Skip to content

Should I change his diet?

Basenji Health Issues & Questions
  • Now that Trouper has been tested as Probably Affected with Fanconi, should I be changing his diet? He is fed Royal Canin Medium Adult twice a day with 2 - 4 garlic/fenugreek tablets, some salmon oil and some hormonise liquid (to keep a calm household!) He also sometimes gets scrambled eggs, tinned meat, cooked chicken, fish biscuits etc etc.

  • Have you tried the frozen raw food? I've been using it for 2 months since I got my new tri. I just mix in some canned pumpkin for fiber and he does really well. I give him a raw egg (from organic free range chickens) too 1-2 times/week.

  • I used to supplement their food with frozen raw mince/lamb/beef etc but my supplier has stopped delivering to our area. It's hard to get hold of anything like that now without paying a fortune for human food in our supermarket.

  • @Benkura:

    I used to supplement their food with frozen raw mince/lamb/beef etc but my supplier has stopped delivering to our area. It's hard to get hold of anything like that now without paying a fortune for human food in our supermarket.

    I've made my own in the past. You can make a big batch and freeze it.

  • No need to change the diet… unless you want to.... if he is doing well on what you are giving him, I would continue with that.

Suggested Topics

  • Eating habits have changed

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    19
    0 Votes
    19 Posts
    4k Views
    tanzaT
    @maureen252 - You can add some wet, I do.... and also add some water with the kibble and wet food... I put in about a small tablespoon of wet. And some Basenjis do drink a fair amount... some of mine did/do some didn't
  • 0 Votes
    2 Posts
    2k Views
    DebraDownSouthD
    Alex, sometimes it's a matter of not digesting... could be age, worms or teeth issues (though teeth usually more an equine than canine problem as dog don't really chew much). If you know worms aren't a problem, and not other problems such as cancer or thyroid, then I'd work on the digestion side. Probiotics, plus easier to digest foods. As I posted before, I do use Fastrack. There are foods that are made to digest easier, but you can also simply smash and soak to help also.
  • Malu's Diet and Potty Schedule

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    8
    0 Votes
    8 Posts
    2k Views
    V
    @Kipawa: Kipawa doesn't seem to need lots of water either. It is there for him to drink, however, to make the night go more smoothly, I remove the water bowl around 8 p.m. He is just over 5 months now, and I can now just get up at 5:30 a.m. to let him pee. That is 6.5 hours of not needing to pee while everyone sleeps. I actually leave water in his crate overnight, because I was worried about him not drinking enough. He doesn't really use it and at 10 weeks, he is still sleeping through the night. I guess I just hope this continues.
  • Fanconi and personality change?

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    15
    0 Votes
    15 Posts
    5k Views
    khanisK
    I am sorry to hear of your dog's possible Fanconi Affected status. I agree completely with Terry about waiting on the thyroid panel until he is stabilized on the protocol… and making sure if he does have a UTI, getting that under control as well. When you join the Fanconi list, be prepared that you will get tons of information, some of it conflicting. You will need to sort out what is best for your dog and you and his health. Do the protocol and hope for the best. Some dogs do very very well on it. Some do NOT tolerate it at all. I have two littermate boys with Fanconi, the one on the protocol was sick from day 1 and his body hated the protocol. His brother was sick on it, so we came to the conclusion that a better diet could make him feel better... and it did. He lived 4 years after diagnosis whereas the one sick on the protocol lasted about 2 years. Each dog is different. I lost my old Benny to Fanconi last fall and it was the most devastating thing I have been through in my life... I have helped my dog owners with their affected dogs and will continue to do so with the last few that have Fanconi Syndrome. If you ever want to ask me some questions, feel free to PM or email me and I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Belly rubs to the boy for me and one from Benny's kindred spirit.
  • 0 Votes
    31 Posts
    16k Views
    tanzaT
    @Tayda_Lenny: Well the dog park that we go to just made it against the rules to have unneutered dogs in the park. Sad, but I can understand… it is a very popular park and there have been a few incidents recently where some dogs have gotten hurt. Its obviously not ONLY cause they are unneutered, but I'm sure it doesn't help things. Lenny is not the main offender (but he is definitely not innocent either). I just sent his breeder an email saying that I really think that I should have him neutered at this point. We live in a really small apartment and its just not fair to have him cooped up in here without anywhere to run. He's leash aggressive and I normally don't walk them too much around my apartment.... we go to the dog park 4 times a week or so so they can run. He and Tayda have made a bunch of doggie friends at the park (and I've made some human ones) and I just don't think its fair to keep him intact for something that doesn't seem too likely to happen (her finding someone to show him out here that is close enough to me to not make it a HUGE inconvenience for everyone) at the expense of him having fun and socializing w/ other dogs and getting much needed exercise... I said we could arrange to have him collected if she wanted.... I hope she's not mad.... it's not how we planned it to be, but it is what it is..... sigh... My personal opinion, as a breeder is this… the happiness of the dog and the owner is the most important thing... if a breeder thought that the dog was that important to their breeding program... they should have kept them... period... when place... the most important thing is the home... not showing, not breeding, ot anything... but the home... I hope that all works out for you and you can get him neutered.... and enjoy him as a pet and family member.. again that is the most important thing!!! NO question... And in the end.. he is your dog.. you are the owner... it is really your choice to decide the best for you family/lifestyle... I hope that his breeder is one that sees this... and knows that he is in the best of homes... period!!!
  • The Raw Food Diet

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    4
    0 Votes
    4 Posts
    2k Views
    DarrenD
    mmm Sounds Tasty. I cooked Cairo's food for the first few years, then moved him to a raw meat diet for a few years. We had a Dalmation who liked raw food, and though she mothered Cairo he would eat this food unusually fast to stop her from getting it first. But when she died, he went off the raw meat so I resummed cooking it up. These days I find he prefers cooked food and eats more of it than with the raw stuff. But it never seemed to do him any harm so good luck with finding a diet that your B likes.