Food for smelly EBT puppy
Discussion
Looking for a food recommendation for our 6 month old English Bull Terrier puppy (male).
We have always fed him on IAMS puppy food for large breeds - the breeders had the litter on the same so we followed suit. He is a bit fussy though so we always mix a little cooked chicken (boiled chicken breast) in with each meal. He does get a few treats throughout the day but due to what we think is sensitive stomach means these are limited now. Had a recent small bout of sickness which cleared with a day of chicken / rice - we do feel he has a generally sensitive stomach though.
He has always really been quite smelly - can clear rooms with his flatulence! Also probably at least one of his 2/3 motions a day is pretty loose - not runny as such, but very wet / squidgy. Mentioned this to vet last time we were there who didn't seem overly concerned but of course will take him straight back if appropriate. He has teethed quite badly in the time we've had him which seemed to make matters worse (as far as we could tell and having had 2 kids I remember nappies being worse at teething time). He is quite "saliva-ry" at the moment and is having a good chew on toys at his back teeth. He does eat the occasional leaf etc off the ground when we aren't quick enough to wrestle it off him. he is up to date with Advocate treatment.
Anyway - the point of the post - is there a better food that will make him less smelly / not as loose? Is the IAMS full of filler or something that might not agree with him? Or is this normal puppy stomach that can be easily upset / sensitive and we'd do more harm than good swapping him? I know if we do swap it needs to be gradual. Just want to make sure we are doing the best by him of course.
At last weigh in he was 20kg so prob 21-22kg now.
Also is it normal to be obsessed by the Go Compare Man? (him not me!)
Thanks
We have always fed him on IAMS puppy food for large breeds - the breeders had the litter on the same so we followed suit. He is a bit fussy though so we always mix a little cooked chicken (boiled chicken breast) in with each meal. He does get a few treats throughout the day but due to what we think is sensitive stomach means these are limited now. Had a recent small bout of sickness which cleared with a day of chicken / rice - we do feel he has a generally sensitive stomach though.
He has always really been quite smelly - can clear rooms with his flatulence! Also probably at least one of his 2/3 motions a day is pretty loose - not runny as such, but very wet / squidgy. Mentioned this to vet last time we were there who didn't seem overly concerned but of course will take him straight back if appropriate. He has teethed quite badly in the time we've had him which seemed to make matters worse (as far as we could tell and having had 2 kids I remember nappies being worse at teething time). He is quite "saliva-ry" at the moment and is having a good chew on toys at his back teeth. He does eat the occasional leaf etc off the ground when we aren't quick enough to wrestle it off him. he is up to date with Advocate treatment.
Anyway - the point of the post - is there a better food that will make him less smelly / not as loose? Is the IAMS full of filler or something that might not agree with him? Or is this normal puppy stomach that can be easily upset / sensitive and we'd do more harm than good swapping him? I know if we do swap it needs to be gradual. Just want to make sure we are doing the best by him of course.
At last weigh in he was 20kg so prob 21-22kg now.
Also is it normal to be obsessed by the Go Compare Man? (him not me!)
Thanks
Edited by chilluk7 on Monday 4th January 14:54
what treats are you giving him?.
If RAW isn't your choice (and I would be cautious with a growing dog, pre packaged raw would be best) trying a Salmon and potato dry food may help (vets kitchen do a good one)
There are lots of diets so it is important not to be tempted to chop and change too much!
If RAW isn't your choice (and I would be cautious with a growing dog, pre packaged raw would be best) trying a Salmon and potato dry food may help (vets kitchen do a good one)
There are lots of diets so it is important not to be tempted to chop and change too much!
Thanks for the replies.
Treats now are only things like Markies or at least things branded as puppy - he did have some slightly "oilier" ones that he loved but we have cut them out and only pretty dry biscuity types now. Because he's such a lump I think we sometimes forget he's still young and other people (family) tend to feed him bits we wouldn't when we aren't looking so we have clamped down on that!
A friend has her dog on a raw diet and we would definitely consider it. As you say whilst a growing pup we wanted to keep him on some sort of "formula" food so we can't really get it wrong with his nutritional needs - I must admit I didn't really realise that you could get pre packed raw diet - our friend just mass produces hers at home but then her dog is mature now. Will look further into the off the shelf raw stuff suggested.
I had done a bit more reading in the mean time and James Wellbeloved seemed well regarded so the Mrs picked up a couple of bags of that yesterday afternoon (before I saw your replies) - we were going to try and wean him across from the IAMS to that and see how it goes. I notice the prime ingredient in the IAMS seems to be Maize, whereas the JW is the meat followed by two types of rice. That and the fact it's 30% more expensive suggests it's better quality?!
If that makes no difference I think we will progress to the raw if we can get the idiot proof pre packed stuff.
I will update how he gets on.
Thanks again.
Treats now are only things like Markies or at least things branded as puppy - he did have some slightly "oilier" ones that he loved but we have cut them out and only pretty dry biscuity types now. Because he's such a lump I think we sometimes forget he's still young and other people (family) tend to feed him bits we wouldn't when we aren't looking so we have clamped down on that!
A friend has her dog on a raw diet and we would definitely consider it. As you say whilst a growing pup we wanted to keep him on some sort of "formula" food so we can't really get it wrong with his nutritional needs - I must admit I didn't really realise that you could get pre packed raw diet - our friend just mass produces hers at home but then her dog is mature now. Will look further into the off the shelf raw stuff suggested.
