You know you have a problem when..

Your dog has more name tags than you have shoes. I went through some dog stuff this evening and didnt even realize how much I hoard when it comes to pet supplies. I absolutely loathe shoe/clothes shopping for myself, but when it comes to pet related stuff, sign me up!
Also found a bunch of collars, some of which I'll be donating since they are never even used, hopefully if I can foster in the near future, they will all be shared.

Work updates and some goodies

So it's been 2 weeks since I started my new job and I love it! Overall, its not as difficult as I anticipated, just keeping track of multiple things at once takes some getting used to. My favorite part is talking to customers about nutrition and meeting all the pups that come in. 
Hardest part is staying within store budget when ordering products weekly. There are so many cool things that I want to get, but right now, I have to mostly stick with the essentials like food and treats. 

I was cleaning out the store freezer today and found a bunch of pre-made raw that expired 2 months ago. So I got 

- 22 lbs of instinct lamb
-14 lbs instinct beef
- 12 lbs primal buffalo
- 8 lbs primal chicken/salmon mix for cats (but will most likely go to dogs since my parents cat is not a fan of premade). 
For a grand total of 56 lbs! 
Since I havent been able to find any freebies on craigslist, I'm glad I can get from work. The dogs will be eating buffalo tomorrow for the first time, we'll have to see how that goes. 

Some exciting news

Long story short, I had a temp job few months ago at a pet boutique. Even though I enjoyed it, it was only for 6-8 weeks during holidays. The owner recently got in touch with me and asked me if I would be interested in becoming a manager (the current one wasn't working out due to several issues). Since I've been looking for a full time job the last few months, I of course agreed and I started last week.

Even though I'm kind of anti-social at times (social anxiety), I absolutely love working in this environment. It gives me an opportunity to educate pet owners and make significant difference in the lives of their pets. I can probably talk about nutrition for hours given the chance, so this is a great outlet for that.

I love being able to browse hundreds of pet products and select the best ones for the store. I've also given the owner several suggestions on what to do in regard to bringing it more profit and he thinks my ideas are the greatest.

It's also nice to get pet stuff for myself at wholesale prices and some freebies time to time ;)

The owner ordered these barky barks (esophagus) but didnt realize how bad they smelled (kinda resemble road kill) because they came from grass fed animals, so I got a box of 90 treats for free. The pups are in heaven since they think the smellier the better when it comes to food.

Anyways, I'm very excited about the job, hopefully it would be a great way for me to help others while making friends and building connections in the process :)

Merrick bargain shopping and review

So few months ago, I bought a bag of Merrick Beef and Barley formula for Indy. I've been trying to find a food for him that works with his sensitive stomach. He's done well on Instinct, but its very expensive and I was concerned about the ash levels in the food.
I do have a few reservations about Merrick, there have been some quality control issues, like people finding plastic in food (but than again, I'm not sure about the reliability of the source). I mainly got this food because they reformulated their line and increased protein to 30% which to me is far more appealing.

I've tried Indy on several grain inclusive foods, but the ones that tend to be 24-26% protein give him dry coat and make him itch. The high protein grain free foods(except Instinct and Holistic Select), give him the runs. My mindset has shifted over the last few months in regard to grain free foods. So many companies are incorporating potatoes/sweet potatoes into their formulas, I'm starting to wonder whether the dogs are better off eating certain grains over high glycemic starches.

So I was curious to try this food. Ingredient wise it looks good to me:

Deboned Beef, Pork Meal, Barley, Salmon Meal (source of Omega 3 fatty acids), Peas, Brown Rice, Sweet Potato, Pork Fat (preserved with natural mixed tocopherols), Oats, Pea Protein, Natural Flavor, Flax Seed, Carrots, Apples, Blueberries, Organic Alfalfa, Salmon Oil, Minerals (Salt, Dicalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Sodium Selenite), Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, Rosemary Extract.


I like the inclusion of salmon meal that lists before pea protein, along with salmon oil further down the list. It still has sweet potatoes in it, but it's not a 2nd ingredient. I also like the fact that it contains probiotoics for digestive health. 

He's been on this food about 3 weeks and I've definitely noticed a huge change in his skin and coat. Previously he was on Dr. Tims Pursuit. While he liked the food, it dried out his coat, made him itchy and he had a yeasty odor to his skin. Since the switch, his itching has subsided and he has the softest and shiniest coat right now. The poops are small and firm and his energy levels are pretty good as well. You can see how his coat looks in this picture taken few days ago:

The Classic line comes in 3 flavors (beef, chicken and lamb) and several life stages including adult, small breed, puppy and senior. It costs around $53-55 for a 30 lb bag. Not cheap, but little less than Instinct. 


Last week I was browsing some deal sites and someone posted a great deal on Merrick puppy food, $5 for 5 lb bag, plus 15% off coupon to first time customers and free shipping on orders over $60. 

I was a bit apprehensive about ordering puppy food since neither of my dogs are puppies, but based on guaranteed analysis, there's very little difference between the 2. 

