Raw foods

with any switch - you want to do it gradually, so you don't upset his system. Every dog does better on different things - some do well on kibble, some on home cooked, some on raw - it all sorta depends.

I'm not a raw feeder, but I might switch slowly to a higher quality kibble, and then to raw with a dog coming from SD. I don't know why they use puppy food... that usually makes diarrhea worse! But if he seems to have a touchy tummy, be prepared to do a lot of mixing to wean his system to whatever you chose to feed!

Congrats on the new addition!  We have two doxies who we loving refer to as "our little monsters." 

If you choose to go raw, make sure that you do the research to make sure that your dog's diet is nutritionally balanced.  A majority of my dogs are raw fed, & I love the results that I've gotten with raw.  That being said, raw is quite a bit of work, & it does take more time to prepare than kibble does.

If you stick with kibble, I would recommend looking into a higher quality kibble.  My personal favorites are Orijen, Innova EVO, & Nature's Variety. 

 I agree that when changing dog food you shold go slowly.... but, not when switching to raw.  Especially from something like Science Diet.  I'd go cold turkey... straight onto raw.  Like Amanda said, please make sure you do the research.  Try Ian Billinghursts book, "BARF DIET" or similar.  Personally I find it very easy... all my dogs are raw fed.  I keep a storage freezer with meat (granted I feed 4+lbs a day!).  With a small dog you can even go premade for very little additional expense, the raw medallions, you can buy them at any of the finer pet boutiques/stores.  It combines the right amount of bone/muscle meat/organ meet and veggies to make a rounded diet.

I'm sure you're doxie will love it... and you'll see a huge improvement in coat!  

Thank you for adopting!! :)

 The medallions are super easy! I love them, for my dog that can eat them. Raw is great, for most dogs. Do your research, whether you decide to try the premade, or do it yourself. There is a lot to know about what dogs need and don't need (and a lot of debate!).

I use Bravo (http://www.bravorawdiet.com/balance/index.html), which is a pre-made raw food. It's balanced for all life stages, which take the guess work out for me about being sure my dogs are getting everything they need.

In your situation, I'd probably switch to a higher quality kibble, and spend some time learning about raw feeding and dog nutrition, and then decide if I wanted to try raw.

Hope that helps and congrats on the new addition! 

Science Diet is a horrible dog food! Please do not keep your dog on it. It is mostly by-products, corn, fillers, and chemicals. I feed all my dogs raw food and they are very healthy. Expect some dairrhea, vomiting, and constipation for the first week of feeding raw. Then your dog should be doing better than ever!