Prescription Diets

[ConnorK]

Finn has intermittent, occasional soft stool, slimy stool, and every once in awhile diarrhea. We used to feed him Nutro lamb and rice, and about six months ago s-l-o-w-l-y transitioned him to TOTW High Prairie by adding a 1/4 cup each week.

I was really hoping the TOTW would see an improvement in this issue, not that it's a severe case.

At our latest vet visit, the vet suggested that we should switch him instead to a prescription LID diet, suggesting Hills Prescription Science Diet, which I'd heard wasn't so good in fact. She mentioned a couple other possible prescription choices.

I'm trying to research prescription foods but not having much luck. What I have found seems to raise flags, and I hate to say it because I like my vet, but I'm wondering (reading between some lines) if the food companies and the vets aren't colluding a bit. dogfoodanalysis.com doesn't seem to identify prescription foods.

Can folks offer some advice?

 

[Cami]

I personally am not an advocate for prescription diets. That being said they are scientifically tested and proven to work in a lot of cases. There is not one food that will correct every health issue that is related to food.

I've used them for a cat with renal issues for a period of 8 months. Due to the lower protien content she lost a huge amount of muscle mass and wasn't overly fond of them so I started feeding her anything she would eat. She survived for 4 years with renal failure. She would have died much sooner had I kept her on a prescription diet. She would have starved to death.

I tried them again for a period of less than a week for my first Boxer diagnosed with severe allergies. Needless to say she wasn't a fan of "kangaroo" and I found something that worked to help with her allergy condition that wasn't a prescribed diet.

There have been many dogs who were helped by prescription foods. Some I am sure thrive on them considering whatever it was that gave them issues originally.

These diets are not going to hurt any dog if fed short term and may be a helpful insight and provide answers. If you can get positive results with a prescription diet it can enlighten you and your vet as to what may be going on. You could also use the foods ingredients and find something similar but minus a few unwanted items.

Just my personal opinion but I can see where a prescribed diet is helpful and have seen it with my own clients pets. When something is prescribed a vet will suggest that the owners cease feeding anything else except the prescribed foods (most companies are also making treats as well). People tend to be a little more straightforward with this line of thinking. If the vet says don't stray from this diet *some* owners might be more inclined to follow the advice.
It might not have been the actual prescribed food that corrected the problem BUT by removing various other items from their diet which would prove to be beneficial. No people food or junk grocery store brands or any number of low quality ingredient treats. If it works the vet is a genius and it might not have even been the diet you bought at the clinic but the fact that Fido wasn't getting what the real culprit was any longer!

Vet practices are a business. In order to be a successful business one must make money or "profit". As with most things retail items are purchased at a discounted price and then marked up. Usually 100%. They want to recoup what the item cost originally and then have enough left over to replace what was sold. Companies that market prescription diets contract to sell ONLY to vet clinics. It's a win-win situation for both parties.

A good vet is one that is willing to think outside the box and work with a pet owner to reach the same goal. The most healthiest pet. It is just far easier for them to say BUY THIS than to have a sit down that could literally take hours to pinpoint how various foods may be hurtful or helpful. If the owner does MORE of the research and presents an educated and well informed case to a vet then you have a better fighting chance at coming to a meeting of the minds. :D

Just my opinion though!!

 

[ConnorK]

Thanks!

I like your comment about the meeting of minds!

I'm going to do a little more research. The vet called today to confirm there are no worms or )obvious) parasites to blame in the case, and suggested Royal Canin duck instead of the Hills.

Depending on the cost I'm going to try it for at least the short term.

 

[whiskers]

I can sometimes get on board with prescription diets. My cat had a urethral obstruction last year, and he has been on the recommended prescription diet ever since--he hasn't had a recurrence and I'm too scared to switch him back to a better food: "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." I'd rather not have to deal with that situation again and since the diet hasn't caused any issues (I don't know if it's the reason why more crystals haven't developed, but it certainly isn't creating them), I'm making myself be happy with the food.

But, that is a potentially life/death situation. In your case I'd be more willing to just keep trying other brands of food. Juno used to have the same issue. I'd say for at least the first year of her life, she never had a "normal," firm stool. It was always loose, and much too frequently she would have diarrhea. We tried probably 6 different brands of food--and one of them was a prescription diet (Hills d/d, I think) because our vet offered to give us a bag for free, and that diet DID work--but I just couldn't keep her on it for the rest of her life. Tried a couple more brands and finally found a diet that agreed with her (Blue Buffalo).

I also add Prozyme to her food (a digestive enzyme), which may or may not contribute to the firmness of her poop .

I would say, try the prescription diet for a while. If it works, maybe you can find a similar, but better, brand? For example find something that uses the same protein and carb sources, the same fiber content, etc and see how that goes?