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Food switching

Basenji Feeding
  • I agree, people need to learn to read the packages and compare calorie counts… cause it can add up fast... also, the recommended amount on any package is always too high.. feed your dog the recommended amount and you will for sure have a too heavy dog.....

  • The grain free foods were too rich for my guys alone (mushy poops, even after very slow change) so we feed about 1/2 Evo or Orijen and 1/2 Innova kibble, that works for them.

    I like the idea of the grain-free, but we can't do it 100%. There are quite a few very good kibbles out there and you need to find one that agrees with your dog, if you are not able to do raw or home made. One of these days we will go raw!

  • I just picked up 3 cans of a new product from Wellness called CORE. It's grain free. I like to through in a little change. I don't feed him the same thing every week.

    http://alpha-nutrition.stores.yahoo.net/wecogrdi.html?gclid=CIjXza-htpwCFR5HagodwQLYnw

  • I highly recommend Honest Kitchens products, my dogs are currently on the Preference food, with their raw meats and bones. The dogs I had in the past were on the Force food and they too, thrived on it. They also have a food called Keen that is more budget friendly.
    http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/products/keen.shtml

    I have used Blue Buffalo Wilderness for our foster Bana, when we had her, and her fur within two weeks of the switch went from dry and prickly to smooth as silk. I was honestly amazed by the quick result.
    http://www.bluebuff.com/products/dogs/wilderness.shtml

    Good luck in finding a suitable food for Yoshi, it is a very tedious (imo) and personal choice.

  • Thanks, everyone, for the suggestions! I decided to go with Innova Evo Small Bites for the time being, and when I get a little more money together, I'll investigate the Honest Kitchen stuff. I like the idea of feeding raw/fresh/homemade, but with a busy schedule, tight budget, and strict vegetarian roommate (no, she doesn't deprive her dog of meat or anything, but she's a little squeamish about meat preparation in her kitchen), I think I need some pre-fabrication.

  • Glad you found something that works..good luck.

  • The Honest Kitchen stuff would probably be the best if your roommate really has a problem with cooking meat in the apartment. You just add water, wait for it to absorb and then serve.

    I will also say though I first had a bit of sticker shock over its price, when I started to compare how long it took me to get through a box to what I was already feeding, I was pleasantly surprised to find it was saving me money. If there is a store near you that carries it, you may want to see if they have some samples. That is how I first gave it a try.

  • They have coupons online…http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/products/coupons.shtml

    or better yet check this out..scroll down to the party kit section and enjoy..we did this for my daughters puppy when she turned 1 on July 28th.. we enjoyed the cookies and the frozen pops they sent as well as several of their samples..all they ask for in return is a picture of the party so they can post it on their website/blog…great company indeed. My dogs love the frozen ice pups and their nuzzles cookies, friends enjoyed their samples..they even paid for shipping..
    http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/company/work-for-food.shtml

  • Please let me know if you have any specific questions about food. I work at Purrs and Gurrs pet bakery and holistic food carrier so am quite experienced with food recommendations.

    For our Basenjis' I always, always recommend Innova's EVO. It comes in red meat and white and it's top-quality, NO grain, high-protein, low carb. It's a great food that I personally use and have seen GREAT results on.

    Also, Solid Gold makes a good called Barking at the Moon which is quite similar to EVO.

    Other than these foods here, Blue Buffalo is a good choice too.

    I'd suggest staying away from grains and getting a food with a low carb, high protein breakdown.

    Please let me know if you have questions.

  • @AndrewnShango:

    Please let me know if you have any specific questions about food. I work at Purrs and Gurrs pet bakery and holistic food carrier so am quite experienced with food recommendations.

    For our Basenjis' I always, always recommend Innova's EVO. It comes in red meat and white and it's top-quality, NO grain, high-protein, low carb. It's a great food that I personally use and have seen GREAT results on.

    Also, Solid Gold makes a good called Barking at the Moon which is quite similar to EVO.

    Other than these foods here, Blue Buffalo is a good choice too.

    I'd suggest staying away from grains and getting a food with a low carb, high protein breakdown.

    Please let me know if you have questions.

    Thanks so much for your offer. How much do you recommend feeding per meal? I'm currently doing 3/4 cup per day.

