Am I bad owner?

[soundcloudtomp3]

I have been feeding my dog Purina Beyond for the longest time, I don’t give her any outside treats except for beef liver sprinkles on top of the dry food, and dentastix, and she gets bones from time to time. She’s a borador, she gets tons of exercises in warmer months but in Toronto during winter we don’t get out as much.

I noticed today her breath was bad, and I check her teeth and found them with a little yellow at the top:

I feel like such a bad owner, I love her so much, she’s 2 and a half and I am so afraid of losing her she’s my best friend and I feel like I haven’t been as on top of her as I should have because my own personal life has been a lot.

Today a friend of mines dog passed away at 2 1/2 from undiagnosed cancer and it had me freaked out. I naturally assumed my dog would love to 15-17 and now I am feeling hypochondriac.

I was doing research today on Reddit and so many people said Purina Beyond was a bad food choice and I had no idea and I’ve been feeding her that her whole life. I am so confused if she should be on raw. She seems really healthy and super energetic could run for days, but I feel super upset with myself I didn’t do more research on dog food and just bought from Amazon, and now that I saw the yellowing in her teeth I’m freaked out.

I don’t know what to do and I had no idea you were supposed to brush your dogs teeth as well, I only gave her dentastix.

Pictures here: https://imgbb.com/

 

[hbc]

@soundcloudtomp3 There are so many other factors besides diet, but I will say our vet said there's SOME evidence (nothing super definitive( that labs develop more hip problems on grain-free diets. What's good for each breed is different, so I'd ask your vet.

Take this with a grain of salt, but my childhood lab lived for 16 years on Iams (which is another not-so-great dog food) and we never brushed her teeth (they were yellow).

We feed my current lab better food and give her dental treats for her teeth, but just anecdotally, I'm super curious about the degree of difference it actually makes

 

[niaa]

@soundcloudtomp3 Stick to food that follows WSAVA guidelines. Raw is a trend right now, but unless you’re working with a nutritionist it’s easy to feed your dog a raw diet that doesn’t meet their basic nutritional needs.

Bad breath is normal as dogs age. Talk to your vet about doing a dental cleaning and regular tooth brushing.

 

[rodneys]

@niaa This. Please, OP, don't jump on the trend wagon. Raw diets do work for some, I'm sure, but they require a lot of research and work to make sure your dog is getting the correct nutrition. I haven't met a vet yet that recommends them.

Same goes for grain free diets. They were all the rage for a while, then it was discovered that it causes its own string of health problems. If in doubt, it is best to ask your vet what they recommend.

In my opinion, you don't have to buy the most fancy, expensive food, as long as it is healthy and gives your dog the nutrition it needs.

I'm sure you're doing a great job. No one is perfect. All animals have dental issues at some point even if you brush their teeth. As long as your dog is well fed, sheltered, exercised, and loved, you are a great owner.

 

[lmonicg83]

@soundcloudtomp3 We also give our dog Dentastix with a dog toothpaste stripe in one groove and also try to brush, but he makes a game out of it and tries licking off the toothpaste and then chewing the brush. So his teeth are yellowed in the back on top mostly, but our vet reassured me that we are doing what we can. I think it is easy to blame yourself no matter what you do/don't do.

 

[capriccio]

@soundcloudtomp3 My dog is 15 and I made a lot of mistakes with him, especially with regard to dental health. But he's okay! He's happy and healthy and very loved. You'll make mistakes, it's part of having a dog. Having the self awareness to learn more and do better is what is important, and you're doing that.

I do half a can of wet food with rice in the morning (helps with his old man digestive system) and Blue Buffalo dry food with some training treats sprinkled in the evening. It's been doing right by him in his elderly years.

You could consider adding more variety of treats and fun things (that are healthy and fit into your dogs diet of course) just because who wouldn't want to have more variety, right? But personally I think you're doing a good job and you clearly care a lot.

 

[theliaa315]

@soundcloudtomp3 I feed raw and highly recommend it. My dogs health improved so much since I switched. It is easy to make once you get the hang of it and not overly expensive. If you want help I would be glad to send you some websites that have been helpful.

If you don't want to completely switch to raw, adding some raw meat and bones to the diet can help keep their teeth clean. A lot of the dental chews are full of suger and starches, not the best for teeth cleaning.

I highly recommend reading up on the worlds oldest dogs. They were all fed a fresh food diet, either raw or cooked.

 

[soundcloudtomp3]

@theliaa315 What do you feed your dog? Everyday just beef etc

 

[soundcloudtomp3]

@theliaa315 Have I damaged my dogs health permanently through the above diet? Is it too late to switch?

 

[theliaa315]

@soundcloudtomp3 I feed 80% meat, such as ground beef, pork, turkey,deer. Etc.
10% organs, such as liver, kidney, heart
10% bone, such as chicken feet, wings, turkey necks.

You want to stick close to the 80, 10, 10 %.

And no, it not too late. Your dog is still young.

 

[soundcloudtomp3]

@theliaa315 What changes have you noticed also how expensive does that get, meat liver etc is all so expensive nowadays

 

[theliaa315]

@soundcloudtomp3 Clean teeth, less allergies, no dog smell, better coats, no ear infections (that is something I delt with a lot) they also feel fuller longer. I've only been feeding raw for 3 years, so can't speak on long term health, but I have herd from others that their dogs were more likely to live longer lives with less chance of cancer and heart/kidney disease.

Price wise it really depends on where you are and what you buy. I have 8 dogs, so I buy in bulk at our local butcher. I also get big boxes of bait fish, and whatever i can find on sale. It is around $30 per dog per month. Since we have a lot of hunters around here (florida) the dogs basically eat for free during hunting season thanks to the deer processors giving us their scraps.

 

[soundcloudtomp3]

@theliaa315 Wow $30 is very doable! Do you mind giving me a list of what you order at the butcher shop? Can I immediately wean my dog off her current diet? Also, with a raw diet, I know dog food has multivitamins, so I’m worried she won’t get that herself