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Science Diet WD
Is this food safe and healthy for long time use...I had to put my 7 year old schnoodle on it for bloody stool she was having for a month back in September...her stool is fine now...but I don't like the ingredients very much, prior food was Solid Gold, but I guess she needed the extra fibre not in most Holistic foods..only vegetable fibre..pumpkin, sweet potatoe all gave her loose stools..also, the past month she have been throwing up in the early morning, like white phlegm, sometimes a little yellow...otherwise she acts healthy...did go to the vet...she was put on 1/4 of pepcid twice a day...worked okay for a few days, but back to morning throw up...I only let her eat her science diet, nothing else...oh and 1 probiotic called probiable dc since going on the science diet wd in Sept...I am trying to feed her later in the night, but maybe needs to be her largest meal...not sure what else to do...
Thanks
Thanks
Best Answer
The label on the WD can states that it is not a balanced diet and not for longterm use. I don't know what the solution is going to be for your dog, but I'll throw out some things that have worked for my dogs in simular situations in the past: (1) stwitching from heartgard to interceptor, which isn't an option right now, since interceptor isn't on the market, but you could discuss with your vet whether your dog could take a lower dose of whatever heartworm protection she is on. Sometimes with the little dogs, the dose of ivermectin, moxidectin, selamectin (or whatever) is a lot larger than what is truly necessary. Also, if she is on advantage multi or another combo product, I would not only examine the dosage level, but I would switch to separate heartworm and flea products. I only use flea products when the dog needs it and not every month of the year. In general, I try to reduce my usage of chemicals to the minimum necessary. (2) Minimize vaccinations to only what is truly necessary. You have to give a rabies injection as mandated by law. In most places, once every three years is the legal requirement. But parvo, distemper, etc. don't need to be given every year, and over-vaccination can cause chronic health problems. I had a dog that had chronic gastroenteritis, and she was over-vaccinated. I did not know any better for the first several years that I had her. With my dogs since then, I do rabies as required by law and I do the other vaccinations as recommended by Dr. Jean Dodds (you can google her protocol). (3) Once a problem like this develops, I would use very substantial doses of probiotics, and I would try different brands and strains of probiotics. Probiotic use is something else you can read up on, or if you want more detail, I can post. That could be a thread in itself. In addition, I also would try giving yogurt with active cultures. The yogurt has other benefits besides the probiotics in it. I would do both supplemental probiotics and yogurt with active cultures. (4) Sorry you didn't have good luck with pumpkin or sweet potato. Canned plain pumpkin (not pumkin pie filling but just plain canned pumkin with nothing else in it) is my go-to remedy for diarhhea. I haven't ever found that it helps a lot with vomiting, though. You might try a little bit of plain oatmeal for the soluble fiber in it, and see if that will let you move gradually away from the W/D. Or maybe you can get to where you can just put a dollop of W/D on top of her other food, and that will be enough. (5) Depending on your dog's weight, she might be able to take a half tablet of pepcid twice a day. My toy australian shepherd weighs 17 pounds, and that is what the vet recommended for her. Of course, if your schoodle is half the weight of my dog, then half the dose -- in other words, the 1/4 tablet that you are giving -- is appropriate. (6) Try to rule out any other disorders that might be causing pain. With my toy aussie, it turned out that she had an eye problem that was hurting her, and the pain was making her vomit. (7) Good luck. You are going to have to just keep working with this and see what gives you success. It might end up being a little of this and a little of that. But don't discount minimizing your dog's chemical exposure and vaccinations to only what is truly necessary. If she has been on a year-round multi-parasite prevention regimen at a dosage level that is adequate for a larger dog, and if she has been getting yearly vaccinations for every possible disease, I would look at backing off of some of that. There is a lot of information available now about this area of concern. My own dogs have been a lot better off for reducing their exposure to various things that their immune system has to cope with.
I've had my Dobi on WD for the last 4 years... she seems none the worse for wear, and the vet doesn't seem to have a problem selling it to me, so I have to take a guess and say that it's probably okay, long-term.
A little late to this, sorry!
A little late to this, sorry!
Thanks so much for the input about my problem with the sensitive stomach schnoodle...Just wanted to let everyone know she is doing really good so far with the transition from WD to DD vension/potato...not even completely on the D/D and she stopped itching, licking her paws constantly...her stool remains fine....It had to be the chicken.
I think it was very kind of all of you to respond to my inquery. I hope I can be of help to you one day.
Take care for now,
Maria1952
I think it was very kind of all of you to respond to my inquery. I hope I can be of help to you one day.
