my dog was rescued from a family where they fed her cat biscuits! ive adopted her now and put her on burns puppy food- now she is itching constantly and whining when she does, vet said it was reaction to the food maybe- and wants me to feed her the same cat food that she was being fed before- to find out if that was theproblem, but i dont really want to as she has had an awful upbringing and nutrition- dont want to go back there! On teh burns she adores it- and is steadily putting on weight, what shall i do? keep on burns and hope that she gets used to it, or pop her back on the cat food for a while?

thanks!

Dogs can live on cat food, but cats can't live on dog food.  For her sake, I'd stick with what has been found to work.......

How long has she been on the Burns for?  If it's not at least 2-3 wks and there are no other symptoms, I'd wait a bit longer.

Also make sure she has been de-flea-ed with either Frontline or Advantix - available only from your vet.

Have you bathed her recently, as perhaps you have removed oils from her skin by using a shampoo etc?

I wouldn't feed her cat food - it contains a much higher protein level than dog food, which isn't suitable as a long term diet for dogs, especially puppies (which it sounds like your dog could be, if you're feeding Burns Mini Bites?)

If you do decide to change her diet, you need to find out what she is allergic to, and then put her on a dog food which suits.

To find out what she's allergic to, the best thing is to go to your vets and ask them to take a blood sample and send it to York Labs.  This company tests the blood and can tell you what your dog is allergic to, so that you can then put the dog on a diet which avoids those ingredients.

The alternative, slower, way to find out, is to try various different diets, hoping that you will hit on one which avoids the suspect ingredients.  The problem with this is that you will never definitely know for sure what she's allergic to, it will take longer to find out, you will waste money buying different foods to try and your dog will suffer while you try ones which don't work!

Have you checked for a flea or two, they can be really difficult to spot ;)  maybe frontline will help ;)

also do you use anything like carpet fresheners?  Shake and vac etc.  these can cause really bad itching ;)

Have you bathed her since you got her?  I find most shampoos make me itch like mad, I now use a shampoo and conditioner for itchy scalps (Sunsilk? I think) and have no trouble unless I use a different one ;)

You could also contact Burns and discuss it with them, they are really helpful :)

I always thought that Cat food was too high in protein for dogs and wasn't good for them at all. My dog has skin problems and itchyness and I find Wafcol Salmon and Potato seems okay for him.

i frontlined her straightaway, and bathed her previously! i think it may be the shampoo- it was dog one but- probably contained alot of horrid stuff! i had to bath her as she smelt of pee- dog and cat!
she's on mini bites, and now im considering changing to jwb fish and rice as thats meant to be gentle, ive ordered some keepers mix, and easy green from dorwest herbs to make sure she will get all goodness- as she has had rubbish nutrition!

Hi chrisjack,  You could try adding a teaspoon of oil to her food either every day or every other day for a while to see if that helps - I use safflower oil which you can buy from health food shops.

Have you wormed her? I had a bitch who iched & scrathed until she was fully wormed!

yep wormed too! trying to keep her cool aswell- overheating a little bit.
this easy green supplement should help though...

i am swapping my lab from burns to autarky as his skin was very itchy he was on fish an brown rice it didnt suit him.

My dog's skin was a little dry but not itchy.  I add oil to her food, sunflower oil but when my husband isn't looking she gets a drop of extra virgin olive oil which she loves.  I also feed her JWB and found that suited her best.  Her skins seems to be fine these days.

hi again- my dog is now being put gradually on jwb fish & rice- i also add some olive oil to her food- about a small teaspoon, so she is fed a mixture of burns, jwb and oil- the problem now is, that she is not wanting to eat at all- she eats small amount then leaves it. I take it away after 10 mins, but dont know what to do- carry on being tough, only giving her the biscuits, i dont want to start feeding different  foods as she's obviously sensitve- she had a little nibble of a marrow bone and had diarrhoea for 3 days!

She has still a little diarrhoea and so i think she have a stomach upset?

i'm no expert but when my boxer started itching I took her to the vet to see a dermotologist and she wanted me to change her food to JWB turkey rice and kibble. She said after beef, chicken is the most likely thing a dog will be allergic to so turkey is ideal!
Keep to taking the food away after 10 mins. you'll find he will soon learn that he needs to eat while it's there or be hungry til next meal time.

Good luck.

