# Freeze dried food??



## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

Because some people who's opinion (based on research) I respect say that freeze dried is more healthful than kibble, I decided I should switch. I have three sample packets of the Honest Kitchen. Yesterday morning I made one packet according to the directions: mix with 1/3 cup warm water and wait 5 minutes. After 5 minutes it was still very soupy, so I waited a little while longer. I mixed it with kibble...to easy the transition. It was all over MiMi's face. I had to mop the floor around the bowls. 

In the evening MiMi threw and there were chunks of carrots in it. This morning Ru threw up chunks of carrot. I didn't see any big chunks of carrot in the food, so I assume it had not fully re-hydrated.

Have I done something wrong? I don't know what to think. Any ideas or experience?


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## donnad (Aug 22, 2006)

I have been using the Honest Kitchen and I just put enough water to cover it so it isn't that soupy or messy. I use the Preference though and add my own protein. My two love it.


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## eiksaa (Jun 8, 2012)

Sylvia, when I used THK I always mixed hot water in it and let it stand for about 10 minutes. I think it definitely needed hot water to rehydrate completely. 

Be on poop watch, dogs poop a LOT more on THK. Or atleast Gustave did. We had two different people comment on how much this small dog was pooping. 


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## Dominic (Nov 4, 2012)

I'm not sure if this help but i have been using Stella & Chewys freeze dried, either adding water or just crumbling on top of their food as well sometimes while on the go, giving pieces of it as treats. They never had a upset stomach. As you, I found the amount of water on the instructions to be too much and messy faces are not good!


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

Isn't it weird though that Ru would still have chunks of carrot in her stomach after 24 hours?


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## eiksaa (Jun 8, 2012)

Sylie said:


> Isn't it weird though that Ru would still have chunks of carrot in her stomach after 24 hours?


Sylvia, my nutritionist told me some dogs can't digest some veggies at all unless they are cooked really well. And even then they might not. If Gustave ears broccoli, it comes out as it went in, no matter how well I steam it.

Even with Dr. Harvey's they get carrot pieces in their poop sometimes. 


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## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

We love dehydrated/freeze-fried food around here!! Yes, much healthier than kibble. The Honest Kitchen is awesome but causes lots and lots (and LOTS) of pooping! Try Addiction dehydrated raw - that's what I have been giving my two for a while now (well I rotate through lots of different stuff but this is what they get for dehydrated raw most often). It's great quality food but a little lower in protein than THK...and I found that it doesn't cause quite as much pooping. 

As far as the soupy consistency - use hot water, but not quite as much as the instructions say to, and let it sit for several minutes. I use just enough to wet the food but not make it watery.


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## donnad (Aug 22, 2006)

THK does not make my two poop alot. They both only go 2x a day!


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## Kathleen (Aug 4, 2011)

We rotate between Dr. Harveys, Sojos and The Honest Kitchen grain free mixes, and also use Stella & Chewys.
I always add much less water than they say otherwise it is far too soupy. You might have to play around with it to get the right consistency that they like and that isn't too messy. Ours it oatmealish. I also make a batch and let it sit at least overnight in the fridge so that it is good and rehydrated.
For Ru, you might want to consider adding a digestive enzyme, such as Pro-zymes, if your vet says it is okay. Older dogs can have difficulty absorbing the nutrients from food. I do this for our Lhasa Buddy, otherwise he doesn't seem to fully digest the veggies.
I agree that it is much better for them than kibble 
Do they seem to like it?


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## Tashulia25 (May 19, 2013)

Dominic said:


> I'm not sure if this help but i have been using Stella & Chewys freeze dried, either adding water or just crumbling on top of their food as well sometimes while on the go, giving pieces of it as treats. They never had a upset stomach. As you, I found the amount of water on the instructions to be too much and messy faces are not good!
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com App


I do the same. From all brands I tried I prefer Stella and Chewy's as never had problems with it. Teddy threw when he ate Stewart , so i don't give that to Teddy any more. I prefer to give this food little by little as a treat without water or crush it on top of their food as they are very picky eaters


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

My dogs will eat anything with great vigor. I was reading up on freeze dried. Now I am leaning toward buying Grandma Lucy's Pureformance. It has garbanzo beans, not potatoes or rice. Any opinions?


