Need food and treat suggestions, please

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OnceInAWeil
Posts: 431
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 4:20 pm
Location: AZ, USA

Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by OnceInAWeil »

I am switching my 4-year-old Rottweiler's food from Victor Grain Free, the all life stages formula. He has been on it for several months now and his stomach has just not adjusted to it. His poops aren't runny, but they are always soft. Before Victor, he was just eating Authority, the PetSmart brand. He digested that well enough, but I don't want to go back to it. My local feed store owner recommended Earthborn Holistic Grain Free, the Coastal Catch formula. So I'm going to try him on that and see how it goes. I was hoping I could get suggestions for what to try next if this food doesn't work out.

Also, I had mostly been using turkey dogs for his treats (mainly because they are so darn cheap--a package of 10 dogs for $1) but I want to go a healthier route, hopefully without breaking the bank...because he is reactive, and I am working with him sometimes the entire time during our walks (two 30-45 minute walks a day) I go through a LOT of treats. I was thinking I might try using a wet food administered through a feeding syringe. If anybody has experience with this method, please chime in and let me know how it worked for you. Also, I'd like suggestions for a wet food that might be easier on his stomach.

Thanks in advance. :D
gwd
Posts: 1958
Joined: Tue Aug 14, 2012 11:33 pm

Re: Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by gwd »

OnceInAWeil wrote: I was thinking I might try using a wet food administered through a feeding syringe. If anybody has experience with this method, please chime in and let me know how it worked for you. Also, I'd like suggestions for a wet food that might be easier on his stomach.
are you talking about a wet food syringed as a training treat to be used like the roller treats?

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or are you talking about wet food as his meal?
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dontpugme
Posts: 1294
Joined: Thu Oct 29, 2009 8:01 pm
Location: Houston, Texas

Re: Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by dontpugme »

There's a recipe on here somewhere on how to make your own dried liver treats, but I'm not sure how great they are in large amounts at one time. Pieces of carrots or fruit works great, but sometimes you need a high-value reward for something and the hotdog or liver would be great. Baby food can be used, too. I haven't tried these out, but I've seen a few people on Youtube trying the Lickety Stik for the first time. http://www.petsafe.net/products/pet-tre ... ckety-stik

edit: gwd you beat me on the lickety stik thing....I think he/she needs advice on a food and also needs advice on treat options
--dontpugme
OnceInAWeil
Posts: 431
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 4:20 pm
Location: AZ, USA

Re: Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by OnceInAWeil »

gwd wrote: are you talking about a wet food syringed as a training treat to be used like the roller treats?

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Yes! I need advice on other dry kibbles to try if Earthborn doesn't work out, as well as suggestions for treats that can be syringed, or just healthier treat options in general. Sorry if that wasn't clear. The Licket Stik looks pretty awesome, I might have to try it.


Dontpugme,
I have to use high value pretty much all the time because of the nature of his issues. Hotdogs have been very convenient for me, but since the treats are ending up making up about a third of his diet, I need something not so loaded with nitrates/nitrites and such...just better content in general.
gwd
Posts: 1958
Joined: Tue Aug 14, 2012 11:33 pm

Re: Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by gwd »

OnceInAWeil wrote:Yes! I need advice on other dry kibbles to try if Earthborn doesn't work out, as well as suggestions for treats that can be syringed, or just healthier treat options in general. Sorry if that wasn't clear. The Licket Stik looks pretty awesome, I might have to try it.


Dontpugme,
I have to use high value pretty much all the time because of the nature of his issues. Hotdogs have been very convenient for me, but since the treats are ending up making up about a third of his diet, I need something not so loaded with nitrates/nitrites and such...just better content in general.
on of the training treats i use is basically meatloaf. the latest one i made was 2 lbs of ground turkey, a large can of sweet potatoes, cranberries, parsley, eggs, whirl it all in a food processer and then stir in dehydrated potato flakes to thicken. as you can tell, i was going with a 'thanksgiving theme' you'll want to buy the leanest turkey you can find as otherwise it's a bit greasy in your pocket. .......give a very light spray to a 13X9 pan and press the mixture in the pan.......bake for about an hour at 350. these can be cut into cubes and then zip locked and frozen.

i make the same thing with chicken liver and dried cherries, .....beef liver and blueberries.......

i tried it once with tuna and it didn't hold together as well.........

i'm also a big fan of low fat string cheese, dried liver, left over steak or chicken.

for dinner........i feed honest kitchen (embark). it's a dehydrated raw.
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Sweetie's Human
Posts: 333
Joined: Sun Apr 15, 2012 5:19 am

Re: Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by Sweetie's Human »

A treat suggestion:

I get a whole beef heart or several lamb hearts. I slice them as thinly as I can and cut the slices into pieces slightly bigger than I want them to end up. Lay them out flat in a single layer on a baking sheet with non-stick paper and bake them in the oven at about 100 degrees celcius until they dry out (about half an hour but depends on the size) and turn them or give them a shake half way through. Once they've cooled down, store them in the freezer and take out as much as you need each walk or training session.

I still put them in a zip-loc bag in my pocket because I've never managed to get them entirely dry... But according to Sweetie they are the BEST :lol: Her little tail goes round and round every time I open the bag.

Bit of mucking around but I think it's worth it and I make about a month's worth at a time. I just don't like what's in many of the affordable treats. These are cheap as chips and I know what's in them - heart and nothing else. Having a rottie it will cost you more than it does me, but as an indication I'd say this costs about $5 a month for treats for my pug, so much cheaper than buying treats that are not as healthy.

In terms of general feeding, I feed raw. If you're interested in information on that, tinkerwolf.com is a good place to start (I might be biased though, because Sweetie featured last week!). I can't help with commercial food suggestions sorry.

Good luck with it, and good on you for looking for alternatives!
OnceInAWeil
Posts: 431
Joined: Sat Oct 20, 2012 4:20 pm
Location: AZ, USA

Re: Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by OnceInAWeil »

Thanks so much for the great suggestions. :D
Dawnflight1984
Posts: 352
Joined: Fri Apr 06, 2012 5:44 pm
Location: Singapore

Re: Need food and treat suggestions, please

Post by Dawnflight1984 »

baby biscuits (those that are a first food for babies) are an option too, bite size, tasty without being sweetened and/or loaded with preservatives.

When she is doing well, Oreo goes nuts for these: http://www.amazon.com/Happy-Organic-Gre ... 210&sr=1-4
Each piece is the size of your pinky's nail.

As for kibbles, there are many different brands, it really depends on how much you are willing to spend and what's available in the stores near you I guess. Here's a good list: http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food- ... ry/5-star/
Whole Dog Journal recommends a whole list of good kibbles yearly but you need to be a subscriber to access the article (http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues ... 460-1.html). They do have this http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/newspi ... -7-Con.pdf which shows some good recommendations.
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