# alternative to Arden Grange?  poop probs !!



## NeverSayNever (20 June 2012)

please dont suggest raw, been there done that and just not managable for us...

young bitch is the muckiest pup ive ever known she is approaching 18 months and finally have got her being dry in her kennel and not peeing on her bed etc  However i had reduced her food as she was pooping so much - all my other dogs = 2 meals - 2 poops per day. However having reduced it, she lost too much weight so i had to up it again and today for example, she pooped when out first thing, and 2 hours later when i went to take her out again, she had pooped in her kennel. She has 'been' something like 4 or 5 times today, not huge amounts mind you, and solid and properly formed. There is a chance that this is some kind of dominance related marking behaviour I think and she is also insecure and anxious in many ways... however I really dont think she should have that must waste in her to utilise! 

Ive spoken to Arden Grange and she has been on 3 different varieties of their food with no difference - am gutted as all my others have settled so well on AG and been on it for years!! So Im looking for something else to try her on? Suggestions on a postcard Thanks!


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## Red30563 (21 June 2012)

Interestingly, we've just put our two terriers on to Arden Grange. Katy, the BT, won a 15kg bag as a prize in a dog show!

They have been on it about a week. OH and I both commented this morning how much Katy is now pooing! They are healthy poos but she has gone from doing 2 a day to some days doing 4.

Dougal seems unaffected by the change in food.

Before the AG they were both on Burns.  

Probably doesn't help you much but thought it might of interest!


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## NeverSayNever (21 June 2012)

Red30563 said:



			Interestingly, we've just put our two terriers on to Arden Grange. Katy, the BT, won a 15kg bag as a prize in a dog show!

They have been on it about a week. OH and I both commented this morning how much Katy is now pooing! They are healthy poos but she has gone from doing 2 a day to some days doing 4.

Dougal seems unaffected by the change in food.

Before the AG they were both on Burns.  

Probably doesn't help you much but thought it might of interest!
		
Click to expand...

thanks red, hmmm, that is interesting


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## krlyr (21 June 2012)

You may find that looking at the ingredients is more helpful than looking at the names. The most common reason for excessive poos is a food high in poorly digested filler ingredients.
Arden Grange is a half decent brand but it is still 26% rice, and then contains maize as the next highest ingredient. Maize is corn, and corn is poorly digested (think of humans and sweetcorn - and we're more omnivorous than dogs!) 
Ingredients
Chicken Meal* (min 27%), Whole Grain Rice (min 26%), Whole Grain Maize, Chicken Fat*, Beet Pulp, Fresh Chicken (min 5%), Dried Brewers Yeast, Egg Powder, Fish Meal*, Linseed, Fish Oil*, Minerals, Vitamins, Nucleotides, Prebiotic FOS, Prebiotic MOS, Cranberry Extract, Chondroitin Sulphate, Glucosamine Sulphate, MSM, Yucca Extract. * Preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extract. 


I would suggest trying a food without maize to see if that helps. Something like Fish4Dogs that uses high levels of fish, and then potato as the carb, could be worth a try - yes, it's more pricey but if it's more digestible then you feed less of it, and the day-to-day value of it can work out quite reasonable.

I often hear Autarky recommended alongside Arden Grange, the chicken variety does contain maize as the main ingredient so would avoid that, but the salmon & rice one is meant to be good for the price. 
http://www.dodsonandhorrellpetfood.co.uk/autarky-adult-salmon
Ingredients
Salmon (min 35%), rice (min 33%), oats, chicken fat, yeast, full fat linseed, alfalfa, prairie meal, peas, unmolassed beet pulp, dicalcium phosphate, mannan oligosaccharides, milk thistle, marigold, nettle, seaweed, blackcurrant extract, carrot, yucca extract, thyme, beetroot, tomato, peppermint, fennel, paprika, turmeric, dandelion, ginger, fenugreek, oregano & aloe vera (min 0.4% herbs, min 4% vegetables). 