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## Kathleen (Aug 4, 2011)

Grandma Lucy's tends to have a very strong garlic smell. 
Mine will usually eat anything, but they would not go near it.
I was disappointed, because it seems like a good food.
Maybe you can get a small sample first to try?


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

Kathleen said:


> Grandma Lucy's tends to have a very strong garlic smell.
> Mine will usually eat anything, but they would not go near it.
> I was disappointed, because it seems like a good food.
> Maybe you can get a small sample first to try?


I have read that it has a strong garlic smell, but didn't think it would stop my dogs. Well, if the dogs won't eat it, I'll feed it to DH....he loves garlic.

Actually, I did give DH one of the little GL pumpkin cookies. He liked it. I ate one too and thought it was good.

I just went ahead and ordered a 3 lb bag from Amazon....it was flashing "last one in stock." So, I did it. If it works, I'll buy the 10 lb bag from Chewy.


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## Dominic (Nov 4, 2012)

Pet Food Express carries THK and Stella & Chewys on small packages too. I also give them the Smallbatches raw, it's a company from the Bay Area Sylvia. I add it as the protein amoun on dr. Harvey's veg-to-bowl and sometimes I lightly sauté on coconut oil to bring up the flavors but that's because mine are picky eaters. As Aastha I also see some carrots on poop from veg-to-bowl mix. 


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

Thanks for you input everyone. I will see how it goes with the GLP, which will be here on Tuesday.

Our fluffs are so lucky. I don't like the word "spoiled" as it is not complimentary...they are just well cared for...very well cared for.


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## silverhaven (Sep 6, 2009)

My Lola can't tolerate the raw in any form, Penny for a little while, loved the Primal dehydrated, and it wasn't messy at all, she went crazy for it, literally leaping off the floor in anticipation. Then one day decided she didn't want it anymore LOL. so odd. She would never have it again. The only thing that has been totally consistent with mine is home cooking. It is a pain though and I am tempted to try something else again, I always end up back to full home cook though


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## lydiatug (Feb 21, 2012)

Our daughter has a pom/yorkie, parvo survivor, that just never wanted to eat at all. Honest Kitchen/grain free + homecooked meat was the answer. Mixing it with the protein takes much of the messiness out of it. We do add warm water, less than suggested, and let it sit longer than suggested. No problem with an overabundance of poop either. A definite lifesaver for her as she had become quite emaciated and even seemed "afraid" of the food. We believe her stomach was actually in pain from previous foods. She's been on it over a year now and is back to being healthy, with a healthy coat and energy again!


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## mysugarbears (Aug 13, 2007)

I use the THK "Performance" flavor and add Stella and Chewy's raw to it, faces aren't as messy as i thought they would get and they don't poop excessively like they did on Grandma Lucy's Pureformance, in the past i tried GML Artisan, but the garlic smell was so strong that none of my little piglets would touch it and and kids aren't picky eaters, the Pureformance doesn't have as strong of a garlic smell like the Artisan. I use warm water and make it a little soupy and let sit o/n in fridge and that helps with THK, the GML i would use warm water and make it the consistency of oatmeal and it hydrates really well and quick. When i was feeding the GML Pureformance they were like pooping machines, i wonder if it may be the added chickpeas (more fiber (?)) causing so much pooping. The kids really loved it, but with all that pooping i was over it. So now they get THK Performance with added Stella and Chewy's frozen raw or some Primal frozen raw, sometimes i'll add some different fruits and veggies to their food to change it up a bit and also use Addiction dehydrated raw g/f for some meals, i so wanted them to be able eat the GML, but i guess that it isn't something for them.


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## maddysmom (Mar 8, 2012)

Lacie will ONLY eat Stella & Chewys freeze dried lamb and only dry...I just have to make sure she drinks lots of water with it....if I even try to put a few drops of water in it she wld rather starve...spoiled!


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

May I just say how happy this thread is making me? :biggrin:

With all dehydrated or freeze dried foods, when I try a new one for the very first time I do measure out the water (HOT!) and slowly add it to the food so I can control the consistency. I usually make mine the consistency of oatmeal and rarely use all the water they suggest. And yep. It is messier then kibble. But soooo much better for them that it makes having to wash their face worth it. :wub:

Sylvia, which Honest Kitchen did you try? I really recommend rotating so don't give up on it. I do feel it actually better then Grandma Lucy's Pureformance but still would rotate GL's Pureformance in there for them. It's a great food and so much better than kibble.


