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Am I Doing This Right?


Guest AlaniJoi

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Guest AlaniJoi

So... ByeRun has had loose stools from the day he came home, exactly a month ago today. He's in good spirits, his coat has gotten beautiful and soft and his really bad case of dandruff is almost completely cleared up now. I don't think I'm getting my measurements right as far as how much of what I'm feeding him. Heres an example of what he gets at every feeding:

 

1. 1 cup of Nutro Max Adult (with chicken protein) dry food.

2. 2 tablespoons of Nutro Max Chicken, Rice & Turkey Dinner wet food.

3. 1/4 cup of beef or chicken broth.

4. 1/4 of either sweet potato, pumpkin, or rice.

5. 1 capsule of organic Fish Oil or a teaspoon of cold-pressed Olive oil.

 

I really take pride in feeding my pup. I'm always reading up on what might be good for him, so if I'm getting it wrong, please take it easy on me! LoL! I just want my boy to be happy and healthy! Help please! Thanks!

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Guest mom2hounds

Have you had a fecal done? We had to treat ours with Flagyl for giardia when we brought her home. It could also be the food. We changed from Taste of the Wild Prairie to Pacific Stream and had an improvement in her. She would have episodes of diarrhea a couple of times a month on the other formula. Check out dog food analysis for some good info on different brands.

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The only things I would suggest is that Nutro is not always an agreeable food, for one of mine it caused her to vomit bile almost daily. And if you're not doing homemade broth, then I'd watch out for the salt content especially if you're giving it every day. Some warm water might work just as well to make the food moist and bring out the flavours.

 

Since you're having loose stool issues, I'd cut out the pumpkin, potato, and rice. One of those may not be working well for him, esp. as too much pumpkin can cause soft stools (and I'd say 1/4 cup is a fair amount, my grey would get a small spoonful in case of an upset tummy).

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Loose stools means you haven't found the food that best agrees with your dog ... this is quite a lengthy process for many of us! I encourage you to read around in the Food section archive (I swear I read 75% of the threads in that in the months after I brought my dog home, and went through a lot of food experiments in the first year -- TOTW Pacific Stream is also what I settled on).

 

**Not many here would see Nutro as a good quality food, though plenty of not-so-great foods work well for plenty of hounds.

**You are feeding an awfully elaborate array of stuff; it's very hard to tell what helps or doesn't. Canned food could be a big contributor to loose stools. If you want to do add-ins, you'll find lots of threads with people talking about what they use.

**The oil could also have an effect on that. I think fish oil is good for the Omega 3s, but olive oil is just fat with no particular benefit, so I wouldn't add that. I'd probably take out the oil altogether until you get the stool issue fixed.

 

You sound like someone who really wants the best for your dog and isn't afraid of a little complication, so you probably want to do some reading about raw feeding as an option as well. Quite a lot of people on this forum feed completely or partially raw.

With Cocoa (DC Chocolatedrop), missing B for Beth (2006-2015)
And kitties C.J., Klara, Bernadette, John-Boy, & Sinbad

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Guest Mollysmom10

Fort came to our home at the end of August and it took him a while to firm up. For the longest time, he was soft serve. We did take him to the vet and he did have some worm issues and then he also had an UTI -- I got him on a bland diet and then slowly started mixing it w/ regular food. It took him probably about a month before things started firming up and now he has become a pretty good eater.

 

Hang in there -- he's still new and adjusting. By the way, beautiful pup!!

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Guest cwholsin

I would also like to add that loose stools may be a result of stress, and not just food choices. When Hermes was newer at home with us, something new would cause him to have loose stool for several days after the stressful event--even if it was a one time thing. So this may be a problem that is related to his stress level rather than food

 

What has worked well for Hermes is a good quality kibble, a little bit of water, and his supplements (glucosamine HCL and fish oil). We have much better stool with minimal add-ins. We used to give him pumpkin and probiotic yogurt with every meal--which just wasn't necessary for him on a daily basis. I'm not a vet, but I know with human beings if you try and do too much of the body's work with supplements and things it actually decreases the digestive system's ability to regulate itself. It is great for an additive for upset tummy or a special treat!

