On the Hunt…

Now that Toby is on the mend, the hunt is on for a new dog food. We’ll be weaning him off of the perscription food that he’s on (Hill’s Perscription Diet I/D) and moving him to a low fat alternative. If was pancreatitis that was causing the pain and GI symptoms, we’ll want to feed him a low fat diet because a higher fat diet can aggitate his condition.

I heard from my vet today and she gave me some information to use when looking for a low fat food. She explained the following:

“Unfortunately the guaranteed analysis on dog food labels is useless for determining amounts of anything in it.  Calling the (dog food) company and asking them the amount of fat in the diet is the only way to get the info.  To compare fat contents of different diets, it’s best to look for the energy basis (how much fat in grams per 100 kcal or % of metabolizable energy(ME) as fat). The percentages on labels are proximate analyses on an as-fed basis, and if they don’t list a minimum and maximum, no way to tell how much is in there. We are looking for a diet  of 15% fat or less on an ME basis for most dogs.”

I plan on calling Wellness tomorrow for their recommendation. I have a couple of their products in mind, but I want to check with them. Does anyone else have any recommendations? I’m open to trying different brands to find the best fit. Thanks!!!

Life is good

My Toby is just about 100%. A couple more weeks on Pepcid, Tramadol at night and a prescription diet, and then we’ll begin the food transition. He may always be on Pepcid, but at least we can move to a more affordable food. I’m thinking of trying Wellness Simple Food Solutions Rice & Salmon Formula. I’ve heard great things about Wellness and I have a lot of friends who feed their dogs the brand. This formula claims to be a natural alternative to the therapeutic diets vets prescribe. I’m going to bring the ingredient information to my vet (who is awesome, by the way) today and have her give her opinion.

Toby’s being playful, engaged and eager for attention. He’s been eating well, playing with Stevie and playing with the kids. He has a sparkle back in his eyes and he’s back to his old self. I missed him.

I’m so grateful to my vet. She has spent so much time on Toby. She calls me for updates, calls me after hours with ideas for treatment or just to chat about what she thinks may have happened to him, lets me know when she will or won’t be in the office in case Toby has a set back, and sometimes just checks in to see how the family is doing.

I’m so grateful to her and I feel so lucky to have someone taking care of Toby who cares for him so much. Life is good.