# Food Question



## Jenny's_Kirby (Jan 23, 2011)

Three days ago I started Kirby on a home cooked diet consisting of rice, boiled chicken, and steamed carrots. He absolutely loves it and eats every bit (he's normally a picky eater). The only problem I'm having with him is that he's been having a little diarrhea (nothing major, though) . I was just wondering if I am feeding him the right food or if maybe he just needs time to get used to the new diet. Any advice would be greatly appreciated  Thanks!


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## Bibu (Jun 3, 2010)

I don't have any answers but I know that boiled chicken gives Bibu diahrrea. I think his tummy is sensitive to the chicken. I hope you can find a solution soon!


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

How long have you been feeding Kirby this homecooked diet?

It is possible that he is allergic to either the chicken or the rice. If dogs have a food allergy, chicken is one of the most common. You may want to go with a grain-free diet, as many of our Maltese do best without grains. If you just started this diet, his tummy could be adjusting to the changes and any diarrhea/soft stool should clear up within a week. I have also heard of carrots giving a few dogs soft stool if fed in too much quantity.

Is the chicken, rice, & carrots the entire recipe you are feeding? This in itself is not a complete diet -- you need to add supplements such as a multivitamin, probiotics, and oil such as salmon oil for Omega 3s. Homecooking can be very exhausting in my opinion, because you should rotate proteins and carbs and you have to be very precise in which supplements to use as well as how much of each to use.


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## Jenny's_Kirby (Jan 23, 2011)

Thank you so much for your advice! I have only been feeding him this diet for 3 days. I have not added any probiotics, fish oil, or vitamins. I should have researched this more. I might continue to buy dry dog food instead. I just want him to be as healthy as possible. Any suggestions on good dry dog foods that wouldn't be incredibly expensive but still good for him?


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

I switched Tyler over to home cooking several months ago and now he loves to eat vs. being a very picky eater. And I give him boiled chicken with veggies as one of his meals a day. I do add supplements. Tyler, knock on wood, has perfect bowel movements and, pardon my french, they don't stink. :chili::HistericalSmiley: It could be that if you switched over entirely to the new food Kirby might be adjusting. I would say give 3/4 meal what he used to eat and 1/4 new food for a while and then gradually add. Tyler wouldn't touch kibble...tried just about every healthy brand. I had more luck with Wellness canned food but then after a while he didn't go for that either. There are some books about home cooking or you can see a nutritionist once and she/he will give you a custom diet for Kirby. Good luck on whatever you do but I know how hard it is when they won't eat.


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

Jenny's_Kirby said:


> Thank you so much for your advice! I have only been feeding him this diet for 3 days. I have not added any probiotics, fish oil, or vitamins. I should have researched this more. I might continue to buy dry dog food instead. I just want him to be as healthy as possible. Any suggestions on good dry dog foods that wouldn't be incredibly expensive but still good for him?


I agree with you that at least for now, it would be best to put him back on his dry food. Don't worry, you haven't done any harm to him by cooking for him for only 3 days.

I am not sure if you have any specialty pet boutiques in your area, so I will name off a few of the best dry dog foods as well as a few good brands that can be found at Petco or Petsmart.

A few of the top foods I recommend are Orijen, Acana, and Now!. They are among the most expensive, but to give you perspective of the cost, I feed Acana and buy the largest bag which is about $55-$60 and lasts both of my dogs 3 months. So about $10 per month for one dog. I freeze most of it in an airtight container in our chest freezer. You can also buy the smaller bags. I would recommend going with a grain-free diet whichever food you decide on.

Petco and Petsmart carry only a few high quality foods. Wellness is a good brand that I know Petco carries and I think Petsmart started carrying it. The "best" Wellness varieties are the Wellness Core foods. If you are really on a budget, Petco carries Natural Balance and the LID varieties (limited ingredient diet) are not bad. I know Petco has a couple of other great brands as well but my mind is drawing a blank! I can help you find more brands if you would like, and help you pick the right grain-free variety. The price difference between feeding the top brands of kibble and feeding the "okay" brands is not much, so always splurge for the quality if you can spend a few (literally only a few) extra dollars per month.

Also, if you are wondering about a specific brand, feel free to ask!


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Your dog may need more fiber in the diet. Dogs who do really well on kibble are getting a higher fiber content in their diet than they would with what you are feeding. A little canned pumpkin might help. 
Feeding this recipe is okay short-term, but in the long-term you need a properly balanced diet. There are lots of recipes available in books and online or you can start out with a carb and protein source and pay a nutritionist to develop a balanced diet for you based on that.


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## Jenny's_Kirby (Jan 23, 2011)

LJSquishy said:


> I agree with you that at least for now, it would be best to put him back on his dry food. Don't worry, you haven't done any harm to him by cooking for him for only 3 days.
> 
> I am not sure if you have any specialty pet boutiques in your area, so I will name off a few of the best dry dog foods as well as a few good brands that can be found at Petco or Petsmart.
> 
> ...


Thank you for your advice. It's very helpful! I will switch him back to dry food and look for the brands that you suggested at petco. I'm glad that I asked everyone on here before I decided to keep feeding him the new diet. I think it would indeed be exhausting to try to mix up all the homecooked food and figure out exactly all the extra nutrients that I need to add. It might end up being more expensive than I had planned, also. I appreciate everyone's advice and I will go tomorrow and look for a good brand of food to give Kirby. Thanks again to all of you! You are all very kind to help me out


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