Food hunt..opinions wanted.

Ive been having some issues for a long time with Franklin and food. When we got him he was on Purina puppy so we kept that till we switched him over to adult food at 6 mths old. Then on the advice of the vet and someone else we put him on Purina One Lamb and Rice...This was prior to the wealth of pet food info I got. I also found a dog food rating site and basically he is eating 0 star food.... UGHHHHHHH!! Its killing me but at the same time we have tried over and over again to find a good food for him that wont upset his stomach and wont make pooping difficult for him.

We tried TOTW, but going grain free was too rich for him and he started having poop issues so that was a no go.

When Purina One changed their formula to add those stupid 'meaty bites' it messed his system up all over again. He got really running poop so I tried the Sensitive Skin and Stomach but he didnt like it whatsoever so that was a no go. We have him on Purina One Chicken and Rice and thats doing ok so far but sometimes his poop is a little wetter than normal and the size of it changes, sometimes he has big normal poops and sometimes they are little tiny poops. I personally want him to have consistent poop (yes I know Im a little obsessed with poop but I cant help it)

So I start hunting up foods again, Nutro doesnt agree with his stomach, neither does 4 Health. So basically Im down to 3 foods that I want to test. My personal favorite that Ive been literally begging and wheedling BF to cave in and let me get is Fromm. Downside it has to be ordered off the net or Ive got to travel to Lewisburg to get it. I would probably get a better deal ordering it offline than going to Lewisburg to get it. I emailed the company explained that Ive been looking for a food for a while but with having to order offline or travel 30 minutes away to get it, if it was possible to get a sample to see if Franklin even liked it or if it would mess up his tummy. Thankfully the lady who emailed me back was really nice and while they dont offer samples anymore she had leftover from a trade show she went to and was willing to set up a box for me and mail it out. Im personally hoping this works out for him.

The other food Im looking at is Wellness Core. Ive heard some really good things about it, it has good ratings on all the food websites Ive seen. I could get this at Petsmart but we all know how expensive Petsmart is. The only reason I would be willing to pay their jacked up prices is because Franklin is a nit picker. I could leave a full bowl of food out all day long and he will just pick and choose when he eats and only has a couple bites at a time. Im also looking at Canidae.


So basically is there anyone who feeds their dog either of these three foods? Do you like it, do your dogs like it, have you noticed benefits from them being on any of these foods (ie: coat texture, better breath etc). Also one concern I do have, weight gaining or losing of it, Franklin is at a perfect size and I want to maintain it. I refuse to let him get fat, being a mini doxie as a breed he is prone to weight gain. Ive seen fat weenies.....he will not be one. But he has a tendancy to go really lean especially in the summer when he is always out and about playing and running around. He is getting neutered come January (Im waiting till after he turns 2) so I expect a decrease in his energy level but his personality is rammy so I dont think he will get too lazy.


Im hoping that I can get him on a better quality food Im sick of feeling guilty everytime I go buy his food and pick up a bag of Purina One....Ugh its like acid in my stomach, atleast the kitties are on TOTW so its only half guilt lol....

Sorry I am going to ask more ??s than I answer

Wellness Core has worked very well for me ( the copper and brown bag)for sensitive tummys...

Fromms I have never used as it is hard to find and the ingredients did not thrill me..

Canidea has a Wide Variety of foods... Unfortunately my attempts at using it have always failed

Which Purina one are you using? Which Nutro and TOTW did you use?

Like cats Every dog is different ... But I seem to find my dogs to better on foods with some grain or that the starch is mainly sweet potato ... Right now my shih ztu eats mainly Kirkland puppy( she is three and half years and it is an all stage) with Evo , Orijen and Natural balances chicken and sweet potato.... the evo and orijen are fish based

The first question I'm going to ask is a rather simple one. Did you adjust the amount you were feeding him when you switched to these foods? The #1 cause of poop and tummy issues is overfeeding. If you continued to feed as much TOTW as you did Purina, that would have been the problem without a doubt. Any of the other foods you've mentioned are significantly more nutrient dense than Purina, and don't require the dog to eat nearly as much.

Of the foods you've mentioned: I do really like Wellness Core, but not for the price. Especially with the price increases now that they've gone more "commercial" and wound up in the box stores, it's just not justifiable IMO. The food itself I have no problems with, and many dogs seem to do really well on it. There IS a Frequent Buyer, but you have to track it at home. Be sure to pick up a pamphlet if you start on this food, that free bag is worth a bit of savings overall!