 

Hope your lovely boy enjoys better poops soon!

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1. 1 cup of Nutro Max Adult (with chicken protein) dry food.

2. 2 tablespoons of Nutro Max Chicken, Rice & Turkey Dinner wet food.

3. 1/4 cup of beef or chicken broth.

4. 1/4 of either sweet potato, pumpkin, or rice.

5. 1 capsule of organic Fish Oil or a teaspoon of cold-pressed Olive oil.

 

 

How many times a day is he fed, and how is his weight? If just two feedings a day, that's not a lot of food for most male greyhounds unless very high in calories -- I'd expect 3-4 cups per day of that food.

 

I would change the food to a different brand, probably IAMS green bag to start out with (it has beet pulp). I would also eliminate the sweet potato, pumpkin, or rice and the fish oil/olive oil for now. Most all of mine would have loose poop if they were fed any quantity of sweet potato, pumpkin or olive oil.

Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in Illinois
We miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10.

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Guest KennelMom

I'd skip the add-ins, esp the broth (sodium) and just use water instead. They don't need sweet potato or rice, that's extra carb calories. If I mix in anything, it'd be meat of some kind. It does seem like not very much food for a male...or even a female. Our smallest 50lb girls get 2 1/2 cups of a high end food. I'd expect Nutro to be less calorie dense.

 

Might want to have a fecal/vet check done for the loose stools and then maybe consider the Nutro doesnt' agree with him. I tried it waaaaay back in the day and it gave one dog loose poops and the other explosive Big D. Iams is good...fed that for a long time with no issues.

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Guest TBSFlame

I would go to just kibble for a while then add other stuff one item at a time. May be too much pumpkin. Something is not agreeing with him. Could be stress and adjustment to new home. Also, if he has not been wormed it could be worms.

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Guest AlaniJoi

1. 1 cup of Nutro Max Adult (with chicken protein) dry food.

2. 2 tablespoons of Nutro Max Chicken, Rice & Turkey Dinner wet food.

3. 1/4 cup of beef or chicken broth.

4. 1/4 of either sweet potato, pumpkin, or rice.

5. 1 capsule of organic Fish Oil or a teaspoon of cold-pressed Olive oil.

 

 

How many times a day is he fed, and how is his weight? If just two feedings a day, that's not a lot of food for most male greyhounds unless very high in calories -- I'd expect 3-4 cups per day of that food.

 

I would change the food to a different brand, probably IAMS green bag to start out with (it has beet pulp). I would also eliminate the sweet potato, pumpkin, or rice and the fish oil/olive oil for now. Most all of mine would have loose poop if they were fed any quantity of sweet potato, pumpkin or olive oil.

 

 

I feed him 2 times a day and I know hes gained weight since he's been home. His hip bones don't stick out as much as they used to. He is a really dainty male. I think thats the best way to describe him physically... He's dainty! LoL!

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Guest AlaniJoi

I'd just like to thank everyone for the advice! The general consensus is that I to take out all the add-ins and try to figure out what brand of dry dog food works best for him. I'd just like to add one more question... I've had a couple of people comment on how little food I've been giving him... I'm really trying hard not to over feed him because I don't want him to be over-weight especially since he's a very small male and I used to be extremely heavy, so I have that food is love instinct. He just turned 2 a couple of months ago. I walk him twice a day for about 15 mins and every Sunday we spend the day at our local greyhound park. I don't seem to think he's very active, but then again I'm not a greyhound expert... yet! LoL! Please let me know if he's underfed, now that I've kinda given everyone more details about our lives! Thanks!

 

Oh and one more thing! :) If anyone out there actually has their grey on a raw diet, I'd love to hear from you too. I've been very curious about it and I've read a couple of articles on it, but I'd wanna make sure I'm fully informed before I give that a try!

