Well it's been 40 days since we switched Audrey to Primal raw. She has been on the beef formula for 15 days. She has one more day of beef then we are switching the protein to pheasant. We started giving her freeze dried beef food as training treats at the same time as the Primal beef. The brand is Nature's Advantage. It seemed like a very simple ingredient food, the main difference is it has a LOT of added chemical vitamins. The company claims that freeze drying is far superior to cold freezing raw food, but if that's true then WHY do they add all those chemical vitamins to it? Audrey's nose rope started to smell yeasty again, so we stopped giving her the FD food as treats. The smell went away. Is it the chemicals Audrey is sensitive to as well as grains? Audrey also started having major aggression issues. She seemed to calm down after stopping the FD treats as well. The FD food has a high protein content, 42%, whereas the Primal beef's protein content is 15%. I spoke to a dog trainer that I met here on BDW, and she told me of a study she had read about high protein food and an increased aggression in dogs. She also told me that the adrenaline surge after a fight can last for up to 48 hours, and it's common to see increased aggression during that time. Did Audrey calm down because of the lower protein? Or did she calm down because her adrenaline level dropped back to a normal level? Her coat is still very soft and glossy. We had a guest at our house who told us her friend has a bulldog, but that bulldog's coat is nothing like Audrey's, it's much "dryer and rougher". She couldn't believe how soft Audrey is! Audrey STILL has tear stains, although I KNOW the stains under her nose rope are fading. It's still a gooey mess under there, and now I realize it's because her face is more wrinkly now than when she was a puppy. Her wrinkles have wrinkles now! Right at her nostril openings there is now a wrinkle that prevents moisture from draining down and away from her nose. It stays wet and gooey under her nose rope constantly now. I scrubbed it too hard a few days ago and the next day it was red and raw. I felt terrible! I still have to wash it daily, but now I am extra careful to be gentle. She still gets powdered probiotics with every meal, and she still gets fish oil, which I know plays a huge role in how soft her coat is. I tried cutting back on the fish oil, from every meal to once a day, and within a few days I noticed she wasn't as soft, so I went back to every meal. She has been getting a 500mg Vitamin C tablet once a day also. Could that be why the tear stains are fading? Poops are still very firm and very little quantity, although I think she's going twice a day now consistantly. I noticed also that she drinks less water now than when she was on dry kibble. All in all I have to say still that I am very pleased with this food and have no intentions of switching her back to dry kibble.

Cathy
when she first came home