The puppy formula has 60  more calories per cup and 1% more fat, otherwise it's identical to the adult food. I ended up ordering 12 bags (60 lbs total) which after discount and free shipping cost me only $51. 
I'll be donating some of it to the rescue and give couple bags to my sisters hyper dog, but I want to see how Indy does on it compared to the beef formula. 
The ingredient list for this food:

Deboned Chicken, Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Brown Rice, Peas, Barley, Sweet Potato, Chicken Fat (preserved with natural mixed tocopherols), Salmon Meal (source of Omega 3 fatty acids), Oats, Natural Chicken Flavor, Carrots, Apples, Blueberries, Organic Alfalfa, Salmon Oil, Minerals (Salt, Dicalcium Phosphate, Calcium Carbonate, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Zinc Sulfate, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Amino Acid Complex, Sodium Selenite), Vitamins (Choline Chloride, Vitamin E Supplement, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin B12 Supplement, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Folic Acid, Thiamine Mononitrate), Yucca Schidigera Extract, Dried Lactobacillus plantarum fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus casei fermentation product, Dried Enterococcus faecium fermentation product, Dried Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation product, Rosemary Extract.

30% protein and 16% fat

I still plan on doing more research on Merrick and emailing them with specific questions about the quality of their ingredients. 

Anyways, here's my haul for the day (now I need to figure our where to hide it, so the dogs dont get to it. 

Dog nutrition talk show

If anyone is interested, contributors include Dr. Tim Hunt, Dr Karen Becker and Dr. TJ Dunn.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/aquabotanic/2013/02/23/pet-radio-show-proper-nutrition-for-dogs


I found most of it to be common sense, but it was refreshing to hear some comments from Dr. Tim who has his own line of dry pet food. 

" I think raw inclusion with kibble is the best way to go.."

" Raw is a very good diet if you're able to do is correctly, I think dogs look tremendous on it.."

" Veterinarians as a rule are the worst people to talk to about nutrition, they just know nothing coming out of school... we are just spoon fed the Hills doctrine, trust Hills and we'll take care of you"

I disagree with the woman vet (not Dr. Becker), who insisted that if food is AAFCO approved, it's sufficient for most dogs, even crappy grocery store brands. This is because they have passed the feeding trials. 
Except, that feeding trials are only 6 months long and allow 6 out of 8 dogs to drop out if they are not doing well. Basically if it sustains their life for that period, the food goes on the market. 

What I find ironic is that raw feeders get critisized for feeding "imbalanced" diet to their dogs because it has not been studied, even though they have been feeding it for years (not 6 months) and are thriving. 

Celebrating V-day, raw food edition

Since I work at a pet boutique part time, I get to take home things that have "expired" or have a best by date. Most of them are dried goods like treats and dry food, which is still fine to feed 3-4 months past that date. 

Yesterday I was sorting out the freezer and found few raw food items that were expiring this month. Of course if you're a raw feeder you'll know that it's completely fine to feed expired raw as long as it's been frozen, even if it's 2-3 years passed its sell by date. Normally the store owner will take raw for her own dogs (she runs a rescue), but since they cannot have bones or chicken. I scored 5 lbs of NV instinct chicken raw mix,  primal turkey necks and marrow bones. I'm not a fan of marrow bones since they can crack teeth, but neither of my dogs are aggressive chewers. I usually let them lick out the marrow and lightly gnaw on them before tossing them. The turkey necks always come in handy, they love those things. 

I also got 3 canisters of Instinct raw daily boost which is essentially dehydrated meat powder with added vitamins and veggies. Here's what the lamb one looks like:

Lamb, Lamb Heart, Lamb Liver, Pumpkinseeds, Apples, Carrots, Ground Lamb Bone, Butternut Squash, Ground Flaxseeds, Montmorillonite Clay, Broccoli, Lettuce, Spinach, Dried Kelp, Apple Cider Vinegar, Parsley, Honey, Salmon Oil, Olive Oil, Blueberries, Alfalfa Sprouts, Persimmons, Inulin, Rosemary, Sage, Clove.

It's very high protein, so I add a tablespoon mixed in with the raw food few times a week for extra nutrients. Not something I would buy since it's like $25 a pop. 

In other news, I will probably be switching Indy back to Instinct dry, he's done very well on it, he will still get raw few times a week for variety and dental benefits. The last couple months he's been eating Holistic Select grain free. While it's a decent food and it seemed to help with his allergies, I don't think it has enough fat in it. I noticed an increase in dandruff and more itching which was due to having dry winter skin. Even though he gets salmon oil almost daily, he was still getting dandruff. He had the most fabulous coat on Instinct Salmon and loved the taste. The only downside is that it's pretty expensive, since I get a discount at work, it's doable now, but I don't think I can afford it once I leave. So I'm still trying to find the perfect food for him that's affordable, grain free and won't give him the runs. 

The mini score from today:

Food comparison demo

I wanted to add this as a follow up to last post. This is a demo I made for the store I work at, which basically shows how much more you have to feed of low quality food, compared to premium brands. Most people don't realize that it's not normal for an average size dog to be eating 3-4 cups a day. A lot of them do, since very little of it is actually assimilated by the body and the rest comes out in a form of a large, smelly turd. You can guess which kibble is on the right.