Our Golden Retriever also has allergies so she gets cooked horse meat, quinoa, carrots or broccoli with supplements every day. We went to a nutritionist for animals at the University Tierspital in Zurich (www.nutrivet.uzh.ch) and she was able to provide a menu specific to Bella's weight, mobility, other issues and allergies. When we go away to France, Germany and Italy it is not always possible to find horsemeat so we also have a lamb menu option (also from the nutritionist).

If you would like to know the nutritionist's e-mail send me a private message and I can send it to you. She speaks English.

I would go with this suggestion, they are connected to the University Hospital so one would think they are the most up to date and will be continually learning from a wide range of sources.

I can ask my friend if you wish me to but I do know they also bought the food off him, not that that is a negative, but he has an “interest” other than just the health of your dog?

I’ve never fed barf, but I have fed Gina and Fritz for years (maybe 6 or 7) to our pup. She loves it and seems very healthy, even at 14.5 years. She’s a mix, rescue, probably an Asian spitz.

I like the company too - based in Zug, good customer service.

We've had our share of food challenges with our recently adopted dog.

Finally we found a food he would eat. Dog's Health. It's a moist dry food, so not crunchy, but not the consistency of a wet food.

It is made in Switzerland, and you can buy it directly from the company, or any of the partners listed on their website.

https://www.swissnatural.ch

Thanks everyone for their really helpful replies. Over the weekend I have been making him up chicken and vegetables with salmon oil and barf supplement and he is doing much better. He got so thirsty on the kibble, which then meant that he drank loads and then couldn't sleep through the night.



As he is already 20kg a bit expensive with the food he is now on so will have to find a long term solution or it is going to cost a fortune to feed him! I am definitely going to go to the UniversityTierspital in Zurich, just what I need for advice



Gina and Fritz in Zug is one I will also check out


Thanks again

Just to let you know, my 24kg pup eats one big jar of Gina and Fritz each day. I have 30 jars delivered each month so that‘s about chf 206 each month. How big do you expect your pup to get? I have only one, very spoiled dog, so i‘m happy to pay the cost. The biggest pain in the backside is recycling all those glass jars.

My @20kg dog is on the expensive kibble diet (Orijen) and costs @chf200 for 3 months.
I feed him approx 7:30 and 18:00, and he does drink a lot, but that’s healthy anyway. He’s always been a good drinker actually.
He’s usually done the bulk of his drinking by about 20:00.

Note, he does a lot of ‘sprinkling’ when he’s out and about, so needs to stay topped up for that.

Yeah. I can‘t feed Lily Orijen or Arcana. Comes right out the other end. I can feed her Josera, and that‘s what she gets at the Tierheim. It‘s interesting that premium kibble is a disaster for her.

When you meet with the nutritionist, another thing to discuss is not only what you feed your pup, but also how you feed your pup his daily ration.

Some dogs do well eating a traditional meal. Others need to be fed differently.

To give you an example:

I rarely feed meals in a bowl. Instead, each dog's daily portion goes into my pocket. (Terra Canis and Magnusson kibble and Terra Canis canned put into squeeze tubes.) The dogs then essentially earn each piece of kibble or lick of the tube as training rewards as we go about our day.

I started this many years (and dogs) ago to avoid overfeeding, but quickly saw that some of mine did much better when given small amounts over a long period of time than with a larger amount in a bowl quickly consumed. Some had real conditions necessitating this kind of feeding (IBD, pancreatitis) but Heffalump, who does not have any diagnosed gastric condition, simply digests better when fed frequent small amounts. Too much food at once means it all generally comes out the other end.

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Now - your dog is a growing pup. Key now is getting sufficient nutrition into his developing body. I hope the good folks at the Tierspital can help you find a diet that works for him, and for you. But do discuss not only what to feed, but also how.

Good luck!


Oh and by the way... we always love puppy pics here on EF.

Thanks will certainly posts photos. Because Axel has an umbilical hernia we have to feed him little and often. We use a slow feeder bowl which looks a bit like a maze and means he cannot gulp it down. Yes, it is also about how much and when as much as what. Looking forward to speaking with the nutritionist.

Well his Grandpa is 63kg although mum and dad aren't that big. Judging by his big paws he has a lot of growing still to do!

Well I have been consulting with the Nutritionist at the University Tierspital in Zurich (although they are actually NutriVet and not connected to the Tierspital and wanted to do an objective review of my experience. While I have learned some extremely valuable tit bits it was not as much as a success as I had hoped for and not sure that I would recommend them to others.



