Hi sherrylynne

Yes that is very strange but I am glad to hear that he is eating soft food on his own.
 
It may have been that he was experiencing some type of digestive upset. Eating too quickly can cause this also.

Hopefully he will continue to eat the canned food with no problems.

 I was interested in trying this food so when my local Pet Suppllies Plus got it in I purchased a can to try.

I knew right when I opened it that none of my crew would eat it. It consists of preformed chunks in some sort of clear broth.

Needless to say they all took one whiff of the stuff and walked away.....

No problem Peg. I am going to leave the posts as they are.

That is very unusual that they were unable to identify the type of bacteria.

Has it been considered to have the food tested by another lab or university to       see if someone else would be able to identify it?

 Refrain from giving him the cod liver oil for a few days and see if there is any change. Possibly for some reason he may be sensitive to it or to something that is added to the oil.

 Are the capsules you are using specifically for use in cats or dogs??

 

 Just curious, but did the spraying happen to start after you started giving him the cod liver oil?

"Tests are back on samples of:"

1. "Taste of the Wild" dry cat food Lot# "02-May-10 16:00 RP"
2. Nutro Max Cat "California Chicken Supreme Dinner" Lot# "JUN 21 09 0427C1"
3. Fancy Feast "Tender Liver & Chicken Feast" Lot # "MAY2011 91291162 L11781325"
4. "Diamond Naturals Active Cat Lamb and Rice" Lot# Sept 20105.
5. Nutro Natural Choice “Complete Care Indoor Adult” Lot# "070810"


http://www.pfpsa.org/news.html

'September 10, 2009: Tests are back on six samples of Newman's Own Organic. The lab detected large, rod shaped, gram positive bacteria. Unfortunately, attempts to culture the bacteria were unsuccessful and follow up efforts to identify the bacteria through DNA sequencing were also unsuccessful. The lab's comments in the report are worth reading."


http://www.pfpsa.org/news.html

sherrylynne,

How is Mr. Stubbs doing?

Hi Claudette,

 Either way, I would definitely give her more wet food daily. Not sure I understand the concern about her poo becoming softer.

 If you put her back on the Hills her skin issues will most likely flair up again.


 So it is you who will have to make the decision as to what route to take next.

 Nothing wrong with trying the Evo if that is what you choose.

 The bowel problems only occured when the dog was switched upruptly from the Hills to the Core. I may be mistaken but I do not think that is a problem she is dealing with at the present time.

Hopefully Claudette will return and let us know how the dog is doing.

Out of curiousity I visited  www.bichonhealth.org.

I looked around quite a bit and did not see anything where that it recommended any particular type of food. It gave the normal guidelines for what to look for in a so called quality food, but did not mention any brand or protein source to use.

As sherrylynne has mentioned we are all trying to help a teenager who is trying her best to convince her Mother to try other foods since the Hill's was causing severe skin issues.

It was previously recommended that the dog eat more wet food, but the Mother of the poster wants to continue to use dry. So Sylvia if you know of a particular brand of food that may work well for this dog, please share it.

 You are correct GG about the Before Grain kibble. I should of looked at the ingredient panel more closely.

 Although the canned formula consists of Buffalo meat only.

 Claudette, which formula of Core are you using as they also make a Core Ocean Formula that contains only fish products.

 Wellness also makes a line of dog foods called Simple Food Solutions for those that have food sensitivies or allergies.

 Sorry to hear that Claudette is still having some urinary issues.

  Here is what I am going to suggest you try. The Before Grain comes in a buffalo based dry food. Try that and also use the buffalo Before Grain canned food. This may also help if she is also dealing with any type of food sensitivity or allergy. Once again, transition slowly UNLESS she will no longer eat the Core.

  Also, the more wet food you can feed her the better. Hydration is key when dealing with issues concerning the urinary tract.

  Let us know how she is doing.

Thanks guys!!

It's a little better now that she's on 100% CORE and methigel, but she STILL has it. I've come to a conclusion that it might be Flea Allergy Dermatitis? So I think we might treat her for fleas. (Revolution from the vet's) to see what happens. If her back gets better, then darn it we have to treat the other three, if it doesn't change a thing, then we have a flea-less dog.

If this should turn out NOT to be flea allergy dermatitis, then again I would suspect a food allergy/sensitivity.

Supplementing her diet with some type of essential fatty acid can be very helpful as it also acts as an anti-inflammatory agent.

Geff, I am in tears upon reading this.

My deepest sympathies go out to you.

I am so very very sorry.....