Message Boards

First I want to thank HGTV for the Pet Boards.

I am so excited to share this news.

I have a cat and a dog who both were losing fur "badly" and slowly over the past months and my dog had black spots on the skin.

Researching I found the best thing to do was to change and try new foods. Nothing worked.

Then a trip to one of the pet stores assured me that Earthborn Holistic food was the answer. Only after a few days I saw the difference. Their appearance is remarkable. "Chewy" my dog no longer looks scragly little old man about to croak and the cat doesn't look anymore like it has a bad case of mange. This now is their food for life.

I am so happy., and just had to share this discovery. I bought Chewy the Earthborn "puppy" food even though he's older, because of the extra nutrients.


aaaaaahh-Peace. TYJ


Real Estate Lady

This message has been edited. Last edited by: real estate lady,

REL - So glad it is helping your fur babies. The loss of fur can be related to a thyroid problem. But be sure to check the puppy food for the protein level. High levels of protein is bad for the pet's kidneys. That is why most senior foods have lower amounts of protein.

I have three dogs who are all losing fur and are constantly chewing on themselves. I've had their thyroid checked, that isn't the problem, then I was about to change their food and the vet told me that there was an allergy test for that. She tested all three and that isn't the problem, either. So, now I'm looking at more tests for these dogs.
ANY IDEAS?!

We have a morkie (maltesexyorkie cross)who weighed about 4 lbs. after his first year. Had been feeding him regular xxxxx chow from the grocery store. At a year, I did some internet research to find the optimal diet for him and settled on all natural ingredient food with no grains, 30% proteins, eggs, fruit, vegetables and minerals etc. and went with my list to a pet food store where they were quite knowledgeable and steered me to his food which cost more than 3 times the price of the other. I could not believe the difference...in about 3 months, he had gained 2.5 lbs. and had a smooth, silky coat. I realized he had been eating the equivalent of cereal that first year. And from then on, he's been only on that dry food suplemented with a couple of treats made by the same company. Oh, also forgot how much he vomited that first year...especially when I gave him the so-called treats available in most stores. You could literally see the difference diet made at least for him.

Barb in Miss - I would definately try the food I explained in my OP. Chewy was chewing his back which was flaky and red. I am so pleased the hair has already started to grow out a bit.

Has something to do with the corn content on the regular food...that hurts the animals' overall health...I hear. I even heard alot of corn comes in from Mexico and has been altered with chemicals for population control.

REL -glad you found some food your furkids and they are looking better

Curious kitty here Did you originally feed your pets a specific food and then change to soemthing new a few months ago? Could this have been the cause of fur loss, chewing and looking mangy?

Or could it be weather/climate related? Really bad allergies for humans and pets. Lots more weed spraying due to early season. Ticks and fleas are a huge problem this year as the mighty oaks have produced an early bounty of acorns ~ bringing out our crazy, playful squirrels - sadly these tree rats are riddled with ticks and fleas

Corn (and even wheat) are very common ingredients in less expensive kibbles/dry dog food.
We have always fed our dogs Nutro Choice with lamb and rice, and not had any issues with their coats either.

But each dog/cat is different, and it's always a success to find something that works and they thrive on!

quote:

Originally posted by conrad:
Corn (and even wheat) are very common ingredients in less expensive kibbles/dry dog food.
We have always fed our dogs Nutro Choice with lamb and rice, and not had any issues with their coats either.

But each dog/cat is different, and it's always a success to find something that works and they thrive on!

I agree about the corn and wheat in most commercial dog foods. My problem is my male grey is allergic to corn, rice, peas, pork, yeast, etc. Almost all the high quality foods use rice in place of corn.

quote:

Corn (and even wheat) are very common ingredients in less expensive kibbles/dry dog food.

and cat kibble.
Given a choice, our dogs & cats wouldn't choose chemically scented processed grains.
In the last 2 decades, the number of high quality kibbles has increased significantly.
Isn't it our responsibility to read and understand the list of ingredients> especailly brands readily available at grocery stores.
IMO the better the quality of kibble, the fewer Vet bills

This message has been edited. Last edited by: tessa89,

quote:

Originally posted by tessa89:
IMO the better the quality of kibble, the fewer Vet bills

I agree totally. Ours never see the vet except for inoculations as needed. Since they are now at or reaching senior status, even that is not every year any more.

Several years ago I had a cat that was losing hair, listless, had to be carried in and out of his box to eat. I switched his food (from a big box store brand) to a name brand and he recovered in a week and lived a good many more years.

Good to know. I'm glad they're doing better.

And my dog's name is Chewy too!

Glad to hear the furry ones are feeling better. Out of curiosity, what breed is your pup? Some breeds have a genetic predisposition to hair loss along with darkening of the skin. Pom's are on that list (my mom's Pom had it). My pom has seasonal problems every summer, related either to bug bites or some allergy - but that causes hot spots, not overall hair loss.

We eliminated the corn based foods from our dogs' diets too. The availability of better foods is amazing these days. And the prices are better as well.

Glad they are doing better. It's really upsetting when you can't figure out what is hurting your pets and their health depends on you.

I had itching problems with my 3 year old oldest German Shepherd for a year. The 1 year old has no problems. I switched to grain free food, buy (cheapest) canned tuna and salmon to add to the dry kibble. Give them probiotic enzymes and biotin everyday. Now they both have the most thick and shiny healthy coats ever. And no doggie smell.

I agree that the problem a lot of the time is their food. Yoshi, my peke had terrible allergies. First I figured out that red dye 40 bothered him, then I took chicken away since he was still having some itchies, then I took away foods with lots of grains and he improved so well. He and Miss Priss are both on Blue Buffalo fish and sweet potato kibble and are doing awesome. Their vet even commented at how healthy their coats are..It took me several years to figure out all of that for Yoshi but it was worth it, I felt sorry for him, I can't imagine how miserable they are when they are itching..

I do believe a lot of the grains are not good for them either.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: ~Joyce~,