Pumpkin OK? and how to switch from Iams to Canidae?

Question

Is it fine to feed my 6month old shih tzu pumpkin everyday? She was constipated earlier this week, so I gave her some pumpkin which has allowed her to poop again. I give her about 1/2-1 a cup daily. Though, I have noticed if I don't give her any pumpkin one day she cries when making a bowel movement as her poops are too hard and big. Should I just continue giving the pumpkin till everything goes back to normal?

Also, I feed my dog's Iams puppy... but today bought them some Canidae that I'm going to switch them to, as I want them to be on a high quality dog food... my dogs are 4 and 6months. So how do I go about switching them from a crap food to something high quality without it bothering them?

Thanks!

Answer 1

Pumpkin is fine however do not give a dog that size the amount you are feeding..it is too much. The amount you are feeding your toy dog is the amount that would be suggested for a dog the Size of a Great Dane (and then it isn't likely that that amount would even be recommended).

As for food do it gradually over the course of a week start mixing the food together and gradually increase the Canidae and decrease the IAMS.

Canidae is a much better quality food then IAMS..it is likely that once established on a better food your dog won't have poop problems any more. You will also find that with feeding a better quality food you will need to feed less of it then you did the low quality food.This is because the dog is getting better nutrition and doesn't need to consume as much in order to get what it's body needs.You also won't be as likely to have weight issues either since Canidae has more meat protein and isn't loaded with the cheap carbs that foods like IAMS are.

I'm glad to see you switching to a good quality meat based food.As you already know Canidae is one of the highest rated foods.

Answer 2

Canidae seems to loosen my dogs stools too much, so you can cut back on the pumpkin. Also, make sure you have fresh water available. Switch them over by mixing part of the new with old gradually about a fourth at a time over a week until you are feeding 100 percent the new food.

Answer 3

Pumpkin is fine. It does help in the digestion as you have learned. It can even help with diarrhea believe it or not. For a small dog, a couple of tablespoons a day is all she needs. You don't want to give her too much. When switching dog food, just add a little of the new dog food at first, then add less of the old and more of the new until you are feeding the new one.

Answer 4

You really should see your vet if the dog is that constipated. There's something wrong in a 6m old pup that has that severe a problem.

Switch over gradually to a new food by mixing them together.

Answer 5

eh canidae isn't the best dog food it does make the stool loose and they don't have as what they claim human grade food seriously i use natural choice they include allot of stuff others don't i always say keep it simple as simple can be for the best the more you mix in a dogs food the better chance of then not digesting it completely that's why it is loose stools i mean too much is well just to much u try mixing all that stuff up together and see how well you do on it.... best thing to do is to just break it down to the lamb and rice or chicken and rice they add minerals and vitamins in the food and its a simple meal making it a 100% ddigestible reducing stool and making it firmer in the end

pumpkin is high in fiber which will help with constipation for a short time but if your dog has a issue with stool for over more then a few days you should take it to a vet for the fact it could be a larger problem then what can be seen with the eye and a continued feed of pumpkin could cause other problems in the long run a i see no problem with a short term feed with it except that some dogs are allergic to odd things and could develop a allergy as they grow and since your dogs are so young you may not what to continue feed with it in there diet of course a simple change of food may solve the problem also but there is no way to actually tell with out a look at the dog

one of the major problems i have with vets is the fact that hills science diet puts vets through school with a scholarship the vets sign a contract saying once they graduate they will promote and sell hills science diet dog food this contract extend by law till they discontinue practice not all vets recommend science diet as the best but you will notice that all sell the food in store, hills science diet puppy food first ingredient is corn meaning that the dog food contains at least 75% of corn reducing over all quality and nutriemts of the puppy food all puppy's require a majority of there food to be protien and fats at the sane tine they need the nutrients including minerals and vitamins for a controled growth to properly develop bones and muscle also brain and vision development now if the food contains a mostly corn base they loose at least 85% of the nutrients in there stool which means they are not keeping it for themselfs but leaving it in there yard.... how a vet can promote a food that does not offer propper nutrition such as this can call themselfs a good doctor is beyound me

the proper way to switch foods is to wing them onto the new food since you are coming from a corn based product which is bad to begin with as corn breaks down into sugar and its a hard fiber making it to were the dog digests less than 35% of the food period and what does digest they break down into sugar adding fat not making them firmer or more healthy and reducing the vitamin and mineral count they are actually recieving in the end.. not only that 99% of all company's bake there food a temp higher then 250 degrees reducing mineral and much needed oils in the food breaking down the actual nutrition of the dog food so they have to spray the food with added fats and oil to add flavor to the food ... these fats and oils are preserved with un-natural preservatives adding chemicals to your dogs food now once they add these added fats and oils they have to let them air dry they air dry them over what looks like a giant hair dryer under a belt or some times a over head dryer that and the belt runs under nieth them this also since the air is over a 100 degrees to dry it fast also reduces the nutrients in the now added oils still reducing the quality of the food not to mention they use chicken by-products which include by AFFCO standards ( head,feet,intestines) majority of the time what they don't tell you is these by-products have set out on a farm or some thing in the sun or just a trash can for days at a time collecting bacteria and diseases now most are killed in the processing but the point is still well made i think

now to properly change your dog over it is best done for seven days

day 1 85% old food rest new food
then day 2 50/50
and then slowly work your way there into day seven slowly reducing old food and increasing new food

Answer 6

Do it gradually. Mix it in with their regular food for a while.

Have you talked with your veterinarian? They may have some suggestions for your dog's constipation problem.

Answer 7

you have to switch the food gradually add in more and more canidae every day and add less and less lams puppy every day