# What Do You Feed Your Dog?



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Hi Again,

I'm finding myself in a quandry with food. We have an approx 3yr old greyhound x called Ted, who we got from DogsTrust in Nov 2013. He is pretty giddy and bouncy and had quite nasty separation anxiety when we first got him, but he is improving lots and lots and is generally much happier and more settled.

When we first got him he was on wainwrights, but we took him off that as soon as possible as it's 23% protein, and only available from pets at home. He went onto JWB cereal free for about 6 months, topped with half a sachet of wet food. Whilst we didn't have any problems per se (good poos, nice coat etc), it was getting pretty expensive, and he was still really giddy. So we lowered his protein content again and went onto Burns Chicken and Rice, which we were planning to top with the moist food (to call it moist is a liberty as it looks more to me like it's had all the liquid sucked out of it lol).

Couple of issues I have with this, we transferred him over really slowly over a matter of about 3 weeks all in all, and he's still had several bouts of seriously upset tummy. We're talking pawing at my boyfriend's head at 4 in the morning, dashing outside and then having liquid diarrhoea in the garden. It may well be because of something else he'd eaten (bulls pizzle or the like), but having never had this problem before on the other food, I'm suspicious. 

Generally his poos are much less solid and are a light sandy brown, not a dark woody brown as they were before. The other thing is he is really windy on this and it smells SO cabbagey. All his other treats have stayed the same, as has his feeding routine, and we're going by the suggestion on the bag in terms of amount, but he seems to be looking less muscular. He has calmed down marginally, but we're not saving any money at all, because he seems to need to eat more of this food to get the same amount of goodness as he was getting from the JWB.

I'm now trying to think what is going to be best for him; whether we keep him on this for longer to see if it improves (it has been at least 3 weeks and I've not seen any real benefit frankly), change him back to JWB, or start looking into feeding him human food / raw diet. When he gets a mini version of our dinner we don't have any problems with a poorly tummy, and he seems great in himself. When we've had a roast he's had a mini version, so chicken, pork or lamb, plain and oven roasted, roasted potatoes and veg and gravy. I'm sure there are lots of people who disagree with this, and he certainly won't be having it every day, but I tend to offer sweet potato, boiled chicken, plain rice, boiled peas and carrots if he's had a dodgy tum or when he just came back from dental surgery, and we've never had a problem.

The burns food he is on is already cereal free according to their website, but the other thing I've just realised is that he is moulting like mad at the moment. Everything we own is covered in little white hairs, and whilst it has gotten warmer I'm also wondering if it's some sort of allergic reaction and that's why he's windy, got loose poo and shedding so much...

If anyone can provide any insight I would be massively grateful! Even if it's just advising what you feed your dog on and what they're like behaviour and condition wise.

Thanks in advance.

Lindsay


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

Try e-mailing CSJ at Dog Food for gundogs, sheepdogs, agility dogs, and show dogs., give them all the symptoms as you have here and what you've fed and see what they suggest.

They will send you sample of food that they think will help, as they do a complete range of foods.

Their normal bog-standard CSJ Champ at £11.50 per bag is the only food our Skye is able to tolerate without passing either wet runny poos or dehydrated dried ones and he's in great condition on it.


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

feorag said:


> Try e-mailing CSJ at Dog Food for gundogs, sheepdogs, agility dogs, and show dogs., give them all the symptoms as you have here and what you've fed and see what they suggest.
> 
> They will send you sample of food that they think will help, as they do a complete range of foods.
> 
> Their normal bog-standard CSJ Champ at £11.50 per bag is the only food our Skye is able to tolerate without passing either wet runny poos or dehydrated dried ones and he's in great condition on it.


Thanks Feorag,

I've had a look and it looks promising, however the main difficulty I'm going to have is that I have a really really serious allergy to fish and shellfish, and unfortunately a lot of the foods have either fish oil or shellfish in.

I'm going to drop them an email though explaining the situation and see what they can suggest. After my boyfriend got home we were discussing it and noted as well that Ted has been eating LOADS of grass since going on this new food, which makes me think his body is lacking in something. Fibre perhaps?


