Health & Nutrition

With all the latest dog food scares recently, it's difficult in recommending any certain commercial brand of dog food.  Our our dogs usually eat one of the following foods: Solid Gold, Chicken Soup, Kirkland (Costco brand which is actually made by Diamond), Diamond Naturals or Purina Pro-Plan.  There are several other great dog foods out there such as Timberwolf Organics, Wellness etc.    

Most people with American Bulldogs recognize that these dogs can be susceptible to allergies, both inhaled and food type.  Many cannot tolerate corn-based foods.  In addition, some cannot tolerate wheat products.  Remember it was corn contaminated with aflatoxin mold and wheat gluten contaminated with melamine that sickened or killed many pets not so long ago.  We recommend food without "ground yellow corn" or "wheat gluten" etc.  Even some of the supposed better brands such as Eukanuba or Science Diet may have corn in them.

It is of the utmost importance that everyone research the companies and ingredients that goes into the dog foods they are using, to ensure they are making the right decision for their pets and pocketbooks.

Our puppies are weaned on a diet of goat's milk, yogurt and barley or oatmeal baby cereal.  They are gradually switched to a large breed puppy food without corn, such as Chicken Soup or Diamond Naturals. They are also given salmon oil capsules and Ester-C supplementation.  We highly recommend Ester-C for both pups and adults.  Most dog foods do not contain any form of Vitamin C.  Unlike humans, a dog's liver is capable of generating it's own Vitamin C, however it is a proven fact that most dogs are low-end producers.  Ester-C is a superior form of Vitamin C that is more readily absorbed and buffered to help resist gastro upset.

We feel Ester-C is essential to the overall good health and also to help support and maintain healthy joint function.  Pups over four months and our adults are given 2000mg of human grade Ester-C daily.  We normally just crush the pills and mix with their food.  Ester-C is water soluable, thus it is not stored in the body.  What the dog doesn't use simply passes through it's system.  We take it ourselves and we wouldn't trust giving them anything of lesser quality, as far as vitamins or supplements go!  Just remember, if you start your dog on an Ester-C regime, start with a lower dose and build up gradually to allow your dog time to adjust to it.  Also, if you have a small to medium size dog, you may even want to cut the dosage to 1000mg daily to help your bottle go a little further.   

If you are looking for good supplementation, we also recommend Solid Gold's Sea Meal or a product called Dinovite, especially for adults.  Both these formula's have worked well for us and we believe they are both top of the line products.

Another product that is especially great for dogs with allergies is Nzymes.  The makers of Nzymes also make another product called Ox-E Drops which is a powerful oxidizing substance that has antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral effects. 

Solid Gold's website is www.solidgoldhealth.com.

Dinovite's website is www.dinovite.com.

Nzymes & Ox-E Drops can be found at www.nzymes.com

We would also like to share the following recipe with everyone.  We do make our own moist food when time permits, which I actually developed for Harley, who had been diagnosed with cancer.  He could not stand ANY form of canned dog food during his illness.  I have given the following recipe to several friends and family members who SWEAR by it!  It's very simple to make, and is especially helpful for pets that are compromised or ill.

The following is enough to make a large batch which can be put in the fridge.  It can be divided into portions, and heated in the microwave at each meal and can even be frozen.  It could probably be canned as well, but I have not tried it that way yet.

One important thing to note about this recipe...if your dog has a weight issue you may want to cut down on the salmon.  You can always add more chicken and brown rice, since salmon is a little high in fat content.     

Louette's Moist Dog Food Recipe

5 cans Veg All (no salt version)

5 cans Pink Salmon

1 large can chopped spinach

1 cup brown rice (white can be used also)

1 cup barley

3/4 cup of wheat germ

1 family-sized pack chicken thighs

Cook chicken in large stock pot with plenty of water to make broth.  (Enough water to make sure chicken is covered)  Sometimes when the chicken is nearly done, I will add the barley and rice in the stock pot, so that it cooks in the chicken broth.  (Less pots to clean up!)  I cook the chicken to the falling off the bone point, so that it's easier to debone.  I remove the bones and leave everything else.  When the chicken, rice and barley mixture has cooled, I will add in the salmon, then drain and mix in the Veg All, spinach and wheat germ.  No need to cook anything, but the chicken, barley and rice.

You can also add any needed supplements.  I usually add in MSM, acidophilus and cranberry, after the mixture has cooled.  I keep it in a large covered container in the fridge.  It feeds 2 large dogs for a week (5-7 days).  You can also experiment with this recipe.  If your dog prefers it moister, add more water, which makes more broth or you can also NOT drain the salmon.  The oil is good for their coats, not to mention that it is gentle on sensitive stomachs.  If they like it dry, I add more wheat germ to help soak it up.  Try it and let us know the results!!