I sent an enquiry email and was immediately sent a questionnaire (and an authorisation to pay all fees although no breakdown of the type of fees I would need to pay). It asked for the weight of both parents, which I could only estimate (as could the breeder), and information on what I was feeding him and any health issues. I received a call the same day and was asked if I could bring him to Zurich for an appointment a couple of days later. I was told they do not believe in the BARF diet for puppies under 6 months and to switch to cooked chicken, which I did and was really impressed with the speed they dealt with it.



I then received another email saying that my appointment needed to be cancelled due to a staff meeting and they didn't need to see the dog to do a diet so they wouldn't reschedule. About a week later I received a report with a diet plan and a growth curve on what his weight should be at this stage and going forward. (And a CHF 300 bill) There is a lot of mashed potato in that diet. I followed the diet exactly, purchasing all the oils and minerals powders in additional to chicken breast (Not cheap) and weighing all the food. The problem was that he wasn't putting on any weight at all over a 4 week period.


I am extremely impressed with My Vet in Cham and I showed the vet the report. She was concerned that he was far too thin and we agreed that it is very different doing a theoretical diet based only on the estimated weight of the parents and his current weight and that I should explain to them he is bigger than average and too thin. I went back to the nutritionist, explained what agreed with him and what didn't, and didn't really get anywhere except to give him 50g more chicken.



It seems that everything is based on a formula which may or may not be accurate. The weight of both parents was only estimated and I was never asked the age of the parents nor for any measurements of my dog. I am sure that much of the report was a template.



I will say that he is doing better on boiled chicken then he was on the raw food and he loves the mashed potato and stewed apple. He doesn't seem to be digesting the carrot well (even mashed) and the Hemp Oil doesn't agree with him although the salmon oil does. Did I get CHF 300 worth of information from the Nutritionist, probably not. Did it help, yes. Would I go back to them, no. Instead I am doing a lot of my own research and carefully trying other foods.....I may just need to hire him his own personal chef!

I thought the orginal issue was the type of food, not the amount, and weight was not even in the frame.


Why not just feed him up?
These are his growing months, give him what he needs, better a tad too fat than too thin in my book.



Boiled chicken won't be cheap to sustain when he hits 60kg though.

Hi, The original issue was on the type of food but I also wanted to know the quantities that I should be feeding him as well which is why I was so glad to find a nutritionist. The diet that I was given is measured to the gram (800g chicken breast, 500g of potato 15g hemp oil, 2 g salt etc etc) They believe that dogs should not grow too quickly because it is bad for their joints and I should not increase the diet. It may well be a perfect diet and they could be correct.



I struggle with it when they have never seen him and the vet says to tell them he is too thin and the nutritionist still says his weight is ideal according to the chart I have plotted.



I am feeding him more and he is going back to the vet next week for a check up. I just wanted to give a review for other people who are struggling with doggie diet

In almost 30 years of being owned by canines, I have found that recommended feeding formulae rarely work for my guys - I usually have to tweak it, based on that highly scientific process, 'listening to that little voice in the back of my head'.

You are right to do your research - and then concentrate on your dog's body condition, seek counsel from your vet, and listen to that little voice.

Here are two helpful body condition picture charts:
Puppies:
http://www.mabcr.org/template/upload...yCondChart.pdf
Adults:
https://www.wsava.org/WSAVA/media/Ar...-Score-Dog.pdf

When my guys' ribs start to become too prominent I feed more, when their 'upholstering' feels like they are covered in a down jacket rather than a tee shirt I feed less.

As a general rule of thumb I usually add or subtract 10% per week, but if at the extreme end of either under or over weight I might increase or decrease 10% twice per week. If I need to add more food I tend to do so in extra meals, not in volume per meal. If I need to decrease I add in some veggies for bulk.

Yes, it's good ol' trial and error.

(Assuming of course no medical condition that would influence weight and food, and that output is as it should be. I'm somewhat laissez faire with my adults as I know their 'normal' but poor stools or odd frequency or volume in a puppy might mean a trip to the vet.)

I would follow your vet's advice, as the vet has seen your dog and knows your concerns.

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Wishing you and the little one bon appetite, andall the best.

Hi All,


Any recommendations for BARF food providers for dogs in Zurich?



Thanks!

Only recommendation that I have is to change their name. Eating barf must be a dog’s breakfast.

Here are three threads discussing BARF diets, including where to source the meat and supplements:
https://www.englishforum.ch/pet-corn...ew-babarf.html
https://www.englishforum.ch/pet-corn...-dog-food.html
https://www.englishforum.ch/pet-corn...-raw-food.html

Are you experienced feeding BARF? If so, your local butcher might be one of your best resources.



I don't feed BARF, so I can't give any personal recommendations.

Hope you find what you need.

Related threads now merged, so I suggest reading through from the top.