My TWO Finally Arrived!!

Max...I am sooo sorry I missed your birthday!!  []

JJsmom has her head up her butt thinking that today was only Wednesday. [:@] 

Happy late B-day Max boy...hope you like your birthday crockpot! []
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THANK YOU JJSMOM! [] So nice of you to remember!

Wait. What??
Max had a birthday???
How did I miss this????

HAPPY BELATED BIRFDAY, MAX!!!

No stinky poops today, ok?

THANK YOU CHEWBECCA! [] How nice of you!
 
Max is soooo happy to have you both helping his Mom out! []

So I went today to get a 4 pound bag of TWO Ocean Blue from the local store and they were all out of 4 pound bags and haven't been able to order them (just like me...they are out of stock on their website).  So I had to get the 16 pound bag and I am seriously keeping my fingers crossed that they do good on it and it doesn't turn out like the elk with soft pooh. I really don't need another 12 pounds of dog food wasted   

TWIN- I wanted to let you know that the Ocean blue is slightly different in it smell.  It still smells like all the herbs and cin. bark like the elk and bison formulas, BUT it has a fairly strong fish smell as well. 
The pups loved it and it still is very small kibble. Although it is interesting because the bison is a little smaller than either the elk or ocean blue. I think Papillion said the TWO Wild and Natural was the smallest of all the formulas BUT I can't imagine it being any smaller then the bison.
 Rebecca- Is the W&N smaller than the Ocean Blue (if I remember correctly you fed the ocean formula too).

Anyway...tomorrow I will have an ocean blue poop report .   I gave 25% ocean and 75% bison tonight and will do so for the next 2 days.  Keep your fingers and paws crossed!

What a coincidence, this is too weird! Yesterday night I fed my boy some canned Mackerel in with his dinner and he ate it all...not quite with the same gusto as the crock-pot meat, but it was his day for some fish. Also, mom and I celebrated his birthday with giving him some plain ground beef and also some steak...so he was a spoiled birthday boy! Then this morning he was getting it for breakfast, and would NOT touch it. Needless to say he missed breakfast and made me upset because I just wasted some TWO, and I don't have much left! GRRR. Anyway, so I don't think he is liking fish again?! So.......I was thinking I was going to try the Wild Salmon Oil, too! That is so weird that you should mention this. It is so awesome, not only are we going through the same experiences, but now we are thinking the same! I was thinking of ordering up the small salmon oil when I order some more Serengeti for the cat...so pretty soon. I was also wondering if you could give it to cats, I would assume so!? My cat still goes nuts for fish though...but I want Max to benefit also from the fish oil. Especially if he is prone to the itchies I want to make sure his coat is getting the best things for it. I also wanted to know how much and how often they should get the oil? I don't want to over do it.

OK, so I think Max LOVES his crockpot!  He is back to not eating fish but will eat crockpot food, sirloin and ground beef...picky, picky boy!

Also....I was thinking tonight about ordering the cats some Serengeti!!  They do really well on the free feed Felidae, but I need them to eat something when the dogs are eating their 3 meals a day otherwise the cats are bugging the dogs! NOT TOO SMART CATS!!
SO this morning Barnaby my picky cat was chowing down on the dogs TWO and then tonight when I was feeding them lunch, he had his head in their bowls again when I was preparing everything.   I was thinking maybe he would like to have some Serengeti kibble once in awhile instead of NB canned cat food (that he only eats 1/2 the time).   SO I figure I might order some serengeti and salmon oil when I put in a TWO order next week...just like you!
SO tell me how your cats do on the kibble??
I am very glad Max still has good poop![]

TWIN- I wanted to let you know that the Ocean blue is slightly different in it smell.  It still smells like all the herbs and cin. bark like the elk and bison formulas, BUT it has a fairly strong fish smell as well. 

Thank you for this information! These are the things I am really curious about, you read my mind! [] My pup probably won't eat ANY of the formula's without the dang crock-pot, but that's OK...it just means I can switch around the kibble and it won't make any difference to him, since he dislikes kibble anyway. []

Anyway...tomorrow I will have an ocean blue poop report .   I gave 25% ocean and 75% bison tonight and will do so for the next 2 days.  Keep your fingers and paws crossed!

You have no idea how excited I am for you guys. I can't wait to here the poop reports! YAY! [] I am keeping my fingers crossed and Max is keeping his paws crossed too! I really hope that all goes well and that you are able to rotate with this formula, too. This is great because I will be switching to Ocean Blue soon down the line so I love hearing all your experiences.

SO tell me how your cats do on the kibble??

