Our newest family member, Eider is an 8 week old Labrador Puppy. He and his littermates were weaned to a food called Sportsman’s Pride. In the grand scheme of things, this food is fine and clearly works for Eider’s relatives. My reasons for switching include:
A. I’m not completely 100% thrilled with the ingredients,
B. It is difficult to find in Maine and,
C. I have a dog/cat food store, so he is going to eat something we sell at the Biscuit. Let’s be honest.
Yummy Fish Chewy!
Ahhhh, the dreaded food switch! Why are we all so frightened to switch our pets’ foods? The number one issue we hear about is fear of intestinal upset. Translation? Diarhea.
Food transitions don’t have to be messy or painful for you or your pet. Here are some simple steps to make things go a little more, um, smoothly?!? 😉
1. Start with a small bag of what is already “working” for your dog or cat.
2. Get a small bag of the food you want to switch to.
3. For the first 2-3 days feed about 90% old food and 10% new food, even if it means you are merely sprinkling a few bits of new food on top of the old food.
Note: It is also advisable to use a digestive supplement like Animal Essentials Enzymes and Probiotics as well as some vegetable fiber like Fruitables Pumpkin Puree, both available at our shop. These items should be used during the entire transition period and may be used indefinitely.
4. If the first 2 or 3 days go well, feel free to move to a 75/25% ratio for 2 or 3 more days. Then go to 50/50% for another few days, then 25/75, 10/90 and you’re done.
A healthy transition should take just under two weeks. It is well worth the time and effort to do this properly as any abrupt switch can cause major poo problems.
What if you are transitioning to something completely different, as in dry to raw or dry to dehydrated? Well, deydrated foods are not raw, so the transition from dry to dehydrated should follow the same track as dry to dry. However, a raw food switch will take a little more planning and time.
Start with just a little chunk of raw food (we prefer Primal) as a special treat or with a meal. This will let you know if your dog or cat is even interested in the new type of food. Not all pets like raw food, so trust your dog’s desires. This diet is not for everyone. Once you’ve established that your pet is interested in raw, add a little bit more every few days and simultaneously decrease their dry food. I prefer a two to three week transition for raw. Again, a digestive enzyme and some veg fiber are very helpful during this time and afterwards.
So, maybe you are wondering what Eider is eating. He is in week two of transitioning to California Natural Puppy Chicken and Rice Formula. This formula is simple and basic and has wonderfully low Calcium/Phosphorous ratios, which are important numbers for large breed puppies. ( We prefer to see both values below 1.9%) This food is also not a dramatic change from the food he was weaned to. I didn’t want to put something exotic into his tummy just to keep with dog food trends. I would also never start a puppy on raw food if he/she wasn’t weaned to raw by the breeder. My other dog Orli, is and always will be a raw/dehydrated food eater, but I’m more comfortable keeping our puppy in basic puppy formula.
If you are interested in Orli’s diet, read this little post from last year. Since that time, we’ve incorporated more dehydrated foods into her diet for convenience. Plus she loves it! We are currently using Primal Grinds and Sojo’s Complete.
If you have any questions about transitions or any sort of diet change and we haven’t addressed it, please email us at info@loyalbiscuit.com .
Have a fabulous week and we’ll see you at the Biscuit!
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