Take care for now,
Maria1952
The Vet and I had a long talk yesterday...and said the next steps: Do the stomach ultra sound, exrays, and possible biopsy to rule out the last things OR try the novelty diet for 12 weeks for food allergy...She believes the first choice isn't necessary considering her good blood work, no indication of pancreatis (she is too healthy) She also said if I really wanted to buy commercial food I could, but she suggested a 12 week trial with another prescription diet, because it is so limited and controlled. We are going with the Science Diet d/d...vension and potato and lower on the list has the powdered celluose which I think turned her stool around..The ingredients in the d/d are minimal. So, transitioning since yesterday...she said she doesn't expect to see results until 12 weeks...Because of the vomit WITH the foot licking she is thinking allergy..Commercial pet stores are gearing toward Orijen and Acana now...But really this science diet with the venison/potato looks pretty decent ingredient wise...
Maria.....It's possible that your girl cannot tolerate processed foods any longer.....Have you tried to cook for her & see if there is any difference.....There are 9 ingredients in WD that are known allergens....That would include itching.....Powered Cellulose is "SAWDUST"- Only used in low quality petfoods.....
You may look into some premixes that you can add your own proteins & oils to....It makes it simplier to rule out things causing problems because you control what goes in them.....I personally prefer whole oats as a fiber source as studies are finding that rice can stick to the digestive tract and continue to cause problems.....
My favorite is Dr. Harvey's mixes & next would be SoJo's......You WANT the one w/ oats......You can read about them on their webpages.....I know Sojos will send you samples if you ask.....I bet Dr. Harvey's would, too....I have never seen these mixes in stores, you would have to purchase online...It would be worth a try....
The Bordetella Vaccine is a joke! It is used for Kennel Cough and most places require one if your dog is going to be boarded...This is only about money!!!! Normal reactions would include symptoms of kennel cough or respiratory problems......It covers 2 strains of the virus and there are 50 known....It also only lasts 6 months.....They don't tell you all that.....NO vaccines should be given annually......
Although a wonderful food, your solid gold was probably just too rich for your dog's digestive system......Then as you put it "She's Neurotic", adds to the problem......Take care, Karla
You may look into some premixes that you can add your own proteins & oils to....It makes it simplier to rule out things causing problems because you control what goes in them.....I personally prefer whole oats as a fiber source as studies are finding that rice can stick to the digestive tract and continue to cause problems.....
My favorite is Dr. Harvey's mixes & next would be SoJo's......You WANT the one w/ oats......You can read about them on their webpages.....I know Sojos will send you samples if you ask.....I bet Dr. Harvey's would, too....I have never seen these mixes in stores, you would have to purchase online...It would be worth a try....
The Bordetella Vaccine is a joke! It is used for Kennel Cough and most places require one if your dog is going to be boarded...This is only about money!!!! Normal reactions would include symptoms of kennel cough or respiratory problems......It covers 2 strains of the virus and there are 50 known....It also only lasts 6 months.....They don't tell you all that.....NO vaccines should be given annually......
Although a wonderful food, your solid gold was probably just too rich for your dog's digestive system......Then as you put it "She's Neurotic", adds to the problem......Take care, Karla
The exact name of what I was talking about is Sojo's Original Dog Food Mix. It does have grains in it. I see they make other varieties now that I did not know about.
The dog with the eye irritation is one of the two dogs that I have now. I don't stay with one dog food. I rotate through foods. My philosophy is that there is no perfect dog food, so if I rotate among several "good" foods, the pro's and con's of each should balance out. Some of the ones I use are Core, Flint River Ranch, Canidae, Fromm, Instinct, Wellness, California Natural, and Innova.
I just stay with super-premium foods that use high-quality ingredients and minimal chemical preservatives. But I have seen dogs that looked great that were on Science Diet kibble bought from the vet, and that is a food that I don't think is "good enough" for my dogs, LOL. if your dog does well on Science Diet, Purina, Pedgree, or Iams and does not do well on any of those fancier foods, then that is what you should use. My mother's dog does great on Iams. I just wouldn't go all the way down to Old Roy or some of the other foods that are rock-bottom cheap. To a certain extent, it's true that you get what you pay for, and if you pay for next to nothing, that's what you get.
If your dog did well on Solid Gold except for the soft stools, why not go back to that, but maybe give her something extra to firm up the stools. That's where you could try the dollop of WD on top, or cook some plain oatmeal and put some of that on top, and see if either one of those remedies works. If it does, then even if you don't want to supplement with W/D or oatmeal forever, it's a step in the right direction, and you can learn something from it. I wil say again, I am an advocate for probiotics, and that may be where your longterm help lies.
