Feeding

[Louis]

Hi everyone

I feed Louis, who is 8 months on James wellbeloved and another dried complete food called natures best, I just alternate between the two.  He eats them but just seems to pick at them and doesn't look like he is enjoying them.  I decided to add some meat and gravy to them, sometimes mince or chicken and he wolfs down the lot.  Is this ok?  I only add a small amount as I am aware of his weight, and he only gets this at his evening meal, I just give him a few biscuits in the morning as he never seems that hungry.

I also wondered whether anybody elses cockers like milk, and is this ok?

Thanks for any advice.

Gemma&Louis                    

[Michele]

Hi Gemma,
I feed my lot on a complete food (Nutro) and they always have a small amount of Butchers Tripe added along with a splash of water. As long as you only add a small amount it should be ok.

What kind of milk are you giving Louis?
Cows milk contains lactose which puppies/dogs become intolerant to as they get older. If you still want to give Louis milk I suggest using goats milk as the lactose level is much lower.                      

[*Jay*]

Hi Gemma,

I sometimes add the frozen AMP products to my boys meals although they don't need any encouragement to wolf down their dry food when its fed on its own. They treat every meal as if its going to be their last If Louis has had milk before and it didn't upset his stomach, then a little bit every now and then won't do any harm. My Brook loves milk and he gets a little bit in his bowl occasionally. Vegas is allergic to milk and I know a lot of dogs do get diarrhoea with it. It all depends on the dog really.                    

[Louis]

Thanks for your help, I have given Louis cows milk only twice and he loves it and it doesn't seem to affect him in any way, but I didn't know about the lactose, so I will bear that in mind.
I have tried Louis on tripe, and all sorts of other tinned dog food and he turns his nose up, I think I've got a fussy one here!!!  As long as it's ok to add a samll amount of real meat and gravy to his dried food, as long as he enjoys it and it's not harming him, then I will continue with this.
Thanks
Gemma&Louis                    

[Michele]

Gemma, don't give him too much gravy as it has a very high salt content.

Also when you add a small amount of water to the JWB it makes a gravy of its own anyway. :wink:                    

[Silver Surfer (indiesnan)]

Hi Gemma, have you tried Nature Diet, all the dogs i know love it. A tray lasts me 3 days,so pricewise thats not too bad.   Thats for a large dog though.

My son has very fussy dogs, and changed them over to Burns and Nature Diet,  they are now demolishing there feed for the first time ever.    And are actually waiting to be fed.  :shock:                    

[shonajoy]

Barb, the naturediet pack confuses me - it says for medium dogs up to a third of a pack, does it mean a third of a pack per meal, or per day?  :oops:
Shona                    

[Colin]

Well I'm confused as well now .  

 I've only ever seen one size of pack of Naturediet  and it says one or two packs a day for a medium dog. I can't imagine Nel surviving on one pack of this over three days. :? Is there a larger pack than the 390g ones I get for Jimmy and Misty ?                    

[Silver Surfer (indiesnan)]

Barb, the naturediet pack confuses me - it says for medium dogs up to a third of a pack, does it mean a third of a pack per meal, or per day?  :oops:
Shona

Hi Shona, ive got a pack here and it says ... Small  1/2  pack   Medium 1 to 2 packs and large 2 to 3 packs, the way i read it, it must mean a daily .  :?

Theres a phone no on the pack, were you can send for a more detailed feeding guide. 08700  132960                      

[Silver Surfer (indiesnan)]

Well I'm confused as well now .  

 I've only ever seen one size of pack of Naturediet  and it says one or two packs a day for a medium dog. I can't imagine Nel surviving on one pack of this over three days. :? Is there a larger pack than the 390g ones I get for Jimmy and Misty ?

ooops    sorry     :oops:  i  should have said, Nell is  fed on Burns as well :wink:

Thats why she only gets a third of the tray. You didnt realy think id'e starve my baby did ya colin.  :wink:                      

[Louis]

Hi

I have actually looked for Nature diet but can never seem to find it.  Is it a dry or moist food?  Does it come in a bag,tin,tray???  Tesco's don't sell it, so I may have a look in Pets at Home as they seem to have a wide range.  It's good to get advice from you all, thanks for letting me know about the salt in the gravy, I didn't realise that adding water to JWB would create it's own gravy, so I think I will try this.

I took Louis to the vets today for some worming powders and the girl weighed him, she said he was 9.40KG, and he is 8 months, so she said this was perfect for his age.  Does this sound ok to you?  I asked her if he would but on weight as he has been neutered(which I now regret, but thats a long story)       she said he would and there was nothing I could do about it.  I wasn't happy with this response and I said surely if I keep him very active and continue feeding him sensibly, then this would help. :?                    

[*Jay*]

Hi Gemma,

You can't get the Naturediet from supermarkets but you should get it from pets at Home - thats where I get mine from :wink:  As for the neutering, its nonsense to say that there is nothing you can do about the weight gain :roll:  Neutered dogs do not need as many calories as entire ones so cutting back a bit on the daily ration would be the way to go. I did this with Vegas although not too much as he is very active. I also monitor his weight regularly and since we sorted out his food allergy and got some weight on him, he has remained stable at 13kg. He is also quite tall(understatement :wink: ) so I think this is fine. His ribs can quite easily be felt and thats what i go on. Just monitor Louis' weight and body condition and if you feel hes getting a bit porky, just try cutting his food down a little.                    

[Silver Surfer (indiesnan)]

Hi Louise, Nature Diet is a complete moist food in a tray.                      

[scoobie]

Hi Gemma
I agree with Gill . What the girl at the vets said to you about neutered dogs gaining weight and you have to accept that! What rubbish..I feed raw to my dog and he is in great shape I don't weigh anything if he looks and feels as if he is getting porky or if he feels thin I would give him more or less food accordingly and he is neutered you have the right idea by giving your dog regular exercise and a healthy diet.
Good luck in finding the food that suits your little man but I would find something and stick to it otherwise he will be getting tooo fussy
Edith                    

[Laura]

We put Brogan on Naturediet when he was 6 months old - he was a fussy eater and I decided to give this a go - that was 3 months ago now.  I feed him 1 pack a day split over 2 meals - he has never looked better.  His coat is shiny and he is a good size.  On the good old subject of doggy deposits!, they are now compact and easy to pick up! :wink:

I like the fact that Naturediet is free from all additives and preservatives and is made from human grade food.  It costs us £15.50 a month to feed one dog.

We feed Brogan a raw chicken wing separate from his meal times - about 4 times a week.  He also has a beef marrowbone once a week to get them jaws busy and off them toilet rolls!!

We started buying it at Pets at Home at a cost of 59p per pack.  I now order it direct from Naturediet - you have to order it by the box - which contains 18 packs.  The more you buy the cheaper it works out.  There are no delivery charges to pay and orders arrive very quickly.

Prices are as follows

1 case           £13.55
2 cases         £10.35 per case
3 cases         £9.20 per case
4 - 9 cases    £9.00 per case
10+ cases     £8.85 per case

The shelf life for the packets are usually about 9 months - if you want to buy in bulk.

Telephone number for ordering and enquiries is 01428 682278.  They are very helpful and I can vouch that they put up with all sorts of silly questions.  

The website address is www.naturediet.co.uk