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I'd just like to thank everyone for the advice! The general consensus is that I to take out all the add-ins and try to figure out what brand of dry dog food works best for him. I'd just like to add one more question... I've had a couple of people comment on how little food I've been giving him... I'm really trying hard not to over feed him because I don't want him to be over-weight especially since he's a very small male and I used to be extremely heavy, so I have that food is love instinct. He just turned 2 a couple of months ago. I walk him twice a day for about 15 mins and every Sunday we spend the day at our local greyhound park. I don't seem to think he's very active, but then again I'm not a greyhound expert... yet! LoL! Please let me know if he's underfed, now that I've kinda given everyone more details about our lives! Thanks!

 

How much does he weigh? My girl is huge and gets between 3 and 3 1/2 cups of Taste of the Wild a day - split into breakfast and dinner. If you cut out the extras (and I would to start - then add them back in one at a time), I would up the food by at least a cup a day.

 

I'd also up the walking as well - but I love walking and Enza gets about 90 mins of walking a day. Sometimes more, sometimes a lot less - split throughout the day.

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Guest TBSFlame

I'd just like to thank everyone for the advice! The general consensus is that I to take out all the add-ins and try to figure out what brand of dry dog food works best for him. I'd just like to add one more question... I've had a couple of people comment on how little food I've been giving him... I'm really trying hard not to over feed him because I don't want him to be over-weight especially since he's a very small male and I used to be extremely heavy, so I have that food is love instinct. He just turned 2 a couple of months ago. I walk him twice a day for about 15 mins and every Sunday we spend the day at our local greyhound park. I don't seem to think he's very active, but then again I'm not a greyhound expert... yet! LoL! Please let me know if he's underfed, now that I've kinda given everyone more details about our lives! Thanks!

 

Oh and one more thing! :) If anyone out there actually has their grey on a raw diet, I'd love to hear from you too. I've been very curious about it and I've read a couple of articles on it, but I'd wanna make sure I'm fully informed before I give that a try!

He is very handsome. :)

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Our female Brooke is still at her racing weight and she gets about 4.5 - 5 cups a day and she weighs about 61 lbs. Once she starts gaining weight, I'll cut back if necessary, but for now, she gets lot of exercise and bounces around the house and yard. Ben gets about 4 cups and at 8 yrs old, has maintained his weight for the last 5 years between 64-65 lbs. He raced at 61 lbs.

 

I found a kibble through trial and error that they both do well on but it took a few months. I also add some raw occasionally, I haven't quite converted to raw because there's so much that Ben doesn't like.

 

I fed Nutro a number of years ago but would never feed Nutro now.

Jan with precious pups Emmy (Stormin J Flag) and Simon (Nitro Si) and Abbey Field.  Missing my angels: Bailey Buffetbobleclair 11/11/98-17/12/09; Ben Task Rapid Wave 5/5/02-2/11/15; Brooke Glo's Destroyer 7/09/06-21/06/16 and Katie Crazykatiebug 12/11/06 -21/08/21. My blog about grief The reality is that you will grieve forever. You will not get over the loss of a loved one; you will learn to live with it. You will rebuild yourself around the loss you have suffered. You will be whole again but you will never be the same. Nor should you be the same, nor would you want to. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross

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Guest AlaniJoi

I'd just like to thank everyone for the advice! The general consensus is that I to take out all the add-ins and try to figure out what brand of dry dog food works best for him. I'd just like to add one more question... I've had a couple of people comment on how little food I've been giving him... I'm really trying hard not to over feed him because I don't want him to be over-weight especially since he's a very small male and I used to be extremely heavy, so I have that food is love instinct. He just turned 2 a couple of months ago. I walk him twice a day for about 15 mins and every Sunday we spend the day at our local greyhound park. I don't seem to think he's very active, but then again I'm not a greyhound expert... yet! LoL! Please let me know if he's underfed, now that I've kinda given everyone more details about our lives! Thanks!

 

Oh and one more thing! :) If anyone out there actually has their grey on a raw diet, I'd love to hear from you too. I've been very curious about it and I've read a couple of articles on it, but I'd wanna make sure I'm fully informed before I give that a try!

He is very handsome. :)

 

 

Thanks! I happen to think he's too handsome, but then again, I'm his mom! LoL!

