Grain Free and Frequent Stool Problems

 Most grain free products will contribute to smaller, firmer poop - as for frequency I cannot personally comment, Bugsy has always been a frequent pooper - most days he goes 3x, but sometimes more, but never with an urgency that he would have an accident.  Poor girl!

Are you thinking it is all grains?  Not sure what you've tried but perhaps you might add oatmeal or barley to the food and see if that helps.  There is always pumpkin to bulk things up.

Give her some loving from me!

It sounds like she may need more fiber in her diet---to bulk up her stool.  You could try adding plain pumpkin or sweet potatoes to her meals.  Green beans or butternut squash would work as well.

You may also need to adjust how much you are feeding---the grain free formulas tend to have more kcals/cup than formulas with grain. I know that the Cal Nat is somehwere around 450 kcals/cup, so keep that in mind when feeding

 Luke has been on a grain free since he was old enough to be on a grain free, and for as long as I remember, he poops frequently. I don't know why he doesn't just do it all at once, but he doesn't. Just this morning, he went three times. He went once, and I started walking it to the trash. On the way to the trash, he went again, and on the way back to the house, he went again. I'm not too concerned about his fiber, especially now his food is Nature's Variety Chicken, Pumpin and Sweet Potato.

The Evo and her original food of California Nat. Chicken and rice were similar in cals (527 and 511 respectively), so we did feed slightly less (just didn't level out the scoop really) of Evo (both the significant other and I are slightly neurotic about maintaining Ari's weight) . The other problem with Evo Red Meat was she always seemed hungry. This dog NEVER begs for meals, but she was constantly going to her dish and looking pathetic and/or whining, despite getting the same calories. The grain fee California Natural Lamb & Rice actually has 450 calories/cup so we are feeding slightly more.

We haven't tried oatmeal or barley but I will give it a go. It will only take 1-2 days for her ears to flare up if she has a problem with those. She LOVES pumpkin so I can start adding that regularly. She's also loves green beans. Actually, not much she doesn't love....I hadn't thought of adding fiber, but that makes complete sense.

We're just so used to having to monitor Ari's stool movements because of all the stomach issues she has had in the past. So with this deviation, I think I may have panicked unnecessarily lol. If she's just going to poop more frequently, I'm ok with that, just wanted to make sure it was normal! I'll just be sure she gets one final chance to go outside as late as possible, before we call it a night. The grain free is helping clear up the ears, which we've battled since day 1 and I'm hoping it will also help with the skin flareups (they are sporadic).

 Thanks so much!!!

If you want to add bulk that does not cause allergies you can add quinoa it is a seed not a grain and is a complete protean. Nutrients in Quinoa One cup (cooked) quinoa contains eight grams of protein, nearly twice the amount found in other grains. Quinoa is a complete protein, meaning it provides the body all nine essential amino acids. In addition to being a good source of protein, quinoa also contains: iron calcium potassium zinc vitamin E selenium manganese magnesium tryptophan copper phosphorus fiber lignans Health Benefits of Quinoa Quinoa is rich in magnesium, zinc, vitamin E, and selenium, which help to control weight and reduce the risk of heart disease and diabetes. Studies suggest quinoa is high in antioxidant activity, helping to protect the body from free radical damage. Like other grains, quinoa is rich in lignans, a phytonutrient found to reduce the risk of heart disease as well as certain types of cancer. Read more at Suite101: Quinoa Nutrition Facts: Health Benefits of Seed High in Vitamins, Minerals and Antioxidants http://www.suite101.com/content/nutritional-benefits-of-quinoa-a189657#ixzz11n5W2yx1

Sharon,

I just put Echo on grain free this week and I've had the opposite happen. I'm using Acana Pacifica and she poops twice a day, small, firm poops.  Hopefully Ari does well :)  I'm rather fond of her... ;)

Rascal does better on some grain free than others. With Innova EVO Red Meat, he also got fat (first time in his life he's been fat!) and had some runny stools, and also seemed hungry all the time. Bottom line I think it was just too rich - like eating a powerbar versus eating a salad, sandwich, and soup. Same calories maybe, but the way you get them is very different!

I've had a lot of success with Rascal on Wellness CORE (although I know some people don't like it, and have said they think it contributes to kidney problems). We also did Solid Gold Barking at the Moon, which worked fine, as well as Blue Buffalo Wilderness. Right now he's eating Orijen, but I made a mistake and went with the puppy formula to put some weight on him, and am having the same issues as with the EVO.

I guess what I'm saying is if you want to stick with grain-free, just try a different brand that's not quite so rich and see how it goes. :)

I can only offer the same advice as you've gotten from others.  Not all grain free foods are made equally.  My crew is also another group that has never done well on Innova EVO.  Red Meat was a diarrhea disaster, Small Bites they seemed hungry, and while Herring & Salmon seemed to work *ok* that bag coincided with Eli's weird personality/behavior shift period so I am now super paranoid about it.  Of course, having said that, there are dogs that work great on EVO, it all depends on the dog in question.

Grain frees that have never caused a problem here: Orijen, Acana, Fromm (Surf & Turf ONLY), and Wilderness.  All the dogs go maybe twice a day, great stools.  

Cita

Bottom line I think it was just too rich - like eating a powerbar versus eating a salad, sandwich, and soup. Same calories maybe, but the way you get them is very different!

This is wonderfully put, and I totally agree!