Velcro is a sensitive dog. His feeling get hurt easily. His skin gets irritated easily. His tummy gets upset easily. He is just a sensitive dog.
We have been giving him the same kind and brand of dog food since we got him. A few years ago we switched to the senior formula. He was getting a bit chubby and much less energetic. And in many regards it has been great. He has lost weight. He has a waist again. He bounces and runs again. He comes upstairs again. All pluses. But now he gets hot spots.
Every time he starts to get better and his body gets used to the food, they change the formula a little bit. And we start over. Plus he gets what we refer to as poopy butt. Do you know how unpleasant it is to step on a turdlet in bare feet? When he is upset or his food changes we have to check his pants before we can let him in the house.
So I decided that I would find him a new food. One with fewer ingredients and less stuff that isn't important. What dog needs food coloring anyway? They are more interested in smell and taste, not color. I don't care what color it is. I just want a food that makes Velcro happy, his tummy happy and his skin happy.
So I went to the pet store. And I read the labels on over 20 different kinds of dog food for senior or weight control. There was not a bag on those shelves that had fewer than 30 ingredients. Most of those ingredients I couldn't pronounce. It would just be easier if they listed the ingredients in two parts. One part would read what the main food items were. The other would list the additives and what they really were. Like, crushed oyster shells for calcium. I was in there for an hour. When I make my own food I try to limit the ingredients to five, definitely no more than ten. After reading all those labels and knowing I needed to come home with something. A hungry Velcro is a tripping hazard. He clings underfoot until you feed him. And he is the perfect tripping height. I ended up with one that says it is for sensitive skin and sensitive stomachs.
He loves it. He is more of a tripping hazard than usual. He is spinning in his excitement to eat. So far it seems to be agreeing with his tummy. It will take awhile before we can tell if it is helping his skin. He looks guilty when I catch him licking or chewing his hot spots. Poor guy, I just don't want him to be itchy.
Next stop on the dog food quest will be the natural pet store. But we still have half a bag and we'll see what happens in the mean time. Any suggestions on dog food that is easy on sensitive doggies will be gladly accepted.
4 comments:
boscoe is very sensitive--he can't handle complicated foods.
we feed him California Natural lamb and rice. that's all it is--lamb, and rice. no additives, no colorings, no wheat, no corn.
the main ingredient in a dogfood should be MEAT. dogs are carnivores. he likes lamb because it's gentle. he doesn't do as well on chicken or bison or any of those other stronger meats.
riley, who isn't as sensitive, gets Innova. again, the main ingredient is meat, but it has a couple of different kinds of meats and also more vegies.
here's a good website where you can compare different foods:
natura site
ps dogs can't process corn. it's used as filler in cheaper foods.
wheat isn't as bad--they can process it--but a lot of dogs have wheat allergies and it's not a food they need. rice is better. milder.
I can't add anything constructive to this, but I think it's terrific that you're on this quest. I'm very lucky in that my dogs all (so far, knock wood) have cast iron constitutions.
And, of course, we have laurie. Life is good...
I can't give much advice about dog food. My cat eats just about anything, including mice... But I can sympathize about pets with potty problems. Same cat could not figure out how to work the litter box, I was having to grab him and wash his paws. Finally I had to throw him outside and then he could take care of himself. Go figure.
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