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

Crystal&Zoe said:


> May I just say how happy this thread is making me? :biggrin:
> 
> With all dehydrated or freeze dried foods, when I try a new one for the very first time I do measure out the water (HOT!) and slowly add it to the food so I can control the consistency. I usually make mine the consistency of oatmeal and rarely use all the water they suggest. And yep. It is messier then kibble. But soooo much better for them that it makes having to wash their face worth it. :wub:
> 
> Sylvia, which Honest Kitchen did you try? I really recommend rotating so don't give up on it. I do feel it actually better then Grandma Lucy's Pureformance but still would rotate GL's Pureformance in there for them. It's a great food and so much better than kibble.


I think it was thrive. I got 3 samples the last time I was at the feed store. Next time I am going to use less water and let it stand a lot longer. I guess I was surprised since I expected it to become chunky not soupy.

So, Crystal....pat yourself on the back...it was your words that motivated me to do better. One reason I chose the GML Pureformance is because the carbs are garbanzo beans not potatoes. I mean I LOVE potatoes myself, French Fries, mashed, baked, roasted...love them, but I consider them an indulgence, not something I should eat daily. So, the same goes for my dogs.

Thanks for the push. :wub:


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

How do they know? I decided to mix up another sample of the Honest Kitchen. This one was the Zeal...fish. It was no where near dinner time, as I wanted to give it lots of time to re-hydrate. I did not use their dishes, because I know the sound of their dishes gets them excited. I was stealthy!
But, there were six black eyes looking up at me, there were three black noses twitching like crazy, and MiMi....the vocal one...was arfing at me like a mad bitch. It smells good to me too. 

How did they know it was for them? They would not have behaved that way if I were preparing human dinner. Yes, they would have been in the kitchen hoping I would drop a tid-bit, but not arfing at me...not looking at me like I had lost my mind.

They read your mind...I swear they read your mind. Well, read this: you aren't getting it until dinner time!


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## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

I tried Grandma Lucy's Pureformance recently. Bailey is my little piggie and truly, he will eat ANYTHING! For a couple of days he enjoyed the GLP but he wouldn't touch it after that...and I have never seen him refuse food! Emma seemed to like it though, so I used the rest of the bag for her...I don't think I'll buy it again since Bailey wasn't a fan but I do think it's a good quality food.


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## maggieh (Dec 16, 2007)

We switched to Addiction dehydrated about six weeks ago and my girls love it and are doing great on it! I have to admit it smells great!


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## aprilb (Jul 9, 2010)

Sylvia, Grandma Lucy's has a lot of garlic which disagrees with some of them....mine threw this up...even though I soaked it awhile, the vegetables still passed through....JMO..but I don't like freeze-dried for mine...I feed canned food to Rose and Lily...and home cook for Eva..


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## wkomorow (Aug 26, 2011)

eiksaa said:


> Sylvia, when I used THK I always mixed hot water in it and let it stand for about 10 minutes. I think it definitely needed hot water to rehydrate completely.
> 
> Be on poop watch, dogs poop a LOT more on THK. Or atleast Gustave did. We had two different people comment on how much this small dog was pooping.
> 
> ...


I don't know why, but all of a sudden I have this image of Gustave singing the song I'm just a love machine (only with the words - I'm just a poop machine) running through my mind.


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

wkomorow said:


> I don't know why, but all of a sudden I have this image of Gustave singing the song I'm just a love machine (only with the words - I'm just a poop machine) running through my mind.


:HistericalSmiley::HistericalSmiley:thank goodness I don't know that song well enough to get it stuck in my head.


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## eiksaa (Jun 8, 2012)

wkomorow said:


> I don't know why, but all of a sudden I have this image of Gustave singing the song I'm just a love machine (only with the words - I'm just a poop machine) running through my mind.


Lol! Yes, that was him on THK indeed. Our dog walker commented "he poops SOOO much" more than once. 

Love it! 


