General Question 2 questions and I'm sorry if its in the wrong spot lol

[porkysmamma]

No, this is not true. It depends on the formula. Some Fromm formula has a higher calorie content, some Blue Buffalo formula has a higher calorie content. For example, Fromm Beef Frittata formula has 408 kcal/cup whereas Blue Buffalo Wilderness Salmon formula has 415 kcal/cup.

But, when you're trying to find the proper food for your dog, you pay attention to the carbs content (which is not listed anywhere on the bag). Carbs % = 100% - Protein% - Fat% - Moisture% - Ash% (you can guesstimate 8% for this). You don't want any dog food with carbs content higher than 45%. Ones in the 30's is what I look for. So, looking at the equation above, the higher the protein content, the more likely you'll have lower carbs. But, you don't want high plant protein either. You want high animal protein. So, you can look at the ingredients and make sure that the first ingredient is not a high protein plant like corn. It's even better if the first few ingredients are animal stuff before the plant shows up (dog food ingredients listing in the US is listed according to the amount present in the food in descending order). So then, after you pick the low carb food, then you look at the calorie content. If the formula has a high calorie content, then you give your dog a smaller serving to maintain proper weight.

As far as treats - you can try to see if she'll go for ice cubes. Both my bullies go ape over ice cubes. They chew on it like a bone. Zero calories, lots of hydration, lots of fun.

Okay, with those general guidelines, Fromm and Blue Buffalo are both excellent dog food - high animal protein, low carbs. Especially the grain-free formula. Both dog food list the calorie content on the bag right under the Feeding Guidelines. So, you can follow the feeding guideline towards the lower end of the range and adjust the amounts according to how your dog reacts to the food. If she's losing too much weight too fast, you want to increase the servings a bit. If she's not losing weight, or if she's gaining weight, you want to decrease the servings.

And with that - the picture you showed from the top view does seem like she needs to lose some weight. A defined waist is ideal. You also want to look at the dog from the side to see if her stomach is tucked in (not hanging down). And then you want to feel her ribs to see that it is not covered by a thick fat layer. English bulldogs have thick skin, sometimes with a lot of wrinkles by the ribs area so it can get a bit tricky to feel if the layer you're feeling is just extra skin or fat rolled in the skin folds. You can try to stretch the skin flat if she's too wrinkly and see if you can feel it better that way.

That said, my female bullie is 60 lbs. She has a good waist shape, good ribs feel, and tummy tucked in. She is active when she's in the play mode, which, I must admit is only a few minutes before she wants to snooze again but, she's going on 5 years old. But she's always alert, not lethargic. She's just one of those bigger bullies - no, she's not AKC, she's CKC which is not as stringent with the bullie qualifications. Both her parents were big dogs.

Hope this helps.

It did thank u!! She loves ice too but she tends to play with it more than chew lol!!! What about apples as a treat the problem I have is I have to give her a small treat everynight b4 bed otherwise she vomits all over the place (she has acid reflux according to her vet) I've been giving her 2 venison meatballs (that I cook at home)

Bear with me lol her old feeding routine was as follows

Breakfast 1 1/4 cup of food
Mid morning snack 1 beggin strip
Whatever the old man fed her
Dinner 1 1/4 cup food
2 beggin strips
Denta bone

Now her feeding is like this

Breakfast 1/2 cup food
Dinner 3/4 cup food
Before bed snack 2 meatballs

Lol I feel like I'm starving her but I know I'm not I just have to keep telling myself that




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[LynnA]

thank u guys she was almost 75 lbs until my fiancées grandpa went to a nursing home (he fed her behind my back alllllll the time) then I cut everything back n she lost 15 lbs but she did seem a bit chunky to me still!!!!! I want a svelte bully lol!!!!! I read somewhere in one of the posts about dog foods that Fromm has a higher calorie content than like blue buffalo is that true??? I planned on putting her on Fromm beef frittata but I don't wanna give her a higher calorie food


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I just went through this with Otis, not sure if it's just me or not but we tried the vegas stew and in one weeks time Otis gained 2 pounds.

My vet said no more treats with the exception of broccoli and/or carrots - I asked how much can I give of them and he said as much as I want so for me that was good news because I am a treat giver...and Otis is a treat taker...lol

The other thing he suggested is to change the food (dry) to a 23% or less protein, what I had been feeding him was about 34% - so I switched to Blue Buffalo fish and sweet potatoe and changed from 1-1/2 cups twice a day to 1-1/4 cups twice a day.

Its only been about a week and a 1/2 for me so we will see how it goes.

Good luck!

 

[ABEBD]

Hello,

This is a a great thread. Lots of detailed information.

Each bulldog is different. The recommendation on the bag might as well not even be there.

If your dog is gaining weight...cut back.
If your dog is underwieght feed more.

Just like in people... calories in=calories out.

As for snacks, those are calories as well.

Frozen green beans work great. Cold, crunchy healthy calories.

Limit the number of carrots, they are high in sugar.

Better dog food brands that are less than 23% protein, LID, grain free work best for my 8 pack (of dogs).

Good Day~

 

[anatess]

Low protein is not good. Guys, I hear this all the time and it is just not correct information. Look at your dog's teeth. It is designed to tear meat and crunch bones. There's not a single tooth in that mouth designed to eat plant matter. A dog is biologically designed to take down prey - like deer or rabbits. The plant matter a dog eats are the partially digested plant matter present in a prey's digestive tract. So, if you think about the nutritional composition of prey, like say Turkey, it is very high in animal protein and very little carbs with very little plant matter.

