Science Diet made puppy sick

[girl-E]

I got my puppy 4 days ago. Since they were feeding her Science Diet I decided to continue feeding her the same. I had heard before that it is not a very good food, but I didnt want to change it because she was already used to it.

She got sick and I took her to the vet who said it was the food that made her sick. He only recomends raw food diets, so he wont tell me which dry dog food is better. I have been reading online about dog foods and have decided to try Innova puppy.

Should I change her food a little at a time? or should I just start feeding the Innova puppy food tomorrow? My puppy is a miniature poodle. Any advice would be great!

 

[Saje]

Good for you for looking into it.

Innova EVO is the best. If you can't get that there other products are really good as well. They make it to be as close to eating raw as possible.

I think it's best to change their food over gradually. Some dogs are fine eating a variety of food... my dogs are. But some are more sensitive. Hope that helps

 

[Renee750il]

Truthfully, I'd go ahead and make the switch to the Innova. You might have a few days of loose stools, but that will pass and she'll be much, much better off.

I am so glad to hear a vet call Science DIEt what it is!

 

[BagelDog]

Yeah. Mix in a little of the Innova food at a time with the science diet, increasing the amout of Innova and decreasing the amount of science diet every day until your pup is eating 100% Innova food.

 

[Gustav]

Well if she's getting sick, I agree with Renee just change straight away!
With Mordy's help am looking into a raw food diet for Gustav!

 

[Mordy]

since your puppy is having trouble already, i would switch from the science diet without transitioning. start with the innova puppy (excellent choice by the way ) right away tomorrow and don't look back.

one thing you need to be aware of is that the innova is so much more concentrated tho, so do not feed the same amount of it as you were feeding of the science diet. this is very important, or you could end up having even more trouble.

i don't know which science diet food you were feeding, but assuming it was puppy food too, one cup of it has 375 kcal - while innova puppy has 500 kcal per cup. so you will be feeding only about 3/4 the total amount of science diet.

 

[CreatureTeacher]

I want your vet. Mine complains at me all the time for feeding raw. He feeds his dogs cooked garbage, and he wonders why he has to deal with so much cancer in his patients! The best vet school in the country is just down the road...all of them can't be on the take from the big food corporations, can they?!

 

[pitbulliest]

lol I was gonna say..I WANT YOUR VET TOO

 

[Beaglegal]

I agree that you should just change to Innova right away...but like what Renee has mentioned, your puppy will be having loose stool as the body system is adjusting to the new food...after a few days your pup should be fine.

Feed your pup abt 4-5 times a day, giving small portions each time which will not sum up to the usual amount of the science diet that you had been giving.
Give her abt almost a week to get use to the new food and her stool should be back to normal. After that, you can increase her amount slowly.

My pup was like that too when I switched her food immediately. Now she is all fine!

 

[girl-E]

I did switch her food the next day, and she didnt even get loose stool. She is feeling much better on the Innova puppy food! Thank You for all the great advice.

 

[Beaglegal]

Great to hear that!

 

[Renee750il]

Couldn't ask for better news!

 

[Mordy]

awesome!

 

[girl-E]

Hi again. Science Diet also made her skin really dry. Does anyone know how long it will take for her skin to get better? or should I give her something for her skin? any advice on this? Thanks.

 

[Renee750il]

You can add a small bit of oil to her food. Olive oil, flax seed oil, grape seed oil, even cod liver oil. Not too much - you don't want her to grease things through too much, lol!

 

[Beaglegal]

I gave Twinkle flaxseed oil when she was on her previous dry food...and she had wonderful fur...u can probably give her abt 1/4 teaspoon to start with...n don't expect her coat to turn beautiful overnight...just monitor for a few days to a week...n keep us updated of her condition ya!

 

[Mordy]

i would be extremely careful with adding cod liver oil to the food of any dog who is eating a commercial (e.g. not home prepared) food. it is very high in vitamins A and D and you can easily overdose and do serious damage. especially in a puppy it's a problem since both vitamins can seriously affect bone development and growth.

fish body oil is another thing, and one of the best oils you can give - even better than flax oil, since the fish oil doesn't need to be converted by the dog's body to be utilized.

buy a product marketed for humans (fish oil or salmon oil capsules), since they have to meet much stricter standards and are regulated, while pet supplements are not. give one 1000mg capsule per 15-20 lbs of body weight.

 

[Renee750il]

Excellent point on the vitamins in the cod liver oil - thanks for the check, Mordy!

 

[girl-E]

I just bought the fish oil capsuls. How much should I give her if she only weights 4 pounds?
Also, the vet said that she might be allergic to innova puppy. I seriously doubt it because she has improved on it. The dry itchy skin she has had since I got her.
How do I give her the fish oil? in her food?
You guys have been so helpful. Thanks!

 

[Renee750il]

Of course the vet said she might be allergic to it . . . maybe he can sell you some Science DIEt/Hills special allergy formula garbage . . . You were too smart for that - good for you!

You can just drizzle the oil on her food and she should gobble it right down.