Pauls^lady
Central Valley, CA
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Joined: 07/19/2005
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Thanks go to Barb if this pic shows up. Here is my DH with Kobai (the big dog) and Lilly Belle (the female who things she is human and thinks Old Fella is a hottie!)![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/awink.gif "awink")
Pamela
(helps if you put in the link)
![[image]](http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a21/kobai1909/DSCF0543.jpg)
Paul & Pamela
ds;20,dd;18,ds;13,ds;12
Lilly Belle & Hachi rescue Akita
Kobai; Rainbow Bridge 6/9/06 Always Loved
'01 Excursion V10
'05 Arctic Fox 27F;2nd year;CA Delta
'99 Taurus SHO
'00 BMW R1100 RT
'07 Expedition LT
'07 Honda Aero Motorcycle - The wife's ride!
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RommiesMom
AZ
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Joined: 05/17/2005
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Dixie Flyer wrote:
I feed both Levi and Old Fella Kibble and Bits and early morning they each get can food. I leave the dry food out so they can eat as they feel like it.
DF,
I have some pretty strong opinions about the importance of top-quality nutrition for cats and dogs. Hope I don't offend you by saying Kibbles and Bits doesn't meet my standards ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/smile.gif "smile") ...
I once adopted a litter of Maine Coon kittens (it was supposed to be a foster situation but they all stayed). They were malnourished, had pneumonia, and ringworm so bad they all had about 3 hairs left on the top of their head. It took me 6 months to get them well but I had a lovely wall full of cat show ribbons from their respective careers in the show ring. What got them, not just well, but in blooming good health, was mostly good nutrition (once we got the pneumonia taken care of).
My dog was adopted from the shelter at the age of 6 months, with ear and skin infections and a horrible body odor. Within just a couple of weeks, the best food I could find for her had turned her around an amazing amount, the vet could hardly believe it. I just got another compliment today on her condition when I picked her up from a weekend's boarding.
The FIRST place that nutrition that is "less than optimum" will show up, is the skin and coat (smelly ears are included in skin issues). A dog who's susceptible to skin trouble needs the best nutrition you can give them.
My advice would be this: never feed anything that comes from a grocery store (except for raw bones...more on that later).
Nutro Natural, which you can find at Petco and Petsmart, is acceptable, but what I would really recommend is a 'super premium' brand, that uses human-grade ingredients. They're a bit harder to find, but they are definitely worth it.
They're also more expensive but you save the money on vet bills. Why use medicines to try to suppress a skin condition, when you can just keep it from happening by feeding a high quality food?
Super premium brands include Canidae (there's a Felidae for cats), Innova, Eagle Pack, Flint River Ranch, etc.
I've tried both Canidae and Innova, but Rommie has a bit of a sensitive stomach and something in them gave her a bit of loose stool (Canidae uses multiple meat proteins, which increases the chance that one of them will not set well on the stomach). I've fed her Eagle Pack Holistic Select
(http://www.eaglepack.com/)
for about a year and a half, and I'm VERY happy with it. My cats get Eagle Pack Holistic Select cat food as well.
As a bonus it's a bit less expensive than Canidae and Innova. I'm really lucky that a store that carries all of these brands plus a few others is only a couple of blocks away. When we lived in other places, though, I made the extra effort necessary to get the super premium foods. If you want more info or help finding a place that carries these, just let me know. Most of their web pages have retail locators you can use to look up stores.
Also, every couple of weeks, Rommie gets a RAW bone (soup bones, knuckle bones, rib bones). This cleans her teeth til they GLEAM. Dogs or cats shouldn't be given COOKED bones ever, but RAW bones are very good for them.
As for leaving food out...I, personally don't do that. There's some evidence that it's better for them (dogs and cats, after all, aren't "grazers" like a cow, they're naturally predators that eat big meals at intervals). Another argument is that a dog or cat who 'grazes' a bit all day, has a more sluggish digestive system than one who eats only once or twice a day. If the blood's not being used for digestion that frees it up for it's other important bodily duties. People have said that dogs or cats who had 'less than ideal' skin and coats, or eye gunk issues, cleared up once the food quality was improved and food was not left out all day.
It's easier to keep their weight under control, plus they really enjoy the excitement of mealtime (my cats in particular act like food that's been sitting out for an hour or 2 is 'stale' and needs to be replaced).
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Dixie Flyer
Piedmont, SC 29673
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Joined: 01/26/2004
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I just went on line and found the Eagle Pack dog food, but the nearest store is in Aiken, SC which is about 45 miles from me. There is a Pet Smart Store in Augusta, GA which is closer to me, so I will look there. Thank you for the information.
2016 Ford F250 King Ranch Crew Cab 6.7 Power Stroke
2015 Montana Model 3611 with 4400 Pullrite Hitch.
Wife Sue
Pets: Rainbow Bridge: Bart, Old Fella, Levi, Charlie, Mama, Hobo, Izzie, Peaches. Others Suzie, Dixie.
Old Fella Burke County Animal Rescue
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Happytraveler
Capistrano Beach, Ca. USA
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Joined: 07/16/2003
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Dixie Flyer
Thank you so much for sending a thank you card and pictures. I'll tell you Old Fellow looks like a different dog. He looks so healthy compared of what he look like before. You and your wife are amazing people to take this on. I'm just thrilled that everything is working out. Good luck
Charlie, a male Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
Katie, a female Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
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whimstock
Beautiful El Paso, Texas
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Joined: 08/09/2004
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Pamela,
Your picture is great!!! Fun, huh? Now, you still need to post a bunch over on the Picture thread.