----------



## LawrenceJMitchell (Feb 8, 2013)

Hi
I have two jack russell x dachshund, I feed them on Bakers Complete (good value and protein differences with far more expensive brands negligible) in addition they get our scraps....bits of pasta, rice, veg, roast meat, cooked fish scraps.They are both fit as fiddles and rarely poo messily. I do avoid giving them milk......as that does upset them.
There is literally oodles of stuff written about dogs and diet. And some people swear blind by the most expensive brands but if you read the nutritional breakdown the differences in % terms are tiny..........I mean what does 23% or 26% really matter.......the truth is a dog has a relatively simple stomach and the food is processed and passed without all the nutrients being absorbed anyway.
A dog can absorb carbohydrates.....unlike a wolf that just absorbs proteins.......that is what thirty thousand years of hanging around people and eating our scraps has done........after all the dogs we have all come down from wolf cousins.
So I would go with what works for you and your dog......not worry too much about nutritional breakdowns and for treats give dog biscuits or off cuts of meat (I buy at the supermarket shell counter)
Finally more walks may help with giddy behaviours.......riverside is underestimated in doggy health......certainly my two are loads calmer after a run.

All the best!
Lawrence x :smile:


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

LawrenceJMitchell said:


> Hi
> I have two jack russell x dachshund, I feed them on Bakers Complete (good value and protein differences with far more expensive brands negligible) in addition they get our scraps....bits of pasta, rice, veg, roast meat, cooked fish scraps.They are both fit as fiddles and rarely poo messily. I do avoid giving them milk......as that does upset them.
> There is literally oodles of stuff written about dogs and diet. And some people swear blind by the most expensive brands but if you read the nutritional breakdown the differences in % terms are tiny..........I mean what does 23% or 26% really matter.......the truth is a dog has a relatively simple stomach and the food is processed and passed without all the nutrients being absorbed anyway.
> A dog can absorb carbohydrates.....unlike a wolf that just absorbs proteins.......that is what thirty thousand years of hanging around people and eating our scraps has done........after all the dogs we have all come down from wolf cousins.
> ...



Defo make a valid point there. The strange this is he was going to a daycare centre, where he was literally spending the whole day there playing with the dogs, he was coming home exhausted, barely able to walk he was that tired, and yet two seconds later he'd be bouncing around / see another dog out and go ballistic wagging and barking and lunging. He is just a nutjob partially lol. Unfortunately we had to stop taking him as he got in a fight there and got bitten right across his face and leg, leave 2 inch rips through his lips and a deep puncture in his bicep on his front leg. After that I realised that he needed more supervision around other dogs than they could offer.

Additionally the owners said that whilst he was a lovely dog, he just got far too excited and overbearing and a few of the smaller dogs in particular took to chasing him when he was racing around, resulting in him losing his rag and starting a fight. Whether or not it was his fault is debatable but all the same we're getting in booked in for some training classes soon to hopefully teach him how to socialise a bit better.

I think the problem is being a rescue dog, he had a crap start in life and then his first lot of owners after being rescued sounded to be completely useless; "his favourite food is a cup of tea and a cheese slice... we haven't been able to train him". This being the same dog who has never once tried to drink my tea, and who learnt to sit, lie down and give paw within a week lol.


----------



## lisadew24 (Jul 31, 2010)

Please don't give your greyhound bakers it's full of artificial flavours and colours that can give a dog upset stomach, skin problems and make them hyper also it contains ethylene glycol what is found in antifreeze to give it a sweet taste. There is some cheap foods like chappie that aren't bad but stay away from bakers


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

lisadew24 said:


> Please don't give your greyhound bakers it's full of artificial flavours and colours that can give a dog upset stomach, skin problems and make them hyper also it contains ethylene glycol what is found in antifreeze to give it a sweet taste. There is some cheap foods like chappie that aren't bad but stay away from bakers


Hi Lisa,

Was more agreeing with the fact that some top end dog foods do seem like a complete rip off considering it contains more or less the same as some of the cheaper foods, but yeah, we won't be going down the route of bakers and pedigree for the most part, as he is already so hyper. Don't want to then throw E-Numbers into the mix as well lol. My boyfriends old dogs could basically eat any brand of food and be absolutely fine, and both lived / are currently a ripe old age, but I think this is probably more a trait with mongrels where they have descendants from lots and lots of different breeds.

