# Can grain-free make a dog calmer?



## ColoradoSooner (Mar 26, 2009)

Hello all,

With info I got from this board, I decided to switch my dogs to a grain-free food and about 10 days ago started feeding them TOTW exclusively (after slowly switching them over from Innova).

I had read that going grain-free can give a dog more energy. I'm wondering if it can also make them more calm?

Ever since we adopted Mayzie 6 months ago (she's about 2 years old), she has been a nervous dog...shy and fearful. Each night, it took her a couple of hours to really settle down before going to bed. She was constantly wandering around, wanting to play, etc. It was like she had lots of nervous energy to burn off.

The last few nights, she has hopped up on the couch much earlier than usual and relaxed almost immediately. It worried me a little but she's eating well, still seems to have a good level of energy, still enjoys playing, etc. She just winds down much more easily. So I'm wondering if the new diet has anything to do with that.

Anyone have any experience or knowledge about whether this could be the case?

Thanks in advance!


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## croll326 (Jul 25, 2009)

I am doing exactly the same thing....starting TOTW tomorrow...


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## railNtrailcowgrl (Jul 24, 2008)

Just curious what she was on before? Some cheap grain filled foods also have sugars & salt added, which could cause agitated/'hyper' behaviors.


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## ColoradoSooner (Mar 26, 2009)

Thanks for your response. 

It was a high-quality food: Innova small bites. So it's not like it was crazy-high in cheap grains. But I'm wondering if maybe she's sensitive enough to ANY grains that putting her on a grain-free food could have an impact on her behavior?

Innova Small Bites Ingredients: 24% Protein
Turkey, Chicken, Chicken Meal, Barley, Brown Rice, Potatoes, Natural Flavors, Rice, Chicken Fat (Preserved With Mixed Tocopherols, A Natural Source of Vitamin E), Herring, Apples, Carrots, Cottage Cheese, Sunflower Oil, Dicalcium Phosphate, Alfalfa Sprouts, Eggs, Garlic, Taurine, Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Calcium Carbonate, Vitamins (Ascorbic Acid, Vitamin E Supplement, Niacin, d-Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D Supplement, Beta Carotene, Vitamin B-12 Supplement, Biotin, Riboflavin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamin Mononitrate, Folic Acid), Minerals ( Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Copper Proteinate, Manganous Proteinate, Calcium Iodate), Direct Fed Microbials (Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus Fermentation Product, Dried Lactobacillus Casei Fermentation Product, Dried Bifidobacterium Thermophilum Fermentation Product, Dried Enterococcus Faecium Fermentation Product).

TOTW Ingredients: 32% protein
Bison, venison, lamb meal, chicken meal, egg product, sweet potatoes, peas, potatoes, canola oil, roasted bison, roasted venison, natural flavor, tomato pomace, ocean fish meal, choline chloride, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, yucca schidigera extract, dried fermentation products of Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum, dried Trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid.


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## Michiyo-Fir (Jul 25, 2009)

Maybe it's just the transitional period where she's getting used to using fat for energy instead of carbs? I used to use Innova as well and never noticed my dog being calmer after switching to Orijen (40% protein). See how she does in the next 3-4 weeks, if she doesn't seem to be in any discomfort, she should be fine. 

Innova is a great food too though, not sure why it would make her feel nervous or hyper?


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## PandaBear (Sep 6, 2009)

Grain/carbohydrates are transformed into glucose when the body is digesting it. Glucose is sugar. Which can make a dog more hyper.


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## Cracker (May 25, 2009)

A lot of it depends on the whether you are ingesting simple carbs or complex carbs..complex carbs can be soothing as they increase serotonin. Grains, unless they are whole grains do not have the fiber content to regulate the sugars. In the first food the brown rice and rice are simple carbs. In the second the potatoes, fruits, etc are fiber rich (making them complex carbs) so they don't cause the same sugar rush. All carbs are converted into sugars, it's the speed of conversion that affects the amount of sugars in the bloodstream...which means they are better regulated instead of going up and down all the time.


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