Best food for Shih tzu puppy?

[Tilly's Mom]

I have a 6 month old Shih tzu puppy who is currently on Eukanuba. She has dry skin,tends to scratch and I heard that puppies get allergies to food they eat up until 6 months of age. Should I switch her food? If so what is suggested? Thank you for your suggestions.

[bendyfoot]

I'm not a big fan of Eukaneuba. Generally, if you look at the first five ingredients you can get an idea about the quality of the food. Although the first ingredient (chicken) is good, it's got some sketchy ingredients in there.

Chicken, Corn Meal, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum, Chicken By-Product Meal, Fish Meal (source of fish oil), Brewers Rice, Chicken Digest, Dried Beet Pulp (sugar removed), Dried Egg Product, Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E, and Citric Acid), Brewers Dried Yeast, Salt, Potassium Chloride, Vitamins [Vitamin E Supplement, Ascorbic Acid, Beta-Carotene, Vitamin A Acetate, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate (source of vitamin B1), Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement (source of vitamin B2), Inositol, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride source of vitamin B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid], Calcium Carbonate, Choline Chloride, Minerals [Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Carbonate], Dicalcium Phosphate, DL-Methionine, Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Marigold Extract (source of lutein), Chondroitin Sulfate, Rosemary Extract.

You've got corn (a useless, indigestible filler responsible for some allergies) as the second ingredient, followed by another grain, followed by by-products. This would not be on my top 10 list (actually, I'd never feed this to by dogs, period)

I would definitely recommend looking for a higher-quality, preferably grain-free, kibble, if that's the route you want to take (as opposed to raw). We used to feed our crew Orijen and were extremely happy with what it did for our critters, including for their skin/coats (eliminated any dandruff/dry skin). There are other good dry foods out there. Others will be able to recommend some I'm sure (sorry, my brain won't let me recall any other brands right now)

Just for comparison's sake, here's Orijen puppy ingredients...notice the difference? You've got meat protein in 4/5 of the first 5, all of which are whole or meals (meals are good), and potato (a tuber) as a starch, as opposed to a grain. And also notice how you can actually pronounce all the other ingredients!

Deboned chicken, chicken meal, turkey meal, russet potato, lake whitefish, chicken fat, sweet potato, whole eggs, turkey, salmon meal, salmon and anchovy oils, salmon, natural chicken flavour, sunflower oil, sun-cured alfalfa, dried brown kelp, carrots, spinach, peas, tomatoes, apples, psyllium, dulse, glucosamine Hcl, cranberries, black currants, rosemary extract, chondroitin sulfate, sea salt.

TONIC HERBS AND BOTANICALS

Chicory root, licorice root, tumeric root, funugreek, marigold flowers, sweet fennel, zea mays, peppermint leaf, chamomile flowers, dandelion, summer savory, rosehips.

ORGANIC MINERALS

Iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate.

PROBIOTIC MICROORGANISMS

Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product.

PREMIUM VITAMINS

Mixed tocopherols (source of vitamin E), choline chloride, vitamin A, vitamin D3, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin B12, folic acid, biotin.

[Tilly's Mom]

Thank you for all the helpful info. One question though. I noticed in the orijen there is tomatoes and apples. I was told those are bad for dogs. Have you heard this?

[BusterBoo]

I am feeding my tzu/bichon a mix of Orijen Fish and Wellness Fish, and have no problems with itchies or dry skin. The only time he does scratch is when I give him extra "treats"....human stuff

As for tomatoes and apples...I haven't heard anything about them being bad, however I do know that Buster has no problems with apples...he absolutely LOVES them. I doubt that there would be enough tomatoe in a pet food to be a problem, unless your dog has an allergy to them. From past experience, I do know that raisins/grapes are extremely bad for dogs.

Sure would like to see pictures of your pup!!!

[Tilly's Mom]

Originally Posted by BusterBoo

I am feeding my tzu/bichon a mix of Orijen Fish and Wellness Fish, and have no problems with itchies or dry skin. The only time he does scratch is when I give him extra "treats"....human stuff

As for tomatoes and apples...I haven't heard anything about them being bad, however I do know that Buster has no problems with apples...he absolutely LOVES them. I doubt that there would be enough tomatoe in a pet food to be a problem, unless your dog has an allergy to them. From past experience, I do know that raisins/grapes are extremely bad for dogs.

Sure would like to see pictures of your pup!!!

Thank you I think I am going to try the Orijen and see how it goes. I am going to wait a couple of months being doing so because she is still a little young to change her food just yet...I think?! I know what you mean about the human food....I am bad for that and have a hard time stopping now that I started. I have thought of giving her her dog food dipped in plain yogurt when we are eating, hell she doesn't know the difference if it's our food our hers...lol Here is a few pics of her. Thanks for the info.

[bendyfoot]

Apples are totally fine and make a wonderful healthy treat. Tomatoes are fine too, but shouldn't be consumed in enormous quantities (like several pounds at a go). Both are great as components of a healthy diet. Try to avoid giving people food scraps if they're seasoned, salted, fried, fatty etc. A little yogurt or fresh fruit or veg or plain meat scraps wouldn't hurt, but be mindful that any extra snacks mean extra calories, and you don't want your pup to become unhealthily portly.

As far as the food change goes for you little cutie, there's absolutely no reason not to start it right away...why keep feeding her junk during these very important months of growth? Just do the transition gradually, over the course of 10 days or so. A simple rule of thumb to switch is "10%". Day one, feed 10% new food and 90% old, mixed together. The second day, feed 20% new food and 80% old food...and so on. For most dogs thats more than enough time to do a change that won't upset a potentially sensitive tummy.