Hi Chrisjack,

I've just quickly scanned this thread so apologies if I repeat any info or conflict with a regime that is working.

If your dog is having a problem with a diet, gradually weaning off that diet onto a new one means the ingredient(s) potentially causing a reaction are still being fed.  The fact that your dog continues to have soft motions suggests that she is still going to be uncomfortable - possibly crampy tummy pains or feeling nauseous and at the very least a sore bottom :( 

Personally I wouldn't feed a "mixture" of anything in the circumstances as I understand them.  I'd starve her for 12-24 hours depending on the severity of diarrhoea and then offer a half portion size of the new diet with no additional supplements.  The following day offer 2 or 3 small meals of the new diet, not necessarily culminating in the recommended daily intake for a few days (even then, VERY few dogs need the manufacturers' recommended intake of any commercial diets ;) )

You have to be strict about not allowing access to any other types of food, treats, supplements or well meaning friends, visitors etc offering goodies.  This is not always met with great popularity but is the only way to determine whether a diet is suiting a dog or not and has to be rigorously maintained for several weeks unless obvious adverse reactions occur.

From your opening post this dog has had a very poor start in life and you're to be commended for trying to turn things around a.s.a.p. , but try and resist the temptation to do things too quickly as her system will need time to become stable.

Regards, Teri :)

Thanks teri- i'll just offer her the jwb, her poo is getting better- still soft but formed now! hell to pick up! uugh..

In the 3 weeks ive had her she looks much more toned- leaner but has actually put on a kg- now weighing 7.50kg, it must be the better and at least one walk a day, the weight must be muscle?

Everyone has noticed how much more 'calm' she is- this is also to do with her diet- cant believe how much it affects them!

Im training her ATM and she's excelling- sit/come/stay/leave/fetch etc, but should i stop giving her the treats- i use burns kelties or chicken schmackos. Shall i use praise instead for while she's settling with the diet?

Im so proud of her- feel like telling everyone how good she is- dont wanna jinx it tho! Cant believe 3 weeks ago she was different dog all together- today she approached a dog and wagged her tail!! yeah, then she proceeded to kiss him all over his chops- the 13 year old sealyham wasnt impressed- haha, but i was proud xx

If your dog will work for praise and nothing else that is fine, however I like to be paid for doing my job...... ;)

Bin the schmackos though!  You can use her food for training, meals do not HAVE to be in a bowl, or give her healthy things like fresh fruit and veggies (not grapes) etc. 

Hi again,

Glad you've both made so much progress :)  As to training treats, realistically you should only use the same kibble as her meals for now :(  Some dogs don't particularly respond to that of course so it may help to introduce a toy instead and have a short game for a reward.  Over time, if her tummy and any other problems have completely settled, you can gradually introduce one additional ingredient at a time every say 2 weeks to see how she copes.

Good luck, and long may her progress continue.
Regards, Teri :)

My dog was on burns but he didnt really take to it, so I gradually put him on JWB Lamb & rice, and also their bics, for the odd treat, he is now ok, no scratching to date and eyes also stopped watering, good poos, etc, and full of beans.:)

He did pinch some chicken last week, and within a few hours was chewing his feet and eyes watering, so chicken is off the menu.
Once you get he onto a food stay on it and let her digestion get used to it...
JWB also do a puppy food,

Good luck,

Well thanks hairydog, she's been on jwb for about 2 weeks and is settling- her skins not as hot, and alot of itching has stopped, her ears arent all red now too! Ive got her on the fish&rice dry food, i mix some hills i/d with it- as its a wet food but very easily digestible, its getting her eating the biccys anyway! Her temperament is changing for the better too, not so hyper, seems more settled and comfortable. Will continue on the fish variety, may introduce nature diet fish in a few months time, a nice treat that she deserves!

Hi Chrisjack - what kind of dog is she? Congratulations for doing so well.  One of my uncle's Boxers gets very itchy around this time of year.  She even gets hives sometimes.  You can see them easier with the short coat.  She always ends up on injections, pills and lotions. When they are terribly itchy bathing them in Malaseb [you get buy it from you vet] helps. Stronghold is good too.  There is an active  ingredient in Frontline and Stronghold that helps calm itchy skin.  Some vets will advise using it with dogs that are very itchy, not because they have fleas but because of the calming down effect it gives the dog.
Hope you continue to have success.
Neeva