 

Our female Brooke is still at her racing weight and she gets about 4.5 - 5 cups a day and she weighs about 61 lbs. Once she starts gaining weight, I'll cut back if necessary, but for now, she gets lot of exercise and bounces around the house and yard. Ben gets about 4 cups and at 8 yrs old, has maintained his weight for the last 5 years between 64-65 lbs. He raced at 61 lbs.

 

I found a kibble through trial and error that they both do well on but it took a few months. I also add some raw occasionally, I haven't quite converted to raw because there's so much that Ben doesn't like.

 

I fed Nutro a number of years ago but would never feed Nutro now.

 

 

I thought Nutro was really good quality food? Am I mis-informed? What brand of kibble do you feed Brooke and Ben?

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Guest cwholsin

If this is the same Nutro that I fed (Nutro Nugget), it's a decent cheap option which it seems a lot of rescues use because of the price and that it's not as bad as other options for low price.

 

Everyone I've talked to generally recommends on of the super premium dog foods. Human grade ingredients, no animal by products, corn fillers at a minimum, etc.

 

Here's a really wonderful website that I spent a lot of time looking at when deciding what food Hermes should be transitioned to (we had him on Nutronugget lamb and rice, which was the food he was on at the rescue).

 

dogaware.com/diet offers a lot of information and research into different brands and the perks/drawbacks of each, also gives info on different methods of feeding. Dry/raw/semi-raw/dry w/additions

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Take a look in the food archives, there are zillions of threads on raw feeding.

 

I'd walk him more too -- I walk my girl 30-40 minutes or more twice a day (unless we're going to the dog park -- I make sure she has a chance to run at least four times a week). Assuming his feet have toughened up, 15 minutes is next to nothing for a young dog. It doesn't sound like he's getting enough exercise, unless he's running in a yard a lot.

With Cocoa (DC Chocolatedrop), missing B for Beth (2006-2015)
And kitties C.J., Klara, Bernadette, John-Boy, & Sinbad

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Guest happygrey

The first thing that popped into my head was: has he been tested for worms?

I thought of this too. When Tatam came to us he was loaded with worms and required several rounds of wormer to get them under control. And don't discount stress as source of loose stools.

 

With regards to feeding him I'd suggest getting an accurate weight and then check the bag and you should be able to see how much he'll need. If it's a range, realize that many greys tend to be at the upper end. He might be dainty, but he still might need to gain 5-7 pounds if he's just off the track. Did your group give you any guidance on how much he should weigh?

 

There are a lot of people here who feed raw. We've done it a bit, but have settled on Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream kibble which seems to agree very well with many hounds here. It's the only thing so far that has helped with Tatam's pretty sensitive stomach. (Our other hound Bentley is not as sensitive and could do well on just about anything.)

 

For a frame of reference: Tatam is about 76 pounds and he gets 3 3/4 of food daily, split into two meals. He's 6 years old and moderately active.

 

Bentley is also a dainty male. He's 62 pounds and he gets 4 1/4 cup a day, split into two meals. He's 2 and he's extremely active. (Races like a madman in our yard everyday at least 1x usually 2 or 3x. This on top of 4 daily walks.)

 

Both of our hounds came to us about 5-7 pounds under where they are now. Neither is fat by any stretch. In fact, I'd still like to get another pound or two on Bentley (he's still a touch too ribby) but his metabolism is just too fast right now. I had him on 4 1/2 cups of food and it was way too much and gave him loose stools.

Edited by happygrey
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Guest caiteag

Please let me know if he's underfed, now that I've kinda given everyone more details about our lives! Thanks!

 

My Tynan is fairly small for a male.. his pet weight hovers around 67lbs... he gets a total of 3 cups of kibble a day and maintains a good weight.

 

In terms of what you are feeding, it sounds like you are over-complicating to me. The appropriate portion of good kibble plus some warm water and most hounds do very well.

 

For the loose stool.. I would try a different food. There are a million options out there and a million opinions. We have 3 hounds, and we feed 2 different kibbles because our female has food sensitivity issues. She gets a limited ingredient kibble, while our boys get a pretty basic (high quality) chicken and rice based kibble. Read ingredient lists... research brands online.. then get a small bag of a kibble you want to try and go for it. You might get it right on the first try, or you might need to try a few different brands or even a different protein source within the same brand.

