Recommended Dog foo - currently on Hills Z/D

joey100

Our dog has had some issues with different foods, normally coughing them back up a bit, I wouldn't call it sick but it's not far off it. When we mentioned this to the vet he recommended hills Z/D as he said it was probably the higher protein in some foods causing it, we have been using it for a while and seems to be doing the trick but from looking online it doesn't seem to be recommended. This as well as it being about 90 euro a bag and only available from the vet himself means it can be awkward to buy, so just wondering if there were any other recommended foods out there. Have had a quick look online and most seem to have a higher protein content, some only 2/3% more and others closer to 20%. If this is the best food for her we will keep her on it but just checking to see if anyone would have any other suggestions. Thanks.

DBB

Hmm... Why is high protein the cause of everything in some people's eyes? How can you give too much protein to a healthy carnivore?!
Anyway op, I'd be extremely sceptical that this is related to the protein content of the food.
I had a little dog once who did what it sounds like your lad is doing? Eating his meal, then a few minutes later, yakking it back up again looking just like you'd just put it in the bowl, with added goo?
We discovered that if he climbed down stairs or got too giddy and active shortly after eating, it'd happen. But if kept calm and on the level, all was well. Once we copped it, it never happened again in his whole life. The vet reckoned he had a somewhat weakened non-return valve between his stomach and oesophagus.
As a matter of interest, what food was your lad on before? How long has he been on the Z/D?

Springwell

You can get z/d online from Zooplus.ie much cheaper than 90 quid ( it's €64) - it's certainly not vet only, if you wanted to stick with that food. z/d is designed for food allergies and gastric inflammation/sensitivity like colitis.

If you want to try a different food forget about protein levels and instead choose a food with a novel protein and carb source from what you've used before - fish and potato works for many. Avoid bee or chicken. Burns Pork and Potato, James Wellbeloved Fish and Rice, Acana Singles, Greenwoods Fish and Rice or Lupo sensitive are possible options off the top of my head. Another option which has worked for a few who I've known on z/d longterm is Green Petfood InsectDog which as it sounds has insect proteins in it so shouldn't cause any reaction in a sensitive dog

Choc Chip

Springwell, do you mean "avoid beef and chicken"?

I'm not trying to be smart, I just did a double-take after seeing "Green Petfood InsectDog". Though I don't imagine anyone really farming bees for dogfood...

Springwell

Choc Chip wrote: »

Springwell, do you mean "avoid beef and chicken"?

I'm not trying to be smart, I just did a double-take after seeing "Green Petfood InsectDog". Though I don't imagine anyone really farming bees for dogfood...

Yes, sorry - typing on a phone. Avoid beef :pac: or chicken, the most common allergens.

I'm not sure what insects they use but they are farmed - it's a growing industry...pretty sure it's not bees

tk123

Springwell wrote: »

Yes, sorry - typing on a phone. Avoid beef :pac: or chicken, the most common allergens.

I'm not sure what insects they use but they are farmed - it's a growing industry...pretty sure it's not bees

If it was bees they could say it was the bees knees lol

OP have you tried wet food rather than kibble? There’s plenty of good quality wet foods to suit most budgets on zooplus.

joey100

Cheers Folks, Yep it would be very similar to what you described DBB. We have moved her feeding times because she tends to be excited first thing in the morning so we wait for her to calm down a little before feeding and that definitely sorted the problem in the morning. Still happened a little later in the day but wasn't as bad.

She was on Royal Canin puppy food at the start, after this we moved her to the adult version but she was leaving full bowls of food so we tried the James well Beloved, didn't really agree with her. Went onto a few other smaller bags then but the same outcome, had her on a sensitive Prima food for a while that worked well but after a while we had the same issue. I'd say shes been on the Hills for around 6 months now and it's a lot better. She still coughs it up if she gets really excited but other than that it's not an issue. No problem staying on it if it's the best for her, my wife was just worried after someone told her it wasn't very good food so we said we would see if there was anything else similar out there. Had seen it on zooplus alright, think they have a 2 bag special offer too but just never seemed to be in stock when we were ordering.

Must try some of the fish and rice ones, pretty sure it's usually been Chicken or pork versions we have fed her up to now so will give them a go.

Ashbx

My dog was put onto Hills K/D (because yes, some dogs genuinely do have issues processing protein).

I was reluctant to put her on it as I know the Hills food didn't have the best reputation. But my dog is absolutely thriving on it and I am not going to change it. The protein content of the K/D is 13% so if it really is protein you need to cut from your dogs diet, it might be one to try but dogs do need protein so I would definitely check with your vet before changing foods. And Zooplus is definitely the place to buy it if you do continue with it.

I would try different foods and different feeding times first though. If even your dog is on a low protein diet, some protein is ok but its high quality/easily digestible protein you need (eggs for example are great). Perhaps could you try walking your dog before you feed her (wait at least 30 mins after her walk before feeding her) and it might take out some of that excitement?

pawrick

Springwell wrote: »

Yes, sorry - typing on a phone. Avoid beef :pac: or chicken, the most common allergens.

I'm not sure what insects they use but they are farmed - it's a growing industry...pretty sure it's not bees

sorry to derail but have you tried that pet food? havent heard of or seen it before.

DBB

Ashbx wrote: »

My dog was put onto Hills K/D (because yes, some dogs genuinely do have issues processing protein).

... Which is specifically why I said

How can you give too much protein to a healthy carnivore?!

tk123

Dare I suggest it lol but Nutriment Chicken formula is 12.7% protein, 14kgs is half the price of Hills @ €45 and also it would also be easier to digest.

Springwell

tk123 wrote: »

Dare I suggest it lol but Nutriment Chicken formula is 12.7% protein, 14kgs is half the price of Hills @ €45 and also it would also be easier to digest.

It's not lower in protein though - if you consider the ~70% water content. We need to compare like with like

Springwell

pawrick wrote: »

sorry to derail but have you tried that pet food? havent heard of or seen it before.

Yes, with a dog that slowly over 18 years would become sensitised to novel proteins - once things like kangaroo were off the menu we tried the insect based one and she had another good two years on it before ending up vegetarian for her last six months before cancer caught up with her

tk123

Springwell wrote: »

It's not lower in protein though - if you consider the ~70% water content. We need to compare like with like

True it's never going to be like for like at the end of the day. Meat is meat.. dry food is meat + plant/everything else that's making up the protein content.

The OP's dog is consistently vomiting up dry food though so why not try an alternative that's easier to digest i.e. something that's wet and not dry. I'd wonder too if the vet is using a pin the tail on the donkey type approach 'too much protein' is making the dog hyper and causing it to get sick.

Springwell

Possibly. Too much protein cannot/does not make dogs hyper - old wive's tale that one. It does make for expensive urine when they pee out the excess though :pac:

If the dog is doing well on ZD I wouldn't change - empirically it's not the best food in the world but it may be the best food for this dog, and that's the bit that matters at the end of the day

tk123

Springwell wrote: »

Possibly. Too much protein cannot/does not make dogs hyper - old wive's tale that one. It does make for expensive urine when they pee out the excess though :pac:

:pac: lol

Gael23

We have a 3 month old puppy and he’s doing great on the I/d. A bag lasts about 3 weeks so it’s not hugely more expensive than what we used first. He really likes the food too.