Guest colleyb Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 I'm new to this (or ANY) greyhound forum. I have had my girl Sunshine for one year now. The adoption group (Allies for Greyhounds, West Michigan) had been feeding her Purina One (lamb & rice) and so I continued with that. Actually, we shifted seamlessly to chicken & rice almost immediately, with no visible effects. In June I decided to try a more up-scale, eco-friendlier food, Natural Planet Organix (free-range chicken and all organic ingredients.) The basic ingredients seem the same, and I mixed the two kibbles 50/50 for about 2.5 weeks in July, then converted entirely to NPlanet. Throughout the shift her "stools" became really runny (no consistency at all.) I took this as a side effect of the switch. However, with just minor fluctuations, they STILL haven't returned to "normal" piles, and she doesn't seem as interested in eating as she was when summer began. I'm looking for ADVICE/insight as to what to do next. She's only 3 and in good health. She shows NO other signs of feeling poorly - she runs and plays and squiggles. I'm considering a switch BACK to Purina One. Maybe down the road I can try Canidae? Has anyone else had an extraordinarily long period of runny stools during a food switch? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Yep. If the new food produces runny stools, I quit giving it and go back to the old food. Absent worms or disease, I've never had a dog's stools improve on a food over time. YMMV. If the dog does well on the Purina ONE, I'd stick with that. It's actually a pretty good food; just doesn't match the current fads. Quote 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 IllinoisWe 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mbfilby Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 We have always fed Purina one to our hounds and they do great on it. Recently we brought home a new girl that can not have grain so she gets Nutrisource grain free which works for her, but everyone else still gets Purina one. We tried switching off of Purina one because it is hard to find in our small town. In every case the hounds had issues (dry coat, runny stools, ear buildup, etc) so we always wind up switching back. I have been told that the Purina One brand is the highest end "grocery store" food out there. But I would feed what ever the hounds like, and do well on. BTW, Welcome to GT! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hlpnhounds Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 I've been feeding Purina One L&R for most of the time I've had my hounds. I switched to more expensive and what I thought would be "better" foods. They've been on Canidae and TOTW over the course of time. Purina One was the only food that they all had normal, formed stools on a regular basis. Since I live in an area where I am picking up their stools on a regular basis, formed stools sure do make that a lot easier Their coats are nice and shiny, their energy level is good and they are NOT gassy .....why switch to something else ? If one has a little tummy upset and has loose stools one day I just add a little pumpkin to their food for a day or two and it's all better. This works for us. We're sticking to it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GryffinSong Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 With Gryffin I tried just about every "high end" food on the planet. We always had to go back to Purina One chicken and rice. It was the only thing that didn't cause runny stools. Whenever we switched back to the Purina his stools firmed up within a meal or two. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheFullHouse Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 My thought, don't mess with what works. If the cheaper food works, then I'd keep using it. The dog is healthy, happy and has good stools, the food can't be that bad. Quote Judy, mom to Darth Vader, Bandita, And Angel Forever in our hearts, DeeYoGee, Dani, Emmy, Andy, Heart, Saint, Valentino, Arrow, Gee, Bebe, Jilly Bean, Bullitt, Pistol, Junior, Sammie, Joey, Gizmo, Do Bee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
greg1229 Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 My feeling for what it is worth is "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" Quote Isis, Always in my Heart Bijou, My Sweetest Angel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeorgeofNE Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 My feeling for what it is worth is "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" Nuts. I was going to say that! Quote Susan, Hamish, Mister Bigglesworth and Nikita Stanislav. Missing Ming, George, and Buck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest sirsmom Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 I have one here that goes on a hunger strike if I try to change off Purina One chicken. Its a good food in my opinion and we've tried a lot plus it's easy to find here in our grocery store and big box stores, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest colleyb Posted August 15, 2011 Share Posted August 15, 2011 Thanks for the abundant input, y'all...I just started Sunshine back with Purina One this morning (a 50/50 split)...hopefully this will clear itself up, although she hasn't been very interested in her food yet today:( If the appetite thing doesn't seem to pick up with the switch back, I'll get her to the vet. It's just been kind of maddening because she's not CONSISTENTLY disinterested or showing any other symptoms. FYI: The reason I switched away