Advice please.My Lab is 21mths old and has always been fed on Royal Canin but I am starting to think its too rich for him.I have to pick up after him at least 5 times a day and sometimes it is really soft.Food seems to go in one end and straight out the other! Can I change his food and what to? He loves his food and has done well on it.He is thriving and looks really strong and healthy but maybe needs a change.Oh,he sometimes is really smelly. Would appreciate any advice.He is my first lab. Thankyou
Re: Feeding the right diet. It could be that the food is too rich, but loose poo can also be a sign of over feeding. Some dogs don't need the amount stated on the packet guidelines, and a good rule that we all seem to stick to around here is 75% of what the guidelines say. Personally I feed less than that as my dog doesn't need that much. If you do consider switching the food it should be done gradually over a minimum of about ten days. For example: Day 1-2: handful new food, full portion old food Day 3-4: 25% new food, 75% old food Day 5-6: 50/50 Day 7-8: 75% new food, 25% old food Day 9-10: full portion new food, handful old food. Basically the slower you take it the better. Dog food is a minefield and you will find what works wonders for one dog, doesn't do so well with another. We can all tell you about our experiences with the food we use, but ultimately you need to find what is right for you and your dog. I feed Arden Grange and have never had any issues. Penny does a maximum of two poos a day and they are very solid. I used to feed wainwrights, and before that beta. Neither, I felt, was right for Penny as she had loose poo and was very gassy with both of them.
Re: Feeding the right diet. I'm sure the real experts will be along in a moment to give you some advice. My take on the whole feeding thing is we get too hung up on it. Have a read through the 'feeding raw' forum, it will give you some good background on what a dog needs, you will find some good info there on what a dog needs not just on the merits of raw feeding. When we first had dogs there were no all in one feeds and our dogs did pretty well without them. A mic of meat, bones and vitamins - which the all in ones purport to mimic. There's a growing school of thought that all in ones are more to do with big manufacturers profits than what's best for your dog. Don't even mention maize and cereals! There's a great comparison site our there, http://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/the-dog-food-directory Maybe worth a read? All complete foods produce lots of poo so I wouldn't overly worry about that but don't believe that Royal Canin is as good as some recommend. It's fine but not the b all and end all. Read up on what dogs need, then go from there and don't be frightened to experiment a little - gradually, but experiment, your lab will be fine!!
Re: Feeding the right diet. Arden grange fan here too. Have 3 of my 4 dogs on it and all is good with the world. Royal canin is a marketing master class
Re: Feeding the right diet. Royal Canin, owned by the Mars Group. Arden Grange, family business in the UK I know where I'd be shopping
Re: Feeding the right diet. Another Arden Grange fan here too! Choosing food for you dog is not easy. All I can recommend is research as many as possible fingers crossed you get a good one that your dog will appreciate
Re: Feeding the right diet. I'm happy with Royal Canin, and the company. Charlie gets loose poo if: he has had too much food - cutting down the food is usually an immediate solution; a significant mix of kibble and fresh meat and fish (one or the other is fine); commercial dog treats eg from pets at home; or he has eaten something illegal in the street that has disagreed with him. I looked into foods at length, and while I might switch from kibble to raw, I don't think I'll switch kibble.
Re: Feeding the right diet. Nothing inherently wrong with Royal Canin, just that there are better formulations out there - based on the analysis of the ingredient list. The multi national versus the British, family company is a little more subjective and judgemental; each to their own on that one. But back to the question; perhaps a case for looking round, I don't think Royal Canin is 'too rich' as I'm not sure what that actually means. I suspect it's over feeding and the high maize / cereal content and the lack of any actual meat at all of Royal Canin that's the issue, so a switch to one with more meat or meat derivatives may help.
Re: Feeding the right diet. [quote author=gad link=topic=5699.msg72680#msg72680 date=1398981135] Nothing inherently wrong with Royal Canin, just that there are better formulations out there - based on the analysis of the ingredient list. [/quote] Please do share your analysis, that would be very interesting.
