# Good Dog Food



## Lillybelle (Jan 14, 2011)

I'm looking into a couple of dog foods that I haven't tried, Naurtal Balance sweet potato and venison and also sweet potato and salmon or Life's Abundance dog food. 

My maltese (1 year old) has some tear staining and chews her paws, I'm thinking allergies. My Cavalier King Charles Spaniel (5 years old) has a very sensitive stomach and allergies as well.

* I like Natural balance because of the sweet potato, it's supposed to help with tear staining and allergies which both dogs have and it has a limited amount of ingredients, which helps with allergies as well. 

* And I like the Life's Abundance because of the prebiotics and probiotics and all natural ingredients, no fillers or grains. 

What do you feed your dogs? And have you found a certain food that helps alleviate tear staining and allergies?

Thank you!


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## dkolack (Nov 24, 2008)

We alternate Dr. Harveys mix which you add to your own meat at home and kibble by Natural Balance - Sweet Potato & Duck. There are many posts about food here, if you do a search - I think you will get a lot of recommendations.


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

What food are you currently feeding? Knowing what you are using right now will help me suggest new foods to try. It does sound like some sort of allergy problem, but it could be food or environmental.

Natural Balance Sweet Potato & Venison would be a good food to try if you suspect she has a food allergy. There are a few other brands, also. I would recommend adding a supplemental probiotic, such as Animal Essentials Plant Enzymes & Probiotics. I love the stuff!


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## Lillybelle (Jan 14, 2011)

They've been on a couple of brands, Iams for sensitive stomach for the cavalier and puppy for the Maltese until I found out about the animal cruelty thing then blue buffalo which is causing diarrhea so we're looking. The vet suggests food for allergies and a sensitive stomach for the cavalier, she's prone to hemorrhagic diarrhea :-( so we have to be very careful with her stomach and anything that is not easily digestible. For the Maltese I'm just looking for something for allergies, so far Natural balance L.I.D. Has met both their needs but I haven't ordered it just yet.


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

I alternate between Natural Balance duck and potato and Wellness small breed formula. The Wellness does contain grains; oatmeal, brown rice and rye. Those grains don't usually cause allergies. There are good things in these foods to aid digestion. My 14 year Ru had been on a special prescription diet because of her tendency to bloody diarrhea, but she hasn't had a problem once with this food.


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## DiamondsDad (Jul 14, 2011)

Diamond used to bite her paws a lot too (vet said it was probably allergies.) We started feeding her Acana Pacifica, and she stopped biting her paws. (Acana is a Canadian dog food; I don't know it's availability outside Canada - but it has Canadian-sourced ingredients, no grains, etc - good stuff). 

Anyway, I'm not just trying to recommend the specific brand of food... We told the vet we switched Diamond to Acana Pacifica, which is based primarily on fish. The vet said that was probably the best thing we could do to prevent the paw biting for two reasons (1) it contains no poultry and lots of dogs are allergic to one or more types of poultry - chicken, duck, turkey and (2) fish contain a lot of nutrients that can actually ease allergic symptoms (that arise from other sources). 

So you might want to try the sweet potato and Salmon food - it might be the bost of both worlds (I hadn't heard about sweet potato helping with tear staining and allergies - we feed Diamond dried sweet potato as treats).


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

For your Cavalier, I would suggest a soft diet, such as canned food. One with one protein source and one carb source. My girl is on a limited canned diet right now. She is on California Natural Salmon & Sweet Potato and hasn't had diarrhea in the 4 months or so she has been on it. I wouldn't recommend a dry kibble for her, it is harder to digest. Natural Balance LID canned foods would qualify. You will want to pick one variety and stick with it, which means either no treats at all, or the treats must be 100% either the protein source or carb source...so no random treats.

For your Malt, I would suggest either trying the Natural Balance LID diet, either dry or canned. Nature's Variety Instinct has a couple of LIDs as well. Basically, just look for one protein, and one carb source (usually potato or sweet potato, sometimes tapioca). Make sure it is wheat, corn, soy, & grain-free.

I honestly wouldn't worry so much about tearstaining right now, just focus on the itchy paws. You can also take her in to the vet to see if she might have an ear infection or other infection. My girl had an infection in her nail bed actually and it took several months to clear it up. She was chewing on her paws.


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## Lillybelle (Jan 14, 2011)

Thanks everyone, 

After doing research for a couple of days I've ordered Acana pacifica. Both dogs can eat it and it's a little lower protein than orijen but higher than Natural Balance LID foods. Since it's main source of meat is fish I'm hoping this helps with allergies. If not then on to the next! 
The only thing is no one within a 70 mile radius carries Acana here so for those who have to order where are you ordering your's from? I ordered from the pet health and nutrition center for $17.99 5lb bag with a flat rate shipping of $4.95. Has anyone found it for a better price anywhere?

Thanks!


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## Lillybelle (Jan 14, 2011)

They've been switching to the Acana Pacifica for the past 3 days and so far so good! No loose poop or throwing up so I'm assuming it's digesting well. I can certainly tell a difference between this food and others. It actually smells like fish and not like gross dog food smell. Hope it continues to agree with them!


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## LJSquishy (Feb 27, 2008)

That is great news, Summer! I hope the transition continues to go smoothly! Acana is one of my favorite dry foods. I also love that it smells like fish vs typical dog food. A couple of local boutiques carry it where I live but I will see if I can find any better price on it for you ordering online.


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## Snuggle's Mom (Jan 3, 2008)

I feed Chrissy and Snuggles Blue Buffalo Brown rice and Lamb and they both have no problem with it. I did have them on one of them with the Fish but the protein level was too high and we noticed that Chrissy was gaining weight (more than we were happy with) and she seems to have lost a little bit due to the change.


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## almitra (Apr 24, 2009)

I have a friend with the same weight gain issues for his dog (feeding Blue Buffalo). Packing on the pounds for seemingly no reason.


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