Problems with Wellness Reformulation?

[Janna]

We've had Monty on Wellness for about 6 months now, and he was doing great until a few weeks ago when his stools became very loose. This was about the same time that I bought a bag of the reformulated Wellness. I don't know if the two are related, or if it's something else. Regardless, I put him on rice & boiled hamburger at the advice of my vet two days ago to settle his system. This seems to be working, so I'll be switching him to a new food (Candidae or C. Soup) tomorrow.

Just wanted to check and see if anyone else is having problems with the "new & improved" Wellness. It's a bummer, because he really loved it. Thanks,

Janna
Mom to Monty, 1 1/2 year old fawn boy

 

[Cheryl&Ellie]

That's interesting, we just bought our first bag of the "new" Wellness. My two BT's seems to be having no problems at all and they're eating the Lamb and Rice. We also buy the puppy food for Ellie, we'll have to see how she does with it!

Thanks for sharing this!

 

[gmacleod]

Putting a dog onto a diet of boiled chicken or hamburger and rice is a good cure for upset tummies

But you know, you still don't actually know if it was the Wellness that caused the tummy upset in the first place And it is also always possible for single bags to spoil. So I wouldn't write the whole food off on the basis of one incident.

Regardless, if he's been eating a single food for six months straight, it's certainly a good time for a change. Preferably a change in the main protein source too - so if he was eating wellness lamb, a chicken-based food would be good (and if he was eating wellness chicken, a switch to something that is not chicken based would be better - so not to CS or Canidae).

Dogs aren't made to eat the same food day in and day out for extended periods. They need variety in their diets (variety means change - something different from what he got last week) just as much as people do. And nutritional issues aside, feeding the same food for extended periods is the best way to develop allergies (allergies come from constant exposure).

 

[Mollie_T]

We've had loose stool issues with the "new" Wellness, especially the whitefish one... Rotated to Canidae from Merrick & CS...

 

[Janna]

Thanks for the tip

Good point about the bag possibly being spoiled. Also, I hadn't thought to regularly rotate his food...and come to think of it, the last time we switched (from Nutro Ultra) was because that started to not work out so great, either. So maybe he is developing alergies. Whatever it was, we're trying C. Soup for now and so far so good. Maybe I'll try a small bag of the Wellness lamb (he was on the chicken) down the road as part of a rotation. Thanks!

Janna
Mom to Monty, 1 1/2 year old fawn boy

 

[Lael]

New Wellness

This is just the thread I was looking for...

Lael LOVES it. She had a small bit of gas the first day, but it went away. She is currently on Chicken.

It is a bit shocking to have the dog food you trust be unexpectedly changed, and I was a bit worried. After watching Lael closely for the last two weeks, I'm pretty convinced that it isn't bothering her stools at all. (And she never turns it down!)

I am really curious about other dogs' reactions, though. If you feed Wellness and have noticed any or no changes, please share. I'd like to see how this new formula is doing for Boxers in general.

Cheers!
Cat

 

[Mollie_T]

As I previously posted, we had loose stool issues with the reformulation. It worked great before they went & messed with it

 

[RVsBoxer]

I had problems with Wellness also

This is an interesting thread for me. I recently tried to switch Wilson to the new Wellness (he's on Canidae currently, but he's been on it too long and I guess he's tired of it - definitely time for a change) - I was really excited about the changes Wellness made because I had him on the old one when he was just a couple months old and he didn't like it much.
Anyway, about 3 days into the (gradual) switch he stopped eating entirely - did not eat for 5 meals straight ( 2 1/2 days) and had major, stinky gas. On top of it he lost nearly half a pound :( The vet couldn't find anything wrong with him.

I fed him ground beef and brown rice for a couple days and then decided to try adding just a little bit of the wellness to his Canidae again. Well he wouldn't eat it. When we gave him just the Canidae he ate. I can tell he's still not happy with his food though, so I am still going to switch him to something new with lamb/beef as the main ingredient since Canidae is chicken. I am so upset about the Wellness because I absolutely loved the ingredients, but oh well :( I guess it was too rich for him. Wish me luck with the next one I try!

 

[Lael]

I wonder why Lael does so well with Wellness. We started her on Wellness around 3 months of age, not too long after bringing her home. She's now just over 2 years. We've rotated her from Puppy to Chicken to Lamb to Fish/Sweet Potatoe, and now we're back on Chicken.

I guess it was too rich for him.

I wonder if starting puppies on Wellness allows them to grow up accostomed to the richness, and thus are not bothered as much by the change.

Well, there are several other excellent dog foods out there with good ingredients. But it makes me afraid to switch to another brand, in case she won't be able to adjust back to Wellness!

 

[sweetboxer]

I tried using the original Wellness early on and Colby's tummy couldn't handle it. It was just too rich for him. Now with Skye's allergies, I'm afraid to switch to Wellness Simple Solutions. Both dogs eat the same food, California Natural Lamb and Rice, but if I switch Skye, I have to switch Colby, b/c he has to have whatever she has!! Not too spoiled! I heard the Wellness was reformulated, but I am still nervous about switching b/c of Colby's reaction to it. Good luck with your switch...it's always interesting to see how they like it!