Between last Saturday and this Saturday Lacey has chosen to eat Stella & Chewy’s 4 out of 7 days…There are 12 patties in one package with each going for $15.00..It can last for 6 days or as long as almost 2 weeks.On average she’s been eating about 2 a day.So in a month,she could go through 48 patties costing us about $60 without tax..Depending how long she wants to continue that eventually she’ll have to settle for a dry food preferably Blue Buffalo but we’ll tackle that issue when she loses interest in Stella & Chewy.Meanwhile,that’s what she’ll eat switching proteins every month.
Category Archives: Lacey's favorite RAW Food
Stabalizing Lacey on dry food
So far, so good.Yesterday was the first time Lace was given the “normal” amount of table food for a day since I stopped her Halo’s and early this morning she ate 1 Stella & Chewy Duck Duck Goose & 1/8 cup of Blue Buffalo w/some water that was already in her crate.She ate it right away…
She seemed to like Blue Buffalo more than the other brands we have right now especially when the Blue Buffalo is wetted with water.Now,to hope for good health till July providing she will eat it on almost a daily basis…That will tell us & be the most effective to help us figure out if she’s doing good on Blue Buffalo with three grains..If not she can always get the Wilderness or maybe via internet?Not sure on price differences..In addition I am trying to get her to eat some can food daily to hopefully help prevent further UTI’s.
Switching to Blue Buffalo
So I have been doing a little thinking on Lacey’s dry food.And I came across the thought that Lacey could not have fishy food so I searched back on her site & found that it was on of one of the WellnessSuper5Mix Dry Food I had given her that caused soft stools.I checked the ingredients in it and did seems to have a “good” amount of fish but I didn’t try her on any other brand for fish.On the Wellness Dry Food she’d always gets soft stools so I am not even going to try her on the Wellness Core or the Simple Solutions.I might try her on another fishy food with a different brand such as TOTW Pacific or something similar to that.
On Blue Buffalo,doing some research I have found that a lot of poodles do good on the Small Breed which most of the Blue Buffalo dog food that does have grains,usually have 3,being which MOST poodles are doing good on.I am going to slowly transition her over to Blue Buffalo and see how she is medically in the upcoming months.Otherwise it’s going to be mostly grain free for her.So far for her diet,we will be using Blue Buffalo as the primary diet(even if it’s only grain free),TOTW & possibly Earthborn.Can Food:Merricks,Party Animal.Raw:Stella & Chewy Freeze Dried Chicken or Duck(alternating)When the NOW!dog food comes to Hawaii we’ll probably stop the Earthborn if not before that and try the NOW! dog food by PetCurean.So far I am pleased with their customer service on facebook & looking forward to try their products for Lacey..Still looking at other options but that’s where we are for now…
Update May 11 2010:It seems that Lacey can’t handle Stella & Chewy’s freeze dried raw food.She can handle the chicken & beef with good bowels but can not handle the lamb,duck/goose both resulting in soft stools.The beef she doesn’t care for it too much so we will discontinue that…If sometime later a new brand comes out for freeze dried or she will accept ACV in treats if it’s ever used in treats we may get her to eat Primal Frozen but right now it will be the raw treats from Stella & Chewy & Primal for raw treats…
As far as dry food goes Lacey is obviously giving us a very difficult time on transitioning to new food whether it be Blue Buffalo,Earthborn,Taste of the Wild,Nature’s Variety or whatever she’s just not eating…In turn I have cut out most of her treats & table food until she does eat something.I have been giving her an 1/8 cup of Merricks or Party Animal daily(can food) so she’s got something in her tummy.I doubt 1/8 cup of can food will fill her up though.I am waiting for her to eat a few kibble before she gets treats/table food and see what she responds to first..At this point as much as I’d LOVE to feed her high quality dry food I am just trying to get her to eat something whether it’s high quality or cheap.Yes,cheap will cut her years earlier but at least she will be eating.If we try most brands and she won’t respond after sometime I guess we MAY be forced to go back to Halo’s….We will try different brands for the time being ranging from high quality to medium quality to the absolute worst of dry food brands.If she responds to none….back to Halo’s we’ll go..IF ALL ELSE FAILS!
Balancing grains & grain free feedings
Most people know that Lacey has started recently on Blue Buffalo & in the past we’ve had issues with grain heavy food.We’ve looked at Blue Buffalo for certain choices of food that she may be able to eat but when we got to PetCo we didn’t see what we were looking for so we picked up the Blue Buffalo Small Breed.Although I knew it did have some grains I picked one up because we drove all the way to Pearl City so we should pick up something so it’s not a “waste of time/gas”.I was going to do this several different ways with her dry food not to mention we’re trying to get her on mostly very low grains to grain free can food too.