This has been backed up by Raw Food feeders. A raw food fed dog - whether BARF or Prey-model - have at least 40% protein content comparable to dry kibble when you even out the moisture (raw food has over 70% moisture whereas dry kibble only has about 10%).

In dog food in dry kibble form, if the protein percentage is low, then it is a guarantee that you have a high carb percentage because moisture content is always very low. A dog does not have the enzymes to break down carbs like humans do, therefore, all of that work to break down carbs is done by the pancreas. Overloading a dog with carbs puts undue stress on the dog. In addition, it is common knowledge that if you want to lose weight, you reduce carbs, not increase it.

A low-protein diet is only needed if your dog has liver problems or other health issues that require lower protein. If you have a healthy dog, you want high protein. 20% is too low on a kibble - think of this: Carbs% = 100% - Protein% - Fat% - Moisture% - Ash %. So, in a dry kibble with 23% protein you may have something like this: Carbs = 100 - 23 Protein - 15 Fat - 10 Moisture - 8 Ash for a Carbs total of 44%! Carbs almost two times higher than Protein? Not too good for a dog designed to eat prey. 23% protein is very borderline on dry dog food. Anything lower and it's just not acceptable.

So, if you want your dog to lose weight, do not use lower protein. Maintain the high protein, low carb diet and adjust the calories - that is, give less food.

 

[anatess]

It did thank u!! She loves ice too but she tends to play with it more than chew lol!!! What about apples as a treat the problem I have is I have to give her a small treat everynight b4 bed otherwise she vomits all over the place (she has acid reflux according to her vet) I've been giving her 2 venison meatballs (that I cook at home)

Bear with me lol her old feeding routine was as follows

Breakfast 1 1/4 cup of food
Mid morning snack 1 beggin strip
Whatever the old man fed her
Dinner 1 1/4 cup food
2 beggin strips
Denta bone

Now her feeding is like this

Breakfast 1/2 cup food
Dinner 3/4 cup food
Before bed snack 2 meatballs

Lol I feel like I'm starving her but I know I'm not I just have to keep telling myself that




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Oi... that might just be too low on the calories too. You don't want to starve your dog from needed energies in losing weight. Okay, here's an analogy that works - there are lots of people who try to lose weight by going on starvation-type diets - less than 1,000 calories and such. This is always not a good idea because your body would only go into famine-mode and conserve its energy. This makes people fatigued/lethargic... not healthy.

For a 57 lb dog, 1 1/4 cups may be too little. It may not be enough to support her normal energy requirements and you'll end up with a lethargic dog. Do the food reduction slowly. For a 57 lb dog with typical bullie activity level (not very active), the regular calorie requirements would be about 1250 kcals. So, for a 450kcal/cup food, that would be about 2 3/4 cups. So going down to 1 1/4 cups is just waaaay too low. 450kcal/cup is a high calorie food. A lot of dry kibble is lower than that. For example, Fromm Beef Fritata is only 408 kcal/cup. So, I suggest to increase his intake to be at least 1,000 kcals (including treats) and see how your dog reacts. The weight loss needs to be a slow change.

 

[ChrisRN]

I agree.... she needs a defined waist, which is a healthy look for a bully. i would cut out treats as others have said and give fresh/frozen veggies... I used green beans to get Banks down 10 lbs. she did not get any treats... 1/2 cup kibble and 1/2 green beans for her meals

I used green beans (substituted the same amount as the kibble I took out) to get my bullmastiff's weight down. It worked beautifully. He LOVED them and begged for them when I cooked them for our family.

 

[porkysmamma]

Ok news about Porkys weight lol idk if its bcuz she's not done growing or she's deformed lol but I can feel every rib, can't see any though, n her rib cage seems to end almost at her thigh n I find this strange so I took a pic my fingers r behind her last rib




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[porkysmamma]

I used green beans (substituted the same amount as the kibble I took out) to get my bullmastiff's weight down. It worked beautifully. He LOVED them and begged for them when I cooked them for our family.

Omg she hatessssssss green beans lmao she mashed them into my carpet n then dug at them n broke a toe nail lol she loves apples n oranges n watermelon (seedless) but I worry about sugars with fruit!!!


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[porkysmamma]

Oi... that might just be too low on the calories too. You don't want to starve your dog from needed energies in losing weight. Okay, here's an analogy that works - there are lots of people who try to lose weight by going on starvation-type diets - less than 1,000 calories and such. This is always not a good idea because your body would only go into famine-mode and conserve its energy. This makes people fatigued/lethargic... not healthy.

For a 57 lb dog, 1 1/4 cups may be too little. It may not be enough to support her normal energy requirements and you'll end up with a lethargic dog. Do the food reduction slowly. For a 57 lb dog with typical bullie activity level (not very active), the regular calorie requirements would be about 1250 kcals. So, for a 450kcal/cup food, that would be about 2 3/4 cups. So going down to 1 1/4 cups is just waaaay too low. 450kcal/cup is a high calorie food. A lot of dry kibble is lower than that. For example, Fromm Beef Fritata is only 408 kcal/cup. So, I suggest to increase his intake to be at least 1,000 kcals (including treats) and see how your dog reacts. The weight loss needs to be a slow change.

I forgot her string cheese snack after her nightly grooming lol but I uped her to 2 cups a day 3/4 in the am 1 1/4 at night half of the time she doesn't eat though she just sits n stares at it like really wth the old man got her so used to human food that she doesn't exactly like her kibble!!!!! But Ty very much I honestly don't know much about food we r almost done with her bb and going to get her Fromm when it's gone I tried taking a pic of her belly but she tries attacking my phone lol so it's not great


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