Dog food and poop
When my dogs were on Iams, Eukanuba or a mix of the two poops were perfect, small, firm, easy to clean up. On Pro Plan that's not the case and it was driving me crazy so I put my dogs back on a mix of Iams puppy and Eukanuba. Perfect results, quickly. I would keep them on this food forever, regardless that it is now thought of as a crap food, because they do well on it and really, I'm sick of poop that can't be picked up easily and makes such a mess if they step in it etc... The problem is I can't buy it anywhere reliably. Iams puppy is only available in small bags unless I want large breed, which I don't. Eukanuba is the same, only big bags of the large breed stuff available and I don't want that. Pro Plan is easy to find around here and someone always has the big bags in stock. I pay about 64 dollars for a 40 lb bag of the pro plan puppy chicken and rice. It's seriously crap food though... in terms of what comes out the other end anyway. I'd like to know based on poop what foods work best for your dogs. Which food keeps their poop firm. That's it. Just no more soft or runny poop please. LOL Based on your recommendations I'll look around here and see what is available all the time. |
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We have good poop here 
I rotate Nutro Lamb and Rice and Canidae. Both do well for poo. Good poop even when traveling, showing and exercising. Good luck! |
| Nutro Ultra and Eagle Pack Holistic are the two foods we use with good results. We do use large breed but I don't know if it would really make a difference. Poo is never really an issue though no matter what they eat. Everyone in our house has a cast iron digestive system- humans and dogs. |
| Bert is on Chicken soup for the dog lovers soul....he has good healthy poops. Although it may be hard to find.
he was on pro plan from the breeders... |
| I feed Obe Eagle Pack Holistic, Duck and Oatmeal it's for sensitive stomachs. Which Obe has.
His poop has been firm since I started him on it. I dont even allow people to give treats to often because it creates a mess on the other end No table food except carrots 1 a day and yogurt 1 ts every 2 days. I have had great results. Treats are his dog food, a 3-4 pieces of kibble, (unless he visits the neighbor). |
| I feed ProPlan Lamb & Rice Adult formula & ProPlan Sensitive Skin & Stomach. The only treats my dogs get are 1 Purina One Lamb & Rice biscuit with each meal (2 a day). I have not had a problem with soft stool at all. Very easy to pick up & not much volumn. |
| I've had no problems at all with Pro Plan in fact reared the litter on it as it was available world wide, that with fresh and raw as well. I do rotate between the variety as well now. The chicken one, lamb,Salmon, Turkey and Barley one also.
I also use Eagle Pack Holisitic as well but as that is sometimes hard to get supply of here I do swap between brands and flavours. Also the kibble I only use as a filler, 3/4 of the diet is fresh ingredients at meal times as well. Not very often I get a messy one only if they have picked up a bug then its back to basics of boiled rice and steamed chicken till the tums settles down I am also a big believer in rotating and giving them a variety wether that be in good brands of kibble or fresh ingredients, that way that dont seem to build up an intolerance to a particular type of food. Mine have cast iron stomachs too but I also think that is because they are use to not only a variety in the Kibble but a huge variety of fresh in the diet also. Is eagle pack available over there? With the pre & Pro biotics in it, it is wonderfull kibble & I dont think I have heard of anyone having any problems with it as far as stools go |
lisaoes wrote: Is eagle pack available over there? With the pre & Pro biotics in it, it is wonderfull kibble & I dont think I have heard of anyone having any problems with it as far as stools go
It is in the states, though not as readily available as some. I love it too, and believe in rotation as well, including raw chicken and turkey, mainly. I've been told you're not supposed to mix raw and kibble, but have not had any problems doing so. I also feed Fromms, which is made locally. May be harder to find elsewhere, though I know friends in Minnesota feed it as well and I've had good luck with Wellness, but I think the Eagle Holistic salmon and sardines and what have you is my favorite when I can find it. No matter what you feed I think if the output is small that is probably telling you that they're utilizing it well. Conversely...? Kristine |
| One nice thing about an all raw diet - very small, firm poop. |
Through the years when you've explained what your dog was on and the result.. we've been right in sync ...and had the same exact results (science diet, moved to sensitive stomach salmon, nutro, iams). Well, Yuki seems to have nice poop with Wellness. Maybe a little gas was gained though.  Problem though esp since you have so many dogs is ...it's a bit more expensive. The other dog is on Pro Plan Sensitive Stomach purely b/c it's cheaper and I don't see a need to pay extra for 2 dogs when I don't need to. |
| Portage has been on Pro Plan turkey & barley most of his life. perfect poops. Now give him 1 molecule of real meat & the results are explosive. Carrots & apples & wheat free treaters only. Glass tummy for him. |
| Nutro Ultra but end consistency varies with the dog. Generally firm. |
Bert wrote: Bert is on Chicken soup for the dog lovers soul....he has good healthy poops. Although it may be hard to find.