  • I have found that each of my 4 basenjis has a different serving requirement to maintain correct weight. Rio eats about 1 cup to a 1 1/4 cups each day. Nicky is also in that range though he gets up to 1 1/2 cups a day. Sophie and Rally are usually between 3/4 cups to 1 cup a day. I have also noticed that their calorie requirements change with the changing seasons.

  • @Varanus:

    Thanks so much for your offer. How much do you recommend feeding per meal? I'm currently doing 3/4 cup per day.

    With EVO, I'd rec whatever is the suggest amount on the bag. However, if your B acts hungry or paces by her bowl (some reactions customers have reported) you may want to try to increase it a little bit.

    Shango is on EVO right now and is getting a cup a day, 1/2 in the AM and 1/2 in the PM. He's at a healthy weight (just went to the vet! :-)) and doesn't act hungry or anything like that so I think it's a safe bet to follow the bag in this case…

    Hope this helps! How's the new food working out?

  • @Varanus:

    So I have Yoshi on Canidae All Life Stages right now, and I don't think it's the food for him. He's doing better on it than on the lower-meat-content Three Dog Bakery food I was using, but it isn't making him as happy and healthy as it could. For various reasons, I don't think I can do a raw diet right now, so I'm interested in kibble recommendations. I'm willing to spend money to get good food for him to thrive on, but I'm also not made of cash. Recommendations?

    B's are funny about there food, I only feed dry food and use Wellness brand, which has been good for my B's, Try a newpaper under the bowl so it wond shift around, that may help.

    If he hungry enough he will eventually eat.

    Good luck.

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    We switched our 2 boys to raw from kibble about 6 months ago. The switch came because we were simply exhausted from walking them 3 times a day because they had loose stool (we don't have fenced in yard, so we need to walk them to go to the bathroom). Our vet recommended more fiber in their diet to help with loose stool. This intuitively just didn't resonate with us. Basenji are one of the most ancient breeds of dog… why on earth would more fiber be a solution to their problem (I know the theoretical why, but logically it was counter-intuitive)? We read many sources or literature on the raw diet and thought this would be a good switch for them. Again, they are an ancient breed so moving toward raw foods seemed appropriate and logical. It took that about a month for them to get really accustomed to eating raw chicken quarters, rabbit halves or pork shoulders but now they have no problem gulping their meal right down, bone and all (for those of you who don't feed raw, gulping is a normal behavior and bone is an essential part of the diet). Their digestion issues have vanished and we've even seen marked improvement in their destructive behavior. Two super happy boys now, two super happy Basenji owners!!
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    I once had a pup under treatment at the Bristol Veterinary hospital. When they finally sorted the problem I was told now you'll be able to give him real food meaning kibble!1 I always feed raw and whatever but never complete dog food. Having said that it seems that over here we get a new dog food manufactutrer every month and all claim that theirs is the best!!
  • When to make the switch?

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    I'm surprised Orijen isn't on that list!
  • Rotating food

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    KanangaK
    Kananga approves. :D Local pet store that I go to carries all of the frozen raw diets offered by Nature's Variety. It's nice to have a good selection to possibly rotate proteins. I thawed out 3 medallions and it only took Kananga 20-30 seconds to realize this was yummy food. He's a big fan of this but hopefully he'll still like his dry kibble. :)
  • Homemade food…

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    youngandtiredY
    I have now switched from Blue Buffalo food to Merricks wet and dry. The Blue Buffalo was hard to get, I had to buy it out of town. I get Merricks locally, and Sahara absoutely eats it better than all the rest. She is a picky eater and doesn't have a big appetite, but man oh man is she waiting when it is meal time now. She cleans her dish, a new thing for her. I am very happy, I use the dry also with about 1/4 cup of wet mixed in. I add alittle warm water to the dry (it makes it's own gravy) heat the wet alittle and add to the dry. Yes, I know Sahara is spoiled b/c I heat her wet food but what the heck, she is worth it, only takes a few seconds. Merricks is pricey $2 per can but I make it last for about 4-5 meals. Anyways, if you read the can and bag of the dry you will see what I mean, it is very good dog food and the family that has the company has been in business for 3 decades.