The first way I was going to do this was switch out the brands/flavors every time she ate but I thought if I did it this way we couldn’t focus on the new brands…Later I was going to do exclusively BB & TOTW…But..I was talking to my mom and it seemed she was concerned about the amount of grains in the BB,however energy & bowels are also very good on it…One thing I remembered with grain free is as long as she doesn’t regurgitate the food we’re good with grain free so really it doesn’t matter when or what brand of grain free I introduce we’re good.She started grain free(Earthborn back in December 2009 & we’ve had no issues).The way I decided to go with my mom’s concern in mind was to do the usual amount(1/8-3/8 daily)and make 80-85% of her dry food very low grains & grain free with about 15% being moderate grains.Not to mention she will have can food available at lunch/dinner,also low grains-grain free.Out of 21 meals of dry food times 4 weeks=84 meals/month..more on another post.. a week only 3 would be BB.The other 18 meals would be Halo’s,TOTW,Earthborn…If we do good on this rotation with very little(3 meals per week of BB Small Breed) and no health issues we can choose from many types of BB..Her food would go something like this BB,Halo’s Wild Salmon,Halo’s Wholesome Chicken,TOTW,S&C Freeze Dried Chicken,Earthborn,Merricks then
Halo’s Wild Salmon,Halo’s Wholesome Chicken,TOTW,S&C Freeze Dried Chicken,Earthborn,Blue Buffalo.
AND I couldn’t give the BB Small Breed to the neighbor’s dog because on the BB small breed bag it says for dogs up to 30 pounds so Lacey would have to finish the bag
Lacey accepts Canidae!but I don’t plan to keep her on it…
Lace has finally accepted Canidae after I placed it in a bottle for her.To get her to eat Canidae it was like I had to almost beg her and doing it the bottle method without accepting it verbally by hand for Lacey is not good.Usually if she tries a new brand of dry food and she accepts it by hand that is your biggest hint that she’s good with the new food but if she won’t even take it from the hand and you got to do it by the bottle method that’s not a good start.She was the same way with Hill’s Nature’s Best.
The reason for not keeping her on it is 1)she’s not excited about it 2)didn’t take it from the hand 3)she has chicken/salmon just by eating Halo’s/supplements with Stella & Chewy freeze dried raw Chicken 4)All the other Caindae seems to be grain heavy something we don’t want to go through with more issues of UTI’s. 5)Only has one berry.I like to see at least 2:Preferably Blueberries/Cranberries but at least 2 berries.6)List of ingredients are limited.Another issue with Lacey is she can tell if it has a good amout of meat,fruit,veggies…How?I have no clue!
As for elimination diet I was thinking of it won’t be possible with the limited amount of brands of “high quality”dry dog food brands that has good “quality of ingredients” and enough variation with meats/fish.Maybe in the long run if there are more varieties out there..
Same with grain free & feeding her freeze dried raw:If there were more of the brands she’d eat with good variety of meats/fish/fruits/veggies/L.Acid and so on..none with ACV in frozen/freeze dried raw..more meats..I’d switch her exclusivity to one of these but since at the moment there isn’t enough of that type of foods we’re working with what we have including very low grains-1 grain-grain free dry/can food.Right now we’re doing Halo’s,some Earthborn,TOTW & maybe in July starting Blue Buffalo.
Canidae ALS
We got Lace some samples from naturally pet but she didn’t eat it.like w/natural balance dry/can food & any dry/can food w/limited ingredients.i’d switch her over to 100% grain free if she ate it as well as her Halo’s!Her stool is excellent on TOTW even w/can food.Halo’s is low in grains…eats it close to a daily basis..medically it helps a lot…both Halo/s & TOTW has good variety ingredients which she’s faithful to…So far we tried Science Diet,IAMS,Beneful,Chicken Soup for the pet lover’s soul,prarie,instinct,stella & chewy,solid gold just a wee bit,wellness,canidae,halo’s(current),earthborn(current),totw(current),nature’s best(refused after once),natural balance(refuses can/dry),merricks(will eat sometimes,loves the can food),primal raw,thk ..when we are in pearl city i plan on trying a few different flavors from blue buffalo to see if she’ll eat it..
Frozen Raw Food vs Freeze Dried Raw Food Brands
Ok,so in the last post we mentioned that because Lacey is sensitive to the amount of carob,fish & lamb in her diet we decided to switch from Stella & Chewy’s.Stella & Chewy’s Beef formula is good but she didn’t like it.However her stool was good on it but the lamb formula was “absolutely loved!” by Lacey but the result was every time she had it she had soft stools..and we can’t have that!