My cat is doing wonderful! [] His coat is soft and shiney...but it was like that on Science Diet!? [:'(] Thank goodness we switched that a long time ago. He has no eye boogers, tearing, staining, etc. Also, his poops don't smell and I barely even know he has a litter box in the house! [] I had fed him Innova EVO feline for one 2.2lb bag and he LOVED that food...definitely his favorite. He doesn't seem to have the same liking for the Serengeti...but he eats it...along with everything else. [] It is really small ball shaped kibble (I am thinking it is probably the size of the Wild & Natural, by the way people describe it as being the smallest). It is kinda plain smelling...the EVO smelled fishy....maybe that's why he liked it...he LOVES fish, unlike Max. [&:] The foods that I have fed my cat are:
 
Science Diet Adult- Did great! Softest coat, no eye probs, good poops. I just couldn't feed him that crap! [:'(]
Science Diet Indoor- Went downhill a bit...
Nutro Natural Choice Indoor Weight Management- Horrible! Eye stains/boogers, coat became dull.
Natural Balance Cat- Improved Greatly...didn't like it as much.
Innova EVO (Feline)- Loved this food the best! Softest coat, no eye boogers, a lot of energy!
Timberwolf Organics Serengeti Herbal Felid Diet- Likes it OK, poops are great, eyes are great, soft/shiny coat.
 
I am thinking of rotating between the Innova EVO and the TWO Serengeti. What do you think? Do you rotate with your cats?
 

I am thinking of rotating between the Innova EVO and the TWO Serengeti. What do you think? Do you rotate with your cats?

 
No...I pretty much keep them on the same kibble (that they free-feed on) but I do rotate thorugh ALL the NB canned cat food formulas. Once in awhile too I will get wellness canned cat food and rotate that in as well, but those are the only 2 canned foods he seems to eat with some consitency.
 
I have decided I AM gonna get a 4 pound bag of Serengeti when I put in my next TWO order...i will see what happens!
 
POOP REPORT!!
Ok, so while not nearly as firm, the poops aren't TOO bad today. They are formed when they come out, but  turn mushy when you try to pick them up[:'(] .   No more smell than usual and so far not total pudding poop or diahrea.  They have just had their 3rd meal on 25% ocean blue so we shall see!
I don't recall having too many problems with the elk on the first couple of days so it may still be too early to tell. I plan to do 25% for another day or so and then start working up and if I can...I will give it a full 2 weeks to really see how they do.  With the elk I only did about 8-9 days because by the time I worked up to 40% they had total diarrhea that just wouldn't resolve itself.      
 
Will report back on poop tonight or tomorrow![]

I have decided I AM gonna get a 4 pound bag of Serengeti when I put in my next TWO order...i will see what happens!

Yay! I can't wait to here how your cats like their TWO! []
 
I am keeping my fingers crossed that the Ocean Blue goes well! Glad to hear you aren't getting cow pies! [] Do you notice any difference with your pups enthusiasm to eat between the Bison v. Ocean Blue? I really like the fact that the Ocean Blue is grainless...I wish they offered more formula's like these...grainless with a normal protein percentage. [&:]
 
I am going to crock-pot my pot roast tonight for Max. He goes absolutely nuts for the meat and his poops are way more consistent still...such a plus! This afternoon's poops were really small and firm, not smelly either. I really do think its more smelly when I add the veggies in. We'll see, maybe it will calm down a bit when he adjusts to veggies...this is the first time that he has been eating them. I think it is because they smell like beef! [] I have been giving him either a dollup of cottage cheese or yogurt with his beef and Elk kibble in the morning, and then his beef and veggies with the Elk kibble in the evening. So far so good! [sm=wink2.gif]
 
I can't wait to hear how your pups are doing with tomorrow's poops! []

I am keeping my fingers crossed that the Ocean Blue goes well! Glad to hear you aren't getting cow pies! Do you notice any difference with your pups enthusiasm to eat between the Bison v. Ocean Blue? I really like the fact that the Ocean Blue is grainless...I wish they offered more formula's like these...grainless with a normal protein percentage.

No difference in preference...they eat it just as enthusiastically as when it is all bison!  I am very pleased also to find a food that is grainless, but not in the 40% range in terms of protein.  If  JJ were younger  I would consider going that high, but since he is almost 7 I just don't like to feed that high of protein (especially since I add in whole foods to their kibble). Also, while he does get a good amount of exercise daily, he is not racing nor a working dog so it just doesn't make sense.

