kibble for 'doodles

[Carolyn Beeker]

greetings, all! I am wondering if anyone's 'doodle has chronically loose stools. The vet has checked out 9-month-old Armistead and declares him fit; but unless he eats the Science diet prescribed by the vet, his stools are loose and difficult to bag on our neighborhood walks. The Science diet is full of undigestible fiber and is very expensive. Do other 'doodle owners have this problem? Thanks.

[Eva (Lilo and Rocky)]

One of my doodles has a sensitive stomach also, but does well on Innova kibble, which I settled on after trying a couple of different high quality brands and monitoring the "quality" of his output. What do you normally feed your dog ? He may be allergic to one of the ingredients, or it may just contain too much of something. I've heard of several doodles & poodles that can't eat turkey for example. You could try switching him to a different brand, or add plain yogurt to your regular kibble, or even some cooked rice or shredded carrots, and see if that helps. I'm sure other people here have some ideas too!

[Carolyn Beeker]

Thanks, Eva. iI will check out Innova. I feed Armistead 4 cups of kibble a day, with lots of water; no canned food ,with only the occasional bit of turkey, cheese, or (his favorite) pizza crust.
Your own doodes are gorgeous! How lucky you are to have two.

[Jacquie Yorke (DRC)]

Oh my goodness!....So many of us out there!...Yes!..So much so that my vet has diagnosed it as IBS.....Carolyn I'mgoing to give you links to a few discussions here in the forum that might be helpful....

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A93112

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A25318

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A129985

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A93085

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A175545

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A162806

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A151126

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A119326

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A112713

http://doodlekisses.com/forum/topic/show?id=2065244%3ATopic%3A106266

[Carolyn Beeker]

I am floored by the number of emails re IBS. Is there any consensus yet on whether this is characteristic of doodles? Or consensus on recommended treatment? I have never seen any reference to this in the books about doodles, so I am surprised at how common the problem appears to be be (judging by the voluminous email traffic).

[Jacquie Yorke (DRC)]

My vet and a few others say yes....Many owners and breeders here on Doodle Kisses say no....I know that I personally have yet to meet a doodle here in my area who doesn't have at least one food or digestive related issue.......

[Jacquie Yorke (DRC)]

I will say this...The only thing that has worked for Blake is a combo of boiled chicken, ( I use legs and thighs) brown rice mixed with barley and role oats oatmeal combined with kibble...The kibble we use now ( and believe me..we have tried them ALL..) is a mix of Whole Foods 365 Hollistic Baked and Wellness Core ....This seems to be working well and his stools are more solid...They are still a light color though which has me wondering if perhaps they are light because of bilirubin from a slow functioning liver?....The vet says no...( Had him tested a few times by a few vets...)...I don't know!...I give up though!...lol

[Carolyn Beeker]

Bless you, Jacquie, for news I can use! I was feeling totally adrift.
I'll let you all know how the Blake Combo works for Armistead.
Gracias. CB

[Jacquie Yorke (DRC)]

Carolyn...I forgot to mention that I do supplement with Nupro powder every other day and as a treat Blake gets probiotic, fat free, sugar free yogurt, peanut butter in the Kong and Cadet dried chicken breasts....They are 100% chicken no additives and the chickens used are not iradiated as some of the others that I've seen are....

He too loves pizza crust but it can on occasion result in diarrhea.....Never give raw hide....It turns into the equivalent of Elmer's glue in the digestive tract....Also I do agree with Patty....Most kibble is riddled with grains that many dogs particularly doodles are allergic to....As far as grains, the 365 kibble contains brown rice, barley and oatmeal ONLY.....exactly the same things that I cook for Blake myself...It also contains peas, carrots and green beans and dried eggs and it's baked.....not processed the same way that other foods are...Oh!...and Blake loves it!....which is a relief since he sticks his nose up at everything else...lol

[23ght0c2zk1tt]

Jacquie -
It seems that Blake and Chapin may have been separated at birth! The only thing that lets Chapin have nice poops is since I started cooking for him, and it seems our recipes are very similar. I also add shredded carrots and chopped zucchini, and then fry up chicken livers in olive oil while the rest is cooking, then chop and add them.

He gets 1 cup of the "stew" and 1 cup of Med-Cal kibble (by Royal Canin) in the morning and a repeat at night. We warm the stew to slightly over room temp before serving.

His kongs are filled with any or all of the following: chopped apples, organic dog cookies, pieces of cheese, and then the opening is spread with either cream cheese, peanut butter or yogurt - and then frozen.

I never thought at this age that I'd be discussing poops again. ...

[Jill @ Walk A Doodle]

Have you ever tried to put some pro biotic powder over the top of his food? You can get it at a human health food store...The pro bios will help to even out the good and the bad bacteria in the intestine and will also improve digestion of feed...I really don't care for science diet... I use a The Naturals line by diamond...it contains no by products... it is reasonably priced...and all of my doodles have done wonderful on it...I will use probiotic powder on my dogs feed when needed...Also I never give my doodle any Rawhide...as it can give them bacterial infections very easily...I use Nylabone healthy edibles and Kong toys filled with peanut butter... I hope this helps

[Patty Barnes]

Hi Carolyn. We have 12 dogs living in our home and we have found that the best food for solid poops is Innova Evo. Most kibble contains grain, and many dogs are allergic to it. Innova Evo contains no grain.

[Carolyn Beeker]

What a treasure trove of information this group is! Thanks to all of you for sharing your experience and leading me out of wonderland.