Mary's Mama

I am not to thrilled with those ingredients: corn, molasses, corn, digest? Ewww! This is simply my opinion after listening to your issues. I think you have switched food too often. It can take up to a month for stools to equalize (for lack of a better word) after changing. Kato sounds a lot like my Mary. She just has softer stools than the other dogs. When you have 3 that eat the exact same thing every day you realize that they are each individuals. The boys have good firm stools regularly, Mary has consistent stools but they are just softer than the boys. She eats Solid Gold now and her stools are much better than they were on Wellness. I think you really need to pick a food, get down to the basics (no extras except for maybe a supplement like krugers) and maintain it for a good month, then see what happens. When you are adding sardines and all that other stuff you have no way of knowing what is causing the upset. It might not be the kibble but some of the other things you were adding to it. You might want to look into some Nzymes which is a digestive enzyme that would help him digest his food better. That is JUST MY OPINION! I dont think feeding a cheaper food is the way to go. Although all that corn would plug him up pretty good :wink:

I have Irritable BS and it isn't so bad. I am just not as regular as most people. Another thing you might consider are lactose intolerance. It has similar symptoms. Good luck on the barf. I have and do continue to consider it. I live in a large city too. There are no butchers here. Grocery stores dont cut their own meat, bakeries dont make any off the items (they bake them but dont make them). Buying the whole chickens is a great idea. If I didn't have to work full time I think I could do it. I just dont feel like I have the time to put into it yet.

My kids get Dr. Krugers vitamin supplement. It is pretty good. I rotate around between yogurt, cottage cheese, wet food, organic baby food, etc. They get raw marrow bones to keep their teeth clean.

Do you know what ProHeart 6 is? Do you understand that FDA approval is meaningless? Do you know any how extensive the clinical trials were? Injecting a small animal with a high dose of toxic chemicals is never safe! Even if you dont see immediate side effects today, in the end it will cause liver and kidney damage. The body must metabolize it somewhere. Vets across the country swear PH6 is safe, swear they have been using it for years without reaction. I dont doubt it effectiveness, I doubt it's safety. More dogs are dying from cancer and kidney and liver failure recently. It is due to over vaccination, over medication, and in general far too many chemicals. Just like bad food, you dont see the result until the very end. Dont be surprised if 3 years from now we suddenly find out it is not as safe as they thought. [quote name='Angelboddy']If it's FDA approved it should be alright for the pups. Vet's have used it here in Missouri and said it's just as effective as the normal procedure, but it cost a lot less and the pup does not have to go through the surgery. The vets say a lot of owners are scared about putting them through surgery to neuter, so thats why they came up with the shot. Neutering is such a common procedure now a days. I would be more scared of spaying my dog then neutering.[/quote]

I am always amazed at how quick people are to assume something is safe and inject their pets with the newest chemical available. If we have learned anything from PH6 it should be to be skeptical of such new miracle drugs. This may very well work but chances are it will likely cause more harmful side effects than a regular neuter, in other parts of the body.

I have the same exact issue. I have found that if I dont add anything to her food it helps. I usually give a little canned food or organic baby food with the night time meal. I went through a little period of her being picky and decided no more of that, she got nothing but dry food and her stools cleared up alot. So I dont add much if anything to her food any more. Also I started using Solid Gold and it is WONDERFUL!! She is a fussy eater but she loves this stuff. I have noticed more definition in her muscle tone and a healthier coat since she has been on it (she ate Wellness before, very good food too). The only other thing I can think of is water. Sounds strange but I also changed their water. Used to just use water straight out of the faucet. We have great water but I just thought I'd see what happened. I filter it through a brita pitcher now and it seems to be making a big difference too. She is actually having pretty firm stools now, almost too firm. Hey if its not one thing it is another :lol:

They are both wonderful foods. The main difference between the two is calorie content. Wellness (even the puppy formula) has calories ranging from 325-380/cup. Calories for Innova are well over 500/cup. This is not a problem but definitely something to consider if changing from one to the other. You would feed considerably less Innova than Wellness. Some say that Innova is higher in calories because the food is more digestible. Meaning they use more of what they eat. I started Mary on Wellness and she liked it at first but grew tired of it, I also dont think she is very fond of fish and it is pretty fishy. I have her on Solid Gold Mmellinnia now and she LOVES it.

