Low Cal decent/good food?

Laurelin

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#1
Long story short is Mia is a touch tubby and I need to feed her less BUT she pukes bile when I ration her food too small and all the foods I've used are really high calorie (near 500 k/cals). So I was thinking a lower calorie food might be better for her because there'd be more mass but less calories and she'd feel full and not puke.

Good idea? Any suggestions? She's fine with grains in or grain free and no intolerances or allergies I know of.
 

Fran101

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#2
My moms dog (who was getting more than a little chunky) turned his nose up at low cal foods and would puke pile... so we did half his normal food and half something else (green beans, carrots, rice etc...) and he did lose weight! Maybe try that?
 

Laurelin

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#5
Oh wow that one is all the way down to 250 kcals! Might have to consider it even if just for short term use. Looks like TOTW is in the 350-80 range.

Annamaet Lean looks like another option (350 kcals) but I'd have to order it online. That might be a hassle.
 
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#6
Pip gains weight REALLY easily and the one that works best for him is the Wellness Core Reduced Fat. It's wicked expensive, though... although you have wee dogs so maybe not as bad.
 

Beanie

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#7
One thing you might want to look at is senior formulas... they are typically lower calorie. Years and years ago, Auggie got chunky, and we put him on a senior formula of Canidae to get the weight off because it was lower calorie than their regular formulas.
 
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#8
Be careful about that, though. Many senior diets (like many weight loss diets, unfortunately) have reduced protein levels which I am not a fan of.
 

SpringerLover

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#9
Most senior foods are unfortunately going to be lower protein though, which is not ideal. I second the Wellness CORE Reduced. Also, Fromm gf are all right around 400.
 

SpringerLover

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#13
I actually have a chart of grain free foods that are commonly found local to me that I could share. It only includes foods 28% protein and above (it's for my rehab job and that's what we recommend) but it can be sorted by k/cal per cup as well. Cursory glance shows that Blue Buffalo Wilderness Healthy Weight is also below 400 k/cal per cup.
 

teacuptiger

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#14
Oh wow that one is all the way down to 250 kcals! Might have to consider it even if just for short term use. Looks like TOTW is in the 350-80 range.

Annamaet Lean looks like another option (350 kcals) but I'd have to order it online. That might be a hassle.
I really, really like Annamaet. Even their Manitok (422) formula is pretty low in calories compared to some other foods.
 

Laurelin

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#15
Yeah a lot of the low cal formulas are low protein. :/

Annamaet and the Wellness have good protein levels, which is nice. I think they have the Wellness at the store here. Probably will try a couple before settling on one.

Our current kibble is right around 450 kcal. I'd think dropping to a food around 350-360 would be enough, don't you think? She doesn't have that much to lose but we've just been fighting this little bit a while with her.
 

Laurelin

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#16
I ended up picking up Fromm's weight management because they didn't have the wellness like I thought they would and I was exhausted and didn't feel like driving across town. We'll see how this goes. It's 360 kcals a cup. It is lower in protein than I'd like though. Idk. We may go pick up the Wellness or order the Annamaet to mix it in. I guess one bag of low protein won't kill her.
 

JacksonsMom

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#17
I ended up picking up Fromm's weight management because they didn't have the wellness like I thought they would and I was exhausted and didn't feel like driving across town. We'll see how this goes. It's 360 kcals a cup. It is lower in protein than I'd like though. Idk. We may go pick up the Wellness or order the Annamaet to mix it in. I guess one bag of low protein won't kill her.
You could also maybe add something for a touch of protein, like canned food? I feed a food that is 25% protein (Acana Duck) and I like to add goodies every once in a while (boiled chicken, or some other kind of leftover meat, I also like Weruva cans... low in fat). But, I haven't seen ill effects in any way from feeding a 25% protein food. I really think anything over 30% is unnecessary anyway.
 

Laurelin

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#18
So far the dogs don't really care much for the Fromm but are really liking the Wellness. The kibbles are big though on that one!

I bought some Annamaet Lean from Chewy.com. I'd rather buy local but we'll see if they like it.

Though since Summer is at a good ideal weight should I keep her on a regular food or will the Wellness Low Fat be a bad fit for her? She doesn't need to lose at all.
 

Laurelin

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#19
Update: The Wellness and the Fromms both ended up not working too well. Just palatability issues mainly. Which is weird because they're both food hounds.

I opened the bag of Annamaet Lean a few days ago and they both devoured their kibble like I haven't seen them do in FOREVER. Maybe this will work.
 

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