I am still having problems with Innova Evo after almost two months now. I have a 4.5 month old gsd and I've heard that it could take a puppy an entire 20 pound bag before it becomes used to it. The problem I'm having is loose stools. If I feed her 2/3 to 1 cup, she will have pudding stools in the afternoon and if I feed her 1/2 cup only, then she will have normal firm stools. I feed her Innova in the morning and raw diet at lunch and dinner. I'm pretty sure that her loose stools is due to Innova Evo because she only has pudding stools on days that I feed her 2/3 to 1 cup of Innova. Should I switch her back to Wellness, which was her first kibble?. I'm also trying to cut her meals to two a day instead of three, but I don't think half a cup of Innova in the morning can last her till her 5pm meal. I like to know your experiences with Innova Evo and what I can do if I want to stick with it. Thanks very much for your time.
first off you could try switching the kibble meal to the last meal of the day. I have noticed that sometimes this helps (don't ask me why! lol) maybe because kibble takes longer to digest this will give a longer time frame where you aren't feeding another meal on top of the EVO.
you could just decrease the amount of EVOyou are feeding, as you notice that the stools only are loose if you feed 2/3 cup or more. increase the amount of raw instead of the kibble...
Go to an all raw diet for ALL meals and see how she does.
Switch back to your original kibbble, if you are convinced that you need to incorporate dry dog food into your pup's diet.
I would probably cut a pup of her age to only 2 meals a day anyway, it's not necessary to do 3 feedings at this point. I would do the raw meal in the AM and then the kibble PM.
Play around with it, and see what works. Also you could try adding probiotics to her food if you aren't already. This can aid in digestion, especially with teething coming up.
Andy,
Have you written to Innova about feeding their Evo brand to a young puppy? Personally, I wouldn't feed a food containing 42% protien to a growing large-breed puppy.
Maybe if you use half the amount of kibble and soak it in an equal volume of warm water, it might agree with the puppy's system a little more than it currently does.
May I ask why you have chosen a "part kibble" diet? I ask because I have done something similar, as my Briard puppy has to spend some time on the road where feeding raw will be inconvenient for her handler.
In addition to raw, I feed canned tripe, canned Merrick Wing-a-lings (does contain some grain), and reconstituted freeze-dried BARF patties (not all at the same time, of course <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> ) This way her system isn't jolted when she has to travel, the handler doesn't have to worry about freezer space, and her stools stay nice and firm.
Thanks for your replies so far. I am feeding part kibble right now because I don't have the time in the morning to thaw the meat/bone and I know she gets pretty hungry when she first wakes up. I eventually want to do all raw diet when she gets a little older (8months?)and can tolerate not eating so early in the morning (8am). I will try the warm water method, and I think I am going to swich her back to her old kibble after this bag. I wish I could eliminate all kibbles right now, but I just don't want her to starve and throw up bile in the morning. Thanks to Cindy for her long post, I will add some probiotics and see how it goes.
Anne Jones Webboard User Reg: 04-29-2004
Posts: 3825
Loc: Northeast
Offline
If the meat/bone is from the deep freezer & really frozen solid..you might take it out of the freezer & place it in a bowl just before you go to bed & leave it on the counter to thaw overnight. It will most likely just be thawed by the morning depending on the size. I take my dogs food out of the freezer a day or two ahead of the day I want to feed it & let it thaw in the frig. If it is still too cold I will put it in a bowl & place that bowl in a bigger bowl with warm water & let it finish thawing that way before feeding. It usually is only about 1/2hour to be room temp to feed. in the mean time I take my dog out to do some 'work' before she eats breakfast. By the time we come back in & she has time to relax for a while (I don't feed right after exercise)the food is ready by the time she is ready to be fed. I always have food I am feeding in the frig thawed & some in the process of thawing for meals a couple of days away. Hope that this may help.
Jeannette Polowski Webboard User Reg: 03-12-2002
Posts: 732
Loc: Hudson Valley of NY
Offline
I remember reading somewhere here that a person on the board had contacted Innova re: Evo and they did say not to give it to puppies.( under 6 mos??, sorry I don't remember more...)
About the frozen food, I give raw green tripe, venison, chicken, etc... to my dogs frozen solid and they never seem to care. I only feed it to them outside in the kennel so I don't have to worry about them putting it on the floor and gnawing away <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />
No one ever said life was supposed to be easy, life is what you make of it!!
Jason Shipley Webboard User Reg: 05-13-2005
Posts: 220
Loc: northern Illinois
Offline
I feed the EVO to my dogs and have noticed that if you feed too much the stools ger mushy. Keep in mind that it is not only a very protien rich food but is also calorie dense. I'm not sure the exact number but one cup is over 500 calories
Patrick Hennigan Webboard User Reg: 09-01-2001
Posts: 308
Loc: Boston, MA
Offline
Just try different things Andy...all very good ideas.
I feed Evo to my new 6 month old pup and he does awsome on it. I like it alot and his stools are actually very solid compared to when I had him on California Natural. I feed him 5 cups a day plus raw (at seperate times). Not an ounce of fat on this guy...growing like a weed....60lbs at 6 months old as of yesterday.
Sometimes dogs systems have a hard time adjusting especially because the raw is digested differently than the kibble is in the dogs system. I would feed him green tripe for a week for his raw portion and that may help. I had to do that with my last dog and it worked great. It could be that EVO is too rich for his system...Process of elimination and you should figure it out. Also as Cindy said, the probiotics is a good idea to try as well.
Obviously if you can go all RAW it is best but sometimes not practical for folks.
Hope this helps along with all the other ideas.
When purchasing any product from Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. it is understood
that any and all products sold by Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. are sold in Dunn
County Wisconsin, USA. Any and all legal action taken against Leerburg Enterprises,
Inc. concerning the purchase or use of these products must take place in Dunn
County, Wisconsin. If customers do not agree with this policy they should not
purchase Leerburg Ent. Inc. products.
Dog Training is never without risk of injury. Do not use any of the products
sold by Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. without consulting a local professional.
The training methods shown in the Leerburg Ent. Inc. DVD’s are meant
to be used with a local instructor or trainer. Leerburg Enterprises, Inc. cannot
be held responsible for accidents or injuries to humans and/or animals.
Copyright 2010 Leerburg® Enterprises, Inc. All rights reserved. All photos and content on leerburg.com are part of a registered copyright owned by Leerburg Enterprise, Inc.
By accessing any information within Leerburg.com, you agree to abide by the
Leerburg.com Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Innova Evo Feeders
Top
Previous Topic
Index
Next Topic
.jpg)
