Peanut Butter and Molasses

 

And..

Peanut butter and molasses as a treat for your dog just doesn't sound right, or does it? It does when you consider that in a world of processed foods, there just doesn't seem to be anything out there that can be considered healthy. Most store bought treats contain large amounts of animal by-products, artificial flavors, artificial colors and artificial preservatives. All which can have an impact on your pet's overall health. 

Over the years we have experimented with many different types of treats for Lucy - some good and some not so good. We've tried people foods that were considered healthy but Lucy would just turn them down and besides, there can be dangers in feeding your dog the same foods that you eat. We've also tried what were considered wholesome foods from the pet store that upset her stomach and were very expensive. But there was one treat we could always count on that she could tolerate and seemed to enjoy and it just happens to be peanut butter! She just loves the stuff! I must warn you; it is not easy to watch your dog eat peanut butter, especially in its normal packaging. They will lick and lick to try to get it all out of their mouths. But they will never turn it down and it's actually good for them. 

One day while in the store I came across a box of dog treats that listed all natural and low fat "peanut butter and molasses" healthy treats for dogs. The treat is a hard baked cookie containing unbleached wheat flour, whole-wheat flour, blackstrap molasses, palm oil, whey oats, natural caramel, nonfat milk, egg, salt, baking soda, natural peanut butter and brewer's yeast. They are baked semi-hard to help keep teeth clean. There is no artificial anything in the cookie! I instantly purchased them and brought them home for my dog.

Lucy has been eating these cookies as a treat for about a year now and loves them. 
They come out of the box as what I would call a large cookie for a treat, so I break them up for her. She never gets more than one large cookie on any given day. She's actually on a schedule for her treats receiving about a third of a cookie three times a day. This helps us maintain her calorie intake and of course, her weight. What a great idea for a treat! 

Since I'm not in the business of selling dog treats, I won't list the company here on my blog but if you will drop me a note I will be happy to give you the name of the bakery. Just a note, if the company ever goes out of business I think these treats would be easily made from home. It might take just a little experimentation in the kitchen to make up a healthy treat for your favorite critter but it would be well worth the time to do so! 

Cheers!

Helping a Boxer with a Sensitive Stomach

Through the years I have written articles about Lucy’s sensitive stomach issues. I’ve informed you of how Lucy actually eats three meals a day and how this manages to keep her tummy issues at bay. Some may be thinking that I’m overfeeding her. The truth is, she rarely gets more than one cup per serving of her favorite dog food. In addition, she gets no more 1 to 3 treats on any given day but this is another story to tell later. This method of multiple feeding works only because of the quality of the food she receives.

Over time her dog food has changed. When we first brought Lucy home we were sold on Science Diet products. She did well with this food as far as the sensitivity goes but she put on weight. So we went exploring and experimenting with different foods. We tried all-natural foods from the health food store and several others as well. Some would cause weight gain, some would cause weight loss and some an excessive need to go poo. Some foods had too much filler and others perhaps not enough. Some so-called sensitive stomach foods actually magnified the sensitivity problem.

One day she got sick and kept getting sick on a regular basis. We took her to the Vet and had her checked out. She was healthy but had a sensitive stomach issued said the vet. The Vet recommended we feed her nothing but rice for a few days. The problem remedied itself very quickly. We asked the Vet to recommend dog food that would help us with our problem. I was expecting to have to spend a great deal of money on this recommended dog food but was pleasantly surprised with his recommendation, He recommended Purina One Rice and Lamb (Sensitive Stomach) dry dog food. Don’t worry, I don’t own stock in Purina nor am I advertising the product for any type of profit. I’m simply offering up a solution to a problem many dog owners run into.  Besides, the food has been fantastic for Lucy. No more sensitive stomach and she possesses abundant energy and displays all the signs of a healthy dog.

Lucy is eight years old now and has a lean body, strong bones, and strong muscles. She is rarely ill so her immune system must be strong as well. Her digestion is excellent and she rarely has a problem of throwing up like she used to do. I might add that she is quite regular as well.  Her skin coat and eyes are still as stunning as when she was a puppy. And her teeth are in good shape but like many dogs, she probably could use good teeth cleaning and perhaps something for doggie breath on occasion. With all this said, I would have to conclude that the food she is on now is a good one.

For those of you who have a boxer with a sensitive stomach, you might want to check this dog food out. Listed below are the ingredients along with the guaranteed analysis that Purina states concerning the product.  All I can say is that it has worked for Lucy and it may work for your boxer as well.

Ingredients:

Lamb (natural source of glucosamine), brewers rice, corn gluten meal, whole grain corn, poultry by-product meal (natural source of glucosamine), oatmeal, animal fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols – a source of vitamin E), lamb meal, animal digest, potassium chloride, calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate, salt, caramel color, L-Lysine monochloride, choline chloride, zinc sulfate, ferrous sulfate, ferrous sulfate, vitamin E supplement, manganese sulfate, niacin, vitamin A supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, garlic oil, folic acid, vitamin D3 supplement, calcium iodate, biotin, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of vitamin K activity), sodium selenite

Purina’s Guaranteed Analysis:

Crude protein (min.) 26%, crude fat (min.) 16%, crude fiber (max.) 3%, moisture (max.) 12%, linoleic acid (min.) 1.4%, calcium (Ca) (min.) 1%, phosphorus (P) (min.) 0.8%, selenium (Se) (min.) 0.35 mg/kg, vitamin A (min.) 13,000 iu/kg, vitamin E (min.) 250 iu/kg, glucosamine* (min.) 400 ppm, Omega 6 fatty acids* (min.) 1.6%. *Not recognized as an essential nutrient by the AAFCO Dog Nutrients Profile.

If you know of a better dog food that works as well as this one does for Lucy, I would appreciate it if you write a short response to this post for more options in helping a boxer with a sensitive stomach.

Thanks and Ciao for now…

Lucy has an allergy problem…

Wow, since we moved to Colorado this past spring, Lucy has been experiencing some allergy-related issues.  The symptoms include tearing of the eyes accompanied by occasional episodes of the sensitive stomach because of drainage.  We’ve tried to identify what is causing the episodes but we have not found the culprit yet.  So what do we do to treat the issues that she is experiencing?

What we have found that works to stave off the symptoms, is a common household allergy medication, e.g., Benadryl or a generic product containing diphenhydramine, the active ingredient in Benadryl.  We find that this works very nicely.  After speaking with the Vet, she suggested that we give Lucy two tablets once in the morning and then two more tablets in the evening to ensure that drainage is reduced and her stomach is relieved of mucus which causes stomach issues.  So far this has been an effective treatment. 

In addition to the Benadryl, we monitor Lucy’s diet extremely closely.  We actually have her on a more humanlike schedule with meals, feeding her breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  She gets about one and a third cups of sensitive stomach dog food that she loves at each meal.  As long as we don’t expose her to a treatment involving human food she does well, i.e., no throwing up and no grazing on grass.  I’ve actually seen her eat grass like a cow to either settle her stomach or produce vomit to relieve stomach pressure.

To sum things up, Lucy is enjoying her new home here in Colorado.  She is having a great time hiking and roaming around her new environment.  She’s even made friends with a couple Mule Deer that hang around the property.  They have great starring competitions.  Allergies are a fact of life for her here but she responds to the medication that we provide her and she seems to take the issues in stride.  Not much slows her down.  

While looking up natural remedies for Lucy's issues we did come across one author that seems to be based on natural treatments for ailments such as Lucy's. I'd like to get someone else's opinion on this. We purchased the book and seems to be straight forward. Click here to examine it yourself.

Thanks