he was on pro plan from the breeders... Oh Golly gosh I was thinking fancy not being able to find the poop, stepping in it, long grass. Summer is on arden grange chicken and rice but she must go at least 3 times a day is this the food, or just her, or a sheepie thing? |
| Pro Plan does seem to be a popular choice among breeders, mainly because it is available everywhere, it's not cheap but not extraordinarily expensive either, and purina has some decent perks for breeders (money back, points for merchandise, puppy packs etc)
Iams does too (perks) but they only send out Eukanuba puppy packs, not Iams.... which is fine, even though the price of the two of them is hugely different, the food is virtually identical and I can mix them or do a complete switch with no mixing and everyone is fine. I would LOVE to be able to just feed Iams. If I fed large breed I could stick with Iams, but I don't have large sheepdogs and the large breed formulas don't offer enough in terms of nutrition, protein, fat or calories. It even says on the bag it is not suitable for pregnant or nursing dogs. The large breed formulas slow down growth and were initially designed to help reduce symptoms of hip dysplasia. HD is a genetic condition, if you have a dog who has a greater chance of having HD then yes I would recommend a large breed formula, but there haven't been problems with HD in the lines I am working with so I don't feel a need to slow down the growth of my dogs. I pretty much always feed puppy food to all the dogs, just easier since they are essentially free fed. The only dog who runs a little heavy is Panda but she does no matter what is fed or how much LOL So far most of you seem to be using nutro, pro plan, or at least a variant of it. I tried the pro plan sensitive skin and stomach once but couldn't stand the smell of it LOL I've tried nutro also and it didn't agree with at least one or two of them, if I remember correctly Dancer was vomiting it. Wellness is also one I tried, and same thing, Dancer vomited it. |
| Maybe we need to look at this from the other end - availability.
What foods do you have locally that are decent enough ingredient-wise that you are considering, Stacey? Maybe some of us have tried them and can give you some feedback. |
Willowsprite wrote: Pro Plan does seem to be a popular choice among breeders, mainly because it is available everywhere, it's not cheap but not extraordinarily expensive either, and purina has some decent perks for breeders (money back, points for merchandise, puppy packs etc) I tried Zorro on Pro Plan and had similar experience as you are having with it, not all dogs foods agree with all dogs. Willowsprite wrote: Iams does too (perks) but they only send out Eukanuba puppy packs, not Iams.... which is fine, even though the price of the two of them is hugely different, the food is virtually identical and I can mix them or do a complete switch with no mixing and everyone is fine. I would LOVE to be able to just feed Iams. We have been feeding Eukanuba now for a few years and we are very happy with the results, all of our dogs love it and they have a stabile poop easy to lift up. Willowsprite wrote: If I fed large breed I could stick with Iams, but I don't have large sheepdogs and the large breed formulas don't offer enough in terms of nutrition, protein, fat or calories. It even says on the bag it is not suitable for pregnant or nursing dogs. The OES is classed as a large dog so therefore maybe you should keep with the large breed, pregnant or nursing dogs should be fed Eukanuba puppy for middle sized breeds. Willowsprite wrote: The large breed formulas slow down growth and were initially designed to help reduce symptoms of hip dysplasia. HD is a genetic condition, if you have a dog who has a greater chance of having HD then yes I would recommend a large breed formula, but there haven't been problems with HD in the lines I am working with so I don't feel a need to slow down the growth of my dogs. That large breed formula's slow down growth is vital in the OES's as they tend to grow very quickly, HD is not only a genetic disease but can have enviorimental backgroung as well as can be caused by a number of other things. You are very lucky not to have HD in your lines, I assume all dogs within the lines have been X-rayed to come to this conclusion. Willowsprite wrote: I pretty much always feed puppy food to all the dogs, just easier since they are essentially free fed. The only dog who runs a little heavy is Panda but she does no matter what is fed or how much LOL To feed puppy food is okay up until about max. 1 year old but after that the dogs are much better on adult food. Willowsprite wrote: So far most of you seem to be using nutro, pro plan, or at least a variant of it. I tried the pro plan sensitive skin and stomach once but couldn't stand the smell of it LOL
I've tried nutro also and it didn't agree with at least one or two of them, if I remember correctly Dancer was vomiting it. Wellness is also one I tried, and same thing, Dancer vomited it. If you are having success with a food it is better to stay with the food and not change all the time, if you are a registered breeder then enquire if Eukanuba / IAMS have a breeders club near you, we have such a club in Europe and we have big savings when we order or food. |