Some random thoughts: (1) Merrick kibble makes my dogs have loose stools. (2) My now-deceased dog that had the chronic gastroenteritis eventually got allergic to W/D. It was a huge obstacle that I could not use the W/D anymore. I came to believe that it was the egg in it that made her itch, because she could eat poultry just fine. (3) I think there is a very low probability of an allergy to cellulose. (4) You might want to try So-Jo's. If your dog tolerates the plain So-jo's mix without any meat added to it, then you can try different meats to see what works. Also, some plain So-Jo's added to Solid Gold might do the same thing as the W/D or oatmeal added to Solid Gold, and it would be more balanced, because So-jo's already has all the necessary vitamins and minerals added to it that dogs need. You know, maybe the Solid Gold was causing loose stools simply because it is so rich. Your dog might actually need something that is less calorically dense than Solid Gold, and adding some So-Jo's to Solid Gold would make that adjustment for you.
I just stay with super-premium foods that use high-quality ingredients and minimal chemical preservatives. But I have seen dogs that looked great that were on Science Diet kibble bought from the vet, and that is a food that I don't think is "good enough" for my dogs, LOL. if your dog does well on Science Diet, Purina, Pedgree, or Iams and does not do well on any of those fancier foods, then that is what you should use. My mother's dog does great on Iams. I just wouldn't go all the way down to Old Roy or some of the other foods that are rock-bottom cheap. To a certain extent, it's true that you get what you pay for, and if you pay for next to nothing, that's what you get.
If your dog did well on Solid Gold except for the soft stools, why not go back to that, but maybe give her something extra to firm up the stools. That's where you could try the dollop of WD on top, or cook some plain oatmeal and put some of that on top, and see if either one of those remedies works. If it does, then even if you don't want to supplement with W/D or oatmeal forever, it's a step in the right direction, and you can learn something from it. I wil say again, I am an advocate for probiotics, and that may be where your longterm help lies.
Some random thoughts: (1) Merrick kibble makes my dogs have loose stools. (2) My now-deceased dog that had the chronic gastroenteritis eventually got allergic to W/D. It was a huge obstacle that I could not use the W/D anymore. I came to believe that it was the egg in it that made her itch, because she could eat poultry just fine. (3) I think there is a very low probability of an allergy to cellulose. (4) You might want to try So-Jo's. If your dog tolerates the plain So-jo's mix without any meat added to it, then you can try different meats to see what works. Also, some plain So-Jo's added to Solid Gold might do the same thing as the W/D or oatmeal added to Solid Gold, and it would be more balanced, because So-jo's already has all the necessary vitamins and minerals added to it that dogs need. You know, maybe the Solid Gold was causing loose stools simply because it is so rich. Your dog might actually need something that is less calorically dense than Solid Gold, and adding some So-Jo's to Solid Gold would make that adjustment for you.
Which Kibble did you put the dog with eye problem back on on after the WD..I'm suspecting something in the WD making her not feel well stomach wise and itchy...she never had the itchy before...but she is getting older and I know things can change even on the supposedly good foods...Most I talk too suggest Orijen, but I read the ingredients and just too many things in it to rule out anything...I did find a Vension, Potato Limited diet Utra, not the best food but seems to have the ingredients I'm looking towards...the package online even seemed to have cellulose fiber in it, which WD has..not sure how much, but at least it is there..I'm reluctant to put her back on a food with fruits/veggies...She always kept soft stools, not blood but soft on the Solid Gold line, so maybe and indication of things to come...not sure with vaccinations that could have caused it...and being a schnauzer mix...schnauzer's I think have stomach issues..poodles coat...waiting for the Vet to call me back today and see what she says...then I am weening from the WD myself...but picking a protein she never had before..the WD has the chicken by products...past was Bison, then Fish, (Solid Gold Brand) soft stools always ..but beautiful coat and no vomit...its a challenge, and we just want her as close to normal as we can now...otherwise she plays and acts pretty normal, but you can tell something is up...Vet always said it was just probably her...Oh, she is neurotic...barks at the moon, barks at a leaf!
The dog of mine that had the eye problem and was on Pepcid -- when I moved her back onto kibble from WD, I soaked the kibble to soften it before I offered it to her. It seemed like it would make it easier to digest. I don't know if that was important or not, but it's what I did, and she is all the way back onto dry kibble now.
The dog that had the chronic gastroenteritis -- I ended up putting her on probiotics for the rest of her life, and it seemed to help. I know Margo49, above, suggested you stop probiotics, so you are getting conflicting advice here. But that goes along with my thought that you are just going to have to experiment and see what works for your dog.
If you do choose to continue probiotics, you can use the ones marketed for humans, and that lets you shop for price a lot better than if you are limited to the probiotic products that are marketed for pets. The ones that are marketed for pets tend to be very expensive. But the same strains of bacteria work for both pets and humans.
The dog that had the chronic gastroenteritis -- I ended up putting her on probiotics for the rest of her life, and it seemed to help. I know Margo49, above, suggested you stop probiotics, so you are getting conflicting advice here. But that goes along with my thought that you are just going to have to experiment and see what works for your dog.
If you do choose to continue probiotics, you can use the ones marketed for humans, and that lets you shop for price a lot better than if you are limited to the probiotic products that are marketed for pets. The ones that are marketed for pets tend to be very expensive. But the same strains of bacteria work for both pets and humans.