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Guest Javagirl

I also wanted to add that Laddie had a tough time when he came to live with us and had soft stool for several months and it just turned out to be his stress. I remember taking paper plates with us on walks when I was getting desperate because we couldn't keep wiping up the sidewalks. It was suggested that he may have giardia because it hides and flares up. In the end, he just needed the right food and a little more time to adjust and get through the stress of his transition. He was originally on Merrick TurDuckEn but I think the duck was too rich for him, we've been Eagle Pack lamb formula fans ever since.

 

And I also agree with previous postings that perhaps he has too many add-ins. Kibble mixed with water and warmed a little usually wins over most dogs, and fish oil of course. I think they will always welcome a scoop of sweet potato, pumpkin or low fat yogurt but its not nutritionally necessary. I do use Missing Link as recommended by my adoption group.

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If he's a small boy and not terribly active, could be the amount/calories is just fine. I'd just watch and see, does he seem to be losing, staying the same, or gaining and adjust accordingly.

 

Very handsome pupper :wub: .

Star aka Starz Ovation (Ronco x Oneco Maggie*, litter #48538), Coco aka Low Key (Kiowa Mon Manny x Party Hardy, litter # 59881), and mom in Illinois
We miss Reko Batman (Trouper Zeke x Marque Louisiana), 11/15/95-6/29/06, Rocco the thistledown whippet, 04/29/93-10/14/08, Reko Zema (Mo Kick x Reko Princess), 8/16/98-4/18/10, the most beautiful girl in the whole USA, my good egg Joseph aka Won by a Nose (Oneco Cufflink x Buy Back), 09/22/2003-03/01/2013, and our gentle sweet Gidget (Digitizer, Dodgem by Design x Sobe Mulberry), 1/29/2006-11/22/2014, gone much too soon. Never forgetting CJC's Buckshot, 1/2/07-10/25/10.

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When we brought Bella home, we had her on a lot of things, too, after reading tons of threads on here.

 

Here's what we found -

Olive oil did nothing except give her loose stools

Salmon oil helped her coat and gave her loose stools - in the end, I'm not sure what helped her coat the most - the kibble we chose, good brushings, or the salmon oil. When our last bottle of oil ran out, we didn't replace it - she still has a great coat and much, much better stools

 

Pumpkin is something she loves but nothing that she seems to need

 

We put some warm water in the kibble so she can lap it up and doesn't choke on the dry food - we also put a spoonful of plain yogurt because it really does seem to help with the gas. Case in point - on days that we've run out, we do notice a difference!

 

For kibble - we feed Earthborn Holistic Adult Vantage. We started with ProPlan (which she was on when she came home), moved to Nutro (which she was perfectly fine on, unlike some others here) and now we've settled on Earthborn.

 

I almost drove myself crazy reading about all of the foods, ratings, etc and we just had a store open around the corner that carries a lot of good brands (Taste of the Wild, among others) but Earthborn seems to be really working for us. At $48 for a 28 pound bag every 6 weeks, it better be! Although now that I just did the math it works out to about $0.50/meal (plus some in Kongs) - huh, when I look at it that way, it's perfectly fine!

 

You will hear a lot on GT about grains/grain-free. Bella is just fine with grains so we haven't investigated any foods without them. She also gets cooked oatmeal in her Kongs and seems to be doing just fine.

 

Some of it's trial and error, as others have mentioned, but I'll second the thought that you might want to cut out all of the "extras" as a starting point.

 

Good luck!

 

PS - GORGEOUS, GORGEOUS pup!!!!

Edited by sarabz

Dave (GLS DeviousDavid) - 6/27/18
Gracie (AMF Saying Grace) - 10/21/12
Bella (KT Britta) - 4/29/05 to 2/13/20

 

 

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Guest AlaniJoi

If he's a small boy and not terribly active, could be the amount/calories is just fine. I'd just watch and see, does he seem to be losing, staying the same, or gaining and adjust accordingly.

 

Very handsome pupper :wub: .

 

Thanks for the compliment! :)

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