I've emailed the place Feorag recommended, as they were also recommended on a greyhound forum to me, so will look into that.

He just doesn't seem himself on this new food. I can't explain it, he doesn't seem calmer in himself he almost just seems like he's constantly tired, and doesn't have the energy, which I think is probably down his current food being bulked out with rice.


----------



## PPVallhunds (May 23, 2010)

I feed csj no grainer, it's £35 for 15kg. I use to feed my girl on royal cannin but she was putting on weight despite feeding her way less and she was itchy. I swapped onto csj super duper champ and the results were great, no itching, she lost weight and the poops were much better too. I Fed that for about a year and have reasontly swapped to there no grain one and so far I couldn't be happier with it. She is looking good on it, and her poops are even smaller.


----------



## PPVallhunds (May 23, 2010)

PigeonYouDead said:


> He just doesn't seem himself on this new food. I can't explain it, he doesn't seem calmer in himself he almost just seems like he's constantly tired, and doesn't have the energy, which I think is probably down his current food being bulked out with rice.


Yes the burns one is mostly rice and also has oats. Personally I prefur something that has meat as the main ingredient allthough alot of grain free brands are ridiculously high in price, one I wanted to feed is now £64 for 13kg! The csj one is just as good but half the price.


----------



## _simon_ (Nov 27, 2007)

Dog food is a minefield mostly because of other people's opinions on what you feed your dog. We felt pressurised to only feed the expensive stuff which we did for nearly 2 years but really what's important in my eyes is what you can comfortably afford and agrees with your dog. We switched to wagg worker dog chicken and veg. 17KG for around £13 and available almost everywhere. We've had no issues since swapping. No change in behaviour, coat is if anything even shinier and poo is normal just a lot lighter in colour.

If anyone is reading this itching to give me stick then don't bother. I don't care what you think about what I feed my dog.


----------



## BMo1979 (Feb 13, 2012)

I've been feeding Millie's Wolfheart for a while now and the dogs are thriving on it (shiny coat, not smelly and neither molt as bad as they used to).
It's a bit on the more expensive side (not quite Orijen price level yet), but it's grain and gluten free and contains a decent amount of meat and fish.
I'm always put off when a dog food contains fillers like cereals or rice above meat (and often substitute meat with meat meal).
MW also do decent chews and treats and are still expanding their range.


----------



## Sylvi (Dec 30, 2008)

My dog has a very sensitive stomach but she gets on really well with Science Plan. Its sorted out her runny stools and dreadful wind. I also have to be careful with anything else she has in the way of treats or it's on with the gas masks!


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

_simon_ said:


> Dog food is a minefield mostly because of other people's opinions on what you feed your dog. We felt pressurised to only feed the expensive stuff which we did for nearly 2 years but really what's important in my eyes is what you can comfortably afford and agrees with your dog. We switched to wagg worker dog chicken and veg. 17KG for around £13 and available almost everywhere. We've had no issues since swapping. No change in behaviour, coat is if anything even shinier and poo is normal just a lot lighter in colour.
> 
> If anyone is reading this itching to give me stick then don't bother. I don't care what you think about what I feed my dog.


I agree, just because it's expensive doesn't mean it's the best.

I disagree with the comment about Bakers - I wouldn't touch that stuff with a barge pole, all those unnatural colours mean not good stuff in there.

I've never felt pressurised to feed the most expensive food, but as I said I tried both expensive and cheap varieties in an attempt to stop Skye's recurring bouts of diarrhoea and never producing a stool firm enough to pick up. The expensive stuff didn't help, the cheaper stuff (Chappie) firmed his stools to the point that they were very dry and broke up when I tried to pick them up, but he lost weight and condition, so no good.

On CSJ Champ he does great and it's only £11.50 a bag which lasts him 5 weeks and he's a good sized GSD.