I am Erin and I am owned by Mary Jane, 1 y/o JRT [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0SgDiAuwV0yQjgaWXXJvw6NNMhkNxFdT8vL0CPlp3C0nrfqsgyss1rySgkvLcVARz2vHn077zJHxohDxdw3vgnZ5Gmy2QUc8n7pC98W2BCs0YQMID6jwh3g/Img0128.JPG?dc=4675413534363874654[/img] and Stewart, 4 mo old JRT [img]http://www.jrtzone.com/kingsqueens&jacks/Img0788.JPG[/img]

:o NO TYLENOL OR ADVIL (acetominaphen or ibuprophen) Both are toxic!! see this article: [url]http://www.peteducation.com/article.cfm?cls=2&cat=1937&articleid=2226[/url] Also, be careful with long term use of aspirin. It will cause liver damage. An occasional dose is acceptable but daily long term sustained use is detrimental. The gluco/chond, shark cartilage, MSM and yucca should be enough. It may take a few months to see the full effects though.

Jack Russells!!! I spent a lot of time gathering information and writing this history page for my friends website. It is a great place to learn about Jacks. [url]http://www.jrtzone.com/history.htm[/url] Probably the biggest issue in the breed at this time is the parson russell/jack russell debate. Basically parsons have long legs (between 12.5 and 15 inches) and jacks have short legs (from 10 to 12.5 inches). Other than that they are exactly the same dog!!!

I bought both of my dogs as pups so they in a way came from breeders but it is not the typical kind of breeder. Jacks just recently were accepted into the AKC (urgh) so until recently they were not shown in that kind of forum. Most jack breeders breed for hunting, but usually hunters just breed their own dogs. Usually there is one or two out of the litter that show little to no hunting ability. That is how I got Mary. The family does not breed regularly, but did so that they could retire some of their older dogs and get dogs with the temperment etc they prefer for hunting. Mary loves the chase but she would never follow a fox into a hole, let alone be able to bolt it. HA! Stew came from a friend I met on the internet that uses her male for stud. I love Willy, he is a really great jack. When I mentioned I was looking for another pup she arranged for me to get pick of the litter. Now we have Stewie!! So they sort of came from breeders, just not the kind most people are used to. Some might even call them BYB but I know them well enough to know they are not.

This is an article about a poor little basset that came in contact with Tide Laundry Detergent. Please read. [url]http://www.katu.com/news/story.asp?id=57295[/url]

There is also a product called a shedding blade, they work great for short haired breeds. A slicker brush wont do much for short hair. This works by helping remove the loose undercoat the dogs typically shed in the spring. My advice, do it outside!! [img]http://www.petmeister.com/usrimage/0w6101293.jpg[/img]

My feelings on corn??? I DONT KNOW!! I feel kind of the same way about it as I do BARF. There is so much literature for each side of the story I can't figure out who to believe. I think that they make some great points and could possibly be right (so could other people though). The best I can tell is that [u]whole[/u] ground corn is okay but the more it is processed into meal, gluten etc the worse it gets and if a food has multiple types of processed corn that is not good either. Because I do trust the Eagle Pack Co I would use their food regardless, but that is only due to their reputation. Other foods with tons of corn scare me. The big danger I see in some foods is that the corn is used as a filler rather than a nutritional element, which I do not believe is the case with EP. I dont read alot about the EP here but another board I go to ([url]www.i-dog.com[/url]), they are firm believers in it. Does any of that make sense?? FYI - I feed Solid Gold, and have used Wellness. I am working on rotating every 8-12 months. Can't decide what is next yet, maybe I will use Linda's diet for the small dog.

I hear that it is the best food for large breeds, glad you are having a great experience with it. Did you check out the Great Dane Lady's website I posted above? She works intimately with EaglePack and has helped them developed their products over the years. You should have a look some time.

I love rolled food and so do my dogs. I use it most often in a Kong. It is great great great for stuffing a kong!! Sometimes that is how they get their dinner :D All NB food is very good and comes highly recommended for those that have used it.

