Dogs

[Phil Ambrose]

We had neighbours at one time who had a Dobberman who weighed in at an incredible 90kgs poor thing could hardly move, they claimed he was just big boned, according to them even the Vet was wrong to say he was overweight because he was big as a puppy.

Phil

[Guest]

We had neighbours at one time who had a Dobberman who weighed in at an incredible 90kgs poor thing could hardly move, they claimed he was just big boned, according to them even the Vet was wrong to say he was overweight because he was big as a puppy.

Phil

My mother in law is the same with her cat. Amongst other things regularly gives it portions of that Anchor spray cream. Her cat is like a barrel on legs. No matter how much we point out how unfair rather than kind she is being she carries on.

 

The stuff is pretty well spray on pure fat and sugar.

 

Of course being 82 she knows better than us youngsters. But she loves it she says, well yes of course she does.

[Nightwatch]

My sister is 'big boned'!

 

She also likes,in her words not mine, 'ding' meals and Harvesters. Cream, takeaways...............

 

That's not talking behind her back, sis knows how I feel.

 

George changes shape around the gut depending on whether he's just eaten, been on a walk or opened his bowels (medical term). Why do nurses get the hump when you ask them if their bowels have open today in response to their own enquiry?

 

Martyn

[b0atman]

Has any one seen a fat whippet ?

[dmr]

Sophie (Greyhound/Deerhound) regulates her weight well, first sign of the slightest weight gain and she goes off her food.

Maybe this is because she has Never had any human food so has not got the concept of sugars and fats and eating for pleasure.

There is a very good web site that compares all brands of dog food and many of the popular ones are pretty much "McDonalds for dogs" just full of unhealthy but tasty/addictive ingredients.

 

http://www.allaboutdogfood.co.uk/dog-food-reviews/0119/naturediet-adult

 

One problem for us CC'ers is that many of the small canal side shops only sell this bad stuff (Bakers/Ceasar etc).

The top quality stuff does not have to be expensive, "Nature Diet" is very good and you can get it for 88p (390g) at Wilkos.

A couple of companies will also do internet order/delivery on big bags of kibble

 

...........Dave

Has any one seen a fat whippet ?

 

Have seen a couple of fat greyhounds and they looked very unhappy (and very silly).

 

............Dave

[Phil Ambrose]

Would never feed tinned food because it is 80% water and that comes free from my tap.

Phil

[Guest]

Would never feed tinned food because it is 80% water and that comes free from my tap.

Phil

Awful stuff too which smells as bad going in as it does when it comes out.

 

Our pup was on pedigree chum wet puppy food in pouches from the breeder but we have just in the last couple days managed to completely switch him to dry stuff by gradually increasing the proportion of dry in increments of one tenth over ten days.

 

He is now wholly on dry food.

 

Fed in the correct amounts even the so called premium dried stuff cost very little if any more than some of the other rubbish you can buy. Yes you have to give them more drinking water but as you say that's 'free' *

 

* Caveat for the pedants of course being yes you may actually pay for water by virtue of water rates or by metered supply.

[Kwacker]

I can vouch for Royal Canin ..... Our English Bull Terrier made it to 16 on that stuff, when average lifespan for the breed is about 10.

[Catrin]

I think part of the problem with tinned food is that there is always the temptation to give the dog the whole tin - even if they don't need all of it. Odin has dry food, which is weighed out for every meal. If he begins to put weight on we cut back a bit on the dried food until his weight stabilises again. It's easy to see if he's starting to put weight on, but we do make sure that he is weighed regularly, just so that he is used to being picked up and carried around. That way if he does have to be carried somewhere, he doesn't panic.

 

The other plus for dried food for me is that it is easy to store a bag of food on the boat, and I don't have to go around trying to buy and store large quantities of tins when we are out boating.

[Nightwatch]

We worked out what George needs each day. On a plastic beaker we have a mark that we go up to. Like Odin, if he 'grows' a little the amount is reduced.

 

As I have said earlier, a good walk and a bowel movement makes all the difference.

 

Martyn

Edited March 11, 2014 by Nightwatch

[Phil Ambrose]

There is another plus to feeding dry food, self cleans the teeth and prevents the build up of tartar.

Phil

[churchward]

Odin had to visit the vets last week (he had a badly swollen paw and lower leg, probably due to damaging it through over-exuberance!)

