# How do you "rotate" food?



## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

We've been thinking adding/rotating Zio's diet from just the EVO Turkey & Chicken to include the Herring & Salmon flavour. But how do you do it without throwing the dog's GI all out of kilter & winding up with really messy "output"? Do you mix some of the other food in with the present food to introduce it? Or just alternate between the two?

Barring that I guess we could just give him canned salmon once a week or something like that...???



Thanks for any info,


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## kevin bradley (Aug 9, 2009)

I mix no more than 25% new during the first few days. Move up to 50% if things look good. Then progress into mostly new. I take it real slow. Each of my guys handles things a bit differently.


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## luvMyBRT (Mar 8, 2010)

Yes, just do it real slow.
So say you feed your pup a cup at a time. I would start out with 1/4 new food, 3/4 old food. Do that for a few days, making sure stools stay firm. Then do 1/2 and 1/2 for a few days, making sure stools stay good. Then 3/4 new, 1/4 old, etc....

Some dogs will need to go slower, some can go faster. You'll just have to see how Zio handles the change.

Along with rotating kibbles you can also rotate with canned for even more variety. :smile:


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## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

kevin bradley said:


> I mix no more than 25% new during the first few days. Move up to 50% if things look good. Then progress into mostly new. I take it real slow. Each of my guys handles things a bit differently.





saraj2878 said:


> Yes, just do it real slow.
> So say you feed your pup a cup at a time. I would start out with 1/4 new food, 3/4 old food. Do that for a few days, making sure stools stay firm. Then do 1/2 and 1/2 for a few days, making sure stools stay good. Then 3/4 new, 1/4 old, etc....
> 
> Some dogs will need to go slower, some can go faster. You'll just have to see how Zio handles the change.
> ...


Okay... is that something you do EVERY time you want to switch between foods? And how often do you move back & forth between the two? Every week? Every month?

FWIW I don't think I'll be putting canned dog food into the rotation, as about once a week he gets another home-cooked form of protein as a bonus like pork, chicken, or fish (we found out he can't tolerate beef). However, I have been toying with the idea of occasionally giving him canned salmon as he seems to enjoy tinned tuna.

Yes, I know... many questions! :wink:


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## luvMyBRT (Mar 8, 2010)

I think as you go you will see how easily (or not) that your dog makes the switch. With my Pointer she could make a switch in just a few days, no problems.

I would switch about every month or so....


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## kevin bradley (Aug 9, 2009)

SubMariner said:


> Okay... is that something you do EVERY time you want to switch between foods? And how often do you move back & forth between the two? Every week? Every month?
> 
> FWIW I don't think I'll be putting canned dog food into the rotation, as about once a week he gets another home-cooked form of protein as a bonus like pork, chicken, or fish (we found out he can't tolerate beef). However, I have been toying with the idea of occasionally giving him canned salmon as he seems to enjoy tinned tuna.
> 
> Yes, I know... many questions! :wink:


I switch every 3 months or so. No science behind that...  Its just what I do. But I do think logistically it is going to be a challenge....especially if you don't have more than one dog.... a big bag of food(and w/ the price, I couldn't imagine not buying the biggest bag available) is going to last a big dog a least a month or two.


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## ajcstr (May 24, 2010)

One bag lasts me 4-6 weeks so I just rotate each bag


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## Unosmom (May 3, 2009)

I get the 30 lb bags, so I rotate every bag, which generally lasts 2 months or so. If you feed the same brand like Evo, your dog should be acclimated to the protein levels and similar ingredients (besides new protein source), so I dont think it would be that drastic of a difference. Personally, I just mix it in 50/50 for 2-3 days unto the new kibble and thats it. You can also add few tbsp's of plan yogurt to help with digestion.


