# Help with Food for my Puppy



## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

I have a 110lb Rotty that I feed Beneful with no problems. I have now gotten a female bulloxer or bull boxer (dad is olde english bulldog and mom is white boxer) and was giving her beneful puppy and she has had super soft stools to where it is almost water. The food is kibble and would like to continue with kibble. My puppy is 9 weeks old.
Any help with dog food that would be the best and maybe help keep her stools for being so soft would be appreciated.


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## Oz'sMommy (Sep 9, 2008)

boxers and bulldogs are both breeds notorious for food sensitivities...though i'm not sure if that is the problem. what was she fed previously? 

since three out of the first four ingredients are grains (corn and wheat) and then a by product meal, that may be the culprit.

i would try a non grocery store brand...if cost is a factor brands sold at petsmart you may want to try are blue buffalo and by nature. or if there is a petco near you try wellness, halo or natural balance.

or if cost really isn't a factor you might even want to try innova or solid gold.

and since the puppy is still small i'd pick up a tube of nutrical if you don't already have one. if the food seems to be running through her, it's good to keep a tube to make sure she's getting the vitamins she needs being so young.


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## rannmiller (Jun 27, 2008)

And if cost is REALLY an issue, try the Kirkland brand of puppy food. It's the best one for its price. It's an ok food, but leaps and bounds ahead of Beneful as far as quality goes!


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## RawFedDogs (Jun 16, 2008)

A 9 week old puppy that has almost water for stools should see the vet immediately. The problem could be very serious plus puppies dehydrate very easily.


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## BabyHusky (Jul 21, 2008)

Yea when I first got my pup, she was on Beneful so I quickly made the gradual change to Innova puppy. Beneful really isn't good for the pup. Cost wise, as Rann said, we all tend to recommend Costco's Kirkland Brand because it is definitely better that anything Purina.

If cost isnt...you can look into brands from Natura like Innova, California Natural, etc or Wellness, Orijen, Merrick, etc. =)

P.S. If the stools are really soft/watery and have been for a while, definitely take the pup to the vet.


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## wags (Jan 31, 2009)

Beneful is one of the worst foods! Check out some premium foods for your pup! Be careful with the stool problem! Change the food as soon as you can and take the pup to the vet. I wouldn't fool around with the puppy and this wet stool problem. Good luck with your pup!


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## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

Thanks for all your input. The pups brother is on BilJac and we tried that for a couple of day and it seemed to help the soft stool, but that food probably is still not the best. I have did some research and I can get Blue Buffalo, Canidae, and Wellness very easily. Orijen and Innova is only sold at one place where I live and that is 40 miles away one way. Of the ones that are easy for me to get which ones should be better?

Thanks for all your help. I am probably going to change my Rotties food also to something a little better now also.


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## wags (Jan 31, 2009)

Driving 40 miles is quiet the hike, but that is great food! So if your into driving the pups it is well worth it but yes I can see where this would get to be a pain all the time! But still well worth it! A rock in a hard place decision!

I would personally then go with the wellness first. They have the wellness puppy which is a good quality food and wellness spuperfive mix puppy wich is good but needs a bit more meat content but I do like wellness foods! They also with the wellness puppy have canned food which you could like mix with the evening meal or however you want that is a good option!

Blue Buffalo has alot of fillers in the puppy food. I just dont agree with the ingredients where maybe others would.

Canidae with all the recalls yuck~ some folks dogs do fine on it others do not. I use to use it and now I do not.

Bil Jac is just horrible that is a definet NO~NO!


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## BabyHusky (Jul 21, 2008)

Yea...out of the possible choices, I would say Wellness. 40 miles away isn't too bad. If you have the time, I would think driving out there once a month or so would be a good investment. But yea...Wellness Puppy will do. =)


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## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

Yes my wife is not into the drive at all. I guess I can give Wellness a try and see how it goes. Thanks for all your help. Trying to get the right food by just reading the ingredients is hard and to just ask on this forum and get answers is great. Maybe I will call and see how much the Orijen and Innova are and make the drive. Out of the Orijen or Innova which would you all use?


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## Unosmom (May 3, 2009)

Also check the food called Acana provincial, its made by the same company as orijen, but its lower in protein. Innova carries 2 formulas, regular and evo. Keep in mind that Evo is not suitable for puppies, but orijen does have a puppy formula. My dog personally liked the taste of orijen better, but started gaining weight on it, so I switched to acana. 

Remember to transition slowly, since its grain free, and going from low quality like beneful to high, will take time.


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## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

I was reading about Acana when looking at Orijen but sadly no place sells Acana in Ohio.


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## rannmiller (Jun 27, 2008)

I'd choose Orijen over Innova if I were you. But Wellness and Blue Buffalo are also pretty decent options. Much better than Beneful for sure!


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## wags (Jan 31, 2009)

Orijen is grain free and 70 % meat content with fruits and vegetables. So if your going for grain free Orijens excellent! Innova is a holistic dog food & has grains in it good grains!. With the foods it all depends on the dog! I have used both and have had no problems. Well now with the Orijen though the grainless the dogs were gee the words a bit seem not enough gassy haha! Pew at first Yucky stink my hubby wanted me to stop feeding this haha but I tell you after a couple weeks and their systems got use to it realy no problems at all! Just beware of the gas! But like I said this all got better and really no problems at all! I love both Orijen and Innova and I love the canned foods also! Great foods! I like feeding rotation to give the dogs variety. The same ole same ole gets toooooo boring!:biggrin:


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## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

Thanks for everyone's input. Today we switched from Beneful for the big dogs and Biljac for the puppy to Wellness. I am gradually adding the new stuff to the old until its completely Wellness and will let everyone know how its going.

Thanks

topcop


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## BabyHusky (Jul 21, 2008)

yay to the switch!!!!


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## wags (Jan 31, 2009)

I am sure you will be pleased witht he wellness you have chosen! KUDOS to you and your dogs will give you wet kisses!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:biggrin:


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## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

Okay update time. I have all my dogs on Wellness now, My Rotty loves it and so does my Chiwawa, but my puppy the BullBoxer has had soft stools on it since I introduced it which is now going on three-four weeks. I give her kibble mixed with about two tablespoons of can in the morning and then all kibble the rest of her feedings and can't get her stools harder. I took to vet and had stool checked and all is fine. Should I try something differrent? Acana does not sell in my state and Orijen is about a 45 mile hike. What other brands are good? Innova, Blue Buffalo, Canidae? Any help would be appreciated. The Wellness is puppy Super5Mix along with puppy Wellness can. 

Any help would be appreciated


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## CorgiPaws (Mar 31, 2009)

tpdtopcop said:


> Okay update time. I have all my dogs on Wellness now, My Rotty loves it and so does my Chiwawa, but my puppy the BullBoxer has had soft stools on it since I introduced it which is now going on three-four weeks. I give her kibble mixed with about two tablespoons of can in the morning and then all kibble the rest of her feedings and can't get her stools harder. I took to vet and had stool checked and all is fine. Should I try something differrent? Acana does not sell in my state and Orijen is about a 45 mile hike. What other brands are good? Innova, Blue Buffalo, Canidae? Any help would be appreciated. The Wellness is puppy Super5Mix along with puppy Wellness can.
> 
> Any help would be appreciated


When I was feeding kibble to my Corgi puppy, I started with Wellness, and he did pretty good but had occasional loose stools. I switched him to Innova Puppy and BAM! fixed. You may want to try that. 
Canidae has mixed reviews. They made a bad business move in changing their formula without making a public statement, which in turn was like giving your dog a whole new food without phasing, and a lot of dogs got sick. The ONLY dogs I know that had any issues were the ones on it during the switch. I haven't heard of anyone having problems that put their dog on it AFTER the switch. I was using Canidae up until I went raw for my German Shepherd mix, and he did fantastic on it. It's more economical than some of the other premium foods.


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## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

Thanks for the reply.


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## sganow (Apr 16, 2009)

My dogs all eat Nature's Variety Prairie foods (mostly the chicken & brown rice formula) and they have done great on it, even our yorkie puppy. It's an all life stages food and is appropriate for all the dogs. Not sure if it's available in your area, but they have a "try it" coupon where you can buy a bag and get a 5 lb bag free. Welcome to Nature's Variety | Nature's Variety


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## tpdtopcop (Jul 22, 2009)

Well I switched my puppy to Orijen kibble and EVO can in the mornings just for a change through out the day and no more soft stools. She loves both the EVO wet(can) and the kibble. Thanks for all your answers and help.


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