[NAGDU] Irregularity
sblanjones11 at sbcglobal.net
sblanjones11 at sbcglobal.net
Thu Mar 24 15:47:46 UTC 2022
I feed my dog two cups in the morning, and one cup in the evening.
Susan
-----Original Message-----
From: NAGDU <nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Danielle Sykora via
NAGDU
Sent: Thursday, March 24, 2022 10:33 AM
To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Danielle Sykora <dsykora29 at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [NAGDU] Irregularity
Hi Tracy,
I'm late here, but a few thoughts. You've gotten some great suggestions
already. Some of these suggestions work extremely well for some dogs, but
don't effect others. A food switch can work wonders for relieving issues;
however, I'm imagining from your previous posts you probably already feed a
decent quality kibble. Food switches are my go to if the dog is pooping
three or more times a day or consistently having very large or soft stool.
This almost always means the dog is eating a food with a lot of fillers it
isn't digesting, or the dog has an allergy or intolerance to the food.
Switching to a different, ideally better quality food, in these cases almost
always results in relieving less often and/or with less urgency. If the dog
is already pooping only once or twice a day with smaller firm stool, a food
switch may or may not make a difference.
Most dogs will do equally well eating one or two meals a day. Some dogs will
vomit bile if only eating once a day, and it may be difficult to feed once a
day if another dog in the home is eating twice. Something less drastic that
sometimes works is feeding one larger meal and one smaller meal. It would
take some trial and error to figure out if a larger morning or evening meal
would alter the relieving pattern, but it is a very easy fix if it does
work. I would try this first, and consider one meal per day if the dog
starts consistently relieving mid route on a regular basis.
Another easy fix is giving the dog a bit of exercise before starting your
route, if you think the dog may need to relieve. Sometimes all the dog needs
is five minutes of fetch, tug, heeling around the house, trick training or
obedience session, etc to stimulate them to relieve.
Then you can go on your way without worrying. This obviously is more
feasible when relieving your dog at home. Believe it or not, brushing also
stimulates some dogs to need to relieve, which is another option.
My current dog is not entirely predictable with relieving either. She gets
her meals within a roughly one hour window and always poops first thing in
the morning. She eats a lower fiber food with little filler.
What time of the day her next poop will come is not predictable. As a
college student though, I do have routines that vary from day to day and
therefore her exercise routine varies from day to day. Giving her a few
minutes of exercise before relieving is the solution that works very well
for her to prevent indicating she needs to relieve during a route.
Good luck,
Danielle
On 3/24/22, Tracy Carcione via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> Thanks all for your thoughts.
> I am feeding 2 dogs now, my current and retired guides. My old boy is
> allergic to chicken, which makes switching foods much more
> problematic. I really don't want to have 2 bags of dogfood and 2
> containers to protect them. However, Igloo's #2 habbits were erratic
> in training as well, when he was eating Purina, so I'm not sure a
> switch would help anyway.
> I continue thinking about moving the night feeding time, but haven't
> come up with a good consistent time to change it too. I'm not sure
> about doing away with split feeding. I started it long ago, when one
> of my dogs would throw up in the night because her stomach was so
> empty. Both my boys have been split fed all their lives, too.
> Brent, I have a relieving harness, and I really like it. I used it
> all the time with my old dog, but Igloo has not taken to it well. I
> used it in training, and he would fill the bag, but still stand in a
> hunched way until I took it off, then sometimes do a bit more. At
> home, he did the same, or wouldn't go at all. I decided to stop using
> it for a while until he got more acclimated to his new life and I got
> more familiar with his poop schedule. Maybe it's time to bring it
> back out and start over, because it really is very useful. And my old
> dog did seem to come to associate wearing it with getting down to
> business and filling that bag.
> Thanks everyone for giving me things to consider.
> Tracy
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NAGDU [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Brent
> Franklin via NAGDU
> Sent: Tuesday, March 22, 2022 5:08 PM
> To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> Cc: Brent Franklin; Tracy Carcione
> Subject: Re: [NAGDU] Irregularity
>
> Hello Tracy,
>
> An interesting topic you've raised here. One that I hope promotes much
> discussion.
>
> I will do my best to keep this post short, having several guides it
> might end up slightly longer than I'd like.
>
> Food certainly plays its part, with so many brands and types of food
> out there any wonder it can be tricky to absolutely know which works
> best with your dog. The food my dogs have come to me on I've changed
> right from the start. With sponsorship of schools being offered by
> certain brands, those are the one's the schools go with.
> aInterestingly 3 instructors I've worked with wouldn't have there own
> dogs on those brands the schools were recommending at the time. One
> can ask a stack of questions re food, and it is by only trialing
> different foods that you will find out what works best.
>
> My current guide came to me with toileting times, a rough guide that
> the kennel staff had observed. While this was good it gave me a real
> idea of when he needed to fill a bag, a fairly good start. However I
> was changing his food from day one so this was going to change. His
> toileting times didn't suit me either, two poos in the morning within
> a 3 hour period wasn't going to work for me, then one later in the day
> late at night. As far as I was concerned while good information, this
> was going to change. I wasn't sure what times we'd end up with but change
was needed.
