My beautiful crazy boy

[Boonie]

Hello all! We live in Missouri and I just adopted Alpine from a family that could no longer take care of him. I got him in October 2020 at about 8 months old. He is so beautiful and crazy! I love him to death! He does get along with my older dog and my sisters dogs when we go to her farm, I just have to remind him that his sister Dixie (my 12 year old Aussie) gets tired of playing with him very quickly. I have noticed that he likes tearing up plastic grocery bags. He shreds them to pieces! Lol He also seems to have a sensitive stomach. His farts are so smelly! He does well at home not potting in the house, but when we go to the farm he will just pee everywhere. Any advice you all can give me on best food or some of his odd behaviors would be wonderful!

[robke]

   To.  

[wolfpup]

Welcome to the forum.  Obviously it goes without saying to be sure to keep the plastic bags away   - whilst he is tearing at them he will be ingesting some of it.

Many people find that changing their dog's diet helps with gassiness  -  what is he currently fed?     raw/home cooked /  frozen dehydrated / tinned wet  /  kibble ?

One of my dogs had the runs for the first three years of his life  - and also very gassy  -  (I have never fed kibble)  but he was on tinned wet food (he was on kibble when I initially got him from the current owner)  - after many mis-steps I finally managed to transition him to raw  -  his runs dried up immediately and the gassiness disappeared  -  as did his tummy issues, and I saved about £30 a month in vet  meds.

 

[Boonie]

All of our dogs were on Purina Pro Plan - Lamb and Rice when I got Alpine; and all of our dogs (mine and my sisters) were open fed. Since having him I have started feeding on a schedule and so has my sister. I switched them to Iams Large Breed - Chicken and Whole Grain Recipe. I give them 2 cups in the morning and 1-1/2 cups at dinner. I make sure to pick up my older dogs (Dixie) bowl if she doesn't finish, because Alpine will finish it off for her if I don't. I have never done a raw diet and I'm not sure how that works. My sister's Chiweenie has lots of issues like blue hair, allergies and is overweight. We are trying to figure out what will work for all of them. 

[wolfpup]

OK  not often I have to check on two things in someone's post   -  I had never heard of a Chiweenie and had to look that one up   -  also had to try and search for  'blue hair'  - which did not bring up any helpful info.

Has the dog with allergies been tested to see exactly what they are allergic to?  I assume so,  -   is it environmental or food related allergies?   If environmental then I cannot suggest anything but may be able to come up with some posts relating to it - but if it is food related then that is far easier to sort out   ('easier' being a relative word).

https://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/enzymes-and-your-dog/?utm_campaign=CONTENT%3A DIgestive Enzymes %2B Digest Launch Ad (S9v9ff)&utm_medium=email&utm_source=klaviyo&_ke=eyJrbF9lbWFpbCI6ICJjaHJpc3NpZTEyM0BidGludGVybmV0LmNvbSIsICJrbF9jb21wYW55X2lkIjogIkM0WXlWOSJ9

The above post from Dogs Naturally Magazine may give you some background  - it was the latest thing to pop into my inbox.    This is not going to sort out your problems but may give you some things to think about.      

As a raw feeder - I am against kibble for all sorts of reasons  (my main objection is lack of natural nutrition)  - but many here do feed differing types of kibble  -  raw is not for every dog - or dog owner  and we all do what we think is best for our fur kids.   However even many kibble type feeders are not keen on either Purina or Iams   -  they are not the best quality foods on the market - despite their marketing hype.    For those who have no choice for whatever reason other than to feed a kibble type food  -  many chose the dehydrated raw  -  which is one of the best of its type around  -  with the 'convenience' of kibble.     Hopefully someone who feeds this way will jump in  - I believe #Robke does.      If I were travelling any distance with my dogs  -  or having to board them for any reaon - I would choose this type to feed them  in my absence, providing one could deal with one of my dog's severe food allergies (and I am sure one could).

 

 

[robke]

yes I feed pressed protein pellets that is under the section " Holistic food " mine really do well on it not got any of these pesky e nr's in it... did a change a few weeks ago and nearly straight away got irritations on both of them so switch back quickly and happy now...

[Boonie]

Thank you both for the insight and help I really appreciate it. I will definitely be looking into both of those options more! 

As far as the 'blue hair' Chiweenie... She has been to a holistic vet and was placed on 9 different types of supplements. We are still trying to sort out her allergies. The blue hair is a condition that can causes dogs to loose all of their hair. It's a challenge to figure out, but we eventually will. (Oh she is the one on the raised bed in the last picture with Alpine.) LOL

[wolfpup]

You did not say whether the allergies were for the environment or food   -  what are the supplements your holistic vet has prescribed  -  and what for?    A very easy blood test will discover any food allergies.   If the allergies are all food related  -  then I can probably help.