welcome.

We used the this same formula for Toki a couple years ago and she enjoyed it...as I recall, she didn't have any GI issues on it either so hopefully it'll work out for your pups! The other Wellness formulas that we've tried (the Wellness Core Ocean and the Toy Breed Complete Health Healthy Weight) have been good as well.

At Petsmart, Wellness is one of my top picks but you might also look into some of the Hill's Ideal Balance formulas as well in the future...I know they have a lamb and brown rice one that your pups might like if they're partial to lamb kibbles.

I am a fan of Hill's Science Diet Ideal Balance. My pups who don't have RX diets are on it and doing fine! I trust the company.

Natural Dog Food - Hill's Ideal Balance Dog Food

I use royal canin as well my older dog (shih tzu) loves it my puppy (yorkie) eats the brand breed specifically for yorkie pups, as someone said the boiled chicken and rice (bland)diet for now until the tummy Settles down. Good luck :)

If you want to do I dry food I would go for Wellness or Taste of the wild Sierra or Pacific Stream

I am feeding Galen Primal and Stella & Chewy Freeze Dried foods. . . He just love them

Thanks for your input. Hills Science Diet Ideal Balance will be my next pick if the Wellness doesn't work out. We were in kind of a rush at the store but the label on the Royal Canin looked like it had corn in it, which unfortunately makes Teddy Bear itch. There was a Petsmart dog trainer there who said she reads everything on dog food and subscribes to every newsletter. She called herself a dog food expert. She highly recommended both the Wellness Core and the SD Ideal Balance. We didn't just take her word, we carefully studied the ingredients. We saw the NV Instinct and highly considered it but Petsmart only carried small bag or a large 25 lb. Bag which is too much. We were able to get a 10 or 12 lb bag of the Wellness Healthy Weight, which is just about right for us.

I am really appreciating all of your input. I never expected to be put in a position like this with needing a quick change. It isn't fun.

I've switched recently to wellness core small breed and my 14 yr old and 14 month old boys love it! My older boy is becoming a little tummy sensitive and he's had no issues with this food. I was debating between wellness and the blue buffalo and I have no regrets picking wellness. You might have some tummy issues if you switch and don't gradually mix in but honestly I switched straight over and didn't see any changes in stool.

Daisy had a peaceful nights sleep last night for the first time in many nights. I am well rested myself from finally getting some sleep. I just feel so awful that my baby had to go through so much pain and fear. They are both loving the chicken and rice. I am anxious to see how they like their new food.

Food
 

Way to go! So happy the chicken and rice are agreeing with your dogs and that now you all are getting some much needed sleep. Praying that the switch to the commercial foods goes as well. Thanks for the update. :-)

I went out of town to visit a friend for a couple of days since Daisy was feeling so much better, and left hubby in charge of feeding the pups. I showed him how to make their chicken and rice before I left. He decided to start feeding them the new dog food with the chicken and rice. I also came home to find a bowl of the new dog food sitting next to their water bowl. I was not happy about that. Now tonight Daisy has another tummy ache. I am so frustrated with him because I asked him not to give them any dog food while I was gone. I don't know what he was thinking. I told him that we needed to slowly transition them to the new food after a few days of chicken and rice. I am getting them back on their chicken and rice again.

I think I will need to switch them to the small breed kibble since Teddy seemed to have trouble chewing the larger kibble. The good news is that hubby told me that Daisy seems to love the new food. I hope this works out.

I forgot to add...he also gave them turkey (white meat) instead of chicken...and he gave them treats. Grrrrrr. I was up with her until after six am this morning...only got a couple hours of sleep last night. Her poop this morning was soft and runny and light beige in color. Now we're starting all over. Why, why, why?

Food
 

So sorry, just when you thought you were winning! Men!!! He sure did not obey the rules! I hope your baby soon returns to health with sticking to your feeding regimen and plan. At least your girl likes the new food, if that is any consolation.
Could it be she also was stressed when you were gone?
I wonder if this tummy sensitivity could be due to pancreatitis? Has she been checked out for that?
Hope that is not the case, but worth checking out?

Aww! Dang! I'm sure your hubby did those things out of love for the pups but when you say to do something a certain way, there's a reason for it lol...my BF is the same way! Hope Daisy is feeling better. And yeah, I remember that particular Wellness Core formula did have kind of large weird wedge-shaped pieces...Toki didn't have an issue with it but they did seem kinda big.

Have you been to Vet, stool sample? Stool appearance, smell? parasites, bacteria?

I definitely think hubby wanted to make the babies happy and he doesn't realize the consequences can hurt them. He loves them so much. He would never ever purposely hurt them. I feel so lucky for that. But I think he also wanted to surprise me and let me see that they like the food. I think maybe he believes I go a little overboard trying to protect them

I don't think Daisy has pancreatitis but I will definitely have the vet take a look at her if it seems that way. After I talked to the BB rep and she confirmed that the life source bits were the problem, I didn't think she would need to see the vet if her gas goes away. I think she will be ok now. I won't leave her with hubby again until she is back on track, that's for sure.