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## wags (Jan 31, 2009)

Since your doing the same brand , same protien levels,for my dogs I just go for it with the same brand and different flavor. I have never had any stomach issues~ bad poops ~nothing ~with the same brand different flavor. If I switch a brand say go from Orijen to Wellness core (whatever this is my example) I take less than a few days mixing the rest of whatever I have within 3 days mixing if a 1/4 cup to the rest of the 1/2 cup or 3/4 cup whatever dog its for and within two to three days we are done with this. But as for same brand I don't even worry about doing this!:wink:


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## PUNKem733 (Jun 12, 2009)

Every bag of food is a new. I get him the smallest bags that a company makes, and it's usually between 6-8 pounds which lasts me about 2 months. He has a semi iron gut, and handles transition flawlessly.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

Jackson doesn't have a sensitive stomach so I usually just switch when the bag is finished. He eats Acana and we rotate between Grasslands and Prairie. So when Prairie is gone, he begins eating Grasslands cold turkey. No problems.

He's also begun eating Stella & Chewy's raw patties a few times a week for breakfast and I did that cold turkey and he did fine.


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## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

Thanks for all the great input, gang! :biggrin:

Zio is probably going to be finished his current bag of EVO Turkey/Chicken within the next 2 weeks. What I'll probably do is get the 6# or 13# bag of the EVO fish, & transition him in over the course of a few days to the new food to see what happens. 

Generally I wouldn't have thought much about a quick transition from one food to another, but his recent GI problems (where we learned he couldn't tolerate hamburger/beef) have made me more cautious. 

Also, if it turns out he positively hates it, I won't be out too much if I only buy a smaller bag. :tongue:


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## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

Well....

Pearce wasn't too keen on changing Zio's food since he's had those GI issues over the past couple of months. So instead I've been supplementing the EVO Turkey/Chicken with canned salmon or leftover cooked chicken. (When I add the other ingredients I cut down on the kibble.)

I bought several large cans (14.75 oz) of good quality Alaskan pink salmon from the local Sam's club at a great price. He gets 1/2 of one can during a feeding so he winds up with salmon 2x/week. I especially like that he gets the added nutrition of the skin & soft bones. And he loves it! :biggrin:


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## Unosmom (May 3, 2009)

Just make sure theres no salt added, too much iodine can lead to hyperthyroidism, you're better off giving salmon oil (if you have costco membership, they have a great deal on liquid salmon oil)
Costco - Best Pet Health Wild Alaskan Salmon Oil


I've been adding it to Uno's kibble every day for the last couple weeks and he's coat has gotten a lot more shinier (not that it wasnt before), its smelly, but he loves it.


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## 1605 (May 27, 2009)

Unosmom said:


> Just make sure theres no salt added, too much iodine can lead to hyperthyroidism, you're better off giving salmon oil (if you have costco membership, they have a great deal on liquid salmon oil)
> Costco - Best Pet Health Wild Alaskan Salmon Oil
> 
> 
> I've been adding it to Uno's kibble every day for the last couple weeks and he's coat has gotten a lot more shinier (not that it wasnt before), its smelly, but he loves it.


Like you, I have also noticed that Zio's coat is even shinier since he's been eating the salmon. (It was quite shiny since he's been on the EVO so we're even more pleased at the way it looks.) Working out the salt content in the canned salmon, it looks like there may be ~100 mg of salt per serving. 

However, I would like to point out that salt does not always equate to iodine. Iodine is ADDED to table salt & is not found in canning salt because it can impart an odd taste & texture to tinned food. Likewise there is no iodine added to kosher salt, sea salt, or pickling salt unless the label specifically states so.


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## Unosmom (May 3, 2009)

Well, I'm looking at the can of salmon I have at my place and it just says on ingredient list : salmon, salt. 

Sodium- 220 mg. 

Since salt is listed on the label, I'm assuming its added? I havent looked closely, but the only salt I've seen at the store was either iodized or sea (without iodine). But it would make sense that they use kosher salt since salmon has iodine in it. 

I guess the question is how much salt is too much? and I would think 100 mg, isnt a whole lot, but I'm not sure, I'll have to look more into it when I have some time.


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## SamWu1 (Oct 15, 2010)

If it's with the same manufacturer, I find it to be less critical when transitioning between formulas. I would just do 50/50 for 2-3 days and switch 100% to the other flavor.

If it's another brand all together, I would do 90/10 the first day, 80/20 the second and so on. It's a bit overkill but better safe than runny.


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