For owners whose dogs suffer repeated digestive issues and anal gland problems

[Fran Griffin]

Tallulah continues to do amazingly well,  Her neuropathy is hardly noticeable now, and her laryngeal paralysis has most surprisingly reversed further, and much better than in my (or the vets) wildest dreams.  It all started with continuous digestive disorders, just like the dog in this article.  The way I have treated Tallulah is virtually identical to the methods described here, apart from the Bio-HPF which I now plan to add to her diet once I find someone who will ship to the UK. I have also recently started her on a course of homeopathic remedy phosphorus 30C

http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2012/08/10...

[Howard Glansfield]

 I believe you can buy Bio-HPF in the UK from here:

https://www.foodintolerancebible.com/products/Bio-HPF_x_180_Capsule...

[Howard Glansfield]

Sorry, I have just checked and they are out of stock.

[Fran Griffin]

Thanks so much Howard. I will contact them to see if they are expecting more in.

[Fran Griffin]

Absolutely, and that includes rice too, which is nothing but a bulking agent. All grains in dog food are bulking agents and are species inappropriate.  Most of the foods I fed Tally when she was younger contained rice. Not now though. She is grain free.She is a carnivore and on a good quality raw diet as are all my dogs.

[Lesley Gilks]

Rigsby has been on his raw diet for six weeks now but still is not gaining weight.  The vet advised me to mix rice or pasta with his food.  However, I have noticed that since he's not been eating a biscuit based diet, his ear problems have cleared up.  He used to have recurring problems with his ears, black smelly wax and very sore ear flaps, but not anymore.  It was costing me a fortune in vets bills but now it seems to have sorted itself out.  I think it must have been the biscuits as onetime I forgot to defrost some meat so resorted to feeding him a bowl of his old food and withing 24hrs, the redness was back.

[Fran Griffin]

Hi Lesley.  Please make sure Rigsby gets a really good quality raw diet, as some of the preparations on the market are of very poor quality, and can be just as bad as some of the dry foods health wise.  Yes, a good raw diet can and does sort a lot of ear problems out. Many dogs loose what I call their carb appearance, and become more racy in appearance.  One lady I know was convinced her dog was loosing weight, but when she weighed him she was shocked to find he was gaining weight.  He had lost the carb look, but had gained muscle tone.  It comes down to body mass at the end of the day rather than weight.  In some cases, such as Tallulah's, she did remain very sleek, but once the enzymes were added to her diet, she has developed a lovely body mass, as has one of my other dogs who was always too thin.  If Rigbsy is on a good quality raw diet, is indeed not gaining weight, then try the enzymes and give them a few weeks.   www.evolutionorganics.co.uk/dr-mercola-digestive-enzymes-for-pets/p...

If in the U.S then www.mercola.com healthy pets and there are other suppliers of enzymes in the US too.

[Lesley Gilks]

Why would he need enzymes and can't he get what he needs from his diet?

He's on a combination of fresh, raw meat (heart, lamb and chicken wings), and prepared meat from Albion meat products.  I also give his oily fish, pilchards, sardines etc. 

[Fran Griffin]

Because it seems that some Setters cannot absorb properly, just like some humans (myself included) are unable to without support.  Also many raw diets don't include enough organ meat which are naturally high in enzymes. Dry foods contain none and  then what happens is that the dog will start to use its own enzymes to aid digestion which puts enormous stress on the pancreas, and then has a knock on effect into other areas too.  Some say that all dry food dogs need enzymes to support digestion, and some say that even raw fed dogs may need them too due to the lack of fresh organ meat.  I have found Albions chicken wings to be ok. but my dogs didn't do as well on their meat as I would have hoped.They have done much better on Natural Instinct, and I think their website probably explains why in good detail. www.naturalinstinct.com but even here, they have further benefitted from enzymes.

[Lois McCullough]

Hamilton 8 yrs suffered a nasty bout of Pancreatitis in May and spent. 48 hrs at the vet hospital. He was then on a diet of cooked chicken, rice and broccoli. Needless to say he got very bored with the diet so gradually introduced some white fish and more recently a salmon complete feed with salmon oil. So far all is well and he loves his new diet bit fishy round here!

[Lesley Gilks]

The cost of the Natural Instinct food is the only thing that would put me off using it, although it is a complete meal and very convenient.

[Fran Griffin]

Yes. It is quite off putting, although the 'working' varieties are quite reasonable, and they often put them on special offer prices when they obtain good deals from their suppliers. However, one thing I have discovered with Natural Instinct is that I don't feed anywhere near the amounts they suggest. Mine all get 1/2 kilo per day.  I sometimes give Barkley 1/2 pack nature diet before bed, and Tally sometimes gets a small amount of Nature Diet at around bedtime too.  Daisy and Barkley may sometimes have some sardines, and Daisy loves fruit. She might have an apple or a pare, of even 1/2 coconut as a snack. She absolutely relishes a coconut, but too much can make her poo lots and its very crumbly and difficult to clean up, but she is ok with 1/2 a coconut from time to time. Tally occasionally likes a coconut too, but usually runs away as I am breaking it open, so has formed a poor association of what coconuts are all about now :-(  Barkley wont even give them a second glance.

[silvia]

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