Senior dogs on Orijen? - Page 2

Nan, it doesn't swell. I don't soak it, just add water to it so they're not eating all that protein dry. You can certainly soak it, but it takes forever to absorb water- unlike the grainy foods that swell up 10x their size when wet. I'll PM you more info. 

We've recently switched over to Orijen... well, are in the process of anyway. My dad switched his 14.5 y/o shih tzu/yorkie over to it (we literally spent about an hour in our favorite pet store, reading through dog food ingredients LOL), and so far so good. He's got him on the Senior version, but I'll let him know about adding some water to it. I plan on switching Qira over to it in a week or two, and in the process of putting my 10 y/o cat on it as well, so I'll let you know if we have any issues. :)

At what age do you switch to senior food? I know a lot of companies suggest around 7-8 years, but neither of my girls seem to be very senior at all.

Qira was raised on Orijen from puppyhood until about 3yrs old, when I scored big time on the raw source, then we switched to Nature's Domain for the kibble "filler" portion of the diet since we were getting so much awesome raw for nothing. Point being, you ought not have any issues switching her back :)

I don't think there's enough difference to bother worrying about formulas, myself, though if Yapper is eating senior you guys might as well feed the same, whatever that may be. It's slightly less fat and more fiber- neither of which I see Qira having an issue with one way or another but senior might be better for Yapper.  Just my unsolicited opinion, lol.

Jenni78,

Is this the video you are talking about from Karen Becker?

thanks for bringing up this video, good info; explains why my guys puke up chicken feet.  NOT digestable.  Simply put for us laymens. 

Thanks Jen. :) I'll probably put her on a "normal" formula, for now anyway. We get seperate bags of food since Qira eats signifigantly more than Yapper does (though not for lack of him wishing... LOL), so a different formula is no problem.

OK Jen:  I also add water even to my raw foods, just feel it is better for the dogs.  good to know the food does not swell though.  The soaking is why I quit using Honest Kitchen, a real pain to have to soak for l/2 hour especially in AM.  Dogs barking waiting for food,  not good for close neighbors at all and I have some real dozie's.  Nan 

My 13.5 year old GSD female is on Orijen Sr and has been eating it since she was 10 years old.  She ate Orijen Adult (Regular) prior to that.  I have always added enough water to kibble to keep the dogs from choking on it since they eat so fast no matter what I do (including this female).  I don't float the kibble, just wet it.  My dogs have access to a bucket of water 24/7 and have never had an issue with dehydration or excessive urination.  My 13.5 year old is still going strong and although I feed most of my other dogs raw, I never switched her since she was doing so well and "if it isn't broken, why fix it?".  She has zero health issues, perfect stools twice a day, is intact and still has a normal heat cycle every 6 months almost to the day.  I do add a dental supplement to avoid any plaque buildup and her teeth are all still present and quite functional too (she does bite work on her birthdays and any other chance she gets).  Pic is from her 13th b-day in April 2014.  I also have an almost 10 year old who is on Orijen Sr too and she is the sable in the 2nd pic, taken at age 9 years 3 months.  She's been on the Sr Orijen for about a year now and was on regular adult prior to that.

Thank you both pic's are just gorgeous;  coats look really good.  May I ask what  you use for  your dental supplement?  Thx in advance  Nan

So if you use this product do you add anything??  More fish oils, vitamins, or anything else?  Thx  Nan