I am absolutely stumped with Lacey.You know,she does so well on Halo’s..Her bowels are consistent and firm….there’s dehydrated fruits & veggies that she’ll eat…but when you give her primal(she doesn’t like the vinegar..see previous blogs),stella & chewy beef(doesn’t like the flavor.good bowels…lamb causes soft bowels but loves the flavor)…solid gold may give her soft bowels(currently looking into it by giving halo’s one day,earthborn another,solid gold just a wee bit another..will know more by next weekend),doesn’t really care for the honest kitchen dehydrated raw food…i’d really like to place her on another brand of food even raw but the way she reacts to all of them and the brands available down in hawaii is so limited that we just can’t do it(raw)..again the carobs,amount of fish play factors into the type of food she eats,beet pulp,ingredient list should have good variety(see previous blogs)..so what will we try next?right now,i don’t have a clue..i will look on dogster to see what other brands are a possibility to try…maybe a sample of a different choice of earthborn could be an option?maybe trying barking at the moon from solid gold???for a while i will look into how she does on solid gold just a wee bit if it is giving her soft bowels & look into other brands…
Tag Archives: solid gold just a wee bit
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!
The Pet Spot & Kalihi Pet Store shopping on a Sunday!
On Sunday we stopped by the pet spot to find her a crate & carrier.We picked up a Primal Pet Treat & a carrier,doggie poop bags, &water bottle for dogs for her.At Kalihi Pet she came inside w/us and got a new bag of Earthborn to mix.So far,no new health problems with SG Just a Wee Bit.Seems to be helping switching proteins every meal.Her itching has decreased by half if not more.I am almost certain she was showing a reaction to “Chicken” since she mostly had “Chicken” as a protein source from the time she was 4 months old.I have no clue what her breeder gave her.
“When do you think the Wild Salmon will come for Lacey?”
My response was to my parents”Well,it took them a while {before they got the sample out last year back when they did samples}but it wouldn’t surprise me if it takes a few weeks.It’s coming from Florida but my guesses for the delays are they only do so many shipments per week even for samples{when they used to} & possibly they have less worker than WellPet(Wellness).But it will come eventually.They always do send it out eventually.Maybe not in a timely manner but they get it done either way so don’t be surprised if it doesn’t come this week.”
However,that is one reason we bought Lacey another 4 pound package of Wholesome chicken.Meanwhile I am also giving her SG Just a Wee Bit mixed with Earthborn which she’s doing okay eating it but as for poop unlike last year when I switched her to SG Just a wee bit she did good eating it & her poop was good,firm but since I have placed her on Halo’s & supplementing proteins(Bison)her bowels are soft.We don’t really have other options at the moment.I am looking into other kibble but again what’s on the mainland isn’t always down in HI.We may end up doing more raw but we may look at other kibbles too.
Taking up some of Lacey’s food
Yesterday morning(Midnight or slightly after midnight HST)Lacey has told me she was hungry–roaming around the kitchen,looking for anything she can find that eatable–so I opened her up some Merricks’ Turducken and she ended up eating about 3/8 cups of Turducken which is about 2 times the normal amount.If she didn’t stop on her own after the 3//8 cup I was going to put away the Turducken anyways since she can’t have more than half cup per day + she had some for dinner the night before(Monday night) so already that was about 1/2 cup right there(altogether).Yesterday(Tuesday)we limited the amount of table food she had to very little compared to normally.This evening(Tuesday evening)I gave her 3 (2-3 inch pieces cut into three slices).Then later in the evening(about 7pm)she was asking for more FOOD!It was then I decided to take her weight to see what she weighed.She weight about 8.4 pounds which is more than she should.She was not however overweight for her size but still more than we’d like to see(anywhere from 7.0 at the lowest, though usually 7.4 to 8.0 is ideal for her)so she was begging for table food but we stood our ground.I think part of it could be that up where we live it’s been cold so she’s not been very active.I didn’t think it would affect her weight but apparently it has since she’s not as active compared to when it’s nice & sunny.So,I have taken up most of her bottles that contain her halo’s and stella & chewy.I always know how much is in each one since I always measure it out before putting them into her bottles.We are also not going to give her can food for at least the next week when I retake her weight.Providing it’s sunny out I will allow her to have more can & table food but meanwhile she will have to get used to less table food,less treats(3 per day so every 8 hours)and more dry food.I will switch it out with her Solid Gold that she does eat sometimes I’ve found & her Halo’s.Whenever I feed Solid Gold Just a Wee Bit since it does not have L.Acid I always end up mixing some Earthborn Primitive Natural in it together since it has L.Acid in the ingredients.She’s not a fan of Earthborn but she will eat it.Also Earthborn Primitive Natural is Turkey,Whitefish & Chicken.Solid Gold Just a Wee Bit is Bison & Whitefish mostly.We would try the other flavors of earthborn but it is mostly chicken & chicken is one of the main ingredients in her Halo’s Spot’s Stew Wholesome Chicken & one of the primary ingredients in Earthborn Primitive Natural.
