Sick Dog - Any Advice Would Be Appreciated

Little Lady said:
I was told by the vet not to give him wet food.
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I find a lot of vet's are like medical MD's and know very little about nutrition. A lot of vet's are against home cooking and raw diets. I find it hard to believe that processed food is better than food in it's natural state. I making this point because real food is wet(hydrated). Taking my two boxers off kibble greatly improved the quality of their life. They have not had kibble for over 8 years.
 
andtckrtoo said:
Jimmy does horrible on Fresh Pet Select - I guess all dogs are different.
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Just like people. :)I know many dogs who don't do well on raw too. I tried home cooking and couldn't seem to get it right. It really is all trial and error.
 
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I agree that vets know very little about nutrition. My vet flat out admitted it to me when we discussed this over the years. When anyone was sick he would ask "You are not feeding him raw are you?" Well now he agrees that a raw diet is fine and maybe even better than commercial food. I have a friend who is a vet who trained abroad and he literally laughed out loud when he saw our dogs eating kibble He wanted to know how I had ever convinced them to eat it. I cook for my dogs and they are doing fine. I can never understand how a dry mass produced food can be better than "real food". All I can compare it to is eating dry cereal with added vitamins day after day meal after meal. I think we have been sold a bill of goods by the pet food industry.
 
It boggles my mind how anyone can think processed food is better than real food. I compare it to enriched white bread. The food is so stripped of all it's nutrients, they have to add it back in. :confused:
Mercedes was sick everyday when I fed her kibble. I took Maximus off kibble when I brought him home @ 8 weeks old.
 
What is unhealthy about blue buffalo? My Jimmy can't have corn or gluten so I turned to this food. Curious if Organic Blue Buffalo is processed? Maybe I don't understand what processed is?
 
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fit44 said:
I find a lot of vet's are like medical MD's and know very little about nutrition. A lot of vet's are against home cooking and raw diets. I find it hard to believe that processed food is better than food in it's natural state. I making this point because real food is wet(hydrated). Taking my two boxers off kibble greatly improved the quality of their life. They have not had kibble for over 8 years.
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I was very happy that Sandy's vet was honest when I asked him what to feed her. He said most foods are fine but not to buy into the hype that 1 - dry food is better (more nutritious) and 2 - that it cleans their teeth. He didn't reccomend any product straight out and even said feeding her healthy people food was fine. It is when you get to feeding the junk that dogs (and cats) don't do well. He wasn't convinced on the raw diet - as in raw meats but was fine with helathy people as opposed to pet foods.

We are on day two of Fresh Pet Select and semi-solid waste so far. Unfortunately, she ate something from outside (something crunchy) when I was walking her this afternoon. GRRRR!!!

Carrie
 
I haven't heard anything about that at Petsmart. I don't know. I will have to check it out. I am going to look up some articles.
 
I am curious if blue is processed. I thought all natural and organic meant that it wasn't. I really don't understand what is unhealthy about it. Maybe there is something that I don't know. Let me know.
 
I found this article about wet versus dry. It is all quite confusing. I think that I will stick with blue buffalo because it has done wonders for Jimmy and I have never heard anything but praise about it. If there is something bad that I don't understand about the food I'm feeding him please explain and I may check out Pet Select if it is organic, all natural, and gluten free.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Dog-Nutri...--What-Are-the-Advantages-of-Both?&id=3282382

Nevermind, I found the website and it is organic and natural. How much is it?
 
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Little Lady said:
I found this article about wet versus dry. It is all quite confusing. I think that I will stick with blue buffalo because it has done wonders for Jimmy and I have never heard anything but praise about it. If there is something bad that I don't understand about the food I'm feeding him please explain and I may check out Pet Select if it is organic, all natural, and gluten free.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Dog-Nutri...--What-Are-the-Advantages-of-Both?&id=3282382

Nevermind, I found the website and it is organic and natural. How much is it?
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The cost depends on the size of the container you buy. I bought the 6 pound "tube" which was $9.99 at my local grocery store. My dog needs to eat (according the the package) about a pound a day, meaning I will need 5 "tubes" (or $50) to get through a month. That is a lot more than what I was paying but if it works, I am all for it! There are smaller containers (single serving) and smaller tubes if you just want to try it out. In my local grocery store, it is located in a refrigerator at the end of the pet food aisle.

If Blue Buffalo works for you (and your dog), I don't see what is wrong with it. I know there are a lot of people who believe fully in one thing (all natural, etc.) vs. another (commercial "dog chow"). When reading about it after you suggested it, I like that there are no corn and grain fillers. That is the annoying piece about a lot of the commercial dog foods. They contain a lot of corn and grains that can cause allergies. Having said that, growing up all the families dogs where on commercial dog foods and they were fine. It is such an individual thing to what the person prefers (and can afford) and what the dog prefers and can tolerate.

Carrie
 
Little Lady said:
I am curious if blue is processed. I thought all natural and organic meant that it wasn't. I really don't understand what is unhealthy about it. Maybe there is something that I don't know. Let me know.
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I think others who are more knowledgeable about all natural and organic claims can jump in here and answer this one (i.e. kathryn or hiitdogs). I think all things that come in a package are processed somehow.

Carrie
 
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Little Lady said:
I am curious if blue is processed.
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Processed food are foods that have been altered from their natural state. All dog kibble is processed.

A lot of food is processed. Frozen veggies are considered processed because they are frozen. There are several degrees of processed food.
Bread is processed, all to different degrees. Enriched white bread is very processed.
Fresh vegetables/fruits are unprocessed because they are in their natural state. Hope this helps.:)

Fresh Pet is considered processed because it goes through pasteurization. It resembles cold cuts, the veggies and rice are whole.
With kibble, the food has been so processed it doesn't resemble any of it's natural characteristics. I compare it to white bread. Kibble is also loaded with preservatives. That is how it can sit on the shelf for months/years. Like our foods that are loaded with trans fats.

IMO, home cooking or raw food would be the best (healthiest) choice, but for me Fresh Pet was the next best thing. It is the least processed of all the dog foods. My two are picky and will not touch kibble because they have eaten whole food their entire life. Put a bowl of kibble down next to a bowl of whole food, I'll bet your pet will go to the whole food every single time.
When our local grocery store gave samples of the Fresh Pet, I was extremely skeptical. My two had not eaten anything but home cooking and raw for years because. Commercial dog food gave them horrible stomach problems. They were also super picky eaters!!! They gobbled Fresh Pet it like it was candy and had zero stomach problems.


Home cooking or raw feeding is not for everyone. It cost more, takes more planning and effort. My boys tell me all the time they are going to feed their dogs kibble (when they have their own house;)). It really is a personal decision.
My sister's dog lived a very healthy 13 years on a premium kibble. There is nothing wrong if you choose kibble.
 
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