Affordable dog food for sensitive skin: Iams, Purina One, or what?

I like Purina ProPlan Sensitive Skin & Stomach. I have had many clients rave at how good it is for dogs with sensitive skin. You could also try Purina One SmartBlend Sensitive Systems but I don't as much experience with clients using it. It is much less expensive that the ProPlan. ( https://www.chewy.com/purina-pro-plan-focus-adult-sensitive/dp/128666 ) ( https://www.walmart.com/ip/Purina-ONE-Natural-Sensitive-Stomach-Dry-Dog-Food-SmartBlend-Sensitive-Systems-Formula-31-1-lb-Bag/22074306 )

Congratulations on your new puppy! Pepe Le Pew is absolutely adorable!! Iams puppy food is a perfectly fine food to feed him. I would recommend if you wanted to switch foods to wait two weeks before you do that. This was he gets comfortable in his environment before switching anything. You can do Iams, Science Diet, Nutro, Eukanuba and even Royal Canin. These companies do a lot of research on foods and are well balanced. Congratulations again and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! The diet I prefer for this is the one made by Science Diet called sensitive skin and stomach diet. However, what I have found the most helpful in reestablishing a nice shiny coat is using fish oil daily. You can get the commercial ones sold online or at your local pet store. This works great. Good luck and have a great day!

I'm sorry to hear Winston is having these issues! A good first step is to schedule a vet visit for him to rule out any underlying conditions that could be causing his symptoms in addition to food. Your vet can also work with you on a food trial if it is suspected that a certain ingredient is the cause for the problem. For general sensitive stomach/skin, Science Diet has a formulation that addresses both. You want to make sure to gradually change the diet over a period of 7-9 days to avoid additional stomach upset, gradually adding in more of the new food. It can also take up to two months for a food trial to see results.

As long as it is a name brand food with an AAFCO label on it. This means it has been tested and meets specific standards. Typically royal canin, Purina, science diet, and Iams qualify for this. Be careful switching foods without suddenly as this can cause diarrhea. It is best to mix them and gradually switch it over a week

As you've experienced, diet changes can certainly cause some changes in stool volume, and for some dogs, can cause a bit of vomiting and diarrhea. When it comes to the countless brands of dog food on the market today, it's overwhelming to pick one for your pup. I recommend brands that have been formulated by a board-certified veterinary nutritionist, are manufactured in their own facility (less cross-contamination that facilities that manufacture numerous formulations), conduct AAFCO feeding trials, and meet WSAVA guidelines. When it comes down to it, the brands that meet those criteria include Hill's Science Diet, Purina, Royal Canin, Eukanuba, and Iams. As a result, I would recommend switching Lilly over to the Science Diet puppy food. Just remember that anytime you switch foods, be sure to do so by gradually mixing the old and new foods together over a 5-7 day period. I hope that everything goes well!

Science Diet is an excellent food but as you have noticed their over the counter foods typically don't have fish. They do have a prescription diet with fish but it can be expensive. I included a couple links to a couple different types of food that contain Salmon. https://www.chewy.com/purina-pro-plan-focus-adult-sensitive/dp/128666 https://www.chewy.com/purina-one-smartblend-sensitive/dp/37688 Thank you for using PetCoach.