When you transitioned was it over a few days time? I know the Orijen is much richer than the Natural Balance so maybe it was just a digestive upset? Either way, I have a few suggestions for you. I'm not sure what is available to you at your local pet store but hopefully one of these are!

Fromm. Great company, trust worthy, no recalls. I know a lot of kibble feeders love it here. Here's a link to their grain free line
Four-Star Gourmet Recipes for dogs - Fromm Family Foods

Acana. Similar to Orijen, another great food. Grain free products are on the right!
Champion Petfoods | ACANA | Our Products

Natures Variety. Great grain free food, I have my cat on the Turkey and Duck formula right now
Nature's Variety: Instinct Grain-Free Kibble Diets for Dogs | Nature's Variety

Taste of the Wild. Cost effective and a good grain free food.
Healthy Pet Foods For Dogs Puppies Cats and Kittens - Taste Of The Wild Pet Food


and good thing you've switched off the NB, I did the same only a few weeks ago...looks like they're on the verge of a recall.

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/natural_balance.html

 

Personally, I'd prefer one of the foods mentioned above, especially the Acana and Fromm. They have a slightly lower protein than the Orijen, but both are made by companies that are very particular about the sourcing of their ingredients and the manufacturing of their kibbles. I have a horror about recalls, especially after the 2007 episode where hundreds (if not thousands) of dogs and cats died.
The Natures Balance Sweet Potato and Fish has sweet potato as it's main ingredient, then Salmon and Salmon Meal, but I think you are better off on a food that has a named meat or meals for the first 3 or 4 ingredients.
Also, how slowly did you transition? Some dogs can jump right in on a new food whilst other's can take weeks. Try mixing some of the old food in with the new and slowly increasing the amount of the new food, but do it very slowly, over weeks rather than days if your pup has a sensitive stomach.
Overfeeding can also cause soft stools.
The dried liver treats could also be causing a problem, some dogs have trouble with them as they are very rich, especially if your pup is getting quite a few a day.

 

Thank you so much for the information. The transition to Orijin was pretty fast because we were low on the food he arrived with, I started mixing in a small amount and increased it for about 5 days until his original food ran out and when he was fully transitioned I only continued on it for a few days because he really wasn't feeling well.

The transition to the Natural Balance was done over a period of two weeks and he's been eating it alone for about 1 1/2 weeks, the transition went smoothly and he seemed to do well but his stools are softer and more frequent and he just doesn't look as shiny and healthy as he did before.

I'm going to cut out the liver treats for now to eliminate that possibility and will transition to the Acana. I find it really difficult to know if the upset is from the changes or from the brand of food, I hate the idea of giving him something for a few weeks that isn't agreeing with him and I don't want to keep switching around.

I feel like I need a degree to figure all of this stuff out! I really appreciate that you took the time to supply the information and opinions, I appreciate it.

 

The Orijen and Acana are top quality foods and you CAN'T feed what the bag recommends, this would definitely cause loose stools....Always start out on the very low end, about 1/4 cup would be my guess. And give it a good month for the system to adjust.

 

Yeah, go by the condition of your dog, not by what the bag tells you to feed.

 

I agree with much of what's already been posted. Trying the Acana will be a good middle ground of protein compared to the low plant-based protein% in Natural Balance and the high meat-based protein % in Orijen.

I've fed all the foods that have been mentioned. I think your idea of trying a slow transition to Acana and feeding at the lowest end of what's recommended may work. Re-evaluate after several weeks and see how it's going. There are other more simple formulas (shorter ingredient lists) available should you need to go to them: California Natural or NutriSource.

Hope it all goes well.

 

I give him 3/4 cup in the morning and 3/4 cup for dinner. I find it hard to judge how much he needs because he's a bit food crazy and it seems like he would eat as much as I will feed him. He's 24 pounds, reasonably active and seems to be trim enough - I can see his ribs.

I went to the pet store down the street from my house and she told me she is an expert on dog nutrition, she gave me samples of Oven Baked Tradition adult Lamb and Loyall adult maintenance formula. I came home and checked dogfoodadvisor and the Baked tradition had 4 stars but I find the protein content low (23% with the 1st ingredient being deboned lamb, 2nd ingredient oatmeal) and the Loyall looks like utter crap with a 2.5 star rating (21% protein with the 1st ingredient being poultry by-product and 2nd WW brewers rice...plus it has corn in it). I guess taking kickbacks from a petfood supplier makes her an expert

 

:usa::usa::usa::usa::usa::usa:

 

The bag recommends 1 - 1/2 cups per day for dogs 20-30 pounds and mentioned I should increase the intake up to two times per pound of body weight over adult levels, he's 6 months old so I figured the high end of the recommendation would be reasonable.

Maybe he's having trouble simply because I'm over-feeding him?

 

I think a few people said it earlier but I'll mention it again, don't go by what the bag says because a lot of the time it's way too much and causes loose stools, weight gain, etc! I'd reduce it to half a cup for now and see how he's doing/ looks on that and then increase the amount fed if need be!

 

I'll do that right away and reduce the treats, I've been giving him small broken up pieces of the dried liver for training so maybe I'm just overloading my poor boy.

Thanks again for all of the suggestions and information!

 

Hope everything works out !! No problem and good luck, keep us posted !

 

Oven Baked Tradition Lamb - the first few ingredients

Deboned lamb, oatmeal, ground brown rice, ground pearled barley, lamb meal, ground whole rye, herring meal, dried egg product, canola oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols and citric acid), ground whole flaxseed, potassium chloride, sea salt, choline chloride, inulin (prebiotic), monosodium phosphate.....

The first meat is deboned lamb, which, once is loses it's water, is actually way, way down the list in terms of how much is in the food. So, you're basically getting oatmeal, rice, barley and then some lamb meal.

Loyall Pet Food
Poultry-by-product meal, ground whole wheat, brewers rice, ground whole corn, poultry fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols), wheat flour, wheat middlings, dried plain beet pulp, natural chicken flavor, whole flaxseed, dried egg product, extracted hydrolyzed citric acid fermentation presscake dehydrated, bentonite, salt, potassium chloride, menhaden fish meal, sodium hexametaphosphate, propionic acid (for freshness)........

The only 'meat' in this is the poulty-by-product meal. That so called expert in dog nutrition should be shot for recommending this food, it's horrible.


Please don't listen to her, do your own research and be confident that you are doing the right thing by your dog. This is a good site for comparisons and learning....
Dog Food Reviews - Main Index - Powered by ReviewPost


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Please don't listen to her, do your own research and be confident that you are doing the right thing by your dog.

Not to worry, I am not even planning on using the samples. I am overwhelmed by how much I don't know about choosing the right dog food but even I figured out that they are not the best choice, especially the 2nd option.

I'm going to reduce his food and treats and see if that levels out, we'll figure out the right food and the right amount and hopefully stop having such a poopy puppy!

 

Glad to hear you are reducing the food amount. Our 25 pound active male gets 1/2 cup twice a day of Blue Wilderness or Orijen. He gets loose stool when he is fed too much as well. On a cup a day he has a healthy body mass, is still very energetic and has firm stool. Hopefully you find the amount that works best for your dog.