Hello all, I’m Ellie and I have never ever written on a forum before so I apologise first off if I make a pig’s ear of it! I just really need some advice on whether to keep my dog, Lottie, on her current food or to change it.
Info on Lottie:
Breed: Beagle x Springer Spaniel (a speagle)
Age: 6 years old
Weight: 17.5 kg
Food: Arden Grange light - 100g/morning & 100g/evening
No allergies or medical issues
Walks - 1 - 11/2 hours morning and 15-30 mins afternoon
The reason for this post is that my dog walker (I have a medical condition so can’t always walk her) mentioned to me this morning that out of all of her dogs, Lottie does the most stools! In a morning, she will do 4-5 lots! In an afternoon she’ll go 1-2 times… The dog walker said that maybe Lottie wasn’t getting all the nutrition out of her food/wasn’t absorbing properly and maybe I should try something else ? Her stools are quite solid and occasionally has a hard time pushing them out…
I thought I would ask on here before I asked my vet! Any suggestions or ideas? Thanks for reading .
Hello and welcome to the forum. You have done very well for your first post on a forum so don’t worry about that.
You are fortunate in having an observant and knowledgeable dog walker. I agree with her about the number of poos - it does sound excessive. Normally dogs would probably do no more than two or perhaps three poos at most per day. There are some useful charts about poop here and here.
I am not familiar with Arden Grange Light so checked the review on this website - link. The first ingredient is rice at 31% - because it doesn’t state the type I assume that it is white rice. It then has maize 27%. That means that over 50% of the food is carbohydrate. Add the beet pulp in and the percentage is even higher. It is all this filler that is probably causing your dog to poop so much.
If you are minded to choose a better quality food for your dog, look for one that has the meat content first on the list of ingredients. It should be named so you know exactly what you are giving your dog. there is a thread on this here.
Fortunately, searching for a good dog food is quite straightforward, using the Filters on the Dog Food Directory of this website. We can help you with this if you like but we would need more information about your dog and budget. For instance, why are you feeding him a light food when he is getting quite a bit of exercise and is an active dog?
Please post back if possible and we can try to assist you source a food that is more suitable for your dog.
Hello and welcome to the forum. I agree that does seem a lot but at least they are generally solid. My dog was on Arden grange when we first got her and was producing more than she does now. 3 sometimes 4 daily. She was healthy enough but If I recall, the RDA seemed more than I ever feed her now.
Good advice from Dottie. Finding the right food for you requires a bit of research and some trial and error. Good luck.
Good point because excitement can induce the dog to defaecate more frequently, presumably because it increases the peristalsis in the gut.
Lottiesmum - from what I know of light version foods, the advice is usually to use them for overweight dogs but only until it reaches target weight at which point a switch to a normal adult food is recommended. However, maybe some people do use them for maintenance.
You mention your dog’s weight and if it is OK, i.e. he is not overweight then it might be time for a change. The current food is low in fat and protein and your dog is quite active by the sound of it. On that basis alone it might be useful to consider something with higher fat/protein levels.
She tends to go the same amount whether she is with me or someone else and regardless of other dogs. As for weight - she is fairly healthy weight for her crossbreed (she’s part beagle so is sturdy not slim!) and is prone to putting on weight easily. The vet suggested a while ago to put her on a light food but maybe as you say, I should switch to a normal one now.
Dottie - what were the other questions you had for me to suggest a different dog food? Thanks again!
As your dog is now of a nice weight, it might be the right time to move on to a normal adult food. Because of the tendency to gain weight, I would probably go for something in the range of 26% - 30% protein and fat 10% to 14%. That should not upset his digestion as it is just a small step up from his current food. You can give higher protein/fat products but would need to watch the amount carefully as your dog would probably require smaller quantities.
Using the Dog Food Directory I have used the following filters (they are on the left hand side of the screen): Type of food - dry complete
Food properties - natural and clearly labelled
Rating - move the slider to between 4 and 5 stars
Avoid ingredients - all red ingredients
Nutrient levels - move the slider to 15% - 30% for protein and fat 0% to 14%
On clicking ‘Go’ it produced a page of products:
Ancestral Canine Premium Senior Lite
Gelert Country Choice Grain Free Adult
Gentle
Guru
Lukullus
Lupo Natural Swiss chicken
Markus Muhle Black Angus
Millie’s Wolfheart Utility Mix
Nature’s Way Mature and Light
Pero High Meat
Platinum Lamb and Rice
Pure Dog
Wainwright’s Adult, Small Breed and Mature Grain Free
Any of these would be a suitable choice. One or two are available in store, notably the Wainwright’s which is Pets at Home own brand. Note that the ones marked with an asterisk are cold pressed so are slightly different to kibble but they are good quality products. We have a thread on cold pressed foods here. It is important to weigh these products as they are heavier than kibble so the amount seems smaller.
You can adjust the filters yourself and in doing so you will get more, and slightly different results to the ones above.
Please let us know what you decide to do and of course, please ask if you need more help in choosing something.
I forgot to say that if you prefer to stick with Arden Grange, their adult version is reviewed here. The protein is 27.3%, fat 16.3%. You might need to feed a bit less of it. This in itself should reduce the number and quantity of stools.
Well thank you to all - I will be reviewing /researching into various names that you have mentioned and make a decision soon. I’m leaning towards Lukullus as it seems to tick all the boxes and be just about in my price range (slightly over but oh well!). I’ll keep you all posted as to how I get on . Thanks again so much!
Thank you for returning to the thread. If you decide on Lukullus, it is cold pressed so needs to be weighed, at least at first. For information about how to transition and calculate the RDA, have a look at the Guru website. I hope you find something suitable and that it suits your dog. Please keep in touch.