Doing a food trial (jennie_c_d)

   Awww Jennie I'm so sorry. I used the z/d for Jessie's elimination diet a year ago and she loved it too, but she lost some muscle tone (she was on it from late summer to late spring while I challenged her with different foods).  When she went back to food with more protein she gained it back again. Maybe Emma will eat the cooked diet again after a few weeks; {{{{{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}}}}}}

 I may be crazy (ok, so I am!), but I think I see a difference, already. I think she feels better. Maybe "not food" is what she needed.

 That's very good news! Jessie's coat was soft and shiny on it and she had plenty of energy. Her stools were very soft though and I had to give her pumpkin. Like I said, she did lose some muscle tone, but that may not be an issue for Emma. Do you think something in her cooked diet caused the skin infection?

 I don't know, honestly. She gets a skin infection this time every year, so it's unlikely. We'll see how she does. I definitely think something was bugging her belly. Of course, it was something I thought was fine. She's always been a thrower upper and a stress belly kind of dog (which her vets think is mild IBD.... but it remains undiagnose, and will always be undiagnosed).... Her belly's been fine for days. She'd been refusing her good, fresh food, and she'd refused a bland diet, so I just let her fast before starting the Z/D.

Well, poop.  'Scuse my french.  But, I'm glad the Z/D may be working, since the alternative would be kind of horrifying.    Good luck!

 Z/D *is* the alternative, LOL. I figure, ya know, that if it doesn't work, I'm back where I started. No harm done. I'm extremely hopeful, though. She hasn't had a bad day since her first bite.

 We started the new food on March 11. It's the 21, now, so that's 10 days. Not long enough to say for sure, but...... Emma feels GOOD!  Her gait is better, her skin is better, her chronic ear "yuck" is gone, she hasn't had a seizure, and she's HAPPY. She's happy, every day. She wants to get out and play and be silly and have fun. Her drive has returned.

I never, ever would have guessed. She's eating kibble, the whole kibble, and nothing BUT the kibble, so help me God (and it is a task, some days), but she doesn't mind a bit. There's cookie jars of it, everywhere, and everybody knows that she can have as much as she wants of it, so EVERYBODY feeds her "treats", LOL. 

I have my dog back, and I couldn't be happier.

jennie_c_d

I have my dog back, and I couldn't be happier.

And THAT is the most important part :) I'm glad it agrees with her.

That's great, what works is what counts.  I'm glad she is doing so much better. 

Anyway, is it weird that I kind of drool when thinking about the Z/D? It has this really, really delicious smell to it.

I think they make Z/D treats...I think. I bet they don't smell as delish :)

 They do, but the ingredients are a smidge different, so I didn't buy them. The vet thought it would be better to wait.

It DOES NOT taste as good as it smells. It's disturbingly gross, actually. Treat spitter, here. Is there a treat spitters, anonymous? Oh, also a vegetarian. It doesn't really taste chickeny at all, though. Just gross. Emma thinks it's great. 

jennie_c_d

It DOES NOT taste as good as it smells.

Uh, wow. That's gross, hehehe. I have not ever tried tasting it. Never been that tempted...

 Well, I've always stuck treats in my mouth. She has a real attention problem, and it helps, so.... I do it. Right   now, she ONLY gets Z/D, so into my mouth it went, LOL. I didn't EAT it! Just stuck it between my teeth to spit!

If you go to many dog shows, you'll see people pulling  all manner of food from their cheeks in conformation, and spitting stuff near the obedience rings. It's a little disturbing, at first. Don't knock it til you try it, though. It's a shortcut, but it does work!

sl2crmeg

I think they make Z/D treats...I think. I bet they don't smell as delish

  Jessie thinks they do; I buy them because they're very crunchy, which is good for her teeth. She can't have most of the treats sold, including rawhides, because of her food allergies.

  Jennie, I'm so happy for you and Emma. I know how hard it is to give up the cooked diet; I loved feeding Jessie "real food", but you have to do what's best for your dog. Since Jessie's been back on the SS 21 she's stopped chewing her feet and hasn't had anymore ear infections. I'm giving her about 3 ounces of cod with it daily and an antioxidant blend from Monica Segal and that's all she's getting for awhile. It's really amazing that Emma is doing so well on z/d; she can't digest most kibbles, can she?