Trying Lacey back on SG Just a Wee Bit but…
she now turns her nose up at SG Just a Wee Bit & goes straight for the Halo’s!she might eat a few pieces of SG Just a Wee Bit but defiantly not to the same extent as last November-early December when I introduced her to Halo’s she’s since then not only been faithful to Halo’s but does so by turning her nose up at other dry foods besides Halo’s.Since yesterday(Friday February 26 2010)I have reintroduced her to SG Just a Wee Bit to see how she will do on it healthwise but she has eaten a few pieces–not enough to even equal 1/8 cup–sniff it,walk away then she’ll find her Halo’s and happily eat it by herself!I really don’t know what Halo’s puts in the food to make it so appealing to her but whatever it is it must be good.Otherwise she’d be turning her nose up at it by now & refusing it..Now only if Halo’s can make a few more meats such as Lamb,Beef,Turkey or Vension Dry Food using the same ingredients our house would have every dry food Halo’s has to offer providing it has the same appealing taste in every flavor.Providing the Wild Salmon has the same appealing taste as the Wholesome Chicken Lacey will eat it just as happily as she is with the Wholesome Chicken!I am trying to get her to eat a variety of proteins.Right now she has Halo’s Wholesome Chicken,SG Just a Wee Bit(Bison-providing she will eat it….)& stella & chewy’s Freeze Dried Lamb Dinner which I am happy to report is eating it two days in a row(even just a few bites makes a difference).Not sure if feeding raw is making a difference but at night she used to go to the kitchen to tell me she’s hungry but since she’s been placed on raw she’s been eating very little of the can food(during the early morning hours)and is eating more Halo’s & Stella & Chewy’s.It also seems that her fur may be slightly more fluffy.Hard to say just yet though since it’s been only about a month since she started some raw.
There is something about the Stella & Chewy’s Dandy Lamb that she likes.The Dandy Lamb she will actually eat it by herself at times but the Super Beef that we tried first was the hardest to get her to eat.But the Dandy Lamb she’ll open her mouth and gulp it or will eat it by herself providing it’s broken into smaller pieces for her.
Lacey tries Solid Gold Just a Wee Bit…one last & final attempt….
We still had the bag of Solid Gold Just a Wee Bit & decided to give it one more try to see if medical issues still comes up.If it does,we’ll take her off of it completely and toss the rest out in the garbage.Dr Kaya said it could’ve been hormones that was causing the medical issues.Sometimes in some dogs spaying could help.She did get spayed so I am willing to give it one more attempt.One good thing I remember last year when we first started organic dog food,Solid Gold was one of the first ones we tried that she ate..During that one month we tried it,the protein was Bison & her itching was less than on Science Diet & IAMS.Not sure but she may be allergic to chicken.We’ll be trying SG Just a Wee Bit for a few months in addition to her Halo’s Spot’s Stew Wholesome Chicken & Halo’s Spot’s Stew Wild Salmon to see if any medical issues come up while on SG just a wee bit.See next post for more info.
Lacey’s recovery is going very well…..
Lacey’s recovery from her spaying is going very well so far…She has started to eat some raw & has eaten her Halo’s.She’s been “begging” for walks,going out/on a car ride to go get pizza hut for dinner which she did amazingly on(very calm,relaxed,laying down,enjoying herself w/a smile on her face,looking around and not breathing heavily).In the morning she was prancing around somewhat but still “very still” or what I call her “frozen stand”and not move a muscle except she’d move her face & stay in one spot for minutes at a time.We decided to give Lacey some pain medicine after I asked her “are you in pain?” she responded with looking away from me and drooped her head to the side as if she was somewhat embarrassed to tell me “yes,I am sore.”.I took the response as yes,I am in pain & we gave her some pain medicine that Dr Kaya had given her to take on the day she was discharged from her spaying.In the evening,she made a miraculous turn around in her behavior…Before we knew she was being quite a rascal,prancing around,”digging for gold” inside the house,lapping up water more,ate some Halo’s after I gave her 4-6 pieces of solid gold just a wee bit I switched it to the Halo’s which she gulped it up & took from the carpet,running around the house with endless amount of energy,wanting to go walking,ate some meat off the floor while we ate dinner,playing with her toys & looking for Halo’s food & raw food in her bottles..Her incision is healing very quickly..97% of the incision is healed and moreorless closed up.I would have thought it would take about a week to close up but it has been less than 4 days since her spaying and already 97% of the incision is healed!If Halo’s ever comes out with another flavor besides Salmon we’ll be more than happy to try it out on Lacey!As far as we are concerned Halo’s makes the best products when it comes to dry food for dogs.When it comes to Halo’s canned food that’s a different story but the dry food is the best which I believe has helped heal Lacey quicker than Science Diet,quicker than IAMS, & quicker than Solid Gold Just a Wee Bit.She’s also doing more tricks.
Lacey’s results on raw food so far…
of canned & about half a patty of Stella & Chewy’s so far her results are amazing!!compared to last week when I had her on Halo’s,Merricks canned…Halo’s defiantly gives her more energy than SG Just a Wee Bit but she even wants to play at night about 9,10:00pm(HST)at night.Before only on Halo’s dry food and Merricks Canned Food she didn’t have this much energy.Not only that her stool is definatly more firm & dry opposed to being on only Halo & canned food(Merricks)was firm & slightly soft but despite still getting Halo’s,Merricks Canned Food & Raw her stool is STILL firm,good color & a lot more dry looking.Results are amazing so far & can’t wait to see how she does within months ahead of her health status…Should be a interesting journey….She’ll be getting dry food(Halo’s),various canned food,homemade food every so often,table/people food & various forms of raw(dehydrated & freeze dried raw) of various brands(Stella & Chewy’s-since it’s close by,Primal Pet-when we go to Whole Food to pick up Halo’s and possibly Sojo or Addiction for dehydrated)
