CAN DOGS HAVE BABY FOOD?

Question
I HAVE AN 11 MONTH OLD FEMALE BULLMASTIFF. I WILL TRY TO MAKE A LONG STORY SHORT. WHEN WE GOT HER AT 8 WKS. OLD SHE WAS ON IAMS LARGE BREED PUPPY FOOD, THE VET SWITCHED HER TO SCIENCE DIET LARGE BREED PUPPY. AT 8 MONTHS OLD SHE STARTED THROWING UP EVERY NOW AND THEN THEN GOT TO WHERE SHE WOULDNT EAT AT ALL. I TOOK HER TO THE VET AFTER 2 CBC'S HE FOUND ELEVATED LIVER ENZYMES THEY WERE UP TO 1000 AND SOMETHING. NUMEROUS CBC, X-RAYS, ULTRASOUND, DINISOL,HIGH DOSES OF STEROIDS AND $800.00 LATER WE STILL HAVE NO IDEA WHY. HER ENZYMES ARE BACK DOWN TO NORMAL. FOR 2 WEEKS OUT OF THIS TIME HE HAD PUT HER ON SCIENCE DIET PRESCRIPTION CANNED FOOD. THIS SPOILED HER. SHE WOULD GO FOR 2 FULL DAYS AT A TIME WITHOUT EATING AND I WOULDNT LET HER GO ANY MORE I WOULD PUT YOGURT ON HER FOOD AND SHE EATS IT. WELL IN FEBRUARY I LEARNED HOW BAD SCIENCE DIET AND OTHER FOODS ARE FOR YOUR DOG. AT THE TIME SHE GOT SICK SHE WAS EATING 6-7 CUPS PER DAY SO AFTER READING EVERYTHING ON IT IT MADE ME WONDER IF SHE HADNT BUILD UP TOXIC LEVELS TO THE SCIENCE DIET FOOD CAUSING THE PROBLEMS BUT I GUESS ILL NEVER KNOW UNLESS I RUN ACROSS SOMEONE THAT HAS HAD THE SAME PROBLEM. I CHANGED HER FOOD TO WELLNESS LAMB AND RICE AFTER 1 WEEK ON THAT FOOD SHE WAS SCRATCHING HER MUZZLE A LITTLE NOT ALOT BUT HER SKIN WAS FLAKING REALLY BAD. I CALLED WELLNESS AND THEY SAID TO SWITCH HER TO CHICKEN THEY ALSO SAID THAT THE TOXINS FROM THE SCIENCE DIET WERE COMING OUT MAKING HER SKIN FLAKE AND THAT WOULD GO AWAY. WHEN I WENT TO THE PET STORE THEY SAID TO TRY FISH AND SWEET POTATO. SHE HAS BEEN ON THAT A COUPLE WEEKS BUT SHE DOESNT LIKE IT AS WELL STILL WANTS SOMETHING ON IT. HER SKIN IS GETTING BETTER NOT SURE IF I SHOULD SWITCH HER TO CHICKEN OR TRY MIXING SOME BABY FOOD WITH WHAT SHE IS EATING NOW.IF THEY CAN HAVE IT WHAT CAN BE GIVEN TO THEM? BY THE WAY SHE IS ONLY EATING ABOUT 3-4 CUPS PER DAY NOW BECAUSE OF THE DIFFERENCE IN FOOD. ALSO WHEN SHE WAS SICK AND BEFORE THAT SHE WOULD EAT PLATES FULL OF ICE AND WE WOULD MAKE HER FROSTY PAWS ICE CREAM. THEN ABOUT 2 MONTHS AGO EVERY TIME SHE EATS A PIECE OF ICE, ICE CREAM OR COLD WATER SHE THROWS UP RIGHT AWAY. IS THIS NORMAL TOO? SO NOW I AM IN THE PROCESS OF FINDING A NEW VET BECAUSE I AM NOT HAPPY WITH THE RESULTS OF EVERYTHING. I APPRECIATE ALL THE TIPS AND HELP YOU CAN GIVE ME. THANK YOU!

Answer
Hi Cathy,

Your message was extremely hard to read given the fact you wrote the whole thing in all upper case type. In the future please consider the person who needs to read your message, and use upper AND lower case letters as well as using paragraphs. Paragraphs are our friend.

I haven't heard that Science Diet is bad for dogs, or that it has a negative effect on a dog's liver. There is the very real possibility that your dog was having liver problems, and you just didn't know about it for the pups's first 8 months.

If your dog is doing better on the food you are currently feeding her, then stick with it and do not change. Changing a dog's food often will make it a finicky eater, and actually train the dog to hold out for something better. It's best not try and coax a dog into eating by adding things to it's food either. You are training your dog not to eat what you give her. Because you had to, you were changing the dog's food, so it's really no surprise that now she's getting picky.

However, in answer to your question: yes baby food is safe to give a healthy dog that does not dietary restrictions. Beef, chicken or liver are good meat choices. You can also make your own which might be more practical, given your dog's size. If you make your own food, you could buy the cheepst cuts of meat (remove the bones) and also mix in any of the following: green peas, potatoes, yams, carrots, or squash. Mixing in these veggies are as healthy for your dog as they are for you.

By nature dogs are scavengers, and not picky eaters. If a dog is picky, it's because it was trained to be that way. Loss of appetite or losing interest in food is another matter, and would call for a visit to the vet. Given your dog's past medical history, keep an eye on her. If she has a loss of appetite call the vet.

The typical dietary recommendations for liver disease are to use a low protein diet that has very good quality protein ingredients so that the liver doesn't have to do much work to convert the protein into forms the body can use. There are commercially available diets that help with this, including Hill's L/D and K/D, Purina's NF diet and others. The Wellness food you are currently feeding your dog might have entirely too much protein for your dog's liver to process.

If your dog throws up after eating ice cubes, cold water or Frosty Paws then I would suggest not feeding her those foods. Perhaps the coldness shocks her system, the way some people get an "ice cream headache". Since she reliably throws up after those foods, then they should be avoided. Only give her water that is room temperature, and save the ice cream for yourself.

When you find a new vet, it might be a good idea to have the dog's liver enzymes tested again, and checked against the past lab results.

Best of luck,
Patti