Some of Teddy Bear's teeth are a little loose. He will probably need some pulled at his next dental. He is 10 yrs old and still has all of his teeth. He does need rentals regularly. Hubby said he soaked the kibble in water to soften it for them.

Thanks for your concern and advice. It is always helpful and appreciated.

Food
 

Of course your hubby thought what he fed them was to be kind to them, we all tend to give our dogs treats to make them happy. And I am sure he thought you would be pleased that they liked the new food. He was not to know what effects his feeding would have. But sometimes family members do not realize how delicate these dogs can be when it comes to diet, and often they think we are being unduly restrictive.
Praying that it was the black bits that caused the upset and that it will be out of her system soon. Try and get some sleep and hopefully she will be ok tomorrow and can come home. :-)

food
 

Sorry, she is at home….what was I thinking!!!! Hope she is feeling better today.

I don't like feeding all the grain that's in foods like Royal Canin, Science Diet, etc I mainly feed raw, but if I'm traveling and need to use kibble I get Nature's Variety or Wellness Core. Petsmart carries both now.

Just another sad story about how much Blue cares - Years ago I thought I would try Blue Buffalo Wilderness with my Sphynx cats. I had 3 cats - 3 days after switching them, one of my cats went down scary fast. I rushed him to the vet but they couldn't find what was wrong. His liver and kidney values where extremely high but none of the toxin tests or other bloodwork they ran gave any reason why. All my cats had just had full physicals including bloodwork about 3 months prior. He ended up spending 2 1/2 weeks at the vet near death on IV fluids and being tube fed before he was even strong enough that I could take him home to continue the treatment (I am a trained vet tech, and had an IV pump and everything else I needed - But he was far to critical to transport back and forth to the vet every day when I went to work since he needed to be monitored around the clock!) He wanted to eat but he was to weak. I took him to a specialist, they couldn't figure it out. Slowly my cat recovered after loosing over half his body weight - It was a very long, slow recovery. A week after the first cat got sick, my other male went down just as fast. I rushed him to the vet as well - but sadly he went into Cardiac Arrest within moments of getting there and as hard as they tried, he didn't survive. When I took my surviving cat to the internal medicine specialist he asked one question I thought was odd - "Do you or have you fed Blue Buffalo". I told him I'd just changed and he told me that explained a lot :(. He said he'd had a number of patients with sudden serious and unexplained symptoms and the only thing they all had in common was being fed Blue :( I called them and basically got the same response you did "the bags may vary from batch to batch" - OK, but my cats had never eaten Blue before, they where perfectly healthy, and suddenly I was thousands of dollars into vet bills on one and lost another. They told me I could exchange the bag - No thanks! I threw it away and went back to their original food (Felidae). My one girl that never got sick I took to the vet to be safe, and both her liver and kidney values where high. She's just had bloodwork done (they all had!) just 3 months prior - So we know it was a new thing, and almost certainly caused by the food. Not a coincidence that 3 healthy cats all had problems!

Cats
 

Wow, that is really scary about BB. I am so sorry your cats had such bad reactions to the food. I wonder what it was in the food that could cause this?
There do seem to be isolated reports like yours, but how could BB survive if its food caused more general illness? I can only surmise that the quality control is such that bad batches get through to the customer instead of being caught at source? The stated ingredients appear to be good quality and at one time I fed my dogs that food. Now I feed prescription diet for health reasons.
I do feel strongly that quality control is not good in much of the dog food industry and I wish there were more stringent regulations here.

Yes, I agree that quality control was the issues. The internal medicine specialist I took my cat to said all the animals he has seen sick from BB had been within the last 2-3 months of when my cats for sick. So it was probably a bad batch - But IMO it should have triggered a recall and some sort of compensation should have been offered to all the owners who's pets got sick off that food!

I also agree that over all quality control is not what it should be in the pet food industry, which is part of why I now choose to feed raw - then I KNOW where my dogs' food comes from, how it is handled and prepared, etc. Some companies like Orijen, Acana, Canidae, etc have much higher quality control standards then others. I use to feed and swear by Canidea before I went to raw, used it for over 10 years for my rescues and never had problems. I know Petco now sells Canidae.

solid golds sundancer is great food grain free and chester done great on it and then got tired of it, acana is his food now

I am so sorry about your cats Rescuemomma. That is awful.

Daisy seems better the last couple of nights. Much better. She is acting pretty normal right now. But yesterday I called the vet to make an appointment. I have to wait a week to get in...AGAIN. So I asked if they could give me something for her tummy while we are waiting. So yesterday she got Prostora in the am and pm, and she had a great night last night.

I am trying a new vet who has longer hours and 3 vets work there. I can't see waiting a week every time I need to see the vet. We have an appointment at 2:10 on Monday.

Are there any tests that I should be asking about just to make sure she is ok?