Old Fellow has his work cut out for him, picking between all the lovely ladies.
Barbara
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lynno62
Maple Lake Minnesota
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Joined: 09/09/2004
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Ok Folks, everyone seemed really interested in a rally, where are you now? please see the below information and then go to the rally page and let us know if you can go. Please Lets make this happen big time.
Thank you.
Lynn, Friends of Old Fella Rally.
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Dixie Flyer
Waynesboro, Georgia
As of 4:15 Eastern Standard Time we have four to register for the rally. We need six more quickly so ABC can officially call it a rally. So lets get going and make those reservations, Old Fella wants to meet you in Branson, Missouri. Michelle Ward is waiting for your call @ 1-800-671-4399.
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Ok, If you have or have not registered yet please do so. If you have post it on the rally page please so we know who is able to go.
Thank you.
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Dixie Flyer
Piedmont, SC 29673
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Happytraveler wrote:Dixie Flyer
I'm just thrilled that everything is working out. Good luck
Old Fella is a miracle dog in many ways. Everyday I am discovering something amazing about this old stray. He has the best manners you can imagine, Except for the hamburger he tried to snatch from the kitchen table while my back was turned. That was that old campground mentality coming out, but he quickly repented of that act of brashness when I screamed "NO" just as his lips were about to surround that luscious piece of morsel. He stopped dead in his tracks like a stop action on the video screen and looked at me with fear that his life was about to come to an abrupt end. He relinquished the hamburger and step down off the chair and ask for immediate forgiveness,which I so graciously gave him, until next time.
He is the best tempered animal I have ever known. You can do anything with him you want as long as he understands you are not going to hurt him. What trust he has now and such love. What a blessing he is to our household.
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campingshadow
Waskom, Texas
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Joined: 11/24/2002
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RommiesMom....I agree with you about the Kibbles and Bits. I also believe that the pet food in grocery stores is not good quality food for our pets. However, I must say that I think there are other quality foods than those you mentioned that are a lot easier to find in most local pet stores.
I have had extremely good luck with Eukanuba foods, and I know others that swear by Science Diet. My dogs have been shown in obedience and taken on long horseback rides and have been very healthy with outstanding shiny coats and lots of energy. All the dogs I have owned were/are on free feed for years and they have all benefited from the flexibility of eating when they were hungry. Yes, most dogs do eat large amounts at once - but I have found that mine eat their free feed the same way. They eat till they are full and walk away.....occasionally stopping by for a snack. I find free feeding is exceptionally good when you are feeding multiple dogs as it eliminates the fighting over food or one dog trying to inhale it's food so it can hurry and get to the other dogs food.
My vet told me that Labs are tradionally chow hounds and will eat till they burst. Mine were on free feed and were in top notch condition. They were started on Eukanuba as pups, had it their entire lives, were very active with beautiful coats and only needed to go to the vet for their routine shots. AND as a bonus, they never had fleas! We took them to dog parks, the ocean, the mountains, camping all around the country and no fleas!!! My results may not have been the same than everyone would get....but I was certainly pleased with them.
Not to say that your way is wrong.....just presenting another side of the coin.
Shadow and LD
Angel. 15 lb Toy Fox Terrier
2001 Damon Intruder. 349. Class A
Semi-retired and loving it!!!!
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whimstock
Beautiful El Paso, Texas
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Joined: 08/09/2004
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campingshadow wrote:... However, I must say that I think there are other quality foods than those you mentioned that are a lot easier to find in most local pet stores.
I have had extremely good luck with Eukanuba foods, and I know others that swear by Science Diet. My dogs have been shown in obedience and taken on long horseback rides and have been very healthy with outstanding shiny coats and lots of energy.
Not to say that your way is wrong.....just presenting another side of the coin.
I find your post very interesting because I mentioned having our dogs on Science Diet last week, and several "experts" here told me that vets (mind you, I mean the doctors of veterinary medicine who are trained to care for animals) didn't really know anything about animal nutrition, and that we should never buy any food they sell there. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/eek.gif "eek")
No, of course, I didn't switch foods based on that. ![[emoticon]](http://www.coastresorts.com/sharedcontent/cfb/images/rolleyes.gif "rolleyes") But I am glad to see, as you say, another side of the coin where animals (like mine) have shiny coats and are healthy, without buying food on the Internet.
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CA POPPY
Santa Clarita, CA, USA
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Joined: 07/07/2003
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I agree that the grocery store dog foods (canned and kibble) are mostly cereal and not really good for the dog. One nice side effect of feeding a premium food is much more compact poops, because more of the food is being digested. Makes it so much easier to pick up in the yard. We feed our dogs Nutro Max (PetsMart) and our girls have also never had fleas, though I don't know if there is a connection. I do put Frontline on them if we go camping. Rich, if you try another kibble, be sure to mix it with the old food gradually over a few days or they can get tummy upsets. With Old Fella's broken teeth, does he chew the kibble okay? If not, you can dampen it with a bit of warm water for him. The premium foods in canned form are very expensive and probably not needed, unless his teeth get worse. I'm also not sure if raw bones would be good or bad with his broken teeth, but cooked bones are a definite no-no. Also, with the holidays coming, avoid giving the boys any ham or turkey skin. A lot of dogs get pancreatitis from their humans sharing the bounty at Thanksgiving. I'll bet his coat and odor will greatly improve with a premium food. Read the ingredients list and make sure meat or chicken is at the top of the list. You will be amazed at what some of the cheaper brands contain.
Judy & Bud (Judy usually the one talking here)
Darcy the Min Pin
2004 Pleasure-Way Excel TD
California poppies in the background
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