Food Upgrade for Golden age 5 months - Strong Dog Odour

ctlsleh

Hi All,

Have ad our beautiful Golden puppy on Hills Scienceplan since we got him at age of 8 weeks, but having read a lot of posts on the internet, it doesn't seem to be particularly high quality.
I was thinking of moving to Burns or Taste of the Wild, but also looking at Royal Canin and Acana.....then saw a new one called Green Dog at the local shop, which also seems to be pretty well balanced with no corn.

Im also hoping that a food upgrade will help to reduce the dog odour which is pretty strong, despite regular washing and grooming.......any suggestions and advice?

Thanks
Eoin

Sigma Force

You will get a dozen different opinions of a dozen different types of food so it's best just to get some trial sizes or a small bag of one certain food and slowly introducing it. Burns or taste of the wild etc. are all decent foods, not cheap other foods like Red Mills or Wagg aren't as high quality but I find the poop isn't as stinky with either. Depends on your budget really but most expensive doesn't mean best there are soooo many options it can get confusing but whatever suits your dogs tum and your pocket is a good start.

barbiegirl

Goldens can be prone to food allergies, so wheat free but ultimately whatever suits yours. We found since we moved ours at 12 months to first to James Welbeloved then Robbies her allergies have cleared up so much. She hasn't needed and drugs or vet visits in 3 years for her skin, eyes or nose :-) Robbies costs €60 a bag and between herself and a Jack Russell lasts 6 weeks

ctlsleh

Thanks all for your replies........good idea on the samples.......what age can you move to adult food, as there are many more options than puppy ranges.

Also any suggestions on the dog odour?

Thanks again.

PieForPi

Move to adult food after 12-15 months.

I'm switching my golden to RC maxi junior at the moment, seems to absolutely love the stuff...as does the cat apparently!

tk123

ctlsleh wrote: »

Thanks all for your replies........good idea on the samples.......what age can you move to adult food, as there are many more options than puppy ranges.

Also any suggestions on the dog odour?

Thanks again.

Different brands recommend different ages to switch to adult - Burns for example recommend to switch over at 6 months. I found cereal free foods suit my GR best - he's on raw/barf at the moment but I give dry for treats/training and in case he might need to go into kennels (there's always the lotto! :pac:). I'm using james wellbeloved cereal free atm but plan on getting a bag of taste of the wild sierra mountain to try him with - i read on a golden forum that out of the different TOTW flavours it suited them best. I had him on RC maxi junior when he was a puppy and he was bouncing off the walls and had the runs every other week and tbh Hills and RC aren't really that different quality wise.
Decide what your budget is and then go on eg zooplus and take a look at the different foods and their ingredients so you get an idea of what's available. Always buy a small bag in case it doesn't suit!

As for the odour - is it that his coat is smelly/greasy or is it maybe his anal glands (fishy smell)? What are his poos like on Hills?

ctlsleh

I think it's more his coat, but then my son sai he thought he smelt salmony the other day I thought it wa s'more his coat ....and even after the groomers he's back to his smelly self after a couple of days.......so any advice there Is welcome, is there any other symptoms for the anal glands?

The poos seem to be a bit loose on the hills.......
I'm going to move him onto Burns and try that anyway and when he gets older look at other options like the TOTW.....

One more question, has anyone tried the furminator on a GR, and would that help with the odour?

Thanks again for any advice

Millem

ctlsleh wrote: »

I think it's more his coat, but then my son sai he thought he smelt salmony the other day I thought it wa s'more his coat ....and even after the groomers he's back to his smelly self after a couple of days.......so any advice there Is welcome, is there any other symptoms for the anal glands?

The poos seem to be a bit loose on the hills.......
I'm going to move him onto Burns and try that anyway and when he gets older look at other options like the TOTW.....

One more question, has anyone tried the furminator on a GR, and would that help with the odour?

Thanks again for any advice

Would you describe it as extremely strong? Is he licking/biting down there? Does he drag his bum? If so, does the smell get really bad? I think the 'salmony' smell may be his anal glands.

tk123

Millem wrote: »

Would you describe it as extremely strong? Is he licking/biting down there? Does he drag his bum? If so, does the smell get really bad? I think the 'salmony' smell may be his anal glands.

Yeah I'd agree tbh. OP the glands are on either side of the anus and when the dog poos it should squeeze against them and empty them out - if the poos are too soft the glands will fill up and leak on the dogs fur, where he's sitting etc If they get too full or impacted the dog might start licking or biting his bum or may even drag his bum across the floor. Do you know if your groomer emptied the glands - some do and some don't because if it's not done correctly it can be painful for the dog. There's tons of videos online on how to do it or if you're not brave enough you can have the vet do it.

You could maybe try mixing some rice or mash potato (my guys FAV) in with the Hills or if he's that smelly maybe just stop giving the Hills and give him rice and chicken until you have the Burns and slowly mix it in to to give him time to get used to it.

ctlsleh

Thanks, Im no convinced he smells that fishy, I think it's more hi natural odour that's just pretty strong, but I'm hoping the change of food might help reduce it soemwhat, thinking about it more, after a good rub, you get his smell on your hands so I think it's fldefinitely the coat.

I don't know if the groomer dodo the glands or not, he doesn't bite or scratch there nor does he rib his bum so may just be his personal odour that's quite strong.......

Hills smells awful, maybe a food change would help.....?

Eoin

ctlsleh

By the way have any of you tried the furminator? I was thinking that it might remove the deep fur and that might also help with the odour......has anyone tried it and does it do what they say it will do?

is it worth the money?
Thanks

tk123

ctlsleh wrote: »

By the way have any of you tried the furminator? I was thinking that it might remove the deep fur and that might also help with the odour......has anyone tried it and does it do what they say it will do?

is it worth the money?
Thanks

Yeah we have one - they're great for removing the dead undercoat imo. I use it in the park because the fur goes everywhere - I'm paranoid using it in the garden that it'll blow in next doors window onto their dinner lol!! Some people say they damage the coat but after reading about somebody doing it I tried it on my own hair (after a teddy lol) and it didn't pull any out.:pac: My GR loves getting brushed with it so it definitely doesn't hurt him either. I got mine on ebay a few years ago and it was half the price they are in shops and some sites so shop around. Zooplus do a copy that's meant to be good - **NB check all the zooplus sites (the links are on the bottom right of each page) as the different sites have different prices and offers
http://www.zooplus.ie/shop/dogs/dog_grooming_care/grooming_tools/perfect_care/129852

ctlsleh

Thats good to hear, novel trial approach too....lol.......I assume the large model for long hair I the one to get?