Stinky doggy toots

[Stacy]

I have a dumb question, and I think I know the answer, but thought I'd throw it out there. Maggie is on the most expensive dog food of any dog I've ever had (Nature's Variety Raw Instinct for reference) and she has the stinkiest doggy toots of any dog I've ever had! She has high quality poops and is all lean muscle and seems otherwise completely healthy.

Are there any health implications with her gas? Is it the high protein that's causing this? Is there any reason to consider switching her food to something else?

It's certainly not the end of the world, but sometimes I look at her and think, what on earth is wrong with you? 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

No reason to change foods, and it's not the protein. Without knowing the exact formula (NV has a million different versions of Instinct Raw foods) I can't say if something in the food is causing the gas. 
However, what would help a lot would be to give her probiotics or yogurt on a daily basis. That wll help with gas in any dog (or person for that matter). 

[Stacy]

It's the Raw Boost Beef. But I could easily start adding some yogurt to their food, and I'm sure Maggie would thank you for the suggestion. She loves it when I share real food with her. I could just start giving her the probiotic daily, but I think she would think yogurt is the bomb! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I don't really see anything in the ingredients that could cause excess gassiness. The food has a pretty high fat percentage for an adult formula, and that could be a contributing factor, but if she's doing well on the food, I wouldn;t switch. Try the yogurt, a couple of tablespoons of plain unflavored, nonfat yogurt with each meal shoul;d help. Katie can have some too.  Fage Total 0% is a good one. 

[Stacy]

She is doing very well on the food. I still wouldn't mind if she put on a couple pounds, but I love her build. All long legged and slender. She could be a model. 

Katie is also excited at the thought of yogurt. These girls are living their best lives. Thank you!

[Stacy]

Karen - Do people ever tell you that they wish you had a forum for human nutrition? I'm trying to eat better, but there's so much junk information out there that I've been eating a chicken breast, sweet potato, and steamed veggies for dinner every night for months! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I used to get paid for consulting on human nutrition. Can't bring myself to do it for nothing in retirement, lol.
"Better" is kind of a nebulous concept, nutritionally speaking. Not really useful. What are your goals?
Steamed veggies, blah. Try roasting them. Don't be afraid of using some oils and healthy fats. 
It would be interesting to work with you in my former professional capacity; I'm intrigued by the fact that you think of lamb and duck as "exotic". :)

[Stacy]

Well, I woke up one morning and realized that none of my clothes even remotely fit and I didn't eat anything that didn't come out of a bag or a box. Mostly chips, cookies, ice cream, and frozen dinners. Oh, and Ramen. Can't forget the Ramen! So now I'm trying to eat "real" food. Of course that means frozen chicken, frozen vegetables, and potatoes that I microwave. I'm kind of hopeless! But that's still a lot of progress from living off of Cheetos!

I still want to lose another 15 pounds. But once I do I'm going to have to branch out and eat a few more ingredients. But I think more whole food and less processed stuff is the way to go. Eggs, nuts... I've heard about shopping around the edge of the grocery store. 

Right now I'm looking at cookbooks on Amazon, but I need simple. Very simple. I'm pretty sure I've never ever eaten duck. And lamb, maybe once and it was an accident. And there are all of these vegetables I've never even heard of! We ate a lot of casseroles growing up, and somehow I seem to have gotten stuck eating like a poor college student and I've never moved past it. 

Our wellness center recently hired a nutritionist and I've been thinking of making an appointment and throwing myself at her mercy. Just tell me what to eat! I'm good at losing weight, but once I do that I start eating all the Cheetos again! 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Well, this is not the place for it, but we can talk about improving your diet and working toward your goals in a simple, healthier way. 
For now, here's a tip: eggs are your very best friend in this. Nuts, not so much. There is almost no food in the world that's higher in calories than nuts. Better than chips and cookies, yes. But not really your best choice if you're trying to lose weight. :)

[Stacy]

I would love that. Good to know about the eggs. I was thinking the same thing. The packaged oatmeal I've been eating for breakfast has 12 grams of sugar. I was thinking that two eggs have about the same number of calories but without the sugar. And I can do a couple things with eggs. 

I was trying to make sweet potato chips tonight (it kind of worked) and I realized in the 3 1/2 years I've lived here I've never used the oven for anything except frozen pizza. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You are shocking me left and right here. First the lamb and duck, now the oven.
I would have loved you for a client; I love a challenge. 
You never broil a hamburger or a steak? Or a salmon filet? 

[Stacy]

I have a phobia of raw meat. The frozen chicken breasts are fully cooked and I just microwave them. I've never cooked raw meat ever. I am open to trying new things, but I'm going to have to get gloves if I have to touch raw meat. And it's not just touching it. I'm afraid that if I try cooking it I will die of food poisoning. I'm a blank slate in the kitchen. If it can't be microwaved (or boiled, I can boil things) I've never done it. My mom didn't let us help in the kitchen because we made messes and it was easier to just do it herself.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Wow. I wonder where that phobia came from. You do know it's irrational, right? 
How do you feed Maggie without ever touching the food?
The mother thing isn't an excuse, lol. My mother was the same way; she never let us do anything in the kitchen because we made messes. Same with housekeeping. My husband had to teach me how to mop a floor, my girlfriends taught me how to clean a bathtub. 
But I'm competent at cooking, and I have a sister raised in the same house who's gourmet level.