I know you all seem to be having success with baby shampoo but it actually will not be good them. Human skin has a different PH than dog skin. Human shampoo is too acidic for dogs skin and will cause it to get dry. It is best to use a dog shampoo if possible. However, grocery store brands (Hartz, etc) are not good either, usually too harsh. There is a great company called BioGroom that makes excellent shampoo for dogs. It is expensive but it lasts a long time. I have had the same bottle (12 oz) for a year now and we bath 2 dogs once a week. JRT's are prone to dry skin and it is recommended not to bath them more than 3 times a year. However I could not do that!!! This shampoo is so wonderful it actually makes her skin healthier. My vet even asked what shampoo I use cuz her skin and coat are so nice. It is kinda like the food issue, you really are better off using natural products.

Here is a link to check out: [url]http://www.poodleclubofamerica.org/performance.htm[/url] Looks like this club offers all the things you are looking for and since it is breed specific it may not be so political.

RR- I agree that kelp is very good for dogs but it has quite a bit of salt in it already, so to have kelp and salt listed means this food has ALOT of salt which isn't necessary. Also, here is an article regarding taurine deficiency in dogs. [url]http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/lamb_rice_diets.htm[/url] This website has very good nutritional information and I have faith in her research.

It looks OK. Meaning medium or average quality. My biggest concern with Lamb based food is a lack of taurine. All lamb based diets should include an added taurine supplement, this food does not. I also dont care for corn (listed twice) and added salt and kelp (very salty anyway). However much better than some of the other foods we have seen.

I wasn't necessarily speaking in terms of registries but titles. Although IMO an AKC registration is no more valuable than a CKC or something else. There is no guarantee that every pup in a litter will meet standard at 1 year of age. I dont know about all the other breeds but I would think there would be breed specific registeries and associations, as I described with the JRTCA. There is also some kind of international conformation thing I've read about. I dont know a lot about it but I do know that AKC is not the ONLY way to go and that there are better alternatives. I have heard more complaints than praise about AKC and I know that every breed is different. Kiger, you're breed isn't very popular therefore you may not have encountered some of the nonsense that others do. So basically my point was to look into breed specific associations that value working ability and confirmation. I think they provide a better basis for judging your dog against standard. PS - I met my very first Shiba at the park this weekend and all I could think about was how Kato is so much more beautiful!!

Just a few comments: I do not think that confirmation is the #1 reason why a dog should be breed or that it must have a title to be breed. This partially comes from my breed of choice (JRT's). They were just recently accepted by AKC and I fear for the future of the breed as a result. Yes a dog must have proper form to complete its function but it is a total package, the two work hand in hand. Too many conformation champions can't work and that is sad. Is there a breed club for poodles that focuses on working and does conformation? This is how the JRT world does it. There is the JRTCA that holds trials regularly. You can compete in confirmation, racing, steeplechase, agility, go-to-ground, and lure-coursing. You can title your dog within the breed in each area. This way the dog is proven to meet all criteria for a well breed dog. Also within the JRTCA a dog can not be registered until it is a year old and it is proven that it meets standard for form and temperment. All other dogs are recorded and must be s/n. Can you compete in conformation other than AKC? I know someone who used to breed smooth collies. She quit because the AKC competition is too political and the dogs no longer fit the standard, and they can no longer work. She still breeds but only for working purposes and she titles her dogs with another organization. I think too many people put too much weight in AKC, it is not all that it is cracked up to be.

Who needs a pillow when I've got my daddy! [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0SgDcAuAVGyMjgaWXXJvw6FcU8B!c8P2cLfrmGluwnrtKmtCcuptTc95PGu8ceJlt7LJ0zLGNYLCyw3hGvmGYf7MdmNjdCtqFf0fX6IoGqko00xt5A6pd7w/Img0126.JPG?dc=4675413534362013502[/img]

Who says evil monsters dont live under the rug? :o [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0SwDiAhQWajfUvsYMWP26A4Dg4oEpCYIv09zzUpNVnbjtn9rro2azY3W3lqiyp7ArsNWF7WvIB0pqEGKeirolQ4AQDM431m3Qb8IT5LOrV*k*5GsZBFnkGQ/Img0662.JPG?dc=4675423034081541445[/img]

Another method is similar to swaddling a baby. I know some folks that have skiddish and hyper dogs that have used a small childrens t-shirt, that fits snuggly. If she is crate trained, put the t-shirt on her and then put her in the crate. The feeling of being wrapped in something makes them feel better for some reason and the crate should be her safe place. As the others said dont baby her, but giving her things that help her feel more secure and then letting her work it out on her own are good ideas. I also have two jacks and swear by Rescue Remedy.