@Tayda_Lenny:
Dr. Gonto does prefer lower protein diets. The protocol does say "high protein" is required but "high" in this case means something like 25-30% protein. Here is what he responded to one of my inquiries about food when I wrote that I was feeding Wellness Core and that she had elevated BUN and Creatinine levels:
" Yes..that damned diet with TOO MUCH PROTEIN TO BE HEALTHY FOR ANY DOGS KIDNEYS (in my humble, personal opinion). I am already in contact with Wellness to find out what research they used to back such an outrageous formula. I bet her kidneys were simply dumping and unable to process that insanely high amount of protein in that dog food. What are these Wellness people thinking? My daughter is an Olympic athlete and I would not have her on that high of a protein diet!!! Eskimo sled dogs, dogs that work the hardest and live in the harshest climate of ANY dog on earth…they eat seal blubber and stews made from elk and some winter wheat. Even those HARD working dogs eat a diet only about 35% protein!!!"
And in a separate email chain when I asked him how he felt about raw feeding he answered this:
"No problem with all natural raw food. That is, if your dogs go out, run down a gazelle and kill it, then eat it where they felled it...fine. But I am guessing you are talking about a slab of meat from a hormone filled cow, slaughtered in a filthy, bacterial laden slaughter house and processed with tools oozing in a host of bacteria, mold and fungus and then stored for a few months before you buy it "fresh" in a supermarket??? Would YOU eat that raw? Would you feed it to your child? WHY NOT.....your ancestors ate it that way, right? Must be good for you...right? After all, they DID live to the ripe old age of 23 or so...IF they were REALLY, REALLY lucky. (just like dogs in the wild, who sometimes make it to seven or eight....all diseased up and sore covered...but HEY....."IT'S ALL NATURAL"..yahooooo. "
Thanks for posting that…quite honestly, ever since you posted in the other thread about what Dr. Gonto said about the food having too high a protein level, I certainly am rethinking again the food choice for my kids. I've had them on Orijen (6 fresh fish)...the protein level of that is 42% (if I remember right) and if he thinks Core is too high I can only imagine what he'd say about that. Not to mention, EVO or Solid Gold (Barking at the Moon). It's a tough call because all the grain free foods seem to be super high in protein...Core is a little more moderate. Granted, Ruby is a clear and Brando is a carrier, but I've kind of always wondered about the kidney aspect of high-protein food even relative to a healthy dog.
BTW, I had started giving Ruby Core (Ocean) in the last month because she had put on a couple pounds...she has since lost the weight, so the Core seems to work for her. Boy, and after reading what he said about raw (he's so funny), I think the only way I'd do it is if I was doing organic...heck, I personally don't eat meat or fish that isn't organic (for the very reasons he wrote) so why should the b'kids.
Can I ask, what food did you switch Tayda to?