Transition Schedule

[Booker_Aye]

Our old kibble, which Fred was on before he came to me, has been discontinued. I have one 15 pound bag of it left, and I would appreciate some input on a good schedule to transition Fred to the new kibble. He gets 1 1/2 cups of kibble, a half can of wet food (which we are not changing, it's always Blue Buffalo, but different varieties for a change of pace), a scoop of yogurt, and a scoop of pumpkin. So I need to gradually change 1 1/2 cups of kibble 1 to 1 1/2 cups of kibble 2. I'd really appreciate a schedule to make it as easy for Fred as possible.

 

Thanks!

 

Terry

[Guest OPointyDog]

Does he have a sensitive digestive system? Some dogs seem to be able to transition easier/faster with no problems than other dogs. If he's not too sensitive, I'd say try mixing 1/2 cup of the new with 1 cup of the old and see how it goes for a few days. If that goes well, then try mixing 1 cup of the new with 1/2 cup of the old for a few days. Then switch over completely.

 

This would probably not work with our greyhound, who seems to have trouble adjusting to new food, but it would have worked with our previous dog, who never seemed to have any digestive issues....

[philospher77]

My Katie has a very sensitive tummy, so what I do is this: when I get down to the last third of the bag or so, I start mixing the new kibble into the bag, at a ratio of half a serving size. Assuming I have something around 15 cups of kibble left, it's add 1 C, mix, take 2 C out, then add 1 C, mix, take 2 C out. The first few days, there may not be more than a few stray pieces of the new kibble in the meal. But as the level of kibble gradually drops, the amount of new kibble will go up in each serving, until the last serving is almost all new kibble. It works for me, and is much easier than trying to figure out how much of each to add, especially if the serving sizes are different.

[a_daerr]

After switching four times and going through every digestive upset imaginable, I've found that the easiest way is this:

 

1. Select a food that is the same protein source

2. Start by giving the new kibble as a treat to make sure he'll eat it (a handful per day for a few days)

3. Assuming he likes it, do a 75%-50%-25% transition over the next 10-14 days

4. Add in a probiotic like FortiFlora or Holistic Transition

5. Keep the canned food/mix-ins consistent

[Guest FreeholdHound]

I just completed a transition from Nutro G/F Venison & Potato to Brothers Complete Red Meat. I did the 75-50-25 over the span of about 10 days. All went well with no adverse poo effects, just a toot or two lol. I know it's crazy but I swear Harry's coat is softer and less shedding already.

[a_daerr]

Great news! I'm glad it worked out.