from the Purina One was for over-arcing environmental reasons (the organic crops/ingredients are more earth-friendly) and I prefer the concept of free-range chickens to those that are factory farmed. I love all animals. Anyway, Purina One doesn't make any such eco-sensitive claims. Again, THANKS, everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest GreyFan09 Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 Sometimes the higher end foods arn't necessarily better for them. We had Comet on Members Mark Exceed from Sam's Club for 2 years and he did really well on it; good poops, soft, shiny coat, good health. Then, I had won a 6 month supply of Canidae dog food at a local pet shop, which is supposed to be a better (and much more expensive) food. After doing the gradual switch to the Canidae, his stools went right to soft pudding.water poop, and, he seemed to loose interest in eating all his food. At first I thought is was just his system getting adjusted to the Canidae, but the stools never got better and they were impossible to pick up in the yard. After about 4 months of this, I switched him back to the Members Mark Exceed, and it was almost an almost instant improvement. Now his stools are nice and firm, and he is eating much better. I think that perhaps the Canidae was too rich for his system which caused the soft poop. Glad he's back to normal, and we are staying with the Exceed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greytlady94 Posted August 16, 2011 Share Posted August 16, 2011 Thanks for the abundant input, y'all...I just started Sunshine back with Purina One this morning (a 50/50 split)...hopefully this will clear itself up, although she hasn't been very interested in her food yet today:( If the appetite thing doesn't seem to pick up with the switch back, I'll get her to the vet. It's just been kind of maddening because she's not CONSISTENTLY disinterested or showing any other symptoms. FYI: The reason I switched away from the Purina One was for over-arcing environmental reasons (the organic crops/ingredients are more earth-friendly) and I prefer the concept of free-range chickens to those that are factory farmed. I love all animals. Anyway, Purina One doesn't make any such eco-sensitive claims. Again, THANKS, everyone. I would try just giving her the Purina One without the other mixed in. If it settled well with her before, and she liked it, she will probably do well. I agree, if the problem doesn't clear up a vet check is next. Quote Greyhound angels at the bridge- Casey, Charlie, Maggie, Molly, Renie, Lucy & Teddy. Beagle angels Peanut and Charlie. And to all the 4 legged Bridge souls who have touched my heart, thank you. When a greyhound looks into you eyes it seems they touch your very soul. "A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more then he loves himself". Josh Billings Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest colleyb Posted August 18, 2011 Share Posted August 18, 2011 Thanks for the abundant input, y'all...I just started Sunshine back with Purina One this morning (a 50/50 split)...hopefully this will clear itself up, although she hasn't been very interested in her food yet today:( If the appetite thing doesn't seem to pick up with the switch back, I'll get her to the vet. It's just been kind of maddening because she's not CONSISTENTLY disinterested or showing any other symptoms. FYI: The reason I switched away from the Purina One was for over-arcing environmental reasons (the organic crops/ingredients are more earth-friendly) and I prefer the concept of free-range chickens to those that are factory farmed. I love all animals. Anyway, Purina One doesn't make any such eco-sensitive claims. Again, THANKS, everyone. I would try just giving her the Purina One without the other mixed in. If it settled well with her before, and she liked it, she will probably do well. I agree, if the problem doesn't clear up a vet check is next. Hey again, all. A "final" UPDATE on my/our problem: I switched Sunshine back to Purina One (100%) on Tuesday morning, and by Tuesday night she was eating with renewed gusto and her stools were completely normal/firm by Wednesday afternoon. I'm shocked at the dramatic change and the immediacy of the improvement. I learned a lesson here...no more switches. I'm just glad the food she seems to do best on is the one that's easiest to find here... Thanks again, everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batmom Posted August 18, 2011 Share Posted August 18, 2011 So glad she is better! FWIW, when I switch, I: 1. Keep my receipt for the new food. Most stores will give you a full refund even if the bag is opened, if "it made my dog sick." If the store wouldn't, I'd call the manufacturer's 1-800, but I've never had to do that. 2. Start with @ 1/3 new food, 2/3s old food, for 1-3 days. If all is well, bump up to 1/2 new, 1/2 old, etc. 3. If at any point stools or other digestive indicators go downhill, I simply stop new food, go back to old food 100%, and take the new food back. I have switched dogs cold turkey when the existing food was causing a significant problem -- I mean, if you already have liquid stool, how much worse is it likely to get? But usually I hedge my bets by switching over 3-5 days. I haven't ever had output/results improve over time on a food. Some folks say they have so YMMV. Quote 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 IllinoisWe 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. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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