I remember in 9/12 when this all started she just got her annual bordadella...a few weeks later HUGE vomiting all day 2 days...VET treated her with a liquid IV in the neck and started the probiotics...she did okay until a few weeks later the diarrea started...and eventually went into bloody stools...WD was the first treatment and it worked...now 3 months later the itchy feet/licking, dry coat and morning white foam, gagging...but why 3 months later we don't know...Vet is calling back tomorrow...she did say I could go back to a one protein novelty meat...something different, just very gradual...your Ideas are wonderful...the dollop of canned wd just to maintain better stool...I will get back...just wanted to give you a heads up and a big thank you...I know what you mean I am going to have to figure this out...as long as that last big blood work/physical was normal...I think it is a go ahead to change food again...WD is chicken based...thinking of Turkey or Duck next...I read they had nothing to do with each other even though poultry...another bath is due to get the smell off of her...its sad, but I know we will get to the bottom of it..oh, she is about 17lbs and Dr. only prescribed 1/4 10mg tab of pepcid twice a day, not 1/2 hmmm...talk soon.
Thanks,
Gae
Thanks,
Gae
Another thing I have had to pay attention to with my dogs is what was the protein source and what was the grain in my dogs' food. Mine seem to do better on fowl or fish than red meat. One of my dogs itches if there is a lot of barley in the food. This whole thing going to be a big process of experimentation for you.
Hi,
You know I was thinking the probiotic DC myself...when she started the bloody stool 9/12.. the starting point was science diet wd and the one probiotic...after the food transition her stool was perfect...then 2 months later the morning phlegm/vomit started...she did the throw up again at 4:30 this am..thank goodness we have a yard...poor girl..another day of washing her up the best we could. Last Friday the Vet did the expensive blood work to try to see anything..everything was good..the only marker was a slight elevation in her White blood cells, vet said indicates MAYBE allergy...so we were supposed to wait until last Wednesday to see how the pepcid went and give a callback...I did call back, she was busy, the tech said she would call me back and never did...so know I am a little mad with her after almost a $300.00 bill..I will look at the ingredients of your Son's food...It seems since her blood work is good I may have to figure the rest on my own and with the help of people like you...Thank you for getting back to me...
Gae
You know I was thinking the probiotic DC myself...when she started the bloody stool 9/12.. the starting point was science diet wd and the one probiotic...after the food transition her stool was perfect...then 2 months later the morning phlegm/vomit started...she did the throw up again at 4:30 this am..thank goodness we have a yard...poor girl..another day of washing her up the best we could. Last Friday the Vet did the expensive blood work to try to see anything..everything was good..the only marker was a slight elevation in her White blood cells, vet said indicates MAYBE allergy...so we were supposed to wait until last Wednesday to see how the pepcid went and give a callback...I did call back, she was busy, the tech said she would call me back and never did...so know I am a little mad with her after almost a $300.00 bill..I will look at the ingredients of your Son's food...It seems since her blood work is good I may have to figure the rest on my own and with the help of people like you...Thank you for getting back to me...
Gae
Welcome to the forum......This link will give you more information......Be sure and read the reviews under the article...Hopefully, it will help you out....
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/hills-prescription-diet-wd-canine-dry/
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/hills-prescription-diet-wd-canine-dry/
Has any blood work been done recently?
My daughter's dog has chronic pancreas problems and after probably over $2,000 fir flare ups, she has been Strictly" on the Science Diet ID food. She can tolerate the small Blue Buffalo chicken treats sold in little bags. She can also tolerate dehydrated yams but they are tough to chew. She also gets 1/2 Pet TB a day, but she is a Chihuahua mix. She has done well on "strictly" this diet.
Your dog sound to have something similar to my son's dog. Not the highest quality food on the market but suggested he try the Pro Plan Salmon for sensitive stomachs. He was also giving her Pepcid fir vomiting. She has done very well on this and he has stopped the Pepcid now.
If it were me, I would stop the probiotic, at least for a while.
Of course, you may want to discuss this with your Vet.
My daughter's dog has chronic pancreas problems and after probably over $2,000 fir flare ups, she has been Strictly" on the Science Diet ID food. She can tolerate the small Blue Buffalo chicken treats sold in little bags. She can also tolerate dehydrated yams but they are tough to chew. She also gets 1/2 Pet TB a day, but she is a Chihuahua mix. She has done well on "strictly" this diet.
Your dog sound to have something similar to my son's dog. Not the highest quality food on the market but suggested he try the Pro Plan Salmon for sensitive stomachs. He was also giving her Pepcid fir vomiting. She has done very well on this and he has stopped the Pepcid now.
If it were me, I would stop the probiotic, at least for a while.
Of course, you may want to discuss this with your Vet.
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