Re: Feeding the right diet. BB when you say your dog is smelly at times, do you mean his coat and paws? Not just a doggy smell but a smell that is really not nice? Could be food related. My first Lab did badly on Hills and Royal Canin (smelly, chewing himself) so it doesn't suit all dogs.... Here is the ingredients list of Royal Canin Adult (Maxi Breeds) from their Australian website. COMPOSITION: maize, dehydrated poultry protein, maize flour, animal fats, dehydrated pork protein, hydrolysed animal proteins, beet pulp, maize gluten, minerals, fish oil, soya oil, yeasts, hydrolysed crustaceans (source of glucosamine), hydrolysed cartilage (source of chondroitin). ADDITIVES (per kg Nutritional additives: Vitamin A: 16000 IU, Vitamin D3: 1000 IU, E1 (Iron 50 mg, E2 (Iodine 5.1 mg, E4 (Copper 10 mg, E5 (Manganese 66 mg, E6 (Zinc 197 mg, E8 (Selenium 0.09 mg - Preservatives - Antioxidants. ANALYTICAL CONSTITUENTS: Protein: 26% - Fat content: 17% - Crude ash: 6.3% - Crude fibres: 1.2% - Per kg: Omega 3 fatty acids: 7.7 g including EPA/DHA: 4 g. My view is that it's got an awful of corn in it, and a lot of vitamin/mineral additives. Corn is a cheap filler (IMO). For myself, I'd rather the required nutrients come from 'whole foods', same as in my own diet, without a reliance on grainy/starchy fillers or leftover products from human food production. I just like the thought of it better Just my personal preference. So I feed a commercial BARF diet. Also, there are some practical benefits - poops are way more manageable (smaller, fewer, well formed, firm....all that one could wish for in a poo). Ingredients list of what I feed from Australian website: Beef, lamb, pork, chicken, finely ground chicken bone, beef liver, whole egg, cultured kefir, seasonal vegetables selected from broccoli, celery, spinach, carrot, ground flax seed, bok choy, dried alfalfa leaf powder, beef kidney, beef heart, unbleached beef tripe, seasonal fruit selected from apple, pear, grapefruit, orange, dried kelp powder, garlic, capsicum. All that said, if a dog looks good and is happy, healthy, a good weight etc etc then there is no need to have a crisis of confidence in relation to what is currently being fed. It is mostly all just ideology at this point, in the absence of any actual evidence that links a specific diet type to health outcomes.
Re: Feeding the right diet. [quote author=JulieT link=topic=5699.msg72689#msg72689 date=1398983666] [quote author=gad link=topic=5699.msg72680#msg72680 date=1398981135] Nothing inherently wrong with Royal Canin, just that there are better formulations out there - based on the analysis of the ingredient list. [/quote] Please do share your analysis, that would be very interesting. [/quote] Excellent last post from Oberon which I think answers your question. If you go here http://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/the-dog-food-directory This website reviews dog food by their ingredients and allows you to compare different makes - including the ingredient list. I found it very interesting. Try it.
Re: Feeding the right diet. [quote author=gad link=topic=5699.msg72749#msg72749 date=1399020513] [quote author=JulieT link=topic=5699.msg72689#msg72689 date=1398983666] [quote author=gad link=topic=5699.msg72680#msg72680 date=1398981135] Nothing inherently wrong with Royal Canin, just that there are better formulations out there - based on the analysis of the ingredient list. [/quote] Please do share your analysis, that would be very interesting. [/quote] Excellent last post from Oberon which I think answers your question. If you go here http://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/the-dog-food-directory This website reviews dog food by their ingredients and allows you to compare different makes - including the ingredient list. I found it very interesting. Try it. [/quote] Rachael's post gives a great answer about her reasoning. I'm very familiar with the allaboutdogfood site. I don't object to feeding corn in kibble. Although I do think a raw diet might be very much better than all kibble, I'm not convinced that one kibble is very much better than another.
Re: Feeding the right diet. Hi,thankyou for all your input.I think maybe the problem is me and not the food.I am overfeeding! (I will ignore all begging,I know he is greedy not hungry) I have deciced to try Arden Grange though ,sounds good. Thanks again for taking time to help me out.
Re: Feeding the right diet. I feed Otis a raw meaty bones diet, and he loves it and is doing well. However, he did well on Arden Grange, think its one of the best . Maggie x
Re: Feeding the right diet. I feed Tatze Skinner's salmon. It is a good, affordable price. There are no iffy ingredients and Tatze is fit, shiny, lively and healthy. I put a teaspoon of pro-fibre in each meal. Her poos are always firm and pick-uppable Skinners - http://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/0296/skinners-field-and-trial-salmon-and-rice Pro-fibre - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Protexin-Pro-Fibre-Dogs-500-g/dp/B00BEXP5MA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1399458810&sr=8-1&keywords=pro+fibre
Re: Feeding the right diet. Another Skinners fan here, http://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/0295/skinners-field-and-trial-duck-and-rice The Pro-fibre could work out expensive with 4 dogs to feed? We use organic pro-biotic yogurt as an aid for digestion.
Re: Feeding the right diet. I agree, Skinners would be better than Royal Canin - but just one word of caution though, it's bulk ingredient at 40% is rice which has very little nutritional value. I'd be wary of feeding this to any dog under 12 months. In fairness Skinners do say 'from 9 months'. If you've a working dog then maybe a little low on protein but that's probably nit picking and the Duck version is a little higher.
Re: Feeding the right diet. As said before , my two are fed Skinners . In spring/summer/autumn , we walk much further than in winter, plus Sam has regular bouts of gundog training , so I tend to add a little protein myself , usually by way of fish . I dont bother in winter when daily walks and training sessions are less exhausting
Re: Feeding the right diet. Hi im trees' s Just thought I would adk about feeling as I have a 5month black labrador and currently feeding her beata puppy dhe looks fab grest shiny coat snd beautiful strong teeth. Twice dsily feeds atm
Re: Feeding the right diet. i do wonder if my dogs food is ok for her james wellbeloved turkey and rice she is 11months old and goes for at least 1hr walks in the woods she seems ok but does look quite tucked in at the end of her belly above her back legs i dont know if this is anything to worry about