>
> It took us about 6 weeks to truly work this out. He is now down to
> filling a bag twice a day.
>
> His first is very early in the morning, and his second is mid afternoon.
> This dog works very hard, so plenty of walks. I felt twice a day was
> enough, from the start I wanted to cut one out, because two so soon in
> the morning just didn't seem to work with my timeline. Yes I feel it
> is important for the dog to fit his toileting in with what I want.
> Being employed means I can't just up and take him, there wasn't going
> to be this "Oh no my dog has to go" in the middle of a meeting.
>
> What I did was a couple of things.
>
> Firstly I changed his food to one I felt was better than the school
> recommended one.
>
> The second aspect was to get rid of one of those bag filling times. I
> gradually pushed that time further back and in the evening straight
> after his dinner I'd toilet him and not give him another opportunity
> until morning. He soon caught on to the idea if he needed to fill a
> bag after dinner he'd better do it straight away.
>
> This showed me I was going to succeed, so soon after I was able to
> toilet him mid-afternoon and if he hadn't gone after dinner in the
> time I gave him he learnt I wasn't going to take him late evenings The
> mid-afternoon change really worked. I remained very strict and he came
> around to what I wanted, filling a bag twice a day.
>
> A third aspect is I stopped feeding him twice a day, I cut out the
> morning feed in the first 5 days I had him. The dog I had before my
> current guide developed stomach issues, it took weeks to resolve
> those, and my vet insisted I stop feeding him twice a day and go to
> one feed a day. The idea of feeding twice a day while not exactly old
> isn't exactly new either. My first two guides were never fed twice a
> day. My vet felt feeding twice a day wasn't helping my former guide
> with his stomach issues.
> Amazing the difference cutting out the morning feed made. I then
> promised myself I'd never split feed again from then onwards it was
> always going to be one feed a day. Others can shoot me down but I feel
> the one feed made it easier for me with dog toileting habits.
>
> The fourth and final thing I do is use a toilet harness. My dog when
> wearing this knows it is toilet time not only does it prevent me ever
> having to pick up after my dog, but it brings about that importance of
> toileting to the dog, he knows I expect him to fill the bag.
>
> Those are my thoughts there is no right or wrong in what we do, but
> once a day feed I feel has made the biggest difference.
>
> Good luck, if you aren't currently using a toilet harness consider
> doing so, best invention ever.
>
> Feel free to keep the list informed of your progress because I'm very
> sure so many readers can relate to this issue.
>
> Cheers.
>
> Brent.
> -----Original Message-----
> From: NAGDU [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Tracy
> Carcione via NAGDU
> Sent: Wednesday, 23 March 2022 1:42 AM
> To: 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users'
> Cc: Tracy Carcione
> Subject: [NAGDU] Irregularity
>
> Igloo is not very regular with his #2's. His breakfast time is around
> the same time every day, and his dinner can vary by an hour or so, but
> is usually around the same time as well.
>
> His night output can happen any time between right after dinner to
> just before bedtime. If it's late, his morning output is also late.
>
> We get out for some kind of walking every day, unless it's raining all
> day.
>
> I wish I could figure a way to make him more predictable. He doesn't
> relieve on route, unless it's a real emergency, but I don't want him
> to start having more emergencies. I can deal with sometimes having to
> carry around a full baggy, but I really hate when it becomes an
> everyday occurrence.
>
> Any ideas?
>
> He is eating an even amount of food morning and night, lamb with
> millet, barley and sorghum.
>
> Tracy
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> NAGDU mailing list
> NAGDU at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> NAGDU:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/bfranklin%40woolworths.
> com.au
>
> --
>
>
> CAUTION: This email, links and files included in its transmission by
> Woolworths Group Limited ABN 88 000 014 675 and its group of companies
> (Woolworths Group) are solely intended for the use of the addressee(s)
> and may contain information that is confidential and privileged. If
> you receive
>
> this email in error, please advise us immediately and delete it
> without reading or copying the contents contained within. Woolworths
> Group does not
>
> accept liability for the views expressed within or the consequences of
> any computer malware that may be transmitted with this email. The
> contents are also subject to copyright. No part of it should be
> reproduced, adapted or transmitted without the written consent of the
copyright owner.
>
> _______________________________________________
> NAGDU mailing list
> NAGDU at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> NAGDU:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/carcione%40access.n
> et
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> NAGDU mailing list
> NAGDU at nfbnet.org
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for
> NAGDU:
> http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/dsykora29%40gmail.c
> om
>
_______________________________________________
NAGDU mailing list
NAGDU at nfbnet.org
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nagdu_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for NAGDU:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/nagdu_nfbnet.org/sblanjones11%40sbcglobal.
net
More information about the NAGDU
mailing list