dog food/diet for cushings

[Gizmosmom]

I am new to this site and cushings and not sure if their are guidelines to follow when looking for a good dog food. I have read high prot., low fat, low fiber, low purine (dont know what that is). My little girl is Atypical with elevated liver enzymes. Any input would be so greatly appreciated. Right now I am feeding her Eagle Pack Holisitic. Is there any ingredients to avoid? Thank you all.

Michelle

[frijole]

Hi and welcome Michelle. This was one of my first questions when my girl Haley was diagnosed. Surprisingly - there is no "diet" for cushing's but as you have mentioned - low carb, low fat is a must. My dog really couldn't tolerate much fat at all - kept her trim too. :p

I fed Haley Solid Gold Holystique. I gave her fish oil, glucosamine/chron. and milk thistle for her liver, heart and joints. She lived to 16 1/2!

Best of luck on your journey. Glad you found us. Kim

[Gizmosmom]

Wow 16! That is so great. I really hope to see that day. Thank you so much. What kind of fish oil? I give her Marin that has the milk thistle in it. Is that enough? Thank you for your help. She is a little under 7 lbs so hard to figure out how much to give her when it comes to meds/supplements.

[Squirt's Mom]

Hi Michelle,

The main thing to keep in mind for our cush pups is the fat content as our babies are prone to pancreatitis and excess fats can trigger an episode.

Eagle is a good brand of feed so unless he is having problems, I wouldn't worry about changing his diet. After Squirt had her surgery, she had an acute pancreatic attack and I panicked. I started cooking ad hoc for her trying to eliminate ALL fats! :eek::eek: Not good. :( After some trial and error finding someone I trusted, Squirt is now on a home- cooked diet designed specially for her by a nutritional consultant. This is not a necessary nor common step for cush parents to take...I'm just a bit anal about some things. :o:rolleyes::p

We have a diet and nutrition thread around here somewhere but it has kinda fallen to the wayside over time and doesn't currently offer much info. :(

Here is some info on purines:
http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=51

Hugs,
Leslie

[Gizmosmom]

Kim, I looked at Solid Gold holystique and it has alot of grains and I wasn't sure if that is good or bad. I have heard that the protien is better coming from meat than grains. Do you know?

Leslie I noticed today that She is getting runny eyes from the Eagle Pack and gaining a little weight so I am not sure this one will work out either. I had her on Diamond Natural before this but have heard conflicting opinions about that food The Fat in Holistic Select is 15 and 16 in Diamond. What is too much. What should I be looking for in protein and fat and should it have only a few grains? Which grains are better? Sorry so many questions.

Right now I have Fromm, Eagle Holistic, Diamond Naturals, Wellness - way too rich and Merrick at my house. See I am driving myself nuts trying to get this right.

[Gizmosmom]

What is everyone feeding right now and how is it working out? How much protein, fat should we be aiming for? What brands are good?

[lulusmom]

I've merged your two threads together so as to keep all of your diet/nutrition questions in one place.

Try checking out the foods that are rated at www.dogfoodanalysis.com

[addy]

Hi,

The Dogaware website has much information on dog food and the Whole Dog Journal publishes reviews once a year on the different types of food, so it is another good source to use for research. Each dog has different nutrional needs and what works for one pup may not work for another. I too have read moderate protein, low fat.

Zoe has colitis and now has Cushings. I have spent hours researching food for her and she could not tolerate many foods.

My advice is do your research, pick one food, try it for 4 months and see how your pup does. I have had my non Cushing pup for 2 years and we have tried 4 different foods. I don't know if that is good but he has had various problems with each one thought his current food has him looking good but he still had runny eyes so I am to the point in believing it is not from his food. :confused:

One thing I will say is that my Cushing pup originally got sick with a bout of Colitis because her dog food formula was drastically changed and there was no note on the bag of food to indicate that. She never really recovered from it and I went through two years of insanity because of it. So I am wary now because I found it is a common practice with the kibble. She cannot even eat kibble any more.:eek:

Hugs,
Addy

[Bichonluver3]

Welcome, Michelle!
Talk about food!!!!! I have a whole "store" here:
Chloe (Atypical Cushings) is on Low Residue
Sparky (new Diabetic) is on WD
Grover ( Thank the Good Lord, healthy) ID
And I am too busy with all the different food & meds to eat:eek:
Carrol

[Casey's Mom]

My girl is on Wellness Core reduced fat (9%) plus my homemade mixture of brown rice, ground turkey and beans/carrots/squash. She does very well on this diet.

