# Merricks or Natural Blanace or Wellness Core? My dog wants firmer stool.



## lyphzgud (Feb 11, 2012)

he been on orijen and I think its just too rich for him, maybe he needs more fibre or something I am not sure. But I think its time to try a new food and see if I can better this situation. These are the brands I am considering for my boy ( 5 year old jack a pug ). Which one do you guys think would be the best fit and why?

or is there a better option?


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## lyphzgud (Feb 11, 2012)

just noticed when comparing foods that wellness core Ocean formula has a much higher fibre % then all the other foods including orijen that I was feeding him. Would going from 3% to a 7% fibre make the difference? in the mean time I been giving my boy a tsp of pumpkin to help firm things up which seem to help, but still just a cover up solution.


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## Goldens&Labs4Me (Jan 18, 2012)

All 3 are decent foods.

The biggest thing is, Orijen is completely grain free as is Wellness Core. Merrick is primarily grain based and Natural Balance has some grain free and some that I believe are grain inclusive. 

Can your dog tolerate grains or is it a personal preference to avoid them completely? Orijen is an excellent food, but sometimes dogs just don't well on certain brands for whatever reason. What I would personally do is compare the labels of the Orijen and then see which may be different enough to try first. If grain doesn't bother your dog (or you) maybe start with Merrick or a NB formula, since they do have some grains and then you can truly see if the Orijen just was too rich for your dog. 

I personally haven't tried the Merricks, nor the Natural Balance. Wellness wasn't one that my dogs "enthusiastically" ate, so only tried one bag. 

Not to add confusion, but one of my favorite brands is Fromm--they have both grain free and grain inclusive foods in their 4 Star Ingredient line. I also have my eye on Taste of the Wild (grain free) and will be trying that during my next trip to the store for food.

I honestly don't know much about the fiber in the foods...but did find an article on dogfoodadvisor.com about it. 

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/frequently-asked-questions/dog-food-fiber/ 

Good luck!


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## jess4525 (Aug 27, 2009)

I had the same problem with my puppy and loose stools. We tried a lot of different things before we found what works for him. I currently feed him Blue Buffalo Wilderness. I rotate between the different formulas (salmon, duck, chicken) and he is doing great. My vet suggested a higher fiber food, and this is 6.5%. 

He always eats it and seems to really like it and he is doing very well on it. 

It is a little pricey, about $50, for a 24 pound bag, but it is worth it since he is doing so well. Taste of the Wild is also a good food, but the fiber content was lower so I decided to stay with the BB Wilderness.


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## lyphzgud (Feb 11, 2012)

Well I bought the wellness core ocean, it's 80.00 cdn for the 26lbs bag. Has 7% fibre vs orijens 3%. I think this might just do the trick. 

He seems to like the food so far, we will see how the transition goes... I will keep you guys posted.


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## naql (Feb 18, 2012)

I feed my dogs Acana Grain Free which is made by the same company that makes Orijen. It is slightly lower in protein than the Orijen so it might work better. 

I tried my yorkie on the Wellness Core and she didn't like it much.


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