We asked the practice's senior vet if he looked OK weightwise because we keep him thinner than most Labradors. The vet said he is "absolutely perfect, but most dogs that I have walk in through that door are too fat".

I have zero doubts that if he had free access to food he would quickly become very overweight, so It is interesting to hear some dogs can successfully self-regulate.

All dogs are different I think although each breed does have its characteristics like Labs being greedy with food but on the whole it is us who are responsable for regulating diet and exercise so their weight gain is our fault. It is so easy to give in and treat them too much.

 

Our last dog ( a terrier mix) didn't like tinned dog food (can't say I blame him) but was up for anything we ate. he quite liked vegetables and would eat broad beans like sweets. On the down side he liked biscuits and cake etc. So if allowed would have been huge. He probably was over weight in the end as he went blind and got less exercise.

 

Our present dog (Westie) is rather different he only really likes meaty things and doesn't eat dog treats except one kind and doesn't like biscuits or cake or that kind of thing. So he is easy to regulate and will sometimes skip a meal if he doesn't fancy it and does not bother people for food. He likes walks so exercise is no problem but training was more difficult because he would not do things for food it just didn't seem that important to him.

[dmr]

Would never feed tinned food because it is 80% water and that comes free from my tap.

Phil

 

We fed Sophie on kibble for this reason, but after three years she said she was very bored with dry stuff and wanted something more exciting.

We now use the wet NatureDiet but just 1/4 pack in each meal mixed in with a large amount of kibble. This minimises food storage space on the boat and keeps the dog happy.

I can vouch for Royal Canin ..... Our English Bull Terrier made it to 16 on that stuff, when average lifespan for the breed is about 10.

 

Surprisingly Royal Canin does not do too well on the food comparison website, though still streets ahead of Bakers. There is a huge variety of really good kibble type stuff that has appeared (or at least got popular) in the last year or two.

and just to keep it boaty..... there is a superb pet food shop just a short walk from the canal in Banbury that stocks lots of stuff. Places like Pets at home only stock a relatively small range.

 

..........Dave

[Guest]

We fed Sophie on kibble for this reason, but after three years she said she was very bored with dry stuff and wanted something more exciting.

We now use the wet NatureDiet but just 1/4 pack in each meal mixed in with a large amount of kibble. This minimises food storage space on the boat and keeps the dog happy.

 

Surprisingly Royal Canin does not do too well on the food comparison website, though still streets ahead of Bakers. There is a huge variety of really good kibble type stuff that has appeared (or at least got popular) in the last year or two.

and just to keep it boaty..... there is a superb pet food shop just a short walk from the canal in Banbury that stocks lots of stuff. Places like Pets at home only stock a relatively small range.

 

..........Dave

We chose Royal Canin on the basis of helpful comments we received on here and the fact of it,s accessibility. Plus we were concerned about the viability of some of the companies that have come late to the market and how long they will be around.

 

At three stars on dog food advisor it does to us ofer the best mix of price quality and availability.

 

We did however have an issue with Dennis who initially was successfully changed over to it from his Bakers complete but eventually after a while seemed to get fed up with it and we had to change him back to Bakers complete small dog which he had eaten for years previous.

 

We hope that by starting Simon on it as soon as he could he will stick with it.

 

As an aside Jan tasted a couple of Royal Canin kibbles last night and reports they taste lovely!! She is now fast asleep in the dogs bed.

[Pykebird]

This is why my guys are fed on raw chicken carcasses, tins of pilchards and the odd can of winalot take away! Whenever I move I find a local slaughter house, poultry farm or butcher which means it costs me less than a fiver a week to feed 2 big dogs. If none locally I have to order it on line. They are both the correct healthy weight and have no associated feed problems.

It does mean that I have to have a freezer full of food for the "kids", but they seem happy. I know this won't suit every dog, but mine would be ill on just dry or tinned food.

[Guest]

This is why my guys are fed on raw chicken carcasses, tins of pilchards and the odd can of winalot take away! Whenever I move I find a local slaughter house, poultry farm or butcher which means it costs me less than a fiver a week to feed 2 big dogs. If none locally I have to order it on line. They are both the correct healthy weight and have no associated feed problems.

