Emma eating update

[diane silver]

I appreciate all of your suggestions; this morning I offered Emma some Go Grain-Free canned food and she ate it.  Now my question is:  should I continue with the canned, should I try mixing some canned into the Fromm's kibble?  Is feeding exclusively canned not recommended?  As to why I've changed foods so often - yes, she was definitely having very loose stools on many foods and that's why I've tried different ones.  She still never seems to have a firm stool and I can't seem to find a food that she likes and that will give her firm poops . . . .

[Sara and Roxy]

I have a picky Doodle, too. I have to add a spoonful of canned food to her kibble at each meal in order for her to eat. I also have to rotate formulas within the same brand...a bag of the chicken this time, lamb next bag, etc or she gets tired of it and quits eating. You could try adding a little pumpkin to her food to firm up her stools. My Roxy loves pumpkin. Fruitables even has a Pumpkin Digestive Supplement in a can. But I'm guessing a little regular pumpkin puree (without the spices) would be cheaper and be exactly the same thing. HTH :)

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

You can mix canned in with kibble, but make sure it is the same type. I wouldn't do a grain-free can with a Fromm that has grains in it. You could get the Go! Grain-Free kibble if you want.

In general, it seems that a lot of doods have firmer stools on grain-free food. Karen feeds her Jack Orijen and swears he has some nice poos LOL!

I am not an expert in canned vs. kibble, but my vet has told me that mixing it is better for their teeth (cleans).

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The thinking on a canned diet used to be that kibble was better for their teeth. Now, though, that is believed to be false...the kibble supposedly doesn't keep their teeth any cleaner than canned food. So if you can afford to feed an all canned diet and that works for you and Emma, I don't see anything wrong with it.
Feeding a good grain-free kibble like Surf & Turf with a couple of spoonfuls of grain-free canned mixed in should be fine, too.
The loose poop issue is a tough one. Once a dog has been eating a high protein, grain-free food for a week or two, the poop usually firms up...especially on Orijen, which some people say makes the stool too firm and dry. But this would also mean not adding all kinds of other foods and treats or switching back and forth until the dog's digestion has adjusted to the diet.
The problem that I see for you is that no matter what you give her, eventually Emma is going to turn her nose up at a meal and you are going to cave in, lol. So I would stop worrying about what she likes, choose something, and stick with it until her poop firms up, even if she goes a day or two without eating here and there.

[Mindy]

Hi Diane: Paddy, Emma's brother, sometimes has the loose stools too. And, it seems to be almost regardless of what I feed him...we too, however have the best results with Grain free...we use Wellness CORE both dry and canned. When he "sticks" to Wellness CORE and plain chicken, rice and/or turkey, he's fine, anything other, even all natural and organic...if they contain grain...he can easily get very loose stools as well. Even his treats are the Wellness Treats due to his seeming issue with grains.
I only have 2 small things with " Ambassador Paddy "(that's what they call him at camp and downtown): he has loose stools and he's an alert barker who sometimes tries barking for other reasons.....
Hope you and Emma are well.
I always find this site really helpful!

[Bronwen Watts]

I just want to point out that it can take a while for a dog to get used to a new food and for everything to become normal. When I first switched Tyson to Acana, his poop was decent, but not as firm as it had been before (he also had terrible gas for several months after despite transitioning him slowly). I decided the better food was worth the less firm stools, so I stuck with it. However, after about two months of being on the Acana his stools were the best he has ever had, and they continue to be perfect after almost a year of being on the Acana. (he also almost never has gas anymore!).

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I agree; Jack has a pretty good digestive system and adapts really quickly to new foods, but not every dog does. You do sometimes have to give it time.

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

I switched Gracie Doodle over to Acana because of loose stools. It took a few days or a week or so and she firmed up nicely. Gracie is not a food motivated dog and it takes her all day to eat a bowl of food. She seems to like the Acana better than any of the other foods we have offered and what is nice is they have a variety (3 flavors) so you can change it up. We still have loose stools from time to time but it is more about what "junk" my DH has given her or treats she has received outside from the home. We keep our treats to only the natural chicken jerkey treats from Costco and no human food at all. We do use Braunschweiger to hide her Comfortis and Sentinel in each month. Problem I have is that we have a tube of it and my DH will use it as topping on her food. It causes gas for sure and I think too much causes loose stools. This is an ongoing argument with my DH and I !