# Question about Natural Balance



## aprilb (Jul 9, 2010)

I feed my girls the Natural Balance potato & duck small bites. My Rose has some itchies and I would like to switch the protein to fish. Does anyone feed the sweet potato and fish? My concern would be the kibble size. I don't think this one has a smaller kibble. My girls are 4.0 and 4.8 lbs. Thanks:blush:


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Personally I stopped feeding Natural Balance. I could not get a straight answer from the company when each bag of food I bought as different from the last. My friend had her entire doggy household come down with major GI problem, 2 almost died. Merrick came to test their food that she was feeding. She also fed Natural Balance and they basically said we don't care. Not a big fan of the company any more.


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

I used to feed Natural Balance, but was very concerned about the amount of protein in the food, or lack thereof. I really think it is only an acceptable food to feed if your dog has quite a few food allergies.

When I did feed it, I started out on the Duck & Potato small bites, then switched to the Sweet Potato & Venison regular size and London ate it just fine (this was before we had Preston). The Duck & Potato pieces are actually more hard than the other varieties. Your dogs should do fine on the regular size kibble -- they are able to crunch it before swallowing.

I now feed Acana grain-free food. Currently the dogs are on Acana Pacifica, and shortly I will be rotating to Acana Grasslands for a while to keep a variety in their diets.


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## Johita (Jul 10, 2009)

I used to feed Aolani NB until he got a UTI from it (according to the vet).


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## jpupart (Jul 19, 2010)

I recently got some samples of a few of the Natural Balance products. One of my dogs wouldn't eat any of them. My Morkie did and she has been very ill with GI issues for 2 weeks. I don't know for sure that it was the food,but she's never had GI issues before,so I'm not taking a chance.


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## Cosy (Feb 9, 2006)

I've fed NB sweet potato and venison for years now with no problems. I think some malts are sensitive to poultry so that may be the problem with the duck.


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## aprilb (Jul 9, 2010)

How much protein does a healthy adult Maltese need? I have always thought that the amount of protein should be less for adults than for puppies. One thing I have learned about food is 1#feed a high quality premium food, and 2#there is no certain food that is right for every Maltese. I did check out Acania Pacific and it looks like an excellent food, but seems a little rich to me. Thoughts?


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## lovemylittleguy (Jul 30, 2010)

My little guy just started Natural Balance last week. He has allergies. So far so good.


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## mysugarbears (Aug 13, 2007)

I feed mine Acana Pacifica in the mornings and Dr. Harvey's Veg-ta-bowl in the evenings. I fed N/B duck and potato and my girl Chloe is allergic to all poultry and we switched to N/B sweet potato and venison and would rotate with sweet potato and fish they seemed to do fine on it, but i felt they weren't getting enough protein. I did try the Orijen 6 fish and that was too rich for my fluffs. I like the Acana because it's not too high nor too low in protein more like middle of the road.


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

aprilb said:


> How much protein does a healthy adult Maltese need? I have always thought that the amount of protein should be less for adults than for puppies. One thing I have learned about food is 1#feed a high quality premium food, and 2#there is no certain food that is right for every Maltese. I did check out Acania Pacific and it looks like an excellent food, but seems a little rich to me. Thoughts?


Healthy dogs thrive on high protein, low carb diets and no grains. On a higher protein diet (which is optimal), you do need to make sure they are getting enough fluid intake whether it be through extra water, or through supplemental canned food, etc. You are correct, there is no magical food that is perfect for every dog...it's trial and error. I previously fed Orijen and it turned out to be too rich for my two, although I think if they were extremely active in agility, etc they would have thrived on it. We're now on Acana and it's the perfect balance. Honestly I think you should give Acana grain-free a try (any of the three varieties: Pacifica, Grasslands, or Prairie) and after a month or two evaluate how your pups are doing on it. The change it has made in my two has been amazing!


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

We did the Acana and it was too much for one of my dogs. His kidney values actually went up. I guess you really just have to try stuff. He can eat Stella and Chewies and is fine.


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## Nikki's Mom (Feb 13, 2008)

Dogs are individuals. What is good for one dog, might not work for another. Discussion is good, but it is more important to see how well your particular dog does on a food. There is no definitive food for all Maltese.


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## maltlovereileen (Jan 19, 2009)

After the pet food recall (and subsequent recall), I feel very nervous for anyone feeding Natural Balance.

We are feeding Evangers white fish and sweet potato mixed with some real grilled salmon and the doggies are loving it and doing well on it. Evanger's Dog and Cat Food Company The kibble size is small and easy to manage.


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## mss (Mar 1, 2006)

I'd be careful and worried about just what's in the foods. 

My very small mini schnauzer was having gas and skin issues, so I was trying different foods. I put her on the Natural Balance sweet potato and chicken. It seemed to suit her tummy--until she had some blood work done and her triglycerides were extremely high. They had been fine a few months before. So even though high triglycerides is a problem often found in mini schnauzers, I'm sure the food was the culprit.

Then, that particular food was recalled for possible salmonella contamination. 

I have just a cup or two left, which I'm saving in case her next exam shows anything of concern.

Edited to add: I was uneasy about the company's recall notice, too. It basically said "the FDA found contamination but we, the company, did not, and there's been no reported illness." It seem to suggest that the FDA should not be believed. http://www.naturalbalanceinc.com/letter_from_president.html


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## maltlovereileen (Jan 19, 2009)

mss said:


> I'd be careful and worried about just what's in the foods.
> 
> My very small mini schnauzer was having gas and skin issues, so I was trying different foods. I put her on the Natural Balance sweet potato and chicken. It seemed to suit her tummy--until she had some blood work done and her triglycerides were extremely high. They had been fine a few months before. So even though high triglycerides is a problem often found in mini schnauzers, I'm sure the food was the culprit.
> 
> ...


Yeah, kinda weird, isn't it.:angry: When they were recalled the first time (when the major recall happened), I had just bought a new bag of brown rice and venison and checked their website. I continued feeding it because they had a big disclaimer that the recall did Not affect their food...so felt reassured and relieved...only to see later - two weeks later after much damage had been done - that they were now recalled. I will forever hate Natural Balance. I don't trust them. Sounds to me like the last recall is more of the same (it isn't us)...blah pooey:angry:


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## mss (Mar 1, 2006)

I didn't know that they were involved in the previous recalls! At that time all my pets were on a prescription diet that wasn't affected by the recall.


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## maltlovereileen (Jan 19, 2009)

mss said:


> I didn't know that they were involved in the previous recalls! At that time all my pets were on a prescription diet that wasn't affected by the recall.


2007 pet food recalls - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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