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

We've had a response from the CSJ lot and they are sending us some samples so will look forward to that. Being a typical lurcher Ted will eat pretty much anything, so I doubt there's any risk of him not liking it haha.

I agree with virtually all that's been said above, I think what works for some dogs doesn't work for others, and I think a lot of it depends on their breed / exercise and lifestyle and their individual body.

JWB was I think about... £40 for a 12kg bag, which lasts him about a month. AND that was topped with a wet sachet, 1 per day. Anyone who says greyhounds don't need feeding that much is a total liar haha Ted eats like a horse and doesn't have an ounce of flab on him (we have wormed him by the way so it's not that that's making him skinny).

For me personally, the only things I am desperate to avoid are E-Numbers, artificial colours and flavourings, weird chemicals which have no purpose in food, and fish in all forms. Ergo, if I wouldn't eat it, I don't want him having it every day.

Agree with you BMO; I didn't like the fact in the burns that rice was the first ingredient, but because we were so desperate to drop his protein intake to see if helped his behaviour, there are actually not many foods that have protein percentage lower than 20 without it being silly low like 8 or 9%.

The little troll is currently barking in my face wanting me to play with him... Shame he doesn't have any idea how much we think about his welfare haha


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

When I got my samples of the foods CSJ recommended for Skye's problem, he would eat any of them.

I went onto each page to read up what each food was comprised of and on the Champ page was a testimonial from a woman with a GSD who was describing everything that Skye suffered from and Champ had worked for her dog, so it made logical sense to try that one first. If it hadn't have worked for Skye, then I would have gone through all the foods they suggested to find one that worked, but as it happened the cheapest one worked fine!


----------



## LawrenceJMitchell (Feb 8, 2013)

As Simon said above the affordability has to realistic.....and shoot me if you like about what I will say next.....and I really do love my dogs.........but they are dogs!.......and have a simple digestive system and pass food relatively quickly....so I do not believe anyone who says a particular brand is superior to the next.........
The pet food industry has brainwashed the British public to a large degree and I feel there is a good deal of snobbery involved too..........that is in no way aimed at anyone in this thread by the way.
I don't know about e numbers in bakers and what it is allegedly does to dogs.....where is the evidence......
I previously had a Patterdale Terrier that had skin problems.........tried everything......even followed the vet's advice and fed only lambs hearts.....to what end.......none!
The only credible scientific evidence I have seen is that dogs in rural China sometimes suffer from rickets due to being fed only rice.
I have seen dogs in South East Asia and South America that never saw a bowl of specially produced highly processed sciencetifically researched mumbo jumbo vet approved pellets and they were thriving........
So go with what works for you and simply don't believe the hype.......before the1950's no dog in the UK saw a tin/packet of dog food......just scraps and a bit of offal........
All the best!
: victory:
Lawrence


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Well for us personally, if we can save a bit of money on his food, then the quicker we can get a deposit together for our own place so we can all have a better life.


----------



## thetong6969 (Apr 20, 2009)

most dog food is shite 23% meat all rest additives or ash(left over stuff from floor)
ours had limited appetite no energy on kibble he was eating we tried james beloved then switched to raw meaty bones diet
he's lean with a chest a jrt by the way ,has bags more energy,fun to be with and around loves life in general,healthy above all,poops are smaller and firm no mr whippys off this dog


----------



## LawrenceJMitchell (Feb 8, 2013)

I think that makes perfect sense.......dogs fed on meat rarely suffer health wise.
Despite a dog's ability to absorb carbohydrates, effectively it is a carnivore and will almost naturally do well on what nature would provide.
The fats, iron, protein and other compounds in animal flesh (meat) and bones will give a dog everything it needs.....so does certain fish for that matter.......look at the hundreds of thousands of husky breeds kept by Nordic people right across Canada,Greenland and Russia.......they feed frozen fish (mostly salmon) and nothing else........their dogs super fit and have great outdoor coats!........my dogs love salmon though we can't afford to feed them on it solely.....wish I could!