So,I wanted something that was freeze dried till we got her more stable on eating raw food.Right now she’s only getting it a few times a week to help the Halo’s meat content(first ingredient is chicken/wild salmon which is less than what it says on the package once water is taken out).But w/the lamb sensitivity to Stella & Chewy’s which she loved…and got soft stools on it…I decided to try to keep her on freeze dried until…she got more regular meals on it..the thing w/freeze dried is you can keep it in the bag that it came in & all you do is break it up into smaller pieces & there’s no refrigeration time..no water needed though you can…BUT when the time came to buy Nature’s Variety Freeze Dried or Frozen like in the last post we mentioned about trying the lamb…we got the coupon and went down to Naturally Pet but they don’t sell it there…but they do sell the dry and can food…Now,the only other place that might have it is Bark Ave down in Hawaii Kai which is out of our way for us to travel just to get it or even check to see if they got it…..So,we had no other choice except to get Primal..one which I was sort of against from the start..not that it’s not a great food because it really is..that it’s frozen & you need to rethaw it..The good thing is it’s sold in more places in town where we live(not far to travel except a few miles<15 miles for sure)..it can stay in the fridge for up to 5 days unlike can is only up to 3 days.Odd thing is when you look it up online primal comes up less with search results vs nature's variety raw but when it comes to stores only 2 stores on Oahu SHOULD carry it and that was Naturally Pet & Bark Ave.Primal on the other hand seems it's more preferred in Hawaii.
Anyways a long story short,we got the Primal Lamb Frozen to see how Lacey will like it.I brought it in the car and she was just sniffing away at it..licking her mouth…When I showed it to her since I was going to unthaw it for her dinner, I took up all of her dry food & no treats or table food so when it comes to dinner she'll be hungry,she was licking her mouth already begging me for the piece that was to be unthawed…The result will be if she will eat it and how her bowel movements are.If both is good results we can stick with feeding her various formulas from Primal & get a card from Naturally Pet as a frequent buyer program.The other thing I like about it while it does not have L.Acid is that it's mostly organic food in the formulas.And we alredy know she loves the treats…Oh yeah the price we paid ~$32.?? with tax for a 4 pound bag.Expensive but good.The pieces are very small just one oz so it's actually better than Stella & Chewy.Stella & Chewy was $13.00 without tax for only 6 oz.
Dry Food,Raw Food,and can food…the list never seems to end…
So on dry food food Lacey obviously can’t have corn,by products,artificial colors/syrups/dyes etc..it can’t have beet/beet pulp if possible due to small breeds tear stains,she can’t have a lot of fish in any formula due to sensitivity causing soft bowels,she can’t have a lot of carob even though it’s not chocolate because it causes her to have soft bowels..kibble has to be small or she won’t touch it,ingredient list should have a good variety of meat,fruit,veggies…those with limited ingredients such as Natural Balance Can Food she will refuse it all…absolute no food with apple cider vinegar she will refuse it all…
Addiction is out because one formula has brewer’s yeast,other reasons are “limited ingredients” not enough variety for her taste but the dry food might be ok.
Sojo is out because some formulas contain carob and she’s got sensitive issues with too much carob in her diet.
Something like The Honest Kitchen Preference
We’re going to see if Nature’s Variety freeze dried is still being sold at Naturally Pet.I have seen the dry food,can food & treats but not the freeze dried since the NV Recall.If they don’t have that we’ll have to go with Primal Pet since more stores in town have it than Nature’s Variety.I’d like to use them because it’s still freeze dried till she will accept it more on a regular basis.I will look into a few others but we may end up getting one of these brands Sojo Complete Dog Food,Addiction La Porchetta or Salmon Bleu or Viva La Vension of the dry foods that they have,The Honest Kitchen Verve or Thrive or Preference,Primal(any flavor),Nature’s Variety Freeze Dried Lamb or Vension-depending how Lacey does on the lamb maybe we could try the frozen lamb if Naturally Pet still sells NV Raw Food…If they do we might even try Frozen Bison,Lamb and maybe Rabbit from Nature’s Variety.It’s really what her tummy can handle & how her stools are that will help me decide what to give her.After the end of March we’ll look for a new brand for her.Depending how she reacts to the freeze dried then the frozen we might even try the kibble but the can food is out since she tried both brands & didn’t like it for the can food anyways..I am also considering a Solid Gold Grain Free Barking at the moon but if she likes the NV freeze dried/frozen/maybe kibble we might be able to try one of the grain free kibbles they have to offer….We’ll have to ask around for other dog owner’s opinions before any decisions are made on that…
