Where would you get poultry for yourself?

Yes, you should stop fish liver oil immediately. I also think that it's imperative to get fish oil (like salmon oil) and E asap. This is a potent anti-inflammation agent. You can get deodorized fish oil for such a sensitive stomach.

I'd take immediate steps to start this dog on limited ingredients so you could know which do and do not cause trouble. There is no way at all now to know.

My own preference would be (1) raw (by a long shot), but it could also be (2) cooked or (3) carefully chosen limited-ingredient canned. In any of these modes, I/we can give you examples.

No, a moose or a deer is not what you want at this moment, IMO. The dog needs easy-to-digest efficient protein with easy-to-digest bones, which is pretty much either rabbit or poultry.

I would veto the idea of putting this dog on a prescription diet food, which I saw mentioned. If you read the ingredients you will see why. The good ones are a million ingredients and the bad ones are just ... bad.



P.S. Please don't continue with Iams.

Have you ever tried gingerroot supplements for digestive issues?

We tend to use frozen chicken breasts (get a big box of them and defrost as needed) for ourselves and only have fresh chicken right after a trip to town which is maybe twice a month, if that. We do get our fresh chicken from the butcher in town, where I'd order my bulk raw if we do switch to raw.

Please, tell me why you're against the Acana Light & Fit? If I'm not ready to go raw, is this not alright? For now? I most definitely want to get her off the Iams, which I wasn't thrilled about in the first place but had to try something else and then she did 'alright' on it so didn't want to switch her again but now, after reading up about it, I NEED to switch.

I have never heard of gingerroot supplements...but ginger is known to calm tummy troubles for humans, so why not for a dog? Another item to add to my list.

I don't want to seem difficult or dead-set against going raw but I'm just not ready to do that.

Let's pretend I COULDN'T go raw (for whatever reason, say I live in a meat-free community, ha ha)...what then?

Frozen chicken breasts, along with necks or backs can form the core of a very good raw diet for a dog.

Don't be shocked if the Vet has very harsh criticisms of raw feeding.
Most Vets get little to no nutritional training in Vet school, and what they do is largely sponsored by the food companies (can you say Bias?)

 Quote: Carrie R. Voeltz

I don't want to seem difficult or dead-set against going raw but I'm just not ready to do that.

Let's pretend I COULDN'T go raw (for whatever reason, say I live in a meat-free community, ha ha)...what then?

Honest Kitchen by mail.

(( Please, tell me why you're against the Acana Light & Fit? ))

Again, for me, I would want to do limited ingredients to help me find out what the dog has problems with. I would want to start with meat and bones (or meat and calcium).

This:
Chicken meal, steamed oats, fresh free-run chicken, peas, brown rice, fresh deboned salmon, chicken liver, fresh whole eggs, chicken fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols and rosemary), pea fiber, sun-cured alfalfa, salmon oil, pumpkin, chicken cartilage, red delicious apples, carrots, turnip greens, cranberries, Saskatoon berries, organic sea vegetables (kelp, bladderwrack, dulse), burdock root, marshmallow root, juniper berries, fenugreek, sweet fennel, angelica root, sea buckthorn, chicory root, stinging nettle, red raspberry leaf, milk thistle, peppermint leaf, marigold flowers.

is far from limited ingredients.

Uh yeah. Last year when the first vet said we were dealing with arthritis (after we removed a spindle cell tumour--well, I saw "we" like I made the incision, ha ha, all I did was pay for it) they convinced me to buy a bag of Purina Joint Mobility for $110. Because, you know, I thought they were looking out for my dog's best interests I couldn't wait to see if it helped. Lo and behold, after a few weeks I did some research on it and can you say CRAPPY? (A little too late on the research, I know, but I'm learning as I go.) All because Purina gives the staff a deal on that garbage and a free t-shirt now and then--my dog had to suffer through two diet changes. I was livid.

And don't even get me started on the mis-diagnosis. Yes, lupus is 'the great pretender' but I had to diagnose my own dog with information from the internet and insist on an ANA test.

The new vet has already impressed me and we're only one visit in. I should hear from her in the next few days I would think and will mention the raw diet idea to her. Don't worry, I am well aware they don't know everything, ha ha, she even admitted that they don't get much 'new fangled' training about herbs and natural remedies in school but sounds open-minded.

A friend is studying Chinese Medicine in...well, China, ha ha...and I emailed him. With the time difference and his busy schedule I don't know when I will hear back but I hope he can offer some advice too.

http://www.b-naturals.com/newsletter/tag/systemic-lupus-erythematosus/

(The whole page)