Need Advice on Different Types of Food

[sharronhurlbut]

If you can't find a specific brand..I would suggest finding an organic chicken and rice.
My b's don't do well on anything with lamb in it…
Lots of folks think that is the be all/end all, but there are very few lambs in the basenji home land, and my dogs have reactions to it.
Try one meat and one starch, ...give the food a try for a month..that is the time frame my vet said that it takes for reactions to show up.
ALSO, be aware of the treats you feed your dogs when your working for a non reative food.
My dogs don't like peanutbutter anything...well, they eat it, but it gives them issues...
So, make sure your very controlled re treats you give the dogs when your working to this end

[MaxBooBooBear]

When I adopted Tyler and Zoey, Karen told me that lots of basenjis are allergic to wheat and to not use any products with wheat in the ingredients. The food she uses at the shelter is Nutro Natural Choice Lamb and Rice recipe for dry and Nature's Recipe lamb and rice canned. For treats, Nutro Natural Choice Chops (biscuits) or Iams Lamb and Rice biscuits and the wheat free lamb and rice jerkey treats at Costco (Tyler and Zoey love these). I've kept Tyler and Zoey on these products faithfully, and they have not had any issues getting sick.

[WBL]

Here's a link to a thread that has lists of different high quality foods.
http://www.basenjiforum.com/showthread.php?t=2149

I know many people that use Innova Evo and California Natural. I use Solid Gold, they have a grain free kibble called Barking at the Moon.

Unfortunately, you are not going to find a good kibble at a retail chain store like Petsmart or Petco. And please don't feed Science Diet, vets push that but is more based off what they are taught in school, many vets now are realizing there are better quality foods out there but still push SD

Like Red and White said, these sites will have a place where you can find were the food is sold at. Also, I have noticed that there are quite a few feed and grain stores that carry the higher quality food.

There are many VERY good foods out there, and yes they are usually more expensive than food you'd get at Petsmart, however, they tend to not need as much food because the dogs body is absorbing the nutrients from the food and are pooping out less from fillers like wheat/corn/gluten.

Best bet, find what you can get near by at try them see what Chance does best on and what doesn't break the bank. I know several people that drive up to two hours one a month to get their dogs food, and me I live in Germany and have it shipped in from the US

[tanza]

Go on line to find stores that carry EVO… there are lots.. You will not find them at petsmart.... or Pet Express... but if you google EVO and find their site you can put in your zip and find a place close to you...

[Vanessa]

I found a boutique in Los Altos which carried Evo and Wellness. We ended up picking up both to see which one he liked better.
I put a bowl of each out for him and naturally…he scarfed down the Evo.
We switched his treats to organic/gluten/wheat free so hopefully this helps our little guy out.
We have always been real selective with which types of brands to use with our pets. We stay clear of cheap dog food. We had Chance on the Nutro line since he was 8 weeks old and now we know that is what has been causing his loose stool, lack of appetite.
Thanks everyone for the response!

[tanza]

@Vanessa626:

I found a boutique in Los Altos which carried Evo and Wellness. We ended up picking up both to see which one he liked better.
I put a bowl of each out for him and naturally…he scarfed down the Evo.
We switched his treats to organic/gluten/wheat free so hopefully this helps our little guy out.
We have always been real selective with which types of brands to use with our pets. We stay clear of cheap dog food. We had Chance on the Nutro line since he was 8 weeks old and now we know that is what has been causing his loose stool, lack of appetite.
Thanks everyone for the response!

Be careful about changing the food (which I am sure you already know)…. and once you do, you need to give it at least a month before decided if it will work for him... And might not always be the food that causes the lack of appetite, especially for a "boy" Basenji puppy... :p

[Vanessa]

@tanza:

Be careful about changing the food (which I am sure you already know)…. and once you do, you need to give it at least a month before decided if it will work for him... And might not always be the food that causes the lack of appetite, especially for a "boy" Basenji puppy... :p

:rolleyes: gotta love boys! I swear…
Im going to give it a month on this new diet and hopefully his tummy settels down :o

[renaultf1]

I hope the Evo works out for you. Ruby was never a quick eater, and I've always done controlled feeding (she'd just barely make it in time before I took the bowl away).

I switched Ruby to the Red Meat Evo about 2 months ago (took about 5 weeks before she was getting 100% Evo) and since day one with it, she wolfs it down. Ever since her dinner has gone 100% Evo, she runs B500s around the living room while I'm getting her dinner ready. When I go to put her dinner in her crate she will yodel (the only time she does it) and run and get in her crate…yeah, I think she likes it :D.

[dash]

complete petmart sells EVO. Is there one close to you?

[felakuti]

Yes, our two kids are doing so well on Evo….especially our boy Fela, his fur is like velvet.

[TuckerVA]

Merrick's foods don't contain wheat gluten either. Tucker loves the Wilderness Blend and I mix in a bit of their wet canned foods with it although warm water produces gravy with Merrick's food (all dry foods are coated with gravy according to their info, but I've yet to try this). I was shocked when I opened a can of 'Wingaling' and found whole chicken wings in it. They are, of course, softened to where the bones don't cause problems for the dog.

[tanza]

@TuckerVA:

Merrick's foods don't contain wheat gluten either. Tucker loves the Wilderness Blend and I mix in a bit of their wet canned foods with it although warm water produces gravy with Merrick's food (all dry foods are coated with gravy according to their info, but I've yet to try this). I was shocked when I opened a can of 'Wingaling' and found whole chicken wings in it. They are, of course, softened to where the bones don't cause problems for the dog.

Raw chicken wings, bones and all are fine for dogs… in fact any bone raw is fine for dogs... it is cooked bones that are the problem

[TuckerVA]

The wings are cooked in "Wingaling".

[Quercus]

@TuckerVA:

The wings are cooked in "Wingaling".

I think they are pressure cooked, or something, to the point of being completely soft, yes? Those would probably be okay…... the problem occurs with baking and grilling, etc because it makes the bones brittle and more likely to splinter than raw, or cooked to mush.