Alternatively, CSJ is quite a good low-budget food and I've heard that they're doing a grain free food called "No grainer!". It's not the most amazing food but tripe is often recommended for putting weight on dogs so could suit your girl?
http://www.csjk9.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=4&idproduct=127
Composition
Tripe (26%), Potato, Poultry Meal, Chicken Fat, Duck Meal, Chicken Liver, Peas, Salmon Meal (4%), Unmolassed Beet Pulp, Alfalfa, Carrot, Full Fat Linseed, Yeast, Apple, Cellulose, Nettle, Seaweed, Mannan Oligosaccharides (1,500mg/kg), Milk Thistle, Marigold, Tomato, Glucosamine (1,000mg/kg), Dandelion, Celery, Burdock Root, Devil&#8217;s Claw Root, Yucca Schidigera, Blackcurrant, Green Lipped Mussel (100mg/kg), Kale, Beetroot, Rosemary.


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## NeverSayNever (21 June 2012)

krylr, thats really nice of you to get all that info for me! Many thanks , will look into all your suggestions!


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## WeedySeaDragon (21 June 2012)

We had a similar problem on Fish4Dogs a while ago. All three had been on it for years (well, since birth for the youngest) and it was great then all of a sudden late last year they all started poo loads more than previously. No idea what happened as the food had always been fine before and on paper it should have exactly the opposite effect 

We've now got them on Acana's grain free formulas (Ranchlands, Pacifica, Grasslands, Wild Prairie) and everything is back to normal, in fact it's better than before. Like Fish4Dogs it looks quite expensive but we do feed much less of it.


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## ladyt25 (21 June 2012)

krlyr said:



			You may find that looking at the ingredients is more helpful than looking at the names. The most common reason for excessive poos is a food high in poorly digested filler ingredients.
Arden Grange is a half decent brand but it is still 26% rice, and then contains maize as the next highest ingredient. Maize is corn, and corn is poorly digested (think of humans and sweetcorn - and we're more omnivorous than dogs!) 
Ingredients
Chicken Meal* (min 27%), Whole Grain Rice (min 26%), Whole Grain Maize, Chicken Fat*, Beet Pulp, Fresh Chicken (min 5%), Dried Brewers Yeast, Egg Powder, Fish Meal*, Linseed, Fish Oil*, Minerals, Vitamins, Nucleotides, Prebiotic FOS, Prebiotic MOS, Cranberry Extract, Chondroitin Sulphate, Glucosamine Sulphate, MSM, Yucca Extract. * Preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary extract. 


I would suggest trying a food without maize to see if that helps. Something like Fish4Dogs that uses high levels of fish, and then potato as the carb, could be worth a try - yes, it's more pricey but if it's more digestible then you feed less of it, and the day-to-day value of it can work out quite reasonable.

I often hear Autarky recommended alongside Arden Grange, the chicken variety does contain maize as the main ingredient so would avoid that, but the salmon & rice one is meant to be good for the price. 
http://www.dodsonandhorrellpetfood.co.uk/autarky-adult-salmon
Ingredients
Salmon (min 35%), rice (min 33%), oats, chicken fat, yeast, full fat linseed, alfalfa, prairie meal, peas, unmolassed beet pulp, dicalcium phosphate, mannan oligosaccharides, milk thistle, marigold, nettle, seaweed, blackcurrant extract, carrot, yucca extract, thyme, beetroot, tomato, peppermint, fennel, paprika, turmeric, dandelion, ginger, fenugreek, oregano & aloe vera (min 0.4% herbs, min 4% vegetables). 

