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Time4ANap

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    Picking Up Runny Poop Sucks.. Food Suggestions?

    in Food and dietary discussion

    Posted

    Too many changes in a too short period of time.

     

    You need to make one change at time in order to know what is causing the problem. With a recent adoption, my first thought would be to de-worm again with a round of Panacur even with the negative fecal, just to be sure. It won't hurt anything. The fecal test will be negative unless you hit the perfect stool sample that happens to have a worm or eggs in it.

     

    Some of the foods you mention are very rich, especially for a hound recently off the track. Some people will say that IAMS will fix the problem, others will recommend other foods. It all comes down to trial and error and what works for your hound. We feed Precise Foundation Chicken Meal and Rice and have firm, kickable poop. Again, that food came after much trial and error and after feeding foods that worked well for months, until they didn't. We've fed Blue Buffalo, TOTW, and many others until we found that the Precise Food worked best. We've been feeding it for over 2 years.

     

    Treats and chews can also cause major issues. You will need to restrict treats until you figure out what works, or you won't know if a treat is causing the issue. When we need to restrict treats, we just use a few pieces of kibble as a treat. He won't care what it is as long as he gets it.

     

    Good luck and don;t let it stress you. Runny poop, AKA BigD is a normal conversation around here. Others will chime in with what has worked for them.

    Precise Holistic Complete

    in Food and dietary discussion

    Posted

    We used Foundation a few years ago. i would use it again if i could find it locally (won't have it shipped)

    I recently found it in a retail store here, Pet Supplies Plus which is a small chain. Not sure where you are located, but if you have that store, check with them.

     

    Precise's distribution is somewhat limited, but if you have a local pet or feed store they can most likely order it. I had to special order it at a feed store when we first started using it.

     

    I actually have better service having it shipped from WAG.com. They sell enough of it that the bags from Wag are always fresh and have a much longer expiration date than the bags at retail. Ordering 2 15lb bags plus some treats to get up to the free shipping limit is actually cheaper than buying locally for us, because WAG applies a percentage back to your next order. They stopped carrying the bigger bags due to more shipping damage with them, but the 15 lb bags are also easier to handle.

    Precise Holistic Complete

    in Food and dietary discussion

    Posted

    We haven't tried their holistic line, but have been feeding Precise Foundation for about 2 years. It has been a great food with no problems and is consistent from batch to batch.

     

    We also tried the Sensicare Lamb and Rice food for a brief period when we thought that some tummy issues were food related. Turned out to be a parasite or worms, and we were able to return to using Foundation.

     

    I wouldn't hesitate to try another Precise product if I needed to change foods for some reason.

    Frozen Bones And Does He Need More Variety?

    in Food and dietary discussion

    Posted

    Rocket gets frozen leg bones that I have cut into 2 -2 1/2 inch lengths at the butcher shop. All of the bones come from local Amish farms. I don't worry about the hardness since he only works the marrow out of it with his tongue and chews off the meat on the outside. Once that's gone he is done with it. I have never seen him bite down on a bone, only gnawing against it to remove the meat. He's not really aggressive when he does that. i do give them to him frozen, but am always in the room the whole time just in case there is an issue.

    Runny Poo

    in Food and dietary discussion

    Posted

    Welcome! The important thing to remember is that whatever you are doing to remedy the issue, do only one thing at a time, or you will have no way of knowing what worked.

     

    Most likely the change from a Pedigree type food to something as rich as Fromm's was a bit too much for the tummy to handle. In addition, diarrhea is also listed as a possible side effect of the Comfortis.

     

    I would start him on a bland diet of boiled chicken and rice or pasta (rice or pasta should be over cooked and sort of mushy) for at least a few days. It may also help to fast him for a meal or two before switching to the bland diet and let his tummy get empty. We usually do the bland diet as 4 small meals a day instead of the usual 2 times a day.

     

    We have started using Evanger's canned chicken or canned chicken and rice instead of cooking chicken when we have to do a bland diet. It's just easier, but some people prefer to cook. Either is fine.

     

    When you re-introduce kibble, do it gradually as a mix with the bland food. Small amounts each time and gradually work up to just kibble.

     

    There is no one "good" kibble for greyhounds. You may need to try several before you find the one that works for your hound. After much trial and error, we feed Precise Foundation Chicken Meal and Rice. It works well for Rocket and is highly digestible.

     

    There are other kibbles that will be suggested, everything from grain-free kibbles to Iams. There is nothing wrong with any of them if they work for your hound. Many people here swear by Iams in the green bag, and others think that Iams is a direct product of the Antichrist. It's all about what works for the hound.

     

    A rule of thumb is never buy the 40 lb bag on the first try - you are guaranteed that they either won't eat it or it gives them the runs. :bgeorge All kibble switches should be gradual starting with about a 20/80 mix of new and old, gradually increasing from there.

     

    Again - one change at a time so you know what works and what doesn't. At a minimum, give the change 3 or 4 days to work and a little break in between before adding something else.

     

    You may also want to get Metronidazole (aka Flagyl) from the vet to help with the diarrhea since it sounds like it's been happening for a while now. I would also talk to your vet about de-worming given the flea issue.

     

    Good luck, and post some pics of your boy when you get a chance.

    What Exactly Is "iam's Green Bag" Food?

    in Food and dietary discussion

    Posted · Edited by Time4ANap

    Since he has hooks and i think you previously said he was getting Panacur and Flagyl, his stomach is very torn up from the worms.

     

    We have been dealing with similar issues with Rocket since Nov / Dec timeframe.

     

    We tried the green bag and it only worked for a few days before he was back to having diarrhea. I think his stomach was just too inflamed from worms to handle much food.

     

    After the Panacur treatment, we switched him to smaller feedings 4 times per day instead of regular feedings two times a day, and NO TREATS were given. If he needed a treat, he got a few pieces of the same kibble we were feeding him for dinner. It took about a week and a half, but he went back to having rock solid poop. I

     

    In the past when we've had to do chicken and rice or similar diets for him, we also stretch that out to 4 smaller feedings. It seems to work much better than feeding him only 2 times a day. I think when the stomach is inflamed like that, 2 feedings is just too much food to process without much of it becoming liquid.

     

    We spaced out his feeding times to 8 AM, Noon, 5 PM, and right before bed between 9 and 10 PM. He seemed to get better faster that way, and we were able to go back to his original kibble with no problem whatsoever. The late feeding also had the benefit of not having him wake up in the middle of the night with stomach squeals.

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