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When feeding my dog, I use a measuring cup and I fill the cup with the kibble level with the top of the cup. Easy enough with most kibbles. However, here's the problem: I'm switching my dog to the Science Diet Oral Care dog food, which has huge sized kibbles. When I try to fill the cup with these huge kibbles level to the rim of the cup, it's either below the rim, or above the rim of the measuring cup! I can't seem to get it flush for an accurate measurement because of the size of the food. My dog would need approximately 4 cups of this food, but how can I accurately determine this? I don't want an overweight dog, nor do I want a skinny one. What to do? PS - My dog LOVES these larger, but believe it or not, SOFTER kibbles. (I also brush my dog's teeth daily, just for the record!) Thank you.
Yes excellent oral care diet and excellent that you are measuring out the daily food and excellent that you are CALORIE conscientious. The BEST way to feed the same number of calories when changing food is not by volume but by first calories and then weight. Based on the calories per cup of the old food, determine the gram weight of the new food that equals those calories. I can help you with that math if you need some help.

Sophie licks her paws constantly. Is there a diet to correct this problem?
There are several different reasons why the dog may be licking her paws. If the reason is an allergic reaction to a food protein - yes!

I just got my homemade diet for my cat Oliver (thank you!). He won't eat anything with a fishy smell and/or taste (salmon oil or the like). I noticed that DERMA-3 twist caps were recommended as an alternative, but I've been reading that they also have a fishy smell and taste. Is there another alternative (tasteless and odorless) that I could use for omega 3 fatty acids? The diet looks fantastic...thank you so much again!!
Sorry omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA only come from fish so I do not know of any products that would not smell like fish. ALA and Flax seed are not effective in this regard. You may use corn, safflower, olive or canola oil instead for calories but these do not contain EPA or DHA.

Hi,
I feed Purina One to my dog, who is now 7 years old, 55lbs and apparently healthy, and I came across some information regarding dangers in Purina dog food. It left me a little scared of what I'm feeding my dog. I also read that health problems derived from dog food will only manifest in later years, and that some store brands are not recommendable. Should I feed him another brand of food (like those brands at veterinary offices), should I keep feeding him Purina, or should I cook homemade dog food? What's the best option to ensure complete nutrition and health to my dog? Best regards,
There are no guarantees 100% of the time with any food or any company .... Personally, I have been to the Purina plant several times, and have always been impressed with their operations, quality control and dedication to delivering a consistent product every time. I have also seen their research facility and know that the formulations they produce are based in clinical studies which I suggest is far better than 90% of the pet food products out there. Most companies spend too much money on marketing and none canine research ... for the betterment of the dog. When you hear bad things about Purina ... it's probably from someone who wants you to buy their product instead .... beware of the credentials of those giving you advice. A Purina product has apparently worked very well for your dog ... so until the pet shows signs of of problem, I would not make any changes.

You have helped me before. My Aussie is now almost 14! She has many medical issues for chronic bronchitis and other things, and gets Flovent, theophylline, n-acetyl-cysteine, amoxycillin for her paw, DES for bladder incontinence, Rimadyl just begun for arthritis and Tramadol for pain, and Nsaid eyedrops. She has relatively normal bloodwork, there has been nothing that UC Davis told me to change re her diet. But I remember what you told me about 75% of kidney function lost before it shows on a bloodtest. I want to put Coco on a prescrition food for her kidneys, which I will have to ask my vet for. There is Hills g/d, that says on Hill's website that it's for senior dogs, and supports heart and kidneys with very low phosphorus, or do you prefer k/d renal diet? I will ask my vet for whichever you think is best. I worry about her kidneys will all of the meds and her age. Thank you very very much!
If her kidney functions appear normal on blood work then I would suggest the g/d or better yet j/d for the arthritis and renal - probably canned better than dry.

I am in the process of moving and my 16 year old cat has begun obsessively grooming so that he has licked the fur off half his tummy, his inner legs and part of his tail. He did this about 6 months ago and it turned out he was hyperthyroid. When he was treated, he stopped the excessive grooming and his fur was growing in. Now he has started again, but blood work shows his thyroid levels are good. Is there anything he should have in his diet that could help calm him during this moving period?
Yes if the cat in not being fed Hill’s y/d to control the hyperthyroid. ROYAL CANIN makes a cat food named "Calm" which was designed for stressful events. It was formulated with an ingredient (alpha-casozepine from milk and two specific nutrients (L-tryptophan and nicotinamide) that have been shown to help emotional balance. Clinically studies have been published showing reason success. You must feed the diet for 3-5 weeks before you may see the effect. In fact most clients did not notice the calming effect until they took the pet off the food.
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Ive been doing some searching on some of the healthier brands of dry food to feed adult cats. I havent come across specific name brands, just what kind of ingredients to look for. I was wondering if you could recommend some more healthy brands of dry foods to feed cats. I currently feed them science diet indoor formula. Thank you.
Honestly ..... they are all nutritionally healthy if they have passed the AAFCO protocols. One food has the nutritional “leg-up” on any other food (regardless of what the PetFoodAdvisor thinks). Are the all safe all the time ….. that is a different question that has far more to do with the manufacturer than the pretty bag, warm fuzzy pictures and any other dietary pseudoscience claim made on the web sites. The best advice is to follow the recommendations made by The World Small Animal Veterinary Assoc (WSAVA) (download here) to cat owners on how to objectively assess the information offered on feline nutrition and their guide (download here) to pet owners on how to objectively review a pet food label and the manufacturer. My personal opinion, having been in the Hill’s manufacturing plant several times, is that you do not need to change the food you are feeding, unless the cat is showing you a problem.

lexee is a 5 yr old yorkie/Chihuahua - weighs 10 lbs, her vet would like her at 8.5-9 lbs-only dry she will eat is acana, orijen, royal canin Chihuahua - i'm concerned about the protein and fat levels in acana and orijen so I switched her to RC this afternoon - will she lose the extra weight eating RC - will feed her 1/2 cup to 5/8 cup/day.
she gets 4 - 20 mins walks/day (weather permitting). she will not eat weight loss food - have tried many and end up donating - for the past 4 yrs her weight goes from 10.0 lbs to about 10.8 lbs. - I just can't get her lower than 10 lbs. - thanks for any help you can give me.
Yes using the general equations, if you feed the dog 50 grams of the Royal Canin Chihuahua dry food per day. You should weigh the dog weekly and she should lose weight down to 8.5 lbs. No other treats, snacks, table food, etc. If you feed using volume - a 1/2 cup measure - you will be on average feeding 20% too much and she will not lose weight. I strongly suggest that if you want this weight loss plan to work you will need to feed 25 grams of feed twice daily measured out using a kitchen gram scale (~$30).

A couple years ago I purchased the book Feed Your Best Friend Better and started making my dogs food. Have the nutritionists from this service reviewed the book?
No we have not reviewed the recipes.

My dog had bloat at age 8.5 years old and recovered with no real problems. We were told to soak dry food for a few minutes before giving it to her. Do you agree with this? Should we be feeding her a special dog food. We feed her nutro for seniors.l
Research indicates that soaking the food will not help avoid bloating. No special food is recommended but to lower her risk feed a mix of different textures (dry + canned food), feeding more than 1 meal per day and do not elevate the food dish.