----------



## selina20 (May 28, 2008)

Oddly my mums dog did a similar thing to yours and she found out she had an egg allergy. She became very itchy with her hair dropping out, had insanely twitchy ears and her rear end was just nasty. Since being egg free shes been fine


----------



## Joe'sMum (May 31, 2010)

PigeonYouDead said:


> Additionally the owners said that whilst he was a lovely dog, he just got far too excited and overbearing and a few of the smaller dogs in particular took to chasing him when he was racing around, resulting in him losing his rag and starting a fight. Whether or not it was his fault is debatable but all the same we're getting in booked in for some training classes soon to hopefully teach him how to socialise a bit better.
> .


This is really common in lurchers, though usually it's them that cajole other dogs into chasing them around! I'm a fundraiser for a lurcher rescue (lurcher link) and sell loads of muzzles to prevent injuries and fights as they are known to get over excited, and a few of them nip other dogs to try and get them to run with them.:gasp:

We also find a number of lurchers seem to have sensitive stomachs, I would take him off the Burns and would try him with a something that doesn't have chicken in which seems to cause problems in some lurchers. I appreciate you have a fish allergy, so maybe something like duck and rice would be OK for him?
Wheat is the other thing that may be worth avoiding.



feorag said:


> I agree, just because it's expensive doesn't mean it's the best.
> 
> I disagree with the comment about Bakers - I wouldn't touch that stuff with a barge pole, all those unnatural colours mean not good stuff in there.
> .


Couldn't agree more, and one of my dogs has Chron's disease and changed from a prescription food costing £1.64 for a small tin (he ate 3 a day)to tinned chappie as his specialist vet said it was the nearest thing and easy to digest- so expensive definitely doesn't mean the best.

He's now fed on JWB due to his gut problems, the others all eat a variety of makes that are priced at around £12-£15 per 15kgs. I just avoid anything with colourings, and Bakers.

I am unable to feed raw (the dog who is ill cannot tolerate raw) but I have a number of friends, and their are loads of people on the Lurcher Link forum who feed raw and many lurchers do really well on it. There are a number of posts and info on the subject on the Lurcher forum which you may find helpful.:2thumb:


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Joe'sMum said:


> This is really common in lurchers, though usually it's them that cajole other dogs into chasing them around! I'm a fundraiser for a lurcher rescue (lurcher link) and sell loads of muzzles to prevent injuries and fights as they are known to get over excited, and a few of them nip other dogs to try and get them to run with them.:gasp:
> 
> We also find a number of lurchers seem to have sensitive stomachs, I would take him off the Burns and would try him with a something that doesn't have chicken in which seems to cause problems in some lurchers. I appreciate you have a fish allergy, so maybe something like duck and rice would be OK for him?
> Wheat is the other thing that may be worth avoiding.
> ...



Ohhhh link me!! Have you got sighthounds as well?

To be honest he just comes across like a nutter. He's like the shouty, overbearing kid in the playground. From video footage we've seen of him at daycare, he tries to get dogs to play with him, he playbows then runs off as fast as he can. If they chase him it's all fun and games but we noticed he was getting nips all up his legs and tummy and coming home covered in little scabs. They weren't putting his muzzle on him when out and about, and unfortunately if they had, he probably wouldn't have gotten bitten so badly on his face as the terrier would have got a mouthful of plastic.

When he sees a dog out he normally barks a lot, lunges (though less so now than when we first got him), but his tail is windmilling and wagging like mad. It's embarrassing as best, and we've both had several people make nasty comments about him. I understand that nearly 30kg of dog on the opposite side of the road going ballistic is intimidating, but it doesn't help when people are shouting, or standing and staring at him. He was a lot better when he was socialising with other dogs at daycare even though he was getting nipped all the time. I think it just made him realise that other dogs aren't a big deal... which is why we need to get him some regular playmates we can supervise him with, ideally same size or bigger, and get him to training classes / flyball / agility so he can continue his training and continue building his confidence.

When we first got him, he wouldn't poo in front of us or in the garden. After a LOT of work and praise, he now goes in the garden, and now he comes prancing into the house after, shakes off, and then starts dashing around like a mad man with a little doggy smile on haha. He just looks super proud of himself and that's what we want more of, rather than us ignoring him and frogmarching him home when he's kicked off on a walk.