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

Sylie said:


> How do they know? I decided to mix up another sample of the Honest Kitchen. This one was the Zeal...fish. It was no where near dinner time, as I wanted to give it lots of time to re-hydrate. I did not use their dishes, because I know the sound of their dishes gets them excited. I was stealthy!
> But, there were six black eyes looking up at me, there were three black noses twitching like crazy, and MiMi....the vocal one...was arfing at me like a mad bitch. It smells good to me too.
> 
> How did they know it was for them? They would not have behaved that way if I were preparing human dinner. Yes, they would have been in the kitchen hoping I would drop a tid-bit, but not arfing at me...not looking at me like I had lost my mind.
> ...



How did it go? Did they love it as much as they thought they would? And was it less messy for you?

As for one of yours vomiting up actual food several hours after they've eaten; dogs digestive systems are much faster then ours. Their food really should be fully digested after 3 or 4 hours. So if one of yours threw up something (even carrots that really don't get fully digested by dogs), then that one really needs digestive enzymes. It's very common to see undigested carrots in their stool. That's one of the reasons I like Animal Essentials Probiotics because it has the digestive enzymes already in it. Jett is one that cannot digest his food quick enough and he would throw up his entire breakfast around 3:00 in the afternoon. But by using the digestive enzymes, we don't have that problem.


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## Sylie (Apr 4, 2011)

Crystal&Zoe said:


> How did it go? Did they love it as much as they thought they would? And was it less messy for you?
> 
> As for one of yours vomiting up actual food several hours after they've eaten; dogs digestive systems are much faster then ours. Their food really should be fully digested after 3 or 4 hours. So if one of yours threw up something (even carrots that really don't get fully digested by dogs), then that one really needs digestive enzymes. It's very common to see undigested carrots in their stool. That's one of the reasons I like Animal Essentials Probiotics because it has the digestive enzymes already in it. Jett is one that cannot digest his food quick enough and he would throw up his entire breakfast around 3:00 in the afternoon. But by using the digestive enzymes, we don't have that problem.



It was perfect. I used very hot water and let it stand for at least an hour. I started with a little water and added more. It was a nice consistency. I have some Animal Essentials, but I didn't keep using it when I saw no difference, but I will go back to adding it to their freeze dried food..plus a tiny bit of coconut oil. They loved the zeal and nobody threw up. I'll get some at the feed store today to alternate with the GML I have coming by mail. 

Ru is 15 1/2 and had gotten quite skinny. I started feeding more (she gets more than Ray who is much bigger) and she gained some weight. She is the one who threw up the carrots the next day. I think zeal doesn't have carrots. 

Yes, it was as yummy as they were hoping.


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

Sylie said:


> It was perfect. I used very hot water and let it stand for at least an hour. I started with a little water and added more. It was a nice consistency. I have some Animal Essentials, but I didn't keep using it when I saw no difference, but I will go back to adding it to their freeze dried food..plus a tiny bit of coconut oil. They loved the zeal and nobody threw up. I'll get some at the feed store today to alternate with the GML I have coming by mail.
> 
> Ru is 15 1/2 and had gotten quite skinny. I started feeding more (she gets more than Ray who is much bigger) and she gained some weight. She is the one who threw up the carrots the next day. I think zeal doesn't have carrots.
> 
> Yes, it was as yummy as they were hoping.


Yeah! So glad to hear that! I often put dogs that need to lose weight on GML's since you can feed more of it then other foods. And you feed less of THK. So for Ru, you may want to add a little freeze dried Stella and Chewy's to the mix when you are feeding GML's.


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## eiksaa (Jun 8, 2012)

Crystal&Zoe said:


> I * often put dogs that need to lose weight* on GML's since you can feed more of it then other foods.


Crystal, do you consult as a canine nutritionist? The part I made bold in your quote above made me think that. Let me know! 




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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

eiksaa said:


> Crystal, do you consult as a canine nutritionist? The part I made bold in your quote above made me think that. Let me know!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nope. I'm just a pet boutique owner. But when I have customers come to me with dogs that their vet says they need to lose weight, that's one of the first ones I go to. Especially when the owner is having trouble reducing the amount they are feeding because they seem hungry. 

I am often double checking the advice I give with one or the other holistic vets I see and have become friends with. Just to make sure I'm understanding what they are teaching me.


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