It does mean that I have to have a freezer full of food for the "kids", but they seem happy. I know this won't suit every dog, but mine would be ill on just dry or tinned food.

You feed your dogs chicken bones??

[dmr]

We chose Royal Canin on the basis of helpful comments we received on here and the fact of it,s accessibility. Plus we were concerned about the viability of some of the companies that have come late to the market and how long they will be around.

 

At three stars on dog food advisor it does to us ofer the best mix of price quality and availability.

 

We did however have an issue with Dennis who initially was successfully changed over to it from his Bakers complete but eventually after a while seemed to get fed up with it and we had to change him back to Bakers complete small dog which he had eaten for years previous.

 

We hope that by starting Simon on it as soon as he could he will stick with it.

 

As an aside Jan tasted a couple of Royal Canin kibbles last night and reports they taste lovely!! She is now fast asleep in the dogs bed.

 

Royal Canin was recommended by the Rescue where Sophie came from and she did fine on it for three years till she got bored. I was just surprised that it got 3 stars rather than 5. We are using Aplaws now, it smells horrid so I have not even thought about tasting it. An advantage of Aplaws is that its more concentrated (and smaller kibbles) so the dog needs less and it takes up less boat space. However just had two huge backs delivered so struggling to find space...decant it into plastic bags and find lots of little corners to put it in!

 

..........Dave

[Ron T]

.? Cocker......????

Doodel Doo?

.? Cocker......????

Doodel Doo?

[Ron T]

Jasper sadly gone now,was fed on a mixture of roo tails boiled up with chicken necks for some fat content,a bag of frozen vegies and some noodles or rice added.He would have that at his breakfast time and then a few dry biscuits at night.He was nearly 19 when he died.Rosie the whippet has the same diet,the vet reckons the negligable fat content of the roo is fine and good for dogs once mature,it really suits Rosie as she doesn't tolerate fat to well.Probably too pricey over there!Years back we had two English pedigree Bull terriers,one was never out of the water and loved swimming,the other one I'm sure couldn't swim.Beautiful gentle dogs but both developed different types of cancer,the male lymphcarcinoma who was having chemotherapy treatment and responding well when he was bitten by a Tiger snake,because of his treatment he had no resistance and died in a couple of minutes.Sh1t gone all depressed now.Great seeing all these lovely dog photos.

[Pykebird]

You feed your dogs chicken bones??

RAW not cooked, the bones become very brittle when cooked. Most breeders of northern breeds feed this.

[Guest]

RAW not cooked, the bones become very brittle when cooked. Most breeders of northern breeds feed this.

Yes I know this, raw bones are regarded as 'safer'. A friend of my daughter nearly killed his lab doing the same and he cost himself a fortune in vet bills in the process.

 

If you can't afford to feed your dog proper food I'm afraid you shouldn't have one.

[Pykebird]

Yes I know this, raw bones are regarded as 'safer'. A friend of my daughter nearly killed his lab doing the same and he cost himself a fortune in vet bills in the process.

 

If you can't afford to feed your dog proper food I'm afraid you shouldn't have one.

I have fed dogs this way for over 20 years and all have lived full lives! Barney was put on this diet after having his stomach cut open and various test done to stop him being ill. This cost me over 2k!

You have no idea how important my 2 dogs are to me, there needs have and do come before me. I would gladly lay my life down for them. As you have never met, please do not judge me. I am entitled to my opnion just like everyone else is.

[Guest]

I have fed dogs this way for over 20 years and all have lived full lives! Barney was put on this diet after having his stomach cut open and various test done to stop him being ill. This cost me over 2k!

You have no idea how important my 2 dogs are to me, there needs have and do come before me. I would gladly lay my life down for them. As you have never met, please do not judge me. I am entitled to my opnion just like everyone else is.

Just as I am entitled to mine which is I think you are exposing your dogs to unnecessary risk.

[Pykebird]

Just as I am entitled to mine which is I think you are exposing your dogs to unnecessary risk

So I should continue to feed "conventional" food against the advice of several vets, subject him to more surgery when he can't digest the food and spend my money on large vet bills? I don't think so.

[Guest]

So I should continue to feed "conventional" food against the advice of several vets, subject him to more surgery when he can't digest the food and spend my money on large vet bills? I don't think so.

Up to you.

 

Ed to remove curious double quote.

Edited March 11, 2014 by The Dog House