Yeah duck, rabbit, venison, organ meat, none of it bothers me at all; it will be whatever suits him really


----------



## Joe'sMum (May 31, 2010)

PigeonYouDead said:


> Ohhhh link me!! Have you got sighthounds as well?
> 
> To be honest he just comes across like a nutter. He's like the shouty, overbearing kid in the playground. From video footage we've seen of him at daycare, he tries to get dogs to play with him, he playbows then runs off as fast as he can. If they chase him it's all fun and games but we noticed he was getting nips all up his legs and tummy and coming home covered in little scabs. They weren't putting his muzzle on him when out and about, and unfortunately if they had, he probably wouldn't have gotten bitten so badly on his face as the terrier would have got a mouthful of plastic.


That's all very typical of lurchers.:2thumb:

We've got 3 sighthounds- 2 are lurchers and an Afghan, we've also got 2 terriers!

I don't know where you live but I hire a greyhound racing track every month (on the 2nd Sat in the month) and we race the lurchers- it is just for fun (no betting!), but if it is anywhere near you you could bring him, it's a good opportunity for socialisation, plus he'd get a run into the bargain.:2thumb:
The track is at Doncaster, details are in the link below:
Lurcher Link :: View Forum - Racing at Askern

Anyone can come, and we race any dog that will chase the lure they don't have to be sighthounds, we just carefully pick who goes on the track together, and all dog have their first go in a short race by themselves.

This is the forum, there is a chat section but you have to join (as we had some trouble a few years ago:roll
Lurcher Link :: Index


----------



## R1Dan (Nov 8, 2009)

Hi we uses this for our 2 labs Arden Grange Adult Dog Food, It is great for their coats and has calmed one of ours down a lot with it being more natural.


----------



## filardimarg2 (Nov 6, 2008)

I have Kiera, my GSD, on a raw diet, she has raw chicken wings, necks & gizzards in the morning then a pack of raw meat at night, the packs are frozen & have slivers of bone in them, she loves it but at the moment is not eating very well, she suffers from colitis, so might be going to have a bout of that. Kiera has been fed this for over 8 years, she is 10 1/2 years old now, no arthritis, jill enjoying her walks & is a very happy girl.

Marg.


----------



## feorag (Jul 31, 2007)

Joe'sMum said:


> I am unable to feed raw (the dog who is ill cannot tolerate raw) but I have a number of friends, and their are loads of people on the Lurcher Link forum who feed raw and many lurchers do really well on it. There are a number of posts and info on the subject on the Lurcher forum which you may find helpful.:2thumb:


I've known of more than a few dogs which cannot be fed raw, because they can't tolerate it.

Certainly my husband's GSD would never have been able to tolerate raw.


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Joe'sMum said:


> That's all very typical of lurchers.:2thumb:
> 
> We've got 3 sighthounds- 2 are lurchers and an Afghan, we've also got 2 terriers!
> 
> ...


:gasp::gasp::gasp::gasp::gasp:

That literally sounds like Ted's idea of heaven. He has a ridiculous prey drive, so I highly doubt he'd have even a smidgen of a second thought about chasing a lure lol. We think he was used for coursing before he was made a stray; he's definitely not been raced as he's not tattooed.

We only live near wakefield and he loves the car so would be easy-peasy to get to Doncaster. I've just been reading up about it and looking at the pictures. I think it would be right up his street. No doubt upon arrival he will see all the other dogs and be going ballistic shouting his mouth off though... :blush:

** Edit; Also, I've only just moved up north from the south, and whilst my boyfriend has lived here all his life, only one of our friends has a sighthound which makes it hard to socialise him with other people / dogs that understand his initiation to play; (ie - growl, bark, play bow, bounce around, swipe at you with his front feet)


----------



## Joe'sMum (May 31, 2010)

PigeonYouDead said:


> No doubt upon arrival he will see all the other dogs and be going ballistic shouting his mouth off though... :blush:


He'll have to be very loud to make himself heard.:lol2: The dogs tend to get noisy when they're there as they know what's in store.8)

We used to go to another track and they rang a bell before they moved the lure so people could get a good hold on their dogs leads- but the dogs soon learned that the bell meant the lure was about to set off which just meant that they reacted to the bell instead of the lure.

