My mom has 2 bichons who she loves more than anything in the world. They were pet store bought because she didn't know better at the time and the oldest, Snuggles, is now 11 and Lucy is 9. They currently eat Kirland lamb & rice plus some sort of fish canned food. While adoring these dogs more than life, my mom just doesn't know that much about nutrition and I figured I would enlist your help to give her some menu suggestions.
Snuggles is overweight (26 lbs) and has kidney problems. Her weight is mostly the fault of my mom; she gives treats all the time because Snuggles is the biggest beggar in the world and loves food more than anything. I know this needs to stop, but I can't force the issue, so let's just leave that aside for now. Snuggles is allergic to chicken, prone to hot spot and her vision seems to be going. She is also very inactive, primarily due to her weight. I would love to find a good food and perhaps supplements to help her lose weight, help her itchy skin and improve her health as much as a food can.
Lucy has always acted like a puppy, but now she's slowing down a big. She's never been very interested in food, but she also could stand to lose a bit of weight due to the treats. She has problems with arthritis and is also prone to hot spots.
These dogs receive amazing medical care; Snuggles get anal gland expression, her kidney issues are monitored, she was brought to the vet at the first sign of vision problems. Lucy gets regular cortizone shots for her arthritis problems. However, I would love for these two amazing dogs to also have the benefit of every day health at home in terms of nutrition. As great as the vet is, I don't think he knows very much about nutrition aside from allergy issues.
If anyone has any recommendations, please let me know. It hurts my heart to think of these two suffering needlessly. What I ultimately want to do is make a meal plan for each of them, including portion sizes and appropriate treats, and send them to my mom so she can get a jump-start on this.