Hey

I feed Burns Chicken & Brown Rice. I keep on reading that the high rice content is bad. Can I ask why this is? What's wrong with rice in dog food?

Ollie does well on it, he absolutely adores it and he maintains a good weight (11.5kg) and he has good poos (although every few weeks, he'll produce loose poos, but he does scavenge so I wonder if its something else he's eaten). He poos 2-3 times a day, and they are fairly large.

What better foods are there for cocker spaniels? Any food that has calming effects on dogs?

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I OWN A CHOCOLATE ROAN COCKER SPANIEL
RIP David xx Run free at the bridge. Love you always xx 19th February 2011
RIP Jack and Mickey xx Run free at the bridge. Love you forever xx 20th June 2011

There is really no nutrients in rice so too much of it is not so good.

Historically countries that serve up rice as one of the main ingredients have a tendancy to have tunnel vision - this is just an example I'm not suggesting your dog will get that!

1 There is no proven need for carbohydrates in dogs food.

2 In order to produce a dog food which is within the financial grasp of most dog owners over 50% of the vast majority of dog foods is either cereal/grain or potato.

3 Commercial dog food was created originally to make money out of the waste produced from human food production.

3 The vast majority of dogs do ok on food with a grain content.

4 the grains which are the most nutrtitious and digestible are oats followed by rice.

5 Burns is a good food and if your dog is doing well on it then why change.

As for calming foods I am not sure what you mean by this and why you think your dog needs it?

HTH

I think the rice is just to add bulk really. Probably why he does a few large poos a day. He poops out what his body doesn't need. But if it suits him and he looks good on it, then there's no reason to change. I feed raw personally and my 2 are thriving. Tiny little poops once , (more for the puppy), a day. Hardly any wastage there.

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I wouldn't say its that rice has a negative effect, just that its a filler. It fills out the food so you can have less meat in it and the dog won't exactly go hungry. But in the same breath a dog doesn't use or need carbohydrates in the same way us people do. I'd say the only benefit of it is in its assistance in keeping a dog lean, but then I would also say its easy enough to just give them less food with better ingredients.

Ollie's poops are probably large because he's literally pooping out the rice, his body can't do anything with it so it just comes back out the other end. That's why generally speaking foods with lower cereal contents (and definitely raw) produce smaller/less poop, the dog is using more of what goes in so less comes out

I don't think breed has anything to do with a good food, nor would I want to use a food because of supposed behaviour effects for me its all about the ingredients.

Dry foods which I would class as good (on a sliding scale):
Acana, Orijen, Ziwipeak, Fish4Dogs, Wainwrights, Arden Grange etc.

Wets:
Nature's Harvest, Ziwipeak, Naturediet, Wainwrights, Arden Grange Partners etc.

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I've just been looking at Applaws and it looks amazing. 75% meat, 25% veg and no additives, and no cereal or grain. Is this a food I should try? I'm thinking about feeding dry and wet together. Also on the site, it doesn't state anything about the amount of Applaws food that you should feed.

__________________
I OWN A CHOCOLATE ROAN COCKER SPANIEL
RIP David xx Run free at the bridge. Love you always xx 19th February 2011
RIP Jack and Mickey xx Run free at the bridge. Love you forever xx 20th June 2011

Applaws is a good food and if you wish to try it why not? It is easily availabe in PAH etc

Why do you want to feed wet and dry together?

A complete food is a complete food whether wet or dry.

What will happen is that you overfeed and thus get bigger poops!

The amount of food you need to feed will be obvious from the label but will be more and less depending on the individual.

I'll do a new thread for Applaws food.

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I OWN A CHOCOLATE ROAN COCKER SPANIEL
RIP David xx Run free at the bridge. Love you always xx 19th February 2011
RIP Jack and Mickey xx Run free at the bridge. Love you forever xx 20th June 2011

It is a big belief by a lot of people and some professionals alike that dogs do Not need Carbohydrate. However seeing a Fish or chicken or even scambled egg and rice diet has been reccomended as long as I can remember as an easily digestible resting diet for dogs with upset stomachs. Then Rice cant be a problem or cause digestive problems for the majority of dogs. Far as I understood it was wheat and maze cereal that tended to be a problem and caused allergies in a lot of dogs not rice.

Regarding a "calming" effect. Complex Carbohydrate stimulates the production of Insulin, which in turn increases the uptake of tryptophan (which I think is also in Complex carbs bit rusty so not 100%) This then increases the level of serotonin. Serotonin has a calming affect and a good influence on moods. So therefore in theory for nervous anxious dogs especially and people come to that, complex carbs should be beneficial/have a calming effect on moods.

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Rice is more easily digestible than other cereals, some of which may cause upset tums, scratching etc. If he's doing fine on the current food, don't switch him.

Why do you want a calmer? Ollie is a cocker: I know you said you didn't research the breed before getting him, but you did afterwards, so you know he's a working type. Is this related to the lack of walking thread, because if he's not being walked enough, then you will reap the whirlwind, literally.

It doesn't matter if my three have played non-stop with next door's GSD if I'm out, they are still desperate for a proper walk afterwards. It's more psychological than physical.

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Transplanted Geordie
RIP Jake, my best dog. 10.8.10
RIP Boomerang, beautiful horse. 27.5.08