I am going to crock-pot my pot roast tonight for Max. He goes absolutely nuts for the meat and his poops are way more consistent still...such a plus! This afternoon's poops were really small and firm, not smelly either. I really do think its more smelly when I add the veggies in. We'll see, maybe it will calm down a bit when he adjusts to veggies...this is the first time that he has been eating them. I think it is because they smell like beef!  I have been giving him either a dollup of cottage cheese or yogurt with his beef and Elk kibble in the morning, and then his beef and veggies with the Elk kibble in the evening. So far so good!

Will this be Max's first roast??? I am assuming he likes the ground beef then![]     He is being such a ood boy eating his veggies and yogurt and cottage cheese!  I love that he is eating so many different foods now.  Who needs canned food anyway...huh Max?![]    Although you might really like the TWO canned that your mommy will get for you when it comes out...maybe some yummy caribou or salmon??[]

OK...POOP REPORT!
SO we are still on about 25% and this mornings poop was good.  The first bit is nice and well formed like usual and the second part is softer like it normally is too. The soft part is a little softer than when just on bison, BUT they have had it this soft many times before on the bison depending on what I add into their kibble or how much bully stick they get. []
This afternoon I am upping their ocean blue to about 40% of the meal,  which is where we REALLY started having problems with the Elk, so we shall see what happens![]

 

Will this be Max's first roast???

Yes, it will be his first pot roast! The first time I crock-potted it was two pieces of Sirloin. He is going absolutely nuts for all this meat, no matter what it is, he loves it! [] I mix in a little bit of the broth, like you said, some carrots, a couple beans, and then the meat to his Elk kibble and he just can't wait for me to put the bowl down!! [] YUMMY!! My mom came over yesterday because I wanted her to come with me to take the horse in for his annual exam...and she said the roast was soooo tasty! I told her I don't prefer to eat it like that...I don't like the way it smells, but it does cook wonderfully! I like steak and stuff cooked on the grill. [] Anyway, the ground beef he loves too...I have only given that to him plain on his birthday, so I haven't gotten a chance to cook any up for his kibble.
 
Did I mention his poops are amazing, if that's even possible for poop! [] Consistently firm, small, and dark...and also the odor is pretty much gone now! It's so great...how exciting! Just have to wait for that one thing to throw it all off again, or some more excited poop! He he he...
 
I am really hoping all goes well for your pups on the poop front! I can't imagine they would not tolerate the Ocean Blue like they did the Elk. Only because I know the bison and elk have salmon meal as the second ingredient...and that's the main thing in Ocean Blue...and then just potatoes and such. I am so excited for them...I hope they do well on it! I can't wait to try it here someday down the line. I really hope my bag of Elk comes tomorrow or Tuesday because I am just about out of Elk []. I hate running these things so low. Not only that but I am going to need to order some more Serengeti and then the Wild Salmon Oil here next week too, I think. I just stocked up on bales of hay for the horse and goats too...it always seems like I am constantly buying food for the animals...or crock-potting! [] Spoiled, spoiled animals...if they even knew all the things their Mom's did for them.
 
So, I am kinda concerned because Max is still itchy a bit. I have completely stopped with the canned EVO, chicken, and rice. So, I don't know what could be causing it? The only thing I can think is to give it another month. Because when he first was sensitive to either chicken or rice, I had to feed him the NB Duck/Potato for 2 months before he stopped itching. So, I am a little stressed about it, because it is sooooooooooo ANNOYING! [:@] Itch, itch, bite, bite, lick, lick, GRRRR. He is not getting red spots or anything like he used too...but still....[&o]

I like steak and stuff cooked on the grill.

I am totally with you...I prefer to eat beef grilled on the BBQ...yum, yum![]
You will have to let me know how the roast goes over with Max.[]

Did I mention his poops are amazing, if that's even possible for poop!  Consistently firm, small, and dark...and also the odor is pretty much gone now! It's so great...how exciting! Just have to wait for that one thing to throw it all off again, or some more excited poop! He he he...

   
Gosh...I wish JJ & Pru's poop didn't smell...their's is pretty darm bad [:'(]   I think it is mainly from the bully sticks, CET chews and treats I give them daily.  yep...only a matter of tiem before something effects it![]

Not only that but I am going to need to order some more Serengeti and then the Wild Salmon Oil here next week too, I think. I just stocked up on bales of hay for the horse and goats too...it always seems like I am constantly buying food for the animals...or crock-potting!  Spoiled, spoiled animals...if they even knew all the things their Mom's did for them.

