Dog Community

Dog on Cali Natural w/ bad poops and gas

Posted : 6/5/2009 12:17:41 PM

Hello,

HISTORY: When I first got my puppy, he had very weepy eyes and did quite a bit of scratching. Could have been the long winter or beginnings of allergies. I searched for a food that had few ingredients because if it was allergies forming, I didn't want to help them along. I decided on California Natual. The close runner up was 4 Star Fromm, however this food had more ingredients, and because of the potential allergies, I went for Cali Natural.

CURRENTLY: Well, about 4 mos later (he is 7 mos old), his coat is shiny, he has plenty of energy and his eyes aren't near as bad (sleepers sometimes, but I believe it's a normal amount). Also, he doesn't seem to scratch as much. Again, could have been the winter.

PROBLEM: His bowel movements are often soft. They are formed and hard about 1/3 of the time. They are formed but soft about 1/3 of the time. And they are almost formless and soft the final 1/3 of the time. He also has tremendous gas... frequent and **ridiculously** smelly.

The vet said I might be feeding too much, although I was going exactly by the recommended serving. He said remove anything else that he was eating for treats and cut his food consumption way day and we will work by the process of elimination. Since I have done that, his gas and poop have gotten 90% better, which is excellent.

QUESTION: That leaves me with a problem though, because he now is *always* hungry. His coat still looks fine and he doesn't appear to have lost weight... but this breed is structured to be thick around the middle. Anyway, my question is... should I keep him on Cali Natural, with the reduced amount even though he seems hungry all the time or should I play the field and switch to something like 4 star Fromm, which he may do much better on, however has more ingredients and may be an issue with allergies in the future? Also, is there a potential issue of harming his growth if I am feeding less than I should?

Thanks for your suggestions!!

oranges81

Posted : 6/5/2009 2:28:26 PM

What flavor of Cal Nat are you feeding? When I was feeding that food, I used the Herring and Sweet potato (my lab is allergic to chicken) and it gave my JRT puppy exteremly bad gas! Sometimes the fish in the food can react badly with their stomach.

Anonymous

Posted : 6/5/2009 2:28:56 PM

It sounds like you are doing things really well by cutting back his food:

#1 - That's great that his poop and gas issue is getting much better. He probably was getting too much food, or extras that didn't agree with him.

#2 - The amount to feed written on the bag is always high, so the best way to determine if he is getting the calories he needs will be his health -- how he looks, does he have enough energy, coat, etc. Don't feel badly that he's not getting the amount on the label.

#3 - It's better to have a thin puppy than a chubby one. It will take him at least two years to fill out like an adult, so slow, stead growth is a good thing. Too many calories can actually cause problems.

#4 - For dogs that don't get to eat a ton of food, I add pumpkin or green beans to their meals. My Am Staff is 50 lbs. and eats 1.5 cups of food a day. He does the starving puppy routine, so we add pumpkin or green beans as a filler. Pumpkin is also great for firming up stool, so it might be a win-win for you.

Post photos -- I love Entles!

oranges81

Posted : 6/5/2009 2:33:18 PM

DUH!! Lol I forgot about the pumpkin! Geez I feel swift today.. I think I need more coffee..

stanton

Posted : 6/5/2009 9:44:23 PM

I'd be feeding Cal Natural puppy version for sure...as I personally feel the regular adult formulas have way too many carb's.

Amounts listed on the bags are almost always too high; most the time, I never paid attention to them.....my nephew as a baby didn't come with a feeding amount listed on his forehead, my pup didn't either.

Cazzy

Posted : 6/5/2009 11:13:00 PM

I had the same problem as you, when I tried the CN Chicken/Rice. I changed to the Lamb and have had no problems since. I would also use the puppy formula.

Entle Girl

Posted : 6/6/2009 1:29:55 PM

Thanks everyone for your input. I have decided to try the Lamb and rice formula. It could be the chicken. I will also keep him on reduced amounts and continue to see how that goes, since it seems to be going ok now.

In regard to adding green beans and pumpkin, does anyone know the amounts you should add for every 10lbs? Also, is this something you do with every feeding, every day? Logan eats twice a day.

Oh, and Pit Pointer Aussie, I'm working on some photos today, so I'll be putting some up in my profile soon :)

shamrockmommy

Posted : 6/6/2009 9:24:04 PM

I have the same issue with CN's chicken/rice formula, baaaad gas! Holy cow! The Lamb and Rice they do great on, and I'm using that sparingly. I believe that the recommended amounts for a 15lb dog is 1 cup/day but I feed them 1/2 cup per day otherwise they get loose stool and very chubby. (though I do add toppers like meat/veg and yogurt to the kibble)