Ok I admit it

I agree, Janice, that dogs do need these other items and their needs and behavior show them to be omnivores, not obligate carnivores. And I also agree that the captive wolves you have seen are living longer. For two reason. Better nutrition, and better access to food. One of the members that used to come to this forum was kennelkeeper and she had been caretaker for wild animals, including gray wolves. They came into the rehab compound always malnourished. Not just low on minerals but low on reserves in general. The "wild dog" diet is going for weeks without food between kills. So, the first thing they did was feed them dog food (dry kibble and later, Purina was one of the first to come up with a wild animal formula for such creatures) to get their blood numbers back up. Plus, they were given roadkill deer to keep up their prey eating skills, while they recovered from whatever illness or injury. Kind of a Mayo Clinic for wild canids.

What I was saying, though, is that yes, dogs are omnivores, though I'm not sure they would, by their own design, eat all the stuff we put in dog food, they do need some of it. And, of course, much of what a commercial dog food contains is to help it maintain a shelf life of one year.

I use Orijen for my bloodhounds and love it. The only risk you run is it is a very high protein food and some dogs don't adjust well to that much in their diet. My current foster can't handle the Orijen but they make another line of food that is a little less protein that my foster is doing much better on. It is called Acana. Same company, same great ingredients, they just created this line because there was also a need for less protein diets

  I'm glad you have found a food that your dogs do well on. I'm not sure how much protein Orijen has. There used to be a member of this forum who was a veterinary student, and she said that dogs can utilize up to about 35% of the protein in their diet, and the rest was excreted in their urine. Obviously, this wouldn't be good for a dog with impaired kidney function. Is it possible that your foster has kidney problems?

I hope your protein powder doesn't have artificial sweeteners in it, and that this isn't a long term plan for them.

GoldensAreTheBest

Actually while Abby did great on IAMS but Bianica not so much her allergies really went off and so now they are being fed rice and cheapest meat I can afford which is currently chicken mixed with some vanilla flavored protien powder and some frozen mixed veggies. It's only been since friday that they've been on this diet but Bianicas allergies have slightly improved and she has more energy. Now she is the one who starts playing instead of just laying there while Abby tries to get her to play.

I'm not really a nutrition expert, but if you are feeding a bland diet with one protein (chicken) and one carb (rice), why not look into buying a kibble or some other diet that is already "balanced" so it's healthy for the dog?  Natura and *** Van Patten's are two that come to mind.  I feed my dogs California Natural (Natura) Lamb and Rice Limited Ingredient Diet.  DVP's Natural Balance has a similar formula, and both have several other choices.  These "LIDs" are made especially for dogs with allergies.  Our Cal Nat kibble is about $45 for 30lbs and last me about 2 weeks.  Natural Balance is cheaper here.

I am actually currently debating between taste of the wild, canidae, or FROMM.

 Fromm

Actually Bianicas allergies made up the decision for me because she was fed half of a sample packet of FROMM and had a bad reaction to it she and the others will be put on taste of the wild

Why not try one of the simple foods, since her allergies are so serious?

I posted this under a new thread, so thought I would move it here.  I was using Fromm and just loved it, even their newest favor they just came out with.  It is pricey, but the girls have done so well on it.  Since Pella had her blood tests and her protein levels were high I though OH, I better cut back on her protein in her food.  So I went shopping for samples. 

I picked up samples of 'Wellness Simple'  Rice and Salmon and 'Nutri Source Pure Vita' Salmon and Potato.

 Any comments on these two.  I am feeding an 11 yr old lab and 4 yr old small mixed breed.  Need to stay away from chicken and corn.

Maybe I don't need to move away from Fromm completely, maybe just switch between two foods.  The problem with Fromm, is I can't find a store that carries it near by (even though the company is located 3 hrs from where we live), so I end up ordering it on line, and I would rather pay cash locally.

Thank you,

Marilynn

jeano

 Fromm has a grain-free Surf 'N Turf, which Ole and Sofie ate for a long time.

I'm currently feeding Taste of the Wild Prairie grain-free because I'm poor and they needed a switch. I don't trust Diamond but gosh darn, Sofie really does well on this food. Lamb doesn't agree with Sofie's digestive system, btw, which leaves us beef, salmon, etc.

 Ole, on the other hand, needs a food with some carb in it. Go figure. I'll probably put him on Fromm Duck and Potato or Eagle Pack.

Taste of the Wild is in my rotation just because I took Innova Evo out when P&G bought them.  The dogs do extremely well on it, and it has been the best at firming up Q's stools.