Getting Ready to Make the Switch - Advice

[SoSa]

When we got Ace, our breeder had him on Costco's Nature's Domain Salmon and Sweet Potato.
He'll be 5 months old on May 5th and now that we are winding down with our bag of Nature's Domain, I feel we should make the switch before we run out of this Costco food.

I guess I am looking for advice for transitioning off of this food. He is 43 lbs and I'm considering Oriijen, an all stages food. Any suggestions? Our breeder did say to keep him away from chicken since his mom has a chicken allergy. His coat is a factor for me be because right now it is dry and dull, brittle. I did just start him on EPO.

Thanks much.

[Jessica, Loki and Moose]

With the help of this group I switch Loki to Fromm and it has done wonders for his coat. I did however find that grain free food made for less poop but lots of silent but deadly farts! So he is on the adult gold I think it is? It has "healthy grains" which have made for more poop but no silent but deadlies! I do believe that this one in particular has chicken in it, I could be wrong though. I'm interested to hear what other have to say.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There's no way your breeder could possibly know that his mother has a chicken allergy; there is no reliable test for food allergies, and at any rate an allergy to a particular food is not genetic. Which is a good thing, because you are going to have one heck of a time finding a puppy food that doesn't contain chicken. He's currently eating an ALS food, but if you're considering Orijen, it's not an all stages food. It's going to be the Orijen Puppy, and that does contain chicken. You could maybe go with 6 Fresh Fish, but you'll need to contact Champion for feeding advice, since their guidelines are for adult dogs. So I guess the first question is, do you want to follow the breeder's advice, in which case we're going to look at ALS formulas and Orijen is out, or do you want to disregard the breeder's advice? 

The Nature's Domain formula has a truly awful Omega 6:3 ratio, which is really strange for a fish based food. It's low in protein and high in carbs, which is contributing to the dull, dry, brittle coat. My choice of course would be Orijen Puppy, and honestly, if his digestive system is good & healthy, I'd switch cold turkey rather than mixing it with the current food. They are just too different in so many ways, just figuring out the feeding amounts is going to be a nightmare, unless you feed one them separately at different meals. The same would be true with the 6 Fish.  

[SoSa]

I am actually not inclined to listen to the breeder regarding the chicken because, she had mentioned to me that she had the mom on a home cooked chicken diet at some point during her pregnancy. I do not know why I did not ask her about the contradiction, but I thought to myself, 'but I thought she was allergic to chicken?'. So with that said, if I am willing to consider formulas with chicken, what would you suggest?

He seems to have a really good digestive system. We've never (knock on wood), had any significant digestive issues.

Thanks much for your feedback.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You have tons of options; there are lots and lots of good foods on the market. You can use our recommended list for brands, but within each brand are different lines, so it just depends on what you want. Orijen is always going to be my first choice for any dog, but it doesn't always agree with every puppy. You won't know til you try. You may also want to see what's available in your local stores, especially if you have a particular place you prefer to shop. 

[SoSa]

We made the switch to Orijen Puppy over the weekend. He seems to love the food. He leaves a clean bowl every time, but he loves food and usually eats everything he's given. We're not noticing any gas which is good. His poop is mushy, which seems to be a normal side effect when making a food switch. I've been giving him pumpkin and plain yogurt to help with that.

According to the bag, he should be getting 2 3/4 cup per day. I am a little confused with the serving though because on the Orijen website and on the smaller trial bag I bought, it says to give 2 3/4 cup, but on the large bag of food, there's a side instruction that says for his age, to double that.

???

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Do not double it! I'm not sure why the bag has that information, but 5 and a half cups would be wayyyyy too many calories. You can try increasing it a little bit, but I would not give him more than 3 and a half cups a day at the absolute most. Try three cups and see how he does with that. 

The mushy poop may be due to the higher fat content in the Orijen compared to the old food. He should adjust in a week or so. 

[SoSa]

Awesome, that's what I figured, thanks much!! :-)