I had done a bit more reading in the mean time and James Wellbeloved seemed well regarded so the Mrs picked up a couple of bags of that yesterday afternoon (before I saw your replies) - we were going to try and wean him across from the IAMS to that and see how it goes. I notice the prime ingredient in the IAMS seems to be Maize, whereas the JW is the meat followed by two types of rice. That and the fact it's 30% more expensive suggests it's better quality?!
If that makes no difference I think we will progress to the raw if we can get the idiot proof pre packed stuff.
I will update how he gets on.
Thanks again.
Raw fed here, 3 x boxers, including a 14 week puppy. Poo's are nice and compact and hard and the evil "boxer bum" has gone away.
http://www.rawfeedingrebels.com/ and the facebook group is full of great advice on raw feeding.
Gratuitous pic!
http://www.rawfeedingrebels.com/ and the facebook group is full of great advice on raw feeding.
Gratuitous pic!
chilluk7 said:
Thanks for the replies.
Treats now are only things like Markies or at least things branded as puppy - he did have some slightly "oilier" ones that he loved but we have cut them out and only pretty dry biscuity types now. Because he's such a lump I think we sometimes forget he's still young and other people (family) tend to feed him bits we wouldn't when we aren't looking so we have clamped down on that!
A friend has her dog on a raw diet and we would definitely consider it. As you say whilst a growing pup we wanted to keep him on some sort of "formula" food so we can't really get it wrong with his nutritional needs - I must admit I didn't really realise that you could get pre packed raw diet - our friend just mass produces hers at home but then her dog is mature now. Will look further into the off the shelf raw stuff suggested.
I had done a bit more reading in the mean time and James Wellbeloved seemed well regarded so the Mrs picked up a couple of bags of that yesterday afternoon (before I saw your replies) - we were going to try and wean him across from the IAMS to that and see how it goes. I notice the prime ingredient in the IAMS seems to be Maize, whereas the JW is the meat followed by two types of rice. That and the fact it's 30% more expensive suggests it's better quality?!
If that makes no difference I think we will progress to the raw if we can get the idiot proof pre packed stuff.
I will update how he gets on.
Thanks again.
Treats like Markies etc may contribute to the wind. jwb is a decent enough food but I'm afraid I find quite a few pups get bad wind on it!! I tend not to suggest their puppy food as a result, hope your pup proves me wrong!Treats now are only things like Markies or at least things branded as puppy - he did have some slightly "oilier" ones that he loved but we have cut them out and only pretty dry biscuity types now. Because he's such a lump I think we sometimes forget he's still young and other people (family) tend to feed him bits we wouldn't when we aren't looking so we have clamped down on that!
A friend has her dog on a raw diet and we would definitely consider it. As you say whilst a growing pup we wanted to keep him on some sort of "formula" food so we can't really get it wrong with his nutritional needs - I must admit I didn't really realise that you could get pre packed raw diet - our friend just mass produces hers at home but then her dog is mature now. Will look further into the off the shelf raw stuff suggested.
I had done a bit more reading in the mean time and James Wellbeloved seemed well regarded so the Mrs picked up a couple of bags of that yesterday afternoon (before I saw your replies) - we were going to try and wean him across from the IAMS to that and see how it goes. I notice the prime ingredient in the IAMS seems to be Maize, whereas the JW is the meat followed by two types of rice. That and the fact it's 30% more expensive suggests it's better quality?!
If that makes no difference I think we will progress to the raw if we can get the idiot proof pre packed stuff.
I will update how he gets on.
Thanks again.
Do read up carefully on raw, little things like it must have been frozen first before then defrosting to feed can catch people out if they don't research it first
Ah OK - any recommendations on good treats also? Poor soul is missing out a bit as we are trying not to "pollute" his diet too much! Been sticking to drier rather than meatier treats, and not too many of those.
Will see how the JWB goes over next few weeks - I missed the recommendation for the Salmon / Potato type earlier I must admit - my thinking with the JWB one was his stomach seemed better the few times he's had chicken and rice days, so it might be better than the IAMS. I never thought of dog food with potato - when we had dogs when I was a kid it was all Chappie!!!
I have read so many conflicting stories / reports trying to research the foods - I guess like people though what works for one dog won't for another as all their stomachs will be different.
Will see how the JWB goes over next few weeks - I missed the recommendation for the Salmon / Potato type earlier I must admit - my thinking with the JWB one was his stomach seemed better the few times he's had chicken and rice days, so it might be better than the IAMS. I never thought of dog food with potato - when we had dogs when I was a kid it was all Chappie!!!
I have read so many conflicting stories / reports trying to research the foods - I guess like people though what works for one dog won't for another as all their stomachs will be different.
I'd have liked to have tried Raw diet with ours but as it's my wife that does most of the feeding and she wasn't keen then we have settled on Origen dry food.
No issues with farting (and we have 3 well known farting breeds) unless they have a "treat" (eg too many table scraps). The waste product is a about as good as you could expect in that it is firm and nowhere near as copious as when on other foods.
They also do freeze dried treats as well.
It's expensive but no complaints and they all look good on it.
No issues with farting (and we have 3 well known farting breeds) unless they have a "treat" (eg too many table scraps). The waste product is a about as good as you could expect in that it is firm and nowhere near as copious as when on other foods.
They also do freeze dried treats as well.
It's expensive but no complaints and they all look good on it.
chilluk7 said:
Ah OK - any recommendations on good treats also? Poor soul is missing out a bit as we are trying not to "pollute" his diet too much! Been sticking to drier rather than meatier treats, and not too many of those.
We buy pigs' ears, tripe sticks, Nutriment bull pizzles and suchlike for our dogs. They love them. The tripe sticks stink, but the dogs seem to like them! Gassing Station | All Creatures Great & Small | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff