# Lotus Dry Foods



## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

Don't hear much about this food. 

I'm like so incredibly happy with Fromm, their company, etc. He is almost through the bag of Duck and Sweet Potato and we just got a free bag on Black Friday of Pork & Applesauce.

However, he's been itching a lot more than usual, and also licking his butt. Anal glands don't seem to be an issue - he was just groomed a week and a half ago, no fleas or anything, so I'm thinking it's got to be some sort of allergies, whether environmental or food, I don't know.

But the Fromm does have a lot of ingredients. I really really love this company and was sure I found THE ONE. But I want to do an experiment and see if the itching begins to go away on something else. Which is gonna suck because I really love Fromm.

Went to the mall and the movies tonight, and on way stopped in at our pet boutique. I saw a 4lb bag of Lotus. It looked pretty perfect - I wanted simple, easy to digest, not TOO high in fat but not too low.

Now, it was a bit pricey... $20 with tax for 4lbs. So that kind of sucked. But thought it was worth a shot.

Now, it's different than any kibble I've seen - it looks more like a treat. Apparently, it's oven baked. 

I got the grainfree Duck formula:
LOTUS Natural Food For Pets



> Duck, Duck Meal, Tapioca Flour, Fish Meal, Dried Peas, Dried Potatoes, Pea Fiber, Dried Egg Product, Dried Sweet Potatoes, Soybean Oil, (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols and Citric Acid), Sea Salt, Brewers Dried Yeast, Ground Flax seed, Olive Oil, Salmon Oil, Carrots, Apples, Potassium Chloride, Calcium Carbonate, Pumpkin, Spinach, Blueberries, Garlic, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamin E Supplement, Dicalcium Phosphate, Copper Proteinate, Manganese Proteinate, Niacin, Sodium Selenite, Calcium Pantothenate, Chicory Root Extract, Yucca schidigera, Dried Kelp, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Lactobacillus Lactis, and Lactobacillus Casei, fermentation solubles, Folic Acid, Vitamin A Supplement, Riboflavin, Calcium Iodate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (source of Vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement and Rosemary Extract.
> 
> Crude Protein (Min) 27.0%
> Crude Fat (Min) 12.0%
> ...


I got the Regular Bites which says it's _Calorie Content (ME, calculation): 3,273kcal/kg (367.8kcal/cup)_ but when I look on the website, the Small Bites say _One standard 8oz measuring cup = 4oz of food.
Calorie Content (ME, calculation): 3,273kcal/kg (619.5kcal/cup)_ Why the big difference between Small Bites and Regular? 

I don't wanna over-feed, but it seems the bag guidelines are WAY over-estimates. It says for a 5lb dog to feed 3/4 cup... that's what I typically feed 16lb Jackson. However with the Small Bites it recommends an 8lb dog to be fed 1/2 cup.

Anyways I am just confused if it's supposed to be fed different than regular kibble. I gave Jackson 2/3 cup tonight and he scarfed it down.


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## meggels (May 30, 2010)

I would feed him what you normally do on other kibbles and go from there. If he's porking up a bit, then cut back.


What happened to NB Lamb & rice? I thought you had really liked that?


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## imthemonkey (Aug 8, 2011)

Are you still going to give the Fromm Pork a chance? I wouldn't give up on Fromm yet (i don't know if you have). See how the Lotus goes, if Jackson stops itching than you know its not a minor environmental allergy. Then you can try Fromm's Pork. I know some people that rotate between their Pork and Salmon. I emailed them around 6 months ago requesting grain free kibbles with lower fats, and they are introducing 2 new grain frees in January. I guess we need to wait to see.


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## tem_sat (Jun 20, 2010)

> I got the Regular Bites which says it's Calorie Content (ME, calculation): 3,273kcal/kg (367.8kcal/cup) but when I look on the website, the Small Bites say One standard 8oz measuring cup = 4oz of food.
> Calorie Content (ME, calculation): 3,273kcal/kg (619.5kcal/cup) Why the big difference between Small Bites and Regular?


Regular Bites which says it's Calorie Content (ME, calculation): 3,273kcal/kg (367.8kcal/cup)
Small Bites say One standard 8oz measuring cup = 4oz of food... Calorie Content (ME, calculation): 3,273kcal/kg (619.5kcal/cup)

That: "3,273kcal/kg" is identical. Just email them for clarification. I would not assume any difference until proven otherwise.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

imthemonkey said:


> Are you still going to give the Fromm Pork a chance? I wouldn't give up on Fromm yet (i don't know if you have). See how the Lotus goes, if Jackson stops itching than you know its not a minor environmental allergy. Then you can try Fromm's Pork. I know some people that rotate between their Pork and Salmon. I emailed them around 6 months ago requesting grain free kibbles with lower fats, and they are introducing 2 new grain frees in January. I guess we need to wait to see.


Oh I am definitely not giving up on Fromm yet! I LOVE Fromm and the company behind them. I will be curious though if after feeding the 4lbs of Lotus if the itching and butt licking goes away. Also, I am VERY interested in the new grain frees coming in January. I am a rotater anyways - always like to have at least 3 kibbles to rotate with. Unfortunatly, Jackson does not like fish-based foods so he wasn't big on Surf and Turf and I can't feed their whitefish or salmon formulas.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

meggels said:


> I would feed him what you normally do on other kibbles and go from there. If he's porking up a bit, then cut back.
> 
> 
> What happened to NB Lamb & rice? I thought you had really liked that?


I did, he did really well on it. But I started researching a lot about companies and quality control, etc, and I just really really liked Fromm and what they stood for and how they ran things and everything I read about them. So I wanted to support a family business such as that. I will continue to do so, I really love the company -- so hopefully the itchiness is just something environmental and NOT the Fromm. But I figured it couldn't hurt to try grain-free, easy to digest type recipes.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

Lotus e-mailed me back this:



> The big difference in calories is due to the higher density of the small bite. You would feed accordingly to the regular bite which would be about 1 1/4 cups of food a day.


Yeah... definitely not feeding him 1 1/4 cups of food.... that just seems like a LOT. I don't understand because you are supposed to be able to feed like significantly less than most food, according to their website, but that's like, way more, than most other foods recommend for him. So weird.


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## imthemonkey (Aug 8, 2011)

Jacksons Mom said:


> Lotus e-mailed me back this:
> 
> 
> 
> Yeah... definitely not feeding him 1 1/4 cups of food.... that just seems like a LOT. I don't understand because you are supposed to be able to feed like significantly less than most food, according to their website, but that's like, way more, than most other foods recommend for him. So weird.


Yeah, that is ridiculous. This is why dogs are so fat, people listen to the dog food companies. Fromm Duck and your new food has the same calories per cup. Just feed the same as you were on Fromm.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

LOL I am so weird and wish-washy. I returned the Lotus - the kibble was kind of weird and after the initial excitement of something new, Jackson kept going over and sniffing it, and not really knowing what to do. But I couldn't find much about Lotus in general (and some ingredients seemed a bit weird to me) and they were too expensive for me to continue feeding all the time anyways, so I decided to return it while I could and we are just going to begin Acana again which I should have probably done a long time ago. I was worried about the fat content... but I honestly don't believe it matters now (and it's not _super _high, either), I don't even think Jackson had pancreatitis, which is why I was worried about it and even if he did, it's been months. And we were always happiest with Acana in the past so I'm done with the food wish-wash thing. I was perfectly happy with Acana for about a year and I hope it still works for us. So if all goes well, we'll finish the bag of Acana, see if the itching goes away, or if it even has to do anything with food, and keep the Fromm around as well. If the itching starts up again, then I'll know/guess it's the Fromm. 

LOL, I am crazy. :shocked: I just never felt totally satisfied or comfortable with Natural Balance, Cali Natural, etc, etc, for him, even though I never had any MAJOR problems with them. I just think he's an active little dude who needed a bit more and from a company that I at least 98% trust (Champion and Fromm being my first two trustworthy companies).


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## imthemonkey (Aug 8, 2011)

Can't go wrong with Acana! It might be worth adding an enzyme supplement to his diet too, to help his pancreas.

If you can get Petcurean foods by you it might be worth checking out their new GO! FIT + FREE Senior too, just to rotate with. GO! FIT + FREE Grain Free Chicken + Salmon Recipe for Senior Dogs | Petcurean it is 14% fat. They're another company i trust, they're really good about emailing back and answering any questions too.


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## imthemonkey (Aug 8, 2011)

The Vitamin Shoppe stores actually carry Mercola Digestive Enzymes for Pets. That way you don't need to pay shipping, i believe i saw it for $15.


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## Jacksons Mom (Jun 13, 2010)

imthemonkey said:


> Can't go wrong with Acana! It might be worth adding an enzyme supplement to his diet too, to help his pancreas.
> 
> If you can get Petcurean foods by you it might be worth checking out their new GO! FIT + FREE Senior too, just to rotate with. GO! FIT + FREE Grain Free Chicken + Salmon Recipe for Senior Dogs | Petcurean it is 14% fat. They're another company i trust, they're really good about emailing back and answering any questions too.


Thanks! I'll check it out. I just bought a jar of coconut oil that I am going to start giving him a bit of as well. 

I am waiting for all the new Now! and Go!'s to come out. The store I go to carries them but doesn't have all the new formulas in yet. But there's a lot I am interested in and I, too, trust and like Petcurean a lot. He ate Go! Endurance for a brief period of time and did really well on it - he just didn't much like the taste.


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## imthemonkey (Aug 8, 2011)

I just bought a jar of Nutiva extra virgin coconut oil a couple days ago too. I started researching it when i saw coconut oil in the Petcurean formulas. I haven't started it yet though. Make sure to start small


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## meggels (May 30, 2010)

I need to get the ev coconut oil too... thanks for reminding me 


Jacksons Mom- I love Fromm. If I didn't get NB for free, my hound would definitely get a lot of Fromm!


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