# Orijen Puppy



## LindsC (May 28, 2012)

I am thinking of starting my pup on this when I get him in a week - while of course slowly weaning him off the breeders food. Anyone had any problems with the Orijen puppy?

Thanks.


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## HalleBerry (Feb 22, 2012)

I fed Halle the Orijen puppy food - she did great on it


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## rokipiki (Oct 15, 2010)

I would keep that baby on breeders food for al least one month. He will go through a lot od change and lot of stress and he is still a small baby. I would let him adjust to his new home and people around him, get a bit potty trained... and then start changing his food. 
My vet dida some research with Orijen and she thinks that it is good food for large dogs, but sometimas too strong for small breeds. she did some blood and urine testing befor Orijen and month after complete switch to Orijen. Sjhe told me that couple of small dogs bloodwork showed that kidneys are under pressure because of too much concentrated protein. Month after switching to lower protein diet, bloodwork results were to normal again. Maybe you should try something else. You have such good choice in US.

Marina&Roki


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## Lizzie'sMom (Oct 13, 2010)

I fed Orijen to Lizzie before I started cooking for her. She always had loose stools. I think it was too rich.


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## HalleBerry (Feb 22, 2012)

My danes have had problems with loose stools on the Orijen adult - but not on any of the Acana formulas. Halle has never had a loose stool; she ate Orijen puppy and then I later converted her to Acana. Her poops were MUCH smellier tho on the Orijen than they are on the Acana.


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## Flynn Gentry-Taylor (Jan 17, 2008)

LindsC said:


> I am thinking of starting my pup on this when I get him in a week - while of course slowly weaning him off the breeders food. Anyone had any problems with the Orijen puppy?
> 
> Thanks.


I agree, you need to keep everything the same until the puppy is adjusted. If you have any doubts about the foods, you might consult a dog nutritionist, Sabine is reasonable for just a food consultation..Tammy, Dave, do you agree?


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## The Laughing Magpie (Aug 20, 2009)

I answered your other thread, please read it. Orijen is a very rich food if your breeder started your dog on this it is one thing, richer is not better if your dog is not active, yes I know puppies are all active and growing, they need different things as puppys and have developing systems. Orijen is a good food I use it but, I also feed canned (I am one of those people that switch the canned on a regular basis, but not the kibble) the reason is the canned has a lot of water so mixing makes my guys think they are eating more as a small amount of Orijen goes a long way. Also my 15 yr old Lhasa with many health issues, can not have it at all, it is too rich and puts a load on his kidneys, he is not very active and has been doing very well on KD renal...it works for him. 

I can tell you want to do the best for your new puppy, its just a suggestion; take it slow and ease your puppy in, what works for one, may not work for another. Remember what looks good on paper sometimes when put in to use does not work at all.


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## misstray (Feb 6, 2011)

I fed Brody Orijen puppy and he loved it. His system tolerated it well. His breeder fed him Purina Pro Plan puppy which isn't available where I live without special ordering it in. I got one bag of that from the breeder and then switched Brody over to Orijen Puppy when the Pro Plan began to get low.

I was actually unsure of what brand I was going to switch him to, but when I got him (I was visiting at my parents) he kept stealing their Maltese's Orijen (Senior) food and wanting that over his own puppy food. So, I figured he obviously liked the Orijen so I just went with that brand for the switch.

He did poop a lot on it and they were smelly (not sure if that is just him or from the food), but his poops were firm.


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## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

Both my dogs are on orijen and I really like the ingredients. It is grain free so can be too rich for some dogs. Acana which is made by the same company has some with oatmeal or other digestable grains in it that are good if the orijen is too rich. Acana also makes a puppy formula specifically for small breeds. I would have used that had i seen it before I bought the Orijen puppy but i already bought a big bag and she's doing great on it. The puppy formula comes in a "large dog breed" and the regular puppy. Make sure you don't get the large dog one.


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## TilliesMom (Sep 30, 2010)

Flynn Gentry-Taylor said:


> I agree, you need to keep everything the same until the puppy is adjusted. If you have any doubts about the foods, you might consult a dog nutritionist, Sabine is reasonable for just a food consultation..Tammy, Dave, do you agree?


Yup! when in doubt ask Sabine!! Hopefully Dave chimes in with her link...


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## Flynn Gentry-Taylor (Jan 17, 2008)

TilliesMom said:


> Yup! when in doubt ask Sabine!! Hopefully Dave chimes in with her link...


I am sure Dave will, thought I would let him give the information as he may want to add more...


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

Flynn Gentry-Taylor said:


> I agree, you need to keep everything the same until the puppy is adjusted. If you have any doubts about the foods, you might consult a dog nutritionist, Sabine is reasonable for just a food consultation..Tammy, Dave, do you agree?