It's only greyhounds at registered tracks that have to be tattooed- so he may have raced at a track, though it's not that common. Lure coursing is more common and working dogs are often taken to keep them fit out of hunting season.


----------



## Kare (Mar 9, 2010)

Would love to see pictures if you take him. Pictures of that first time a breed (and their owners) first surrounded by their own and those that understand them are so so uplifting.


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Kare said:


> Would love to see pictures if you take him. Pictures of that first time a breed (and their owners) first surrounded by their own and those that understand them are so so uplifting.


Will do  Hopefully we can both take him and a gopro so we can film his adventures too


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Poor Ted had to go to the vets today. He's been licking his bum an awful lot because it's sore because of his dodgy tum and it's now red raw and swollen . Vet has given him a steroid injection, put him on a course of probiotic, and as of yesterday night he is off that food completely. Last night I cooked him a proper meal of plain boiled chicken, plain white rice, carrots, potatoes and peas, this morning he had the same and tonight he's had it mixed with a cupful of james well beloved.

Good news is he was very well behaved at the vets, didn't snap at all, and he's currently flopped out on the sofa. No farts at all today and although he's still got an upset tummy, hopefully it will ease off in the next couple of days once the burns food is out of his system.

On the menu for tomorrow is steak and veg  (plain, dry fried, and boiled veg).


----------



## Caz (May 24, 2007)

Re above - steak is very rich..


My 2 have raw chicken quarters, raw lamb, raw fish, raw rabbit, defrosted pork bones, raw veg once a week like carrot, broccoli stalk, spring green leaf and a yeast tablet once a fortnight.
IMHO the best diet for a dog. Nice dry poos.


I've never found a dog that really can't tolerate raw if it's introduced slowly with non rich meats first. It's a natural diet for them at the end of the day. 99% of Carbohydrates that bulk out the prepacked foods are wasted on their digestive systems.


----------



## naughtyboy (May 27, 2012)

our 2 lurchers get meat from local farm shop they sell frozen lumps of minced up meat think its liver and stuff.
we defrost it and feed it raw never had prob with upset tummies since we also put a bowl of supadog greyhound and lurcher biscuits down for them as well.
place all so sells turkey necks they love.

when we first got them from rescue had probs with upset tummy but gave them bones which firmed them up.
our local farm shop will even saw bones in pces if theyre quiet.

they have also had raw chicken legs, trotters and they get left over food from our plates they both love pasta, rice and toast.


our bitch who is nicknamed neurotic was stray used to scavenging from bins and struggled with normal dog food biscuits which is why we tried meat after advice from rescue centre.
they are both thriving on it.


----------



## filardimarg2 (Nov 6, 2008)

So, if Burns dry food is not a good food as it leads with rice not meat, can anyone tell me what is a good food that leads with meat please.
Kiera my GSD, is 90% or more fed raw but I do on the odd time feed her Burns, (like when we go away, the people she stays with are not comfortable about feeding raw bones, she still has the raw meat at night)
I thought Burns was a good food to give her, but got that wrong didn't I!!

Marg.


----------



## Joe'sMum (May 31, 2010)

filardimarg2 said:


> I thought Burns was a good food to give her, but got that wrong didn't I!!
> 
> Marg.


I don't think you did get it wrong, it just doesn't suit all dogs, but it is a high quality dog food and if it suits your dog then I'd carry on.



Caz said:


> Re above - steak is very rich..
> 
> 
> 
> _I've never found a dog that really can't tolerate raw_ if it's introduced slowly with non rich meats first. It's a natural diet for them


Completely agree about the red meat, it is very hard to digest, stick to fish, chicken, rice and potatoes until he's better.