Hang in there,

[Squirt's Mom]

Squirt is on a home cooked diet. She gets approx. 165g of this menu twice a day. I can get you the exact nutrient breakdown if you would like to see it.

She has been on this diet for nearly 2 years now and has done very, very well. She will be reevaluated soon.

The amount of nutrients - carbs, proteins, fats, water, vitamins and minerals - will vary from dog to dog based on a whole host of factors so you won't be able to find anything that says, "These are how much of each nutrient a cush pup needs." The key to knowing if a feed is working for your baby is this - your baby. If your baby is doing well on a feed, then leave it be. As you look for a new feed, try each one long enough to see how it affects Gizmo - does he like it? how are the poops on that feed? does he gain/lose/maintain weight? coat and skin look good? These are some of the things that can tell you how well a feed is working for your baby.

Here is another link that compares and discusses dog feed:

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/topics/dog_food.html

[Gizmosmom]

Can someone give me an idea of how much fat is too much as welll as protien. Merrick dog food has 24% prot and 14% fat - too much? And what about tomato pomace vs beet pulp, does it make a difference. Can maybe some tell what brand they are using so I can make some comparisons. Are there some protiens and fats that should be avoided with cushings? Gizmo had more blood test done today and I am waiting on results. She fell yesterday - no idea why and couldn't walk right for a couple hours and is still not herself. I am very worried and the food thing is driving me nuts. I just want to feed her right and I can't really do homeade or raw because I have 5 little ones and it would be too much. Any help would be greatly appreciated.Thank you

Michelle and Gizmo

[missbeagle]

Michelle and Gizmo -

I am currently feeding Sammy Snacks to Rusty. It was recommended to me by the pet food store owner who also has a Cush pup. Rusty is eating the Senior/Weight management.

Rusty has lost 3 pounds on it so far. His kidney values are slightly elevated, so I want to keep the protein as close to or under 16% if I can.

Protein on this bag of Sammy Snacks is 18% and the fat is 8%.

First three main ingredients are Whole Ground Brown Rice, Chicken Meal and Rice Bran.

Just my two cents. Rusty seems to like it.

Gretchen and Rust y in NC

[addy]

I think our point is, it depends on the dog and what all is wrong with the dog. It also depends on how you feel about things as well. I personally would want to see a food where meat protein is the first ingriedent. I would not want to see wheat, corn or soy, I would not want to see too much grain, again, depending on the pup. Some will think beet bulp and tomato pumace are not good fillers, I don't have a problem with them, depending how much of it is in the food.

I currently feed Zoe Nature's Menu raw turkey patties with a heaping tablespoon of Embark Honest Kitchen mixed in. I feed that because she has a sensitive stomach and colitis and cannot eat kibble and it is the only diet she ever had that did not produce mucus poops or tons of bad stool. I just defrost the patties in a glass bowl with a cover. Not really messy, pretty easy but you do have to wash her bowl right after eating as well as any empty containers, don't use plastic, etc. Common sense stuff, no big deal. Nature's Menu does not contain bone, like other raw patties so you could even cook it if you had to. It does say on the package you should cook the diet if your dog has a comprimised immune system. I do not cook it.

Now there will be some who think I am totally wrong in feeding that diet, but it is what works for Zoe. She maintains her weight and looks good. She does not have the pot belly some Cush pups have.

But- again, that is what works for Zoe.

Try going on the Dogaware site. You can even email Mary Strauss questions and she will answer you.

The Honest Kitchen has minimally processed food and I really like the company, though it is pricey. If I could switch Zoe to all Embark, I would. She has a hard time with veggies and fruit so I don't think I'll ever get there:eek: Embark is 18.45% protein and 8% fat as fed.

Zoe and I have been through quite a few foods, we have done Canidae, California Natural, Wellness, Prescription Hill's ID, Stella and Chewy, none really worked for her.

You are not going to get it wrong. It will be okay.:) Do want to feed kibble, canned, a mix of the two?

Hugs,
Addy

[Gizmosmom]

Thank you Gretchen, I have never heard of Sammy Snack, but I googled it and it looks pretty good. I can't get it here in Arizona I don't think but it gives me a good reference of what to look for. Thank you. I am hoping others will share what is working for them. I just did another blood test and everything went up again. Ugh! So any help is greatly appreciated.

Addy, thank you so much as well. I actually emailed Mary Strauss and she emailed back immediatley. I was so impressed. I emailed her copies of all of my lab work from May till now. She has asked me tons of questions and I have answered everything so far. I am waiting for another response from her. I really hope she can help as well. Dogaware had alot of great information as well. Thank you.