dairymaid wrote: The OES is classed as a large dog so therefore maybe you should keep with the large breed, pregnant or nursing dogs should be fed Eukanuba puppy for middle sized breeds. I do use the Eukanuba for medium breeds... and would happily feed it if I could find it within an hours drive. Using two separate foods is not realistic around here since they are fed at the same time in the same room. They each get a bowl, but they choose their own bowl and switch also. If they don't eat it all at once then they all nibble throughout the day. I prefer feeding this way. I do realize oes are classed as a large dog, but in my opinion they aren't... not really... large medium maybe. dairymaid wrote: That large breed formula's slow down growth is vital in the OES's as they tend to grow very quickly, HD is not only a genetic disease but can have enviorimental backgroung as well as can be caused by a number of other things. You are very lucky not to have HD in your lines, I assume all dogs within the lines have been X-rayed to come to this conclusion. Just my personal opinion, as well as a number of respected vets and researchers, but the genetic factor is the biggest contributor. If the genetic predisposition is not there it is unlikely that even the poorest of nutrition, exercise, habits and environment will actually cause HD. It can certainly bring out the symptoms perhaps in a dog who would have had a minor or virtually undetectable case of it. I do know a LOT of breeders think otherwise... it's entirely possible I'm wrong. dairymaid wrote: To feed puppy food is okay up until about max. 1 year old but after that the dogs are much better on adult food. The only detriment that I am aware of to feeding adults puppy food is that they may get a little too heavy. It is higher in calories, vitamins, minerals etc... dairymaid wrote: If you are having success with a food it is better to stay with the food and not change all the time, if you are a registered breeder then enquire if Eukanuba / IAMS have a breeders club near you, we have such a club in Europe and we have big savings when we order or food.
I agree whole heartedly... I've fed Iams since the late 80's and have been a registered breeder with the Iams/Eukanuba breeders club since 1991. It doesn't allow me to order food though other than puppy kits. There is simply a lack of stores in my area that carry what I need. I can get the big bags of Iams chunks just about anywhere, but not puppy food. The puppy food is hardly ever in stock and when it is only small 10 lb bags which is maybe one meal around here. Eukanuba is available at Pet Valu (chain of pet food stores) but again, only large breed is available in the big bags. The Medium breed puppy formula is available only occasionally in a 10 lb bag.  |
got sheep wrote: Maybe we need to look at this from the other end - availability.
What foods do you have locally that are decent enough ingredient-wise that you are considering, Stacey? Maybe some of us have tried them and can give you some feedback. Excellent idea... I'll go check it out.... and get back to you  |
kerry wrote: One nice thing about an all raw diet - very small, firm poop.
I agree! Laika's poos are smaller than my cats!  |
| panda is now on nutro lamb and rice...small bites....brian bought the wrong bag...i said green...he came home with the LIME green ...sigh...he opened it and poured it into her plastic container, so no taking it back....
anyway, she gobbles it up, smacks her lips and its the best poo ive ever seen.......the 40 lb bag was 42.00 |
| Jake was put on ProPlan by his vet when he was 3 months old. He had a problem with colitis up to 3 months of age and since he's been on the ProPlan he's done very well. He's almost four years old now. I do give him large breed but alternate sometimes with the adult food. |
Darcy wrote: panda is now on nutro lamb and rice...small bites....brian bought the wrong bag...i said green...he came home with the LIME green ...sigh...he opened it and poured it into her plastic container, so no taking it back....
anyway, she gobbles it up, smacks her lips and its the best poo ive ever seen.......the 40 lb bag was 42.00 I have the same stuff too Darcy, by accident (sort of) as well. I normally get the green bag, but they were out of the big bags. The girl at the store said the small bites were the exactly same food, just smaller pieces. So I bought it - and ours all LOVE the smaller pieces. Especially little Tazz - probably thinks we finally noticed he is a tiny dog and got food just for him!
Todd even thought the same - that they all really like it, so I have been buying it on purpose the last two bags.  |
| Finnigan has been on so many different foods, for that exact reason...he was my IBS pup! We started on nutro for sensitive stomachs which he hated and gave him runny stool. I thought I needed something "better" so I tried California Natural with good results, but when Nathan and Cheyenne came into the picture she got the poops from the California Natural, so we tried them on the food he feeds. It may be "crap", but it works for us...the Science Diet for sensitive stomachs! Not to jinx us, but it has been months that anyone has had a cow plop poop! Good luck, it has been approx 2 3/4 years to figure out the right food for our dogs, it's a frustrating process. |
| ^^^
I would have stayed on Science Diet z/d if Yuki didn't need a food w/more protein. After a successful few years on it, she just kept losing weight and was eating abnormal amounts of it. |
| My dogs have always eaten the smaller kibble. They don't like larger sizes.
What about Solid Gold? Friend feeds it to her 7 Great Pyrs.......says there's less bulk out the rear which is important with 7 biggies.  (yeah, to afford it, she's also a wholesaler) |
| Barney's on the blue Nutro right now. It works for him, poop-wise. |
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