Looking back at Lacey’s first year:Health and all
Name:Lacey Princess Maltipoo Akamine
Current Weight at one year old:7.11 pounds according to vet records,7.6 according to home weight
Birth Date:March 13 2009
Born:Kailua,HI
Breed:Maltese/Toy Poodle
Mom:Poodle
Dad:Maltese
Adopted:july 17 2009
Age of adoption:16 weeks old
Found on:Kijiji.com
Price:$600
Name of Vet:Dr John Kaya
Vet Hospital:VCA Animal Hospital aka VCA University Hospital
Weight at first vet visit:4.5 pounds
Dog Food:Science Diet & IAMS,Beneful Prepared Meals till December 2009
Puppy Pad Training:9 weeks
Health Issues:Yeast infection in ear,worms,UTI,Spaying(February 2010)
First Heat:November 2009
First Treats:Nutro Dog Biscuits,Pupperoni,The Goodlife Recipe treats
First Walk:November 2009
Shortest Walk:<<<than 5 minutes
Longest Walk:62 minutes on her birthday
First Time Out: December 2009
First Thanksgiving:Thanksgiving 2009:Family Dinner
First Christmas:Christmas 2009:A new top,Waggin Train
Brands of dog food we tried:Solid Gold Just a Wee Bit,Chicken Soup for the Pet lover's Soul,Wellness Super5Mix Small Breed/Super5Mix Complete Health Chicken,Halo's Spot's Stew
Current Dry Food Brands:Solid Gold Just a Wee Bit,Halo's Spot's Stew(Wholesome Chicken & Wild Salmon flavors),Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural
Brands of Can Food we tried:Natural Balance,NV Instinct & Prairie can food,Wellness Can Food then lost interest,Halo's Spot's Stew Can Food,Merricks
Current Brands of Can Food:Merricks
First introduced to Raw(Freeze Dried):January 2010
Started accepting Freeze Dried Raw:Feburary 2010
Brands we tried:Stella & Chewy till APril 2010 then we'll be switching to Nature's variety Freeze Dried
First Freeze Dried Raw Treat:Primal Pet Turkey Liver(A birthday present)
Organic Treats she's tried:Trader Joe's,Waggin' Train,No Grainers
First Boarding Facilities we considered:Di Ventus Dog Hotel & Spa
First Boarding Facilities we looked at:The Ohana Doggie Day Care,Pets in the city
First Starts understanding people conversations:7-8 months old
First Command:SIT
Commands she knows:sit,stay,don't move,time out,sit & stay,shake paw/hand,"eat",hi5,shake your tail,down aka sit,lay down,kiss,learning roll over,"wait",inside,outside,table manners at the table
Uses Common Sense while walking:About 8-9 months old
Checks for cars like a human(right,left,right,left,center,then walk)about 10 months-1 year old
Goes outside for afternoon poop:December 2009-learned by example of aunty's dogs
Vaccinations:Distemper,Parvo,Lepto
First Carrier:casual Canine
First Crate:Pet Mate Kennel Cab
Characteristics:A definite mix of Maltese/Toy Poodle.Brains of the poodle.Looks of a maltese.eyes are poodle.Loves to play.Loves to sample food
Types of food she tried:Mexican,Italian,Japanese,Chinese
Favorite Fast Food:KFC chicken skin
Shops we shop at:Naturally Pet,Halo’s Purely for Pets,The Pet Spot,Kalihi Pet Store
Misc:Also tried Hartz Oinkies
Able to climb steps:10-11 months old
First Shampoo;Sergent’s Puppy Shampoo
Current Shampoo:Halo’s Cloud Nine Herbal Shampoo/Earthbath Shampoo
Grooming:Cardinal Pet Gold Metal Pets Unicoat Professional Spray
Halo’s Spot’s Stew Wild Salmon
Lacey has just given Halo’s Spot’s Stew Wild Salmon her maltipoo approval on how she likes the “new” food!We just got it in the mail this morning and when I took it out of the box for her to try she wouldn’t take it but when my dad tried she did eat one kibble.I tried to hand feed it to her but she wouldn’t have it.So,I did it the other way where I place her food in her bottle to introduce her to the “new” food.After I did that she ate one whole 1/8 cup of Wild Salmon!She also took a bit of it in her crate tray too!At least we know that Halo’s Spot’s Stew Wild Salmon has gotten her approval!A few more flavors if Halo’s should ever introduce you can bet that we will defiantly give it a try for Lacey!Whatever flavor it is Wholesome Chicken or Wild Salmon she will most likely eat it!Thank Goodness we found Halo’s!Now we switch up her proteins almost every meal every day.We start out with Halo’s Wholesome Chicken,then SG Just a Wee Bit (Bison)MIXED with Earthborn Holistic Primitive Natural(Turkey),then we give her Halo’s Wild Salmon.Once a week she gets Merricks Can Food(any flavor)on Saturdays.Mean while,we also use Stella & Chewy as a supplement with any of her dry foods.I break up a small amount into her kibble and she will usually eat that as well.Lacey’s review on Halo’s Spot’s Stew Wild Salmon for finicky eaters…Give it a try!Your dog(if finicky) might thank you!