I certainly agree with doing a consult with Sabine. The thing about asking for advice on food is, that you'll get different opinions from everyone. What's good for one dog , won't work with another. Certainly we have to start somewhere. I'm not a fan of the popular dog food rating sites. But they will give you a general idea of the better foods. So I think its' fine to start there. But if you really want to find out some extra details on nutrition , a consult will add some extra value, based on your dog from a questionaire that is done. I have trouble with a certain comment here. and because I'm not an expert , I will ask Sabine about it.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

Regarding Orijen being too strong. Here is what Sabine says. ...." about the Orijen being "too strong" for small breeds is silly. It's really not about the size of a dog, but about what the individual can tolerate. Dogs of any size are susceptible to all kinds of issues and you know that I keep telling people that just because a food gets 5 stars on some dumb rating site doesn't make it perfect for every individual.  

Small dogs also need a lot more nutrients per pound of body weight than larger ones do, so the large breed dogs are actually more susceptible to over supplementation. Just to illustrate, according to NRC an adult 10 lb dog should get 21.8 mg of iron per week, that's 2.18 mg per pound. A 50 pound dog should get 72.9 mg, that's 1.46 mg per pound, and a 100 pound dog 122.5 mg, that's 1.23 mg per pound."

Sabine


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## The Laughing Magpie (Aug 20, 2009)

I give my guys Orijen, but the question is more about changing a new puppy to a different brand right away. Many Breeders will give you a package of food or tell you the brand they are using so you can ease your puppy into the brand of your choice.


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

I find it interesting that a veterinarian who has to go to school for 6 years has less knowledge than all these holistic food company's. Every vet these days say they are tired of talking to there clients about food. But they all say they would use the food that does the most research. The other side says that they are paid or given free samples thats why. Well I am confused again. 5 star good holistic dog food or home cooking or science diet? All vets I have talked too say raw is diffidently a big risk because of or food chain and salmonella. Just confused


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

Suzi said:


> I find it interesting that a veterinarian who has to go to school for 6 years has less knowledge than all these holistic food company's. Every vet these days say they are tired of talking to there clients about food. But they all say they would use the food that does the most research. The other side says that they are paid or given free samples thats why. Well I am confused again. 5 star good holistic dog food or home cooking or science diet? All vets I have talked too say raw is diffidently a big risk because of or food chain and salmonella. Just confused


 Suzi, vets spend very little time studying nutrition. They shouldn't even be allowed to sell food in my opinion. As much as the "top ten hit list" is not accurate, it doesn't include any vet sold brands in most cases, which tells you it's somewhat accurate.


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## The Laughing Magpie (Aug 20, 2009)

Suzy, Most Vets will say no to a Raw diet, even if they feed a raw diet to their own dog, the reason is not everyone can safely feed raw.


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## davetgabby (Dec 29, 2007)

The Laughing Magpie said:


> Suzy, Most Vets will say no to a Raw diet, even if they feed a raw diet to their own dog, the reason is not everyone can safely feed raw.


 Yeah Robbie, that may be , but a lot would prefer to sell their own crap.


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## The Laughing Magpie (Aug 20, 2009)

Dave, a few years back when my Shih Tzu's heart was really bad I ask if there was a food my Vet could recomend and he laughed at me and said I could probably come up with something better on my own, he told me he spends his time trying to educate most of his pet parents that Bacon and Ham are not the best food a dog can have.


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## MarinaGirl (Mar 25, 2012)

You can only get Acana puppy formula for small breeds in Canada, not the United States. I called the company, Champion Petfoods, to find out if they or a store in Canada could ship it to a U.S. consumer directly but they said no. I feed Emmie Acana Ranchlands, which is for all breeds and lifestages. I tried Orijen puppy but it made her stools loose and smelly.


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## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

My vet always tries to push the food that they sell. I did some research and their brand of food was not any better (and somewhat worse) than what I was using. They obviously make money off the food they sell and that's why they push it. Vet is not the best source of information on food unfortunately.


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## HannahBearsMom (Jul 31, 2011)

Suzi said:


> I find it interesting that a veterinarian who has to go to school for 6 years has less knowledge than all these holistic food company's. Every vet these days say they are tired of talking to there clients about food. But they all say they would use the food that does the most research. The other side says that they are paid or given free samples thats why. Well I am confused again. 5 star good holistic dog food or home cooking or science diet? All vets I have talked too say raw is diffidently a big risk because of or food chain and salmonella. Just confused


Similarly, medical doctors are generally very poor choices for those seeking nutritional advice. You are almost always better off getting your information from a nutritionist/dietician.

