New Member - Be nice - I have premium food questions

That's funny you should mention that because my parent's dog was having the same problem on Innova Senior.  When we initially started him on it about 4 years ago, he did great, but lately he has started his paw licking & itching (as he is prone to dry skin).  I read the label on the Innova Senior and it seemed to have a low protein and high grain percentage in it, which recent studies have shown that older dogs actually need more protein, just less amounts.  Sooo, I just switched him to the Canidae Platinum (senior) a week ago, so I'm hoping that may clear up some problems as it has more meat  vs grain sources than the Innova.  I'm going to give it a month before I decide if it's working any better or not, but we shall see!

But aside from that, it looks like you have a good feeding regimen for your dogs....have you considered adding some fish oil to the food? That may help greatly []

The paw licking sounds like, to me, he has developed a sensitivity to something in the food. I seriously doubt that it has anything to do with the protein level of the food (with all due respect). I wonder how many dogs I see in ONE day that licks their paws who also exhibit other food related problems (yeasty skin/ears, itchy, flaky skin, staining of the fur, smelly, etc).
 

I didn't mean that it had to do with the protein level in the food....after I read it I meant to say that there were alot of grains that could cause allergens...oops! (didn't really read my post after I posted) []

LOL, I do that all the time! I try to review my posts before I send them, but sometimes, when I get in a hurry, I don't and when I go back to look at them, they don't seem to say exactly what I wanted to say.[]

So would you recommend a different food other than what I'm using.  I have access to most premium foods, and money is not an issue.  I can purchase Solid Gold, Breeders Choice, Nautra, Wynsong, Artemis, several people lately have told me that they don't really care for Flint River Ranch and that suprised me b/c I thought that it was suppose to be a really good food??  
 
I just want to be careful due to my 6 year old that has had a few seizures yet give my 12 year old everything she needs.   Many thanks for the input!   Also if you recommend any vitamins or supplements please feel free to advise what kind and whom you  would purchase from online.
 
~Blake

Sometimes, you have to make a choice to feed different foods to each dog, as not every dog can handle the same foods.
FRR is a great food, but it may not be right for your dogs in this situation. IMO, you should consider a single protein/carb source food. California Natural makes some, as does Pinnacle (Breeders Choice), I believe the Trout and Sweet Potato? Since they have been on lamb and I'll presume chicken, you may want to try a fish based formula, duck, bison, or venison. Something similar to these might be worth a try. Since your dogs have been on the same food for a while, I can't see where it would hurt to try some thing else since there seems to now be some issues.
As far as the protein and seizures go, I am not as familiar with this as some of the other members.
 

Hi!  Another labby person here.  You  might want to see if you have Pinnacle Trout and Sweet Potatoe available to you.    If the licking of the paws and itching just started, it could just be the time of the year.  Try some benadryl and a good foot wash with an oatmeal shampoo can sometimes help with the paw licking.  PM or email me if you want to know what works for my sensitive labs, as well as other labby peeps that I know. 

I think that maybe you should try adding fish oil (caps or liquid) to their regular food to see if maybe it's just a dry-skin issue (or some derma caps), then if that doesn't work, then I would consider switching foods b/c it seems that they are doing fine other than the itching on their food now.  I switched my parents dog to Canidae Plat. because the ingredients were similar to the Innova (just less grains) and I didn't really want to upset his system since he's 11 and had been on the same food for 4 years.  But if switching foods is necessary, I would recommend Canidae, Pinnacle, Avoderm, Cal. Natural (even though it is a little high on the grain side, they now have a fish formula) as kennel_keeper has mentioned. []

Thanks, I will try Pinnacle w/ Breader's Choice - all the reviews seem positive for this company.  

Boss has issues with certain foods and Pinnacle was one of them he did okay on. I would still give it to him but the store I got it from no longer carries it and no others around here do.

Thanks you guys, you are really GREAT!   These are my babies and I just found out 8 months ago how awful the Iams food I was feeding really was - thought I was purchasing a good food.    Now I can't seem to get enough info on going Natural.  I've spent weeks/months on the computer trying to find the best All Natural stuff for them.     My 6 year old Choc. just had cataract surgery 2 months ago, and now has the most beautiful amber eyes.    These are the babies that have gone to the doctor if they even sounded like they were getting a cold and now I found out that I've been feeding bad dog food, I feel like a bad mom.   So those of you that have the wisdom please feel free to tell me all your options on what I need to do!
 
And while we are on all Natural - do you guys use flea preventive or use only natural products.   I kinda of feel it defeats the purpose to feed such high quality food and then put esticides on them, is this wrong?  
 
 

You shouldn't feel like a bad "mom". On the contrary, you are one of the best! You are doing the research to find out what works best for them. What more could a dog want/need than a caring human that loves them dearly!
As far as preventatives, I use them, but try to get by using them as little as possible. I stretch them out for two months and my chihuahua's get regular baths using a citrus-based shampoo that helps to control fleas. I don't have much of a problem with them though. As far as control around the home, I DON"T use any flea products, but use borax or diatomacious earth as if it were a carpet powder. Sprinkle it on let it stand over night, then vaccum it up. It works great!
I have found that feeding a great quality food limits flea "problems" such as flea allergy dermatitis. I have one dog that does suffer from this and she becomes completely miserable. The food is helping, but not eliminating the problem. Of course, it's not bad during the winter months, but geeze does she suffer during the flea season.

Ok, I'm going to order the diatomacious earth and continue with my Neem Shampoo baths every 2-3 weeks and then every other night flea combing.  They like this as I give them Solid Gold liver treats and Dogswell pressed chicken breast if they lay still - it's amazing how long they will lay for me to groom them..haha.   I going to try and not give Frontline for as long as possible as I suspect that this causes problems w/my Choc. that has seizures.    Since I switched over to a premium dog food and quit with the Advantage he's only had 1 small seizure in 6 months.   Thank you guys again for all the good information, its really appreciated - BUNCHES..
 
~Blake 

You can buy diatomaecious earth in regular stores with swimming pool supplies. My local grocery store carries it. It's cheaper that way.

You can also use it on ant mounds and around the outside of your house for insects. Nasty way to die, though. The ants eat it, and are cut apart from the inside out. Ewww.

I am not a vet, but I don't think that high-protein diets cause seizures. In fact, I thought it was just the opposite. Here is a good article:

[linkhttp://www.canine-epilepsy.com/healthydiet.html]http://www.canine-epilepsy.com/healthydiet.html[/link]

One more thing: I'm not a fan of Senior or Lite diets. They are mostly based on human nutritional science and marketed to humans based on that. But after all, there aren't any "Lite" rabbits or squirrels in the wild.

Cheryl