I quite like Fromm actually. It's one of the choice foods we sell at the store where I work, and I've seen the direct results of dogs being fed this food. Overall I prefer the "Gold" line to the "Four Star" line (which seems contrary since the Four Star is supposed to be higher quality). The ingredients are nice, and dogs do very well on it.

I don't really love Canidae. It was a much better food about 4 years ago, but has changed a few times since then and not for the better IMO.

Have you looked at Go! Natural? The Salmon and Oatmeal formula is also very nice for dogs with sensitive tummies.

I've fed Nutro, Wellness and TOTW and I can't say I notice any difference in breath. For whatever reason, one of my dogs (the retriever) has awful breath all the time and my other dog has acceptable breath. It may be related to dental health and this thread has reminded me that I need to get the retriever's teeth examined at her upcoming physical.

Neither of mine hjas a senstive digestive system so I'm blessed as far as being able to feed them different brands.

I would stay as far away as possible from anything made by Purina.

I used to feed Canidae but I stopped when they changed their formula.

Chicken Soup for the dog lover's soul might be worth a look. Frankly unless your dog has a sensitive digestive system I don't see what is so bad about the grains. most dogs are not performance dogs with a need for a lot of concentrated calories. If your dog is not going on extended hikes and burning up a lot of energy, the foods containing grains should be acceptable IMO.

By the way I alwayy get compliments on the coat, energy level and muscular structure of my two so frankly I think you can't go wrong with any of the higher end foods.

Good luck, the search for a good kibble - one that is good for YOUR dog irrespective of its "ratings" can be bewildering!

What breed is your pup? Natural Balance is pretty good.

Originally Posted by sharky

Sorry I am going to ask more ??s than I answer

Wellness Core has worked very well for me ( the copper and brown bag)for sensitive tummys...

Fromms I have never used as it is hard to find and the ingredients did not thrill me..

Canidea has a Wide Variety of foods... Unfortunately my attempts at using it have always failed

Which Purina one are you using? Which Nutro and TOTW did you use?

Like cats Every dog is different ... But I seem to find my dogs to better on foods with some grain or that the starch is mainly sweet potato ... Right now my shih ztu eats mainly Kirkland puppy( she is three and half years and it is an all stage) with Evo , Orijen and Natural balances chicken and sweet potato.... the evo and orijen are fish based

Click to expand...

Nutro was the wet food lamb and rice formula. I gave him a little less than a teaspoon in with the Purina One Lamb and Rice food he had been eating and he got explosive diarrea...It was NASTY foul smelling liquid grossness and he couldnt even control it. It took us about two weeks to get his poop back to normal with just the dry lamb and rice and even now to this day he will not eat any wet food whatsoever.

I used the bison blend of TOTW. Since Franklin isnt an OMG let me eat till I pop kind of dog I just filled his bowl (2 cups) and let him eat when he wanted to. He is a nit picker and I watched when he ate and he ate less than if it was the Purina but every time he pooped he would look at me like he was straining hard and when I would go over and inspect his poop it was really hard like super firm. *I poked at it with a stick...I will poop patrol but I draw the line at actually touching it lol*

I was looking at Wellness to try also. I had heard that Canidae was a good food and added it to my list but Im not overly thrilled about it. Im making up my possibles list off recommendations of others, seeing what got 4 or 5 stars off the dog food review website, and by reading the ingredients and stuff myself and hoping I make a good choice. I dont like Purina but since we have had Franklin I swear he just thrives on it he loves it but I just want to do better by him.

Oh and Franklin is a miniature dachshund he will be 2 yrs old on December 9th.

Please try a chicken base or a fish base .. It is possible he has lamb issues ....

Are you able to get Acana ?

I have Lexi on wellness. She is a 7 month old lab with allergy issues and Wellness seems to be the only kind that really works for her. Her coat is soft, she usually has firm but not hard poops (with normal stressors- she has diarrhea right now because she was at my friends house all weekend while i was at drill), and she is happy. As others, have said every dog is different so the only thing you can do is try it.

I will check all the local pet stores to see if acana is available. He has chicken and rice now with purina one. I don't know if acana is available but ill look for it especially advised by you sharky I turst you recommending food for myself haha.

I hope I can get him off purina I know he loves it but ugh everytime I buy food I cringe and feel like I do the walk of shame to the checkout line. I know better than to get it but so far it has been the only food to keep him regular. I know ill find something eventually that makes him and myself happy.

I was thinking acana as they have multiple formulas that IMHO are simple and not full of what he has gotten... the other to look at is Natures variety Insticnt ( this even gets rid of peas and I think potatos)

My thinking is try anything without lamb in it

http://www.naturesvariety.com/Instinct/dog/kibble/all