[Nargle]

Basil has been having loose stools off and on since I adopted him about three weeks ago. I've read that canned pumpkin can help firm up stools, so I decided to go try it out. However, I couldn't find plain pumpkin ANYWHERE. I decided to get a can of pumpkin pie filling after reading the ingredients (they didn't look so bad, just pumpkin plus sugar and spices) since I was already there and I could do some research once I got home. I figured that if I found a reason why the pie filling is a bad idea, I can just make some pumpkin muffins for my boyfriend and I.

Well, I can't find any info on the subject, aside from just plain old DON'T use it. So.. what exactly is so bad about it? I don't intend on feeding him copious amounts of the stuff, just enough to keep him from having loose stools. And I assumed that the spices are probably what's bad (It didn't say exactly what spices were in there, just "spices.") since the sugar doesn't SEEM like it would be a problem. I mean, dogs eat sugary-sweet peanut butter quite regularly, don't they? And out of everyone I've ever met, only my mom buys natural un-sweetened peanut butter XD And if the sugar IS the problem, as in, it causes a weight problem or something, then I suppose we'll just have to go on a few extra walks! Lol!

So, would you suggest I make those muffins and continue my search for plain pumpkin? Or will the pie filling do for now?

Also, how much do you suppose I should feed to a 17 lb Papillon, if I'm only trying to firm up his stools?

 

[poodleholic]

PLAIN pumpkin is what is used; DO NOT use pumpkin pie filling!

 

[Kathyy]

Make the muffins. Ginger and cinnamon are okay for dogs but I don't know about the others. The amount of sugar in peanut butter is nothing compared to the sugar in pumpkin pie! 27 grams carb in 1 ounce PPF, 2 grams carb in 1 ounce plain pumpkin and 6 grams carb in 1 ounce peanut butter. [I love nutritiondata.com!]

Start small. Mix a teensy bit into his food or have him lick it off the spoon. If he likes it and poop is still too soft then make the spoonful a bit bigger. No matter how wonderful a new food may be it still needs to be introduced slowly.

Sassy gets canned pumpkin as the vegetable part of her diet. 3 ounces, 6 tablespoons, a day for her 44 pounds. So your end dose might be 1 teaspoon to 1 tablespoon a day. I put the pumpkin on a cookie sheet, spread it out and froze it. Then I broke it into chunks and bagged it up. Dogs loved the simple pupsicles and I didn't have to worry about spoiling.

 

[Nargle]

Would you reccomend that I use sweet-potatoes instead of the pie mix, since finding pure canned pumpkin is proving to be quite difficult? I've read that it does the same thing as the pumpkin, but I haven't heard anyone reccomend it.. so is it just as good? Sweet-potatoes are definitely easier to find, but if pumpkin will do the job better, then I'll continue looking for it.

 

[Kathyy]

I have used sweet potato instead of pumpkin, been a while and don't remember what the end result was. Heeehee. Snort. Nutritiondata shows raw sweet potato and pumpkin having the same amount of fiber but there are the two kinds - soluble/insoluble. And sweet potato is much higher in calories, 24 per ounce versus 10 per ounce for pumpkin. And if you are looking in the canned foods all the sweet potato I have seen is canned with syrup. Not okay.

You could cook up any winter squash and use that instead. Butternut, acorn, turban, banana.

 

[Binkalette]

You could also try ordering it online if they wouldn't kill you with shipping. I see Libby's Pure Pumpkin is available at several different sites.

 

[jesirose]

If you found pumpkin pie filling, you were so close. I've found it at no less than 5 groceries. Ask the people to help you if you can't find it. But try looking to the left of the pie filling. Or the right. Or up or down.

 

[Binkalette]

If you found pumpkin pie filling, you were so close. I've found it at no less than 5 groceries. Ask the people to help you if you can't find it. But try looking to the left of the pie filling. Or the right. Or up or down.

Yes, their labels look almost -identical-.. maybe check just one more time to be sure

 

[Westhighlander]

Would you reccomend that I use sweet-potatoes instead of the pie mix, since finding pure canned pumpkin is proving to be quite difficult? I've read that it does the same thing as the pumpkin, but I haven't heard anyone reccomend it.. so is it just as good? Sweet-potatoes are definitely easier to find, but if pumpkin will do the job better, then I'll continue looking for it.

I've used sweet potatoes instead of pumpkin before and it worked just as well. IMO, if you need to use pumpkin everyday for firming up his stool then the underlying food he's eating may not be the best match for him.

 

[prairiemommy]

Yes, their labels look almost -identical-.. maybe check just one more time to be sure

Yes and I've found that for some reason, I can only find pure pumpkin in store brands. No ED Smith or anything - just Safeway and No Name brands.

Good luck!

 

[lmwsport7]

Here in PA, there is also a Pumpkin for dogs canned product. I have only seen it in one store (can't say I've looked very hard as my grocery store carries Libby's) - they also make a sweet potato variety. If you have a local store that you frequent - you may want to try asking them too. I can't recall the name of the company that packaged the pumpkin.

 

[cshellenberger]

Pie filling has way too much sugar and that can make the problem worse, that's why you don't want to use it, the spices won't hurt him. YOu might try looking in the canned veggie section for the pumpkin as well as the baking section.