Murphy is ill with Chron's disease, we've nearly lost him a few times (he vomits and passes fresh blood when it gets bad  ) and it has been a struggle to get him well for any length of time. The specialist vets he sees advised me not to feed him raw as the evidence suggests these dogs don't do well on it. (And one of the vets feeds her 5 raw).
However I have to say this is the _only_ reason we don't feed raw.


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Thanks everyone,

Pleased to report good news that we have now had two days of solid poos that are a normal colour . I'm gradually reintroducing some JWB kibble in with his cooked meats and veg, mainly to help him put on some weight, as he's actually lost about 3 and a half kg since being on burns :censor:. He's now at 25kg, and was closer to 29 when we last had him weighed.

Again, no more farts since taking off burns, and he's licking his bum a whole lot less too. He's currently out in the garden sunbathing. He seems much better in himself, he's been playing with his toys which we realised he hasn't really bothered with that much in ages. Amazing how something so simple can have such a profound difference.

Will bear it in mind about steak being rich, he only had 1, split into three servings over a day and a half, but obviously as we are now trying to put some weight back on him we are trying to make sure he's eating enough to gain weight not just manage his weight as it is now. We deliberately avoided organ meat like liver / kidneys etc for the time being, because I would think that is very rich as well?

He's also stopped trying to eat every single blade of grass he sees now too, so I can only think previous food was lacking in veg / fibre, or that giving him a helping of fresh cooked veg with his meal is stopping his craving for it.

The samples from CSJ have arrived, so once we are sure he's sorted out, we will see what he thinks to those. He was pushing the box around the floor trying to open it today, so it obviously smells good haha.


----------



## Caz (May 24, 2007)

PigeonYouDead said:


> Thanks everyone,
> 
> Pleased to report good news that we have now had two days of solid poos that are a normal colour . I'm gradually reintroducing some JWB kibble in with his cooked meats and veg, mainly to help him put on some weight, as he's actually lost about 3 and a half kg since being on burns :censor:. He's now at 25kg, and was closer to 29 when we last had him weighed.
> 
> ...


 
Glad he's feeling a bit better. Personally i'd loose the kibble totally and up the ratio of chicken to increase his weight. Get him some nice raw bones from the butchers as well - that'll 'chalk' his poo up.


----------



## SiUK (Feb 15, 2007)

cats.


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

SiUK said:


> cats.


Trust me, if it were up to him I'm sure he'd be more than happy to survive on a diet of cats, rabbits and squirrels lol.

Joking apart though, we took him to the dogs trust lurcher afternoon today, and whilst he was INSANELY excited, and pretty much scared the living daylights out of everyone and their dog, there were two who did a great job putting up with him, and watching the three of them racing around was lovely  Big dreams tonight for sure!


----------



## reptile rob1967 (Feb 4, 2014)

raw and cooked chicken mince and beef 
chicken necks offal and necks


----------



## GeorgiePorgie (Sep 10, 2012)

As just posted in another thread I will say James Wellbeloved everytime. My boy had leg problems as a pup (GSD) and we tried many feeds in the early days but all the swapping caused him an upset stomach and he was constantly so hyper, this was a problem due to the leg trouble. James Wellbeloved camled his skin, his tummy and his general behaviour. In the beginning i used a splash of boiling water to moisten the kibble as he isn't fussed on dry food. He used to leave it on occasion and wolf it on others but i stuck to it, if he didn't want it i would take it away and iffer a fresh bowl next feeding time. now he is settled on this feed, been on it afew years i mix and moisten it with a variety of different meat and fish. Consistency is key in getting diet right for dogs, especislly sensitive guys i would advise picking a feed you believe will provide your dog with the nutrition he needs and stick to it, at least for a few weeks without changing it. Keep it simple not mixing loads if different things in to begin with and you should start to see him enjoying the benefits of a healthy, balanced diet and happy calm tummy  good luck


----------



## PigeonYouDead (Aug 9, 2013)

Thanks for your input everyone, he's back to his usual nutty self. Putting weight on steadily, poos are good, and no more gas.

He's still getting cooked meat and veggies as well as a boost without issue. I boiled and oven baked him some liver the other week to use as treats which he no ill effects from


----------

