A few years ago, we fed exclusively raw. I have major ethical issues with the way farmed animals are treated in our current system of agriculture, but I was able to find meat sources that I felt comfortable with. Unfortunately, it got prohibitively expensive with three large--okay, I thought they were large, but I know better now!--50-60 pound dogs. We went back to kibble. I picked a brand or two and stopped reading ingredients so I didn't have to worry about it. We fed mostly Canidae, Chicken Soup, depending on availability, with Canidae being the most frequent brand we bought.
Over the last few months, our older dog has developed some skin sensitivities that we think may be diet related. We have no parasites, his bloodwork is good, and he has no allergies, but his skin seems to always be bordering on a flare up. We've explored environmental causes, but regardless of what we change, he remains pinker than usual and mildly itchy, and will occasionally flare up with a hot spot here or there. We thought it might be age-related and decided to just treat the symptoms. (He's about 14.)
Less than a week after starting the last bag of food we bought (Canidae), both the older dog, Henry, and the youngest, Bosco, developed twin hot spots. I talked to B's former people, and he's never had hot spots before. *sigh*
Because I already have ethical issues and huge health concerns about the meat sources used in kibble, I'm suspicious of it, and I'm not that interested in exploring more meat-based kibble brands, but I'm frustrated that not only can I not get Henry's skin cleared up completely, but now Bosco is going down the same road. What I'm considering doing is switching everyone to an organic vegetarian kibble and supplementing with raw a few times a week to see if this helps. Supposedly, he has no grain allergies, but I'll look for a low-allergen formula anyway.
I know that there are concerns about the different rates of digestion of raw and kibble, and I'd feed each separately for that reason. I already give occasional raw bones for dental health, and they do fine. It won't be inexpensive, but it will be cheaper than all raw, and cheaper than a second round of allergy testing. If it works, of course.
Does anyone else do this? Or am I crazy? Anyone else use a veg kibble they would recommend?
Amanda