The low down on protein
I got this question from blog reader Kristen yesterday:
I have a question for anyone who might have experience with this. One of my dogs completely crashed health-wise last week and this weekend was diagnosed with a liver condition (by the most excellent Rachael Nuzzo at the emergency clinic on Frontage). Anyway, it seems he’ll have to be maintained on a low-protein diet. Has anyone any experience with any of the foods that would be appropriate? Any suggestions on on-going care or recommendations?
We have another vet appointment this afternoon, I was just interested in some real-world dog-owner tidbits, if anyone had anything to offer. Thanks!
First of all Kristin: Do keep us posted on your dog’s condition. Unfortunately I do not have any relevant experiecnce with this issue. Low protein seems like a tough order to fill for a dog when meat is a staple in their diets.
What do you say readers? Anyone have suggestions on how Kristin can feed her ailing pooch low-protein cuisine?
January 24, 2012 - 10:08 AM
I had an elderly foster dog with kidney problems and the vet put him on Purina NF low-protein prescription food. I believe there are other brands available as well. It’s expensive, but the dog (now adopted) is doing very well on it. If your dog is not enthusiastic about it you can add a little canned pumpkin or green beans (the “no salt added” type) & he’ll think he’s getting a treat!
I don’t have any advice for dog food since we’re cat people, but I do have a quick story on a recent cat food switch we did.
We had been buying Friskies Grillers for our brood…they liked it, and the ingredient list, as far as we could tell, didn’t have any ingredients in it that would cause my wife or I a problem if we handled it (wheat flour, barley, malt, etc…they’re surprisingly common in many pet foods).
But, we got to where we could afford a higher quality (price) of cat food, so we bought some Iams food for weight control, since a couple of them tip the scales a pound or two on the heavy side. We wanted to do a side-by-side comparison, so we filled bowls with each food type, and then set them down in front of the hungry cats.
The indoor cats all sniffed the Friskies, then the Iams, and all crowded the Iams bowl, leaving the Friskies behind. The same thing happened with the outdoor cats. So, we did a 50/50 mix of old and new to transition them, and they’ve now been on the new food exclusively for a week. It seems like they may be slimming down ever so slightly, their litter boxes are much less stinky, and one cat who had a problem with balding around his tail has shown signs of new hair growth.
So, we’re pretty excited about how they’ve improved with a better food. Hopefully Kristen can get good results from her dog’s change as well.
I don’t have that issue but have a lab with sensitive stomach. I feed her Fromm gold-she does well with no tummy trouble. I recently contacted Fromm family foods due to her being bored. They are very knowledgable. All made in USA with all USA products.
From blog reader Michele: I was trying to comment on the low protein question on your blog but I’m having computer issues, so am hoping the email will go through instead. Anyway, I don’t have any personal experience with low protein dog diets, but I would recommend she check out a website called DogFoodAdvisor.com It’s a very comprehensive site and I have learned so much about dog foods in the couple weeks since I found it, prompting me to change my dog’s diet. She can do a search for “low protein” and it’ll list out the recommended foods.
We had a Chihuahua who became intolerant of protein. After working with a nutritionist we came up with the following “casserole”: cooked rice, one jar of applesauce, drained cans of green beans, carrots, sweet potatoes, mustard greens and beets. It sounds disgusting and gross, but he loved it! We heated a cup every day, sometimes twice if he bugged us too much. I recommend contacting a nutritionist for something tailored more for your dog.
I also agree w/ checking w/ Dogfoodadvisor.com I had the opposite problem my dog needed high protein no carbs. My dogs love boiled sweet potaotes on their food. The recipe from Karen sounds good for your dog ,the greens will help it be low cal. If dog food is to costly try mixing the casserole from Karen w/ it. Protein is hard on the liver especially beef. You might also try cinnamon, it is a good liver cleanes. You might be able to get a nutritionist through VT that is where they told me about the high protein. Good Luck I hope everything works out.
Alice Swian
In 2001 our pup was diagnosed with a liver condition and Dr. Lanz at VA Tech recommended Hills K
Dr.Lanz recommended Hills KD ir KL as essentually th same:……she loved the KD and her condition improved and stabilized for the next 10 years. Sadly we lost her a few months ago……but not due to her liver condition. Good luck with hoy pooch.
Wow thanks for responding… I just saw this.
This is what’s going on….I’ve spend most of the past week between Roanoke Animal Hospital and the emergency clinic. My baby’s been DXed with a portosystemic shunt…basically, some vein or veins are diverting the blood from around the liver and both causing the liver to deteriorate and putting uncleaned blood back in his system.
We’re currently scheduled for surgery at Tech in two weeks… after reading exhaustively about this issue, pretty much every site came up with the same answer. For long-term purposes, it’s difficult to impossible to maintain a dog with this on meds and through diet indefinitely without incurring further liver and neurological damage. He’s only 2 1/2ish, with hopefully a lot of good years ahead. So if anyone wants a slightly-used 16 year old boy, I’ll be letting him go at a bargain rate to get surgery on my dog! (kidding, sort of
I read the 3-legged dog thread and my dog was a pound rescue too that remained unclaimed (pure bred shih tzu)…we wonder if someone found out he needed surgery and dumped him because of it. Anyway, thanks for all the help!