Gosh...I thought my pet food bills were pricey every month...I can't imagine what you pay to feed your animals![]   Yes...they don't seem to have any idea all the things we do for them do they![]

The poop is still pretty decent...they have very bad gas though[:'(]
They are now starting 40%OCEAN BLUE, so we will see in the morning.  Their poop is definately very, very soft towards the end, but I am hoping it will firm up as they get use to the formula. 
Will update you on the poop tomorrow![]

So, I am kinda concerned because Max is still itchy a bit. I have completely stopped with the canned EVO, chicken, and rice. So, I don't know what could be causing it? The only thing I can think is to give it another month. Because when he first was sensitive to either chicken or rice, I had to feed him the NB Duck/Potato for 2 months before he stopped itching. So, I am a little stressed about it, because it is sooooooooooo ANNOYING! Itch, itch, bite, bite, lick, lick, GRRRR. He is not getting red spots or anything like he used too...but still....

Oh ya....I forgot to comment on this....I am thinking maybe he is having some environmental allergy problems right now...it is a bad time all across the country.   DO you have any benedryl?? You could try to put him on it for a couple of weeks and see how it goes???

Here is the chart that tells you the dose to give!!
http://www.utskinvet.org/pdf/antihists.pdf

You will have to let me know how the roast goes over with Max.[]

He can't get enough pot roast! He just loves it...of course! []

The poop is still pretty decent...they have very bad gas though[:'(]
They are now starting 40%OCEAN BLUE, so we will see in the morning.  Their poop is definately very, very soft towards the end, but I am hoping it will firm up as they get use to the formula.

They sure are flactulent pups! [] I was hoping that the transition between the TWO formula's would go over better...but who knows...that TWO sure is a different food.[8|] I am definitely going to do a slow transition too when I switch because I think it is better...especially if they might be sensitive. I hope that your pups poops firm up! At least it is not complete cow pies! [&:] Is the gas worse off now that you are switching to Ocean Blue...or have they always been this gassy?

DO you have any benedryl?? You could try to put him on it for a couple of weeks and see how it goes???

I don't have any...but I am seriously going to consider it. I never thought it would be environmental because he is itchy year round...but who knows?! [&o]

Are you two trying to set some kind of i-dog record for the longest chit chat thread? [] []

Are you two trying to set some kind of i-dog record for the longest chit chat thread?

[]  We are just crazy ladies who like to compare dog poop daily and see how the transition on the different TWO formulas go... Once in while though someone else will pop in with good advice ...or  Rebecca gave us a fantastic roast recipe for the crockpot that I actually made tonight and it was delicious!![]  Also Rachel learned how to crockpot for her dog Max and now is motivated to to start cooking for herself and Chelsea was inspired enough to crockpot for Cherokee!
How is your dogs poop today and what do you feed?  ( I can't remember???) 

They sure are flactulent pups! I was hoping that the transition between the TWO formula's would go over better...but who knows...that TWO sure is a different food. I am definitely going to do a slow transition too when I switch because I think it is better...especially if they might be sensitive. I hope that your pups poops firm up! At least it is not complete cow pies! Is the gas worse off now that you are switching to Ocean Blue...or have they always been this gassy?

They have always been a little gassy...but much worse on the ocean blue formula.   JJ seems to be tolerating the ocean blue a little better than Pru..she has some pudding poops now that we are up to 40-50%.   we shall see though...I still have some hope []


I am very glad Max likes his pot roast!  Spoiled boy! []

As far as the allergies go...I would post a thread under the allergy section and see what the allergy folks think. Jessiemom, calliecritturs and cakana are especially helpful.   I am just not convinced it is food related because he really isn't eating any of the same ingredients that were in the canidae or even the evo canned. [&:]  What do you think??

The recipe is quite simple:

5 lb. roast (or smaller)
2 jars of cherry peppers
one onion (I don't usually do anything but cut off the ends of the onion)
3-4 cloves of garlic (it's really up to you how much garlic you add)
italian seasoning


Directions: Put roast in your crock pot. Open up and pour in your two jars of cherry peppers. Add onion, garlic cloves (pressed or minced). Fill the rest of the way until right above the roast with water. Sprinkle Italian seasoning completely over the top of the water (until you can't see the roast).
Cook on low for 8 or more hours. two hours before you are ready to serve and eat, take a slotted spoon and pull out all of the cherry peppers and de-stem them. Put them back in the crockpot. Also, when you're ready to eat, take out the roast and shred it up.
Serve and eat with au juis or not. DELICIOUS. YUM.

OK...so if any one else out there is actually following this thread and you like beef...you need to try Rebecca's above recipe.  I tried it tonight and it was exceptional!![]  I served it on toasted cheddar and onion kaiser rolls and put a piece of provolone cheese on top and put it under the broiler.   yummy....fantastic...and super easy![]