Finding the Right Dog Food

by KumasonCo . april 14, 2016

Finding the perfect food for your pet may not be the easiest thing to do but when you do find that perfect food, you will be happy that you took the time to do so. No matter what food I fed Kumason, his stools eventually became loose, if not full blown diarrhea, and I knew he wasn't sick. I eventually had him tested for allergies and found out that he was allergic to chicken and beef. It took close to a year before I discovered a Canadian company called Orijen and Acana. Even within this brand, I still had to find the right blend that agreed with his sensitive Akita digestive track and one that he liked and didn't get bored of. What I especially admire about Orijen and Acana is that it's a small company based in Canada that makes biologically appropriate dog and cat foods from fresh regional ingredients. They do not source the food out, and they prepare the food from start to finish within their own award winning kitchens. Their food is fit for human consumption and actually smells good. You can look the company up and even watch videos. I found that the Dog Food Advisor website is very helpful and unbiased. They make a lot of different varieties including freeze dried. I feed Kumason the Acana Duck and Bartlett Pear formula in dry kibble. I also supplement with Orijen Tundra dry kibble (they make a freeze dried Tundra too). Tundra is a whole prey diet containing goat, venison, mutton, bison, arctic char and rabbit.

It's very important that when you introduce a new food to your cat or dog, that you do it gradually, preferably in 10-12 days so as not to upset their digestive track.

I often give Kumason some white rice mixed in with his dry kibble. I do add some boiling water to make a small bit of gravy. Once or twice a week I add a probiotic to the mix.

Akitas have sensitive digestive tracks to begin with so when I introduced a new brand of food, I did it very gradually. If you introduce a new brand of food to your dog too quickly, it can upset his or her digestive track. I was very careful starting only with one quarter cup and gradually increasing the amount of the new food over a 10 day period until I could give him the full amount.