In a message dated 12/10/2002 2:45:09 PM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes:
> I have some questions about my 11 month-old male Berner puppy. > > - We are planning on switching from ProPlan to another type of > kibble due to his loose stools. We were considering using one of the > following: Flint River, PhD, Wysong, Wellness, Canidae complemented with > raw meat and grains. We would like to hear your suggestions on this > matter.. First consideration is the loose stools...has Bilbo had them all along or is this something new? Have you tried cutting back a bit on the amount you're feeding? After their major growth spurt, I find I have to cut back on how much food I give until it levels off with full maturity. Too much food is a very common cause of loose stools, especially if they sart out firm and finish loose. Has your vet done a stool check for worms? If you decide that changing foods is the way to go, I'd look for a food with something close to the following composition: 26% protein 14% fat 0.80% Calcium (in a 1.2Ca:1P ratio) I'd avoid foods with much higher fat content and if the fat content is higher, then look for a higher protein content as well to balance it out. (Source: Summary presented at the Large Breed Health Care Symposium, Venice Italy, Nov 2001...symposium was sponsored by Iams) I'd look for foods with a high degree of digestibility, ie: a lot of meat sources for protein rather than plant sources. > - We took him hiking a month ago and he started clicking from > his hindquarters. <snip> he only seems to do it when walking > on cement. This is going to sound dumb...but have you checked the length of his nails? > The only problem we have with him is when he sees another dog, he > just lunges because he wants to play and greet the other guy (who may > not want to be as enthusiastic). Any ideas? Use Eileen's suggestion for teaching him to focus on you rather than the other dog. I've been working on this with my intact male... He's not 100% yet, but he's starting to automatically (without a cue) turn in front of me and *sit* when he feels the urge to leap at other dogs. -Sherri Venditti
