Another food question with allergies....

[KMARINO]

We are in the process of finding the "right" food for Vegas, he has many allergies, in fact just got back from the vet getting his allergy shot. He is also very stinky, and some yeast. Today I bought Natures Recipe- Salmon, pumpkin and sweet potato. Has anyone tried this brand?? It is all grain free which my vet suggested. I was going to get the Avoderm but seen it is full of grains. If you have your bully on this brand please give me some insight of what you think of it. Thank You

 

[sheshistory]

Just my two cents after a bunch of different foods with my stinky, allergic, yeasty bulldog - try Nature's Variety Instinct formulas (rabbit, salmon, turkey/duck varieties) - they are grain free but also do not have potatoes, one of the common triggers causing yeast problems.

I put Linus on a grain free diet because of his allergies but his allergies got better but his tear stains and ears got worse. He seems to be doing very well on it and the yeast looks like it's subsiding.

 

[TessaAndSamson]

I responded to your other thread as well, I have never tried that food. I know jillh10 mentioned that she has had issues with potatoes causing more yeast in Linus. I haven't had this problem personally, you can see in the before and after dog food page how much changing Samson to grain free (versus a diet with grain before) and adding salmon oil did for him. Our first grain free food was Natural Balance Sweet Potato & Fish, he did great on that for a couple years but I heard so much about Fromm on here and it is a better food so we switched to that last month. So far so good. Every bully is different so what works for some may not for others.

 

[bullmama]

Nature's Recipe, unfortunately is not a good dog food. This is a new product, however, so it probably will rank around a 3 star. But most of their recipes rank at a star.

Check out the dog food ratings: http://www.englishbulldognews.com/DogFoodAnalysis.html

What I did not like about the ingredients is that Sweet Potatoes and Potatoes are the 2nd and 3rd ingredient.

What I did not like about the brand is it's made by a manufactuer of canned veggies and fruits and many other products you will find in a grocery store- Del Monte. Del Monte does not care about your dog. The care about making money. Same with canned fruits and veggies, are you getting the nutrients you would out of them as you do fresh? Heck no. This means only one thing, it's probably over processed, over heated, ect.


Here is the ingredients:

Salmon, sweet potatoes, potatoes, pea protein, salmon meal, poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), apples, pumpkin, chicken digest, tomato pomace, salt, potassium chloride, choline chloride, minerals (zinc proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, iron proteinate, copper sulfate, copper proteinate, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, sodium selenite), vitamins (vitamin E supplement, L-ascorbly-2-polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), inositol, niacin supplement, vitamin A supplement, d-calcium pantothenate, thiamine mononitrate, beta-carotene, riboflavin supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, menadione sodium bisulfite complex, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement), yucca schidigera extract, rosemary extract, citric acid (used as a preservative).

Compared to Fromm grain free surf and turf:

Salmon, Duck Meal, Potatoes, Pea Flour, Sweet Potatoes, Duck, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), Dried Tomato Pomace, Salmon Meal, Whole Dried Egg, Pea Protein, Chicken, Flaxseed, Cheese, Salmon Oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), Chicken Broth, Carrots, Broccoli, Cauliflower, Apples, Green Beans, Lecithin, Chicken Cartilage, Potassium Chloride, Cranberries, Blueberries, Salt, Chicory Root Extract, Alfalfa Sprouts, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Folic Acid, Parsley, Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Bifidobacterium Longum, Lactobacillus Plantarum, Enterococcous Faecium, Vitamin A, D3, E, B12 Supplements, Choline Bitartrate, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Ascorbic Acid, Riboflavin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Biotin, Zinc Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Manganous Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Cobalt Carbonate, Calcium Iodate, Sorbic Acid, Iron Proteinate, Zinc Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Sodium Selenite.

Compared to Nature's Variety Salmon:

Salmon Meal, Herring Meal, Menhaden Fish Meal, Canola Oil, Tapioca, Pea Starch, Pork Liver, Natural Pork Flavor, Coconut Oil, Sun-Cured Alfalfa Meal, Tomato Pomace, Montmorillonite Clay, Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Ascorbic Acid, Biotin, Niacin Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Carotene, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid), Potassium Chloride, Minerals (Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Sodium Selenite, Ethylenediamine Dihydriodide), Sea Salt, Dried Kelp, Direct-Fed Microorganisms (Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Yeast Culture, Dried Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dried Aspergillus Niger Fermentation Extract, Dried Trichoderma Longibrachiatum Fermentation Extract, Dried Bacillus Subtilis Fermentation Extract), Taurine, Carrots, Garlic, Apples, Pumpkin, Mixed Tocopherols with Citric Acid (a natural preservative), Rosemary Extract, Freeze Dried Cod.

So what is Chicken Digest?

Well, if we turn to AAFCO in the US we find this definition:

'Animal digest' - A material which results from chemical and/or enzymatic hydrolysis of clean and undecomposed animal tissue. The animal tissues used shall be exclusive of hair, horns, teeth, hooves and feathers, except in such trace amounts as might occur unavoidably in good factory practice and shall be suitable for animal feed. If it bears a name descriptive of its kind or flavor, it must correspond thereto.'

What is it used for?

Quite simply, most dried pet foods would have a low palatability without the use of flavourings - that is, your pet wouldn't eat them quite as enthusiastically. Digest is a flavouring or palatability enhancer which is often sprayed onto the kibble in small amounts to make the food more appetizing. There's nothing intrinsically wrong with it as an ingredient, and as long as the rest of the ingredients together make a complete and nutritious food then it can be thought of as spraying on a little bit of gravy.

The only argument, from the standpoint of feeding a natural diet is whether the manufacturing process to create the digest (chemical or enzymatic hydrolysis) can be considered 'natural'... and if a manufacturer is wary of including digest in their ingredient declaration, even though they use it (Burns is a case in point), what does that say about their confidence in answering this question?

Simply put, now that I know more about dog food, I would not ever try Nature's Recipe.... The other brands (Fromm, Nature's Variety) are twice as expensive, but you only need to feed half as much per day, because there is hardly any fillers. Not to mention less poop pick up!

You will not find these brands at petsmart, but you can take back your bag of Nature's Recipe if you decide to, if you got it at petsmart. Call around to your local feed stores or look on their websites for a retailer near you.

 

[KMARINO]

We bought the small bag, yes at Petsmart. I am going to the local feed store today thank you for the information.

 

[bullmama]

We bought the small bag, yes at Petsmart. I am going to the local feed store today thank you for the information.

You are so very welcome!! I wish I could tell everyone about food, hopefully I will, one bully lover at a time!

 

[KMARINO]

@ desertskybulldogs LOL, I just showed my husband the list of of what is in the dog foods, we are going today and get a bag of the Natures Variety instead of the one we bought. Even though he is aware I am addicted to this site, he has never sat and read it. I scrolled down to show him a picture of Our Gang, and told them they were all yours and he yelled "OH MY GOD!!!!!!" , then told him you had 4 kids, his mind is blown for today!! He said having Vegas was like a second job, Which it can be, he could not IMAGINE having another bully!! LOL, LOL..

 

[bullmama]

It's just 4 more wrinkled faces, yeast checks, bowls of food and bum wipes . And 5 times the bully love!