I have some general dog questions. I hope you don't mind that there are several in one post.
1. How soft/firm should a dog's feces be? My dog's seem to be very soft (barely holding shape), but he's otherwise healthy (shiny coat, active, alert, etc).
2. I've seen several people suggest giving raw bones to dogs. Would it be safe to give them the bones from large wild game? I hunt antelope, mule deer and (if I draw) elk. Should I worry about chronic wasting disease (it doesn't affect humans, but I don't know about dogs)?
3. My dog is scared of horses. The walking path we take goes by the river, and one part walks past a horse pasture. Sutter could not get away from that pasture fast enough, even though the horses were on the far side. He was abandoned at one of the ranches in this area and I wonder if he was run off by horses. It isn't uncommon for people to ride horses through town here, especially in the summer. How can I teach him to at least stay still instead of running away from any horses we might meet? (The walking path we take and the horse pasture, which I now avoid, are all within city limits).
Thanks in advance for any input on these.
Becca

question number one

what are you feeding your dog.

#2 should be fine may want to check with vet about the wasting disease


#3 is going to take a while

first you want to find a friend with a horse or 2 and than see how close you can get dog to the horses before he freaks out.

than slowly and i mean slowly (like evan as little as an inch a day) shorten the distance. now it is important that the horses be cool with dogs and just standing still.

than when your with your target range consistantly than start moving the horse and having them ride past.


this may take a while depending on your dog.


this is the short version hope it helps

Becca,
The best test for stool firmness is the "Karmen Byrd Pinch test" done by taking a medium size piece of stool and squeezing it between your fingers. There's some type of count to determine the exact grading, but I'm not certain of how it fully works - maybe Cindy or Karmen will describe it fully. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

Hi Becca;
With regards to stool firmness, I'm in the same boat as you - my three month old puppy has had soft stools from the get go - after several fecal tests it was determined he's parasite free. The only time he has firm- as in nothing mushy when it's picked up - poop, is when I give him pepto bismal. Without the Pepto bismal, it's soft but formed (I apologize for the graphic detail). I've tried a couple of premium foods - he's currently on Solid Gold WolfCub Bison and Salmon. After doing extensive research on this topic, I strongly suspect that it's the richness of the premium food that is too much for him developing intestines, hence, the soft poop. I am contemplating switching to a midgrade food that contains less holistic ingredients until he's a few months older and can handle the goodness of the food.

 Quote:

Becca,
The best test for stool firmness is the "Karmen Byrd Pinch test" done by taking a medium size piece of stool and squeezing it between your fingers. There's some type of count to determine the exact grading, but I'm not certain of how it fully works - maybe Cindy or Karmen will describe it fully. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" />

I knew I had picked a good breeder, but didn't realize Karmen had a poop test named after her...Karmen, how come you didn't say you were famous... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Hi Becca, My GSD had unformed or a soft stools until I switched to a raw diet. I did this in the face of opposition from the vet, but until I switched we went through two years of treating him for continuing bouts of the runs which would go progress into colitis. This may not be what you are asking about, but my own experience with the comercial kibble led me to find another way to feed my dog. There is a lot of info on Ed's site regarding a raw diet. I now have two GSDs on raw food and they are in brilliant good health. Their teeth are clean and they have no bad breath. This has caused my vet to take another look and now we have an in depth conversation on how I do this and where I get my food.

Our dog tended to have soft stools from the time she was a pup. We finally decided that was just how she was. But shortly after she turned 4 she started rapidly losing weight. She still had a good appetite and was eating good food but the weight was just falling off her. It ended up that her pancreas had stopped making the enzymes to digest her food. The vet said her pancreas had apparently never done a great job but for for some reason it stopped completely. Soft stools are one sign of this and it is most common in GSD.

I'm feeding Advance Pro food (it's a Sam's Club brand, I think) that my sister-in-law and her father recommended (He hobby breeds Brittany spaniels, so I thought he was a reliable source). I didn't run across here, or the mention of a raw diet until later. In fact, until I found Ed's articles, most people discouraged feed dogs a raw diet.
My dog is a 2-yr old mixed breed (we suspect there's some Rhodesian ridgeback and golden lab in him, but honestly, we don't know), so I don't think it's too-rich food.
Is there an affordable way to feed a natural diet? Meat prices esp. concern me.
Thanks for the advice on horses. I know a few ranchers who would probably let me take him to their places (and who have horses who are accustomed to dogs).

If you cannot feed raw, I highly suggest finding a high quality dog food. I avoid any food that has by-products, corn, wheat, or soy...I am currently feeding Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul...It costs me $24.99 for 35 lbs, plus supplements (vitamins/minerals, digestive enzymes, probiotics, etc.) and fresh foods including veggies & meats. I am unable to feed raw because my dog absolutely refuses to eat raw meat - she is a wierd one when it comes to food.

I have found http://www.dogaware.com to be very informative about dog food & the like, along with Ed's articles. Also, I recently joined K9 Nutrition, which is a Yahoo Mailing List type group. There is a ton of information on raw feeding there.

Canidae is also a good food if you can get it in your area. I pay about the same for a 40 pound bag of Canidae as Melissa pays for the 35 pound bag of Chicken Soup.

Melissa, how long have you been a member over here?