FWIW, my vet did not recommend a specific food, but he said you generally get what you pay for as far as the quality of ingredients. I was glad he said that, since my parents were visiting and were with me at Maccabee's first appointment. They feed their dog Costco/Kirkland food, which I hope they've changed since the recall.


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

I wounder why Acana doesn't sell the small breed puppy here in the US? My first bag Maddie was a year but Zoey was younger. I got a huge bag at my training center. The trainer highly recommended it. At that time I hadn't seen it at my natures pet but they said they could order it. I got one that had chicken and fish ect. The kibbles were big but the sisters did fine eating it. I switched again because the center was far from my home to taste of the wiled. But got disappointed that it is manufactured by a company who keeps having so much problems with salmonella . Well the small natures pet store finally is stocking Acana what is weird is the kibble is small and it was the same chicken ect. I think its small enough for a puppy. I liked the bigger kibble because I think it may be better for their teeth.


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## LindsC (May 28, 2012)

Suzi said:


> I wounder why Acana doesn't sell the small breed puppy here in the US? My first bag Maddie was a year but Zoey was younger. I got a huge bag at my training center. The trainer highly recommended it. At that time I hadn't seen it at my natures pet but they said they could order it. I got one that had chicken and fish ect. The kibbles were big but the sisters did fine eating it. I switched again because the center was far from my home to taste of the wiled. But got disappointed that it is manufactured by a company who keeps having so much problems with salmonella . Well the small natures pet store finally is stocking Acana what is weird is the kibble is small and it was the same chicken ect. I think its small enough for a puppy. I liked the bigger kibble because I think it may be better for their teeth.


Suzi, do you mean you think the Acana (grasslands, ranchlands, pacifica) kibble size is okay for a hav puppy? I am now leaning towards Acana or Wellness Core (puppy), which my store told me they would get in next week.


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

LindsC said:


> Suzi, do you mean you think the Acana (grasslands, ranchlands, pacifica) kibble size is okay for a hav puppy? I am now leaning towards Acana or Wellness Core (puppy), which my store told me they would get in next week.


 Yes I do Its flat and much smaller than a large breed kibble. Although puppy kibble has added vitamins and more protein so I would find out about that. My sister has raised her dogs on Wellness her dogs are very healthy but we just found out that most dog foods don't use human grade meats at least its not regulated and we haven't been able to find any that say it on the package. We did find one but it was made in Taiwan. Canadian dog food has stricter rules as to what goes into their dog food. I wounder why they don't sell Acana puppy here? Does the Orijen have a small breed puppy food? I think they are very similar and manufactured by the same company?


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## Suzi (Oct 27, 2010)

The Laughing Magpie said:


> Suzy, Most Vets will say no to a Raw diet, even if they feed a raw diet to their own dog, the reason is not everyone can safely feed raw.


 I don't eat raw I cook my chicken to a certain temperature for a reason. Salmonella is salmonella. Hamburger is another one that has had a bunch of problems. I think it is just too much of a risk IMO. Its not like a wolf who just goes out and kills in the wiled . I suppose if a person had their own chickens and beef maybe that would be safer.  I would much rather home cook than do Raw.


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## Tuss (Apr 22, 2012)

Orijen and Acana are both made by the same company (champion pet foods in ALberta canada). Orijen is grain free and Acana contains some grain. The protein ratio is higher in Orijen.

http://www.championpetfoods.com/

www.orijen.ca

They say that all their meats are "human grade". Also, even for human grade in canada the standards are higher than in the US human grade, so I think it's the best available (unless I had the time to buy my own meat at the market and make it myself)


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## HalleBerry (Feb 22, 2012)

Acana has both a grain free and a grain-inclusive line; Orijen has a higher meat percentage (typically 80%) than Acana which is typically 60%


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## HannahBearsMom (Jul 31, 2011)

Tuss said:


> Orijen and Acana are both made by the same company (champion pet foods in ALberta canada). Orijen is grain free and Acana contains some grain. The protein ratio is higher in Orijen.
> 
> http://www.championpetfoods.com/
> 
> ...


Human Grade Pet Food, What is it Really? http://www.thehonestkitchen.com/2010/08/25/what-is-human-grade-pet-food-really/


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## jessegirl (May 13, 2011)

Rollie had horrible loose stools with this. He LOVED it and it smelled great, but after a couple weeks, we had to stop it. Good luck!


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## mellowbo (Aug 12, 2007)

We have been feeding our pack raw for years now with nothing but excellent results. Another great brand is Fromms. I don't believe they have ever had a recall. Orijens also has a good reputation.


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