[missleah]

We were using Natural Balance for the longest time because one of our dogs has food allergies, however with recent findings that even though it is made in the USA it still uses a rice protein or something from China. So after much research online we just made the switch to Acana Grassland. We are in about day 4 of this switch and I think we need a little help.

I have read that with a good food such as this that dogs require much less. I have an 11 year old small breed dog that weights 15 Ibs, I have another 11 year old dog that is paralyzed and in a wheel chair so he can not gain extra weight and he weights 12 Ibs and we have a new small breed puppy that is currently 6.5 Ibs and is expected to grow to about 12 Ibs. He is 3.5 months old currently. I want to keep all 3 dogs on the same dog food so the one with the food allergies doesn't eat the other food and have another reaction. Since this food is for all life stages and is good for allergies I chose to switch to this.

Can anyone tell me how much to feed these dogs? I was giving about a cup to each one, however I think it may be too much for the senior dogs. Also I was expecting the dogs to have runny poo after the switch (we went cold turkey because I don't trust Natural Balance anymore) however the poo is not runny it is almost dry and crumbly and it's a lot of poo, more than normal. Also they are drinking water like it's going out of style. Before I filled the bowl twice a day, now it's up to 4-5 times daily and when it's empty they beg for more water. Is this normal?

I am hoping when their bodies get adjusted it will be a good food for all of them, however this dry crumbly poo thing is odd. I started adding a little bit of olive oil to the food yesterday and so far have not noticed much of a change yet, maybe that will change by tomorrow.

Any help is appreciated. Thank you

 

[Kathyy]

What an odd reaction to a new food. Never had that happen before!

That does sound like too much food. Acana is 425 calories per cup. My 20 pound Artie needs about that but he is an active little 3 year old guy. It does have more sodium than required for some reason, .2% which is 200 mg per 100 grams, perhaps that is part of the issue. It has 3.5% fiber but cannot compare to the NB as that information isn't provided.

I don't know what NB formula you were using and even if I did wouldn't know how much sodium is in it because that company doesn't provide complete analysis of its food. It is pulling teeth to even find out how many calories are in any of the formulas.

I would float the food when feeding and cut back by 25% to see how it goes. I wouldn't add more fat, it already has enough fat in it.

 

[missleah]

I appreciate the feedback, when you talked about calories intake it hit me that I should find an online calculator for age, and weight. It sort of seems that I should be feeding my seniors about 3/4 cup per day while my pup just over 1 cup per day. I found this calculator and now everything makes sense to me. I was adding the oil to the food to help with the dry poo, so perhaps if I add the oil then I should cut back a little bit more on the food intake since it is calorie heavy.

I was using Duck and Potato NB. I know it has no recalls but I do not trust a company that imports from China and has had recalls. I really hope that I can trust Acana because I hate switching food, it's hard on the dogs and me.

 

[piritos]

Hi there! I´ve been using Acana for more than 10 years in several dog breeds. I have a miniature Schnauzer about 6 years old. I feed her about 3/4 to 1 cup daily, so my suggestion is to feed 3/4 of a cup

 

[missleah]

Our baby is a Schnoodle and he is currently on 1 cup of Grassland per day. He is 6 Ibs right now but still expected to double before reaching adult weight. Does one cup seem high for a puppy that is 3-4 months old?

 

[Jacksons Mom]

Jackson is 15lbs and gets 1/2 cup of Acana Grasslands or Orijen. He is 2yrs old and really active for the most part.

 

[piritos]

Our baby is a Schnoodle and he is currently on 1 cup of Grassland per day. He is 6 Ibs right now but still expected to double before reaching adult weight. Does one cup seem high for a puppy that is 3-4 months old?

It could look "high", but remeber, every dog has his own different needs, just monitor him to see that he is not getting overweight. Also, has he been dewormed? Depending on the type of worm, dogs can eat and eat and not satisfy themselves, their needs, because they are not absorbing the nutrients from food(worms are instead).
But generally speaking, I would say it is OK

 

[missleah]

Yes the pup has been dewormed, I'm what you call over-protective mama. They are up to date on everything. I have just read that pups need "more" because they are growing. One cups seems to be okay with the pup but I do notice by the end of the night he is biting and chewing a lot which always means he is hungry so I give him just a few more kibbles to munch on. However we train every night and he is running back and forth retrieving toys so that is his most active time of the day.

What worries me is that more and more people that use Acana and have slightly larger dogs about 15 Ibs are only feeding 1/2 cup per day and most of their dogs are active. My older dogs are not active and they seem to want more and I don't know if I am over feeding or not. I can not afford to let our handicapped dog get over weight, which he is not now but I need to monitor it. They always seem to "want" more but may not need more. I have emailed Acana about how much to feed but No Response? I also called but no one answers.. Kinda frusterating.

 

[Kathyy]

My dogs are always looking for more because they love the food they get! I will feed more if they are thinner than I like. Otherwise they are out of luck. I bet one problem with the nutrient dense kibbles where the dog doesn't get to eat a lot is it only takes a few seconds to finish a meal. I used to train with about half the meal's kibble or just toss it bit by bit down the hall for the dog to catch and eat or put into a food puzzle.

Lean is healthier for dogs. That Purina commercial saying the dogs live longer fed properly on Purina is referring to a study showing that feeding 20% less food lengthened the dog's life by nearly 2 years.
http://www.intownvet.com/intown/newsevents/purina.pdf
http://www.petobesityprevention.com/pet-weight-check/

 

[missleah]

I like this recent post about feeding less. I should have taken your advice last evening. All of my dogs had their daily calorie intake and just sat looking at the pantry door and the empty food bowl making me feel like a terrible mother. I gave in and offered another 1/4 cup of food just because I couldn't stand those sad eyes, it was gone in 2 sec flat and I finally just walked away. I'll have to remember that feeding less is better for their health, I always felt so bad for those dogs you saw at the vet's office walk in and were twice the size they should be at. My dogs are not like that however they easily could be if I let them eat themselves to death.

 

[Horseshoe]

Instead of feeding more kibble why not feed some green beans? Mine love it. If you don't want the added salt then try the N/S green beans.