Alternatively, CSJ is quite a good low-budget food and I've heard that they're doing a grain free food called "No grainer!". It's not the most amazing food but tripe is often recommended for putting weight on dogs so could suit your girl?
http://www.csjk9.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=4&idproduct=127
Composition
Tripe (26%), Potato, Poultry Meal, Chicken Fat, Duck Meal, Chicken Liver, Peas, Salmon Meal (4%), Unmolassed Beet Pulp, Alfalfa, Carrot, Full Fat Linseed, Yeast, Apple, Cellulose, Nettle, Seaweed, Mannan Oligosaccharides (1,500mg/kg), Milk Thistle, Marigold, Tomato, Glucosamine (1,000mg/kg), Dandelion, Celery, Burdock Root, Devils Claw Root, Yucca Schidigera, Blackcurrant, Green Lipped Mussel (100mg/kg), Kale, Beetroot, Rosemary.
		
Click to expand...

That's a really helpful post - I am going to go and look at my dog's food now and see what's in that as she too seems to go to the loo an awful lot and i cannot get any weight on her even though she will scoff anything!!!


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## lexiedhb (22 June 2012)

I fed Wainwrights or skinners before switching to raw with no bottom issues, except wind


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## NeverSayNever (7 July 2012)

just to update this

she's been on the csj nograiner with no difference whatsoever

am seriously considering trying raw again now...  but it would have to be easier than it was last time we fed it (8 years ago ish). Are the natures diet pack thingies any good?


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## cefyl (7 July 2012)

Try Prize Choice frozen meals.  Nugget or 300g blocks, raw meat with fruit and veggies in.  Alot of pet shops have this in their freezer.  Nature Diet is cooked, some dogs get really bad runs from it.


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## NeverSayNever (7 July 2012)

am looking at natural instinct packs? anyone feed this?

thanks cefyl, will have a look


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## NeverSayNever (7 July 2012)

cefyl said:



			Try Prize Choice frozen meals.  Nugget or 300g blocks, raw meat with fruit and veggies in.  Alot of pet shops have this in their freezer.  Nature Diet is cooked, some dogs get really bad runs from it.
		
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is natures menu thats on the prize choice website different?


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## Pendlehog (7 July 2012)

Yes natures menu is different to naturediet, natures menu is raw frozen "nuggets" of meat, veg and rice (they do one with no rice in if you prefer).  I feed their tripe nuggets alongside a "normal" raw diet of meat and bones.

ETA: I haven't fed the natural instinct packs but they look like good stuff and I be happy to feed them to my dog based on the ingredients


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## Paint Me Proud (7 July 2012)

We feed a product called Belcando. It is high quality, high meat content dry feed.

The company that sells it over here offers a 'breeders club' discount - you can pay £5 to £25 one off fee and then you get that amount discount on every order that year (ie if you join the £25 club you get 25% discount of each order) 

Our dogs are doing really well on it


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## millimoo (7 July 2012)

My lab is on http://www.naturaldogfoodcompany.com/
It was recommended to me by the vets receptionist when my lab developed an exploding reaction to JWB.
Have used it for 4 years. My dog doesn't smell, fart and poohs twice a day max, which are well formed and firm.... Sorry to be so graphic. It's not the cheapest, but a large bag last me 7-8 weeks.
Description:
Every ingredient used in Natural Dog Food is of the highest quality and has been carefully selected to reflect the natural diet of the dog. Our unique mix of fresh, human grade meats, vegetables, whole grains and nutritional herbs has been tailored to ensure that every single nutrient required by your dog is provided in its natural form. 

Completely free from wheat, soya, dairy, maize and all artificial ingredients, the entire Natural Dog Food range is hypoallergenic making it ideal not only for maintaining your dogs health day-to-day but also as an effective alternative to many prescription diets.


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## NeverSayNever (7 July 2012)

thank you, that gives me some more options to look into


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## leflynn (9 July 2012)

I've had problems poos with our Greyhound and switched him to skinners and he's much better, plus he looks better for it too


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## Rudolph's Red Nose (9 July 2012)

My young border collie is on Nature Diet, apart from bottom burps he does really well on it, lovely shiny coat etc and I would thoroughly recommend.

The only problem I have had when buying bulk is to stay away from the fishy ones as I have had a couple trays with the packaging blown and the smell


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