Needs to gain weight - what's a good high calorie/carb food?

[Linda and "Toby"]

My vet said that I need to put some weight on Toby.  He's 1 1/2 yrs old and currently on Canidae Beef and Fish which he's not crazy about. He always just sort of picks at his food and walks away before finishing it.

 

She said I should consider switching him to something higher in calories/carbs, but not necessarily higher in protein. (What's wrong with a food that's high in protein?) Does anyone have a suggestion for a good premium food that I should try? 

 

 

[Carla, Lucca and Izzy]

We have had this discussion before. Vets know nothing about nutrition, sad to say. Linda...try the Orijen too, which is also grain-free. Lucca and Kia both love it and try mixing a Tbs of canned food in with it. Lucca hated Evo and has been eating a lot better since the switch to Orijen.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

It's just that the EVO is slightly higher in calories than the Orijen. My Jack is on Orijen, and he loves it. But a lot of our members dogs also love the EVO. Either one would be a good choice.

[Liza, Halle and Finn]

Linda,
Kachi eats a combo of CA Natural (also made by the Innova people) herring/sweet potato & Natural Balance venison/sweet potato. I know Toby doesn't need limited ingredient food like Kach, but if you're interested in a herring food, this one doesn't stink at all. And Kachi loves it-of course I could probably mix anything with the venison and he would love it!
Also EVO red meat was a little too rich for Halle, so if Toby has a gentle stomach, you might want to mix it with something a little easier on him!
How is the pumpkin doing this week?? Feeling better, I hope!

[Linda and "Toby"]

The gal at Bone Appeitit is going to put some samples together for me today - EVO, Orijin, and Natural Balance. Hopefully we can find something that he likes the taste of.

He's doing much better today, Liza, Thank you for asking. I'll be so glad when he gets his stitches out on Thurs. I sure wish we knew what made him so violently ill that weekend. In all my years of having dogs, I've never had one get this sick. Poor baby! (For those who aren't aware Toby had to have exploratory abdominal surgery last Monday. We thought he had an obstruction, but fortunately, he didn't. I posted his ordeal on the Almond Blossom Doodles group page.)

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Linda, don't go with Natural Balance if you're trying to put weight on Toby. It is exceptionally low in protein and that is not going to do the job. As I mentioned above, dogs have more trouble utilizing carbohydrates than they do proteins, and the nutrients and calories in any foods that are not fully broken down will be wasted. The California Naturals is a much better choice.
I'm so sorry to hear Toby had to have surgery. I hope he's doing better now.

[Linda and "Toby"]

I had Toby do a taste test tonight. I put about six bowls of samples in front of him. He LOVED the EVO - both the Small Bites Chicken and the Large Bites Beef. it was amazing to see him woofing down dry dog food without having to sprinkle some rice or beef or chicken broth over the top of it. I'm going to offer him some more tomorrow and see if he still likes it. I'll be sooooo happy if he does!!!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm so glad he likes it!
To keep him interested, you can rotate between flavors; buy a bag of one, and when that's gone, buy the other flavor. If he's like Jack, he'll be really interested when you first open a new bag, but by the time it's getting low, he'll maybe be turning up his nose again. Then he'll be happy to see the new flavor when you open the new bag.

[Linda and "Toby"]

That's a great suggestion! Do I need to slowly switch bags to avoid stomach upset? Or since it's made by the same company and has basically the same ingredients can I just switch him when the bag is empty?

Toby had such a funny reaction to the EVO beef - he turned his head sideways to rub his ear in it and then tried to LAY ACROSS the bowl of kibble. He did the same thing to his Bellyrubs (liver) treat the first time I gave him one. (Totally crushed it under him then licked it up. lol!) I guess that means it smells AWFULly good - hahaha!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

LOL! Toby must reallllly love that kibble!
You do not need to transition slowly when you are rotating different formulas of the same food. Just switch him when the bag is empty.
Keep us posted, hope this love affair continues!