DoctorPup Complimentary Service

May need higher quality food

Q: I asked a question last evening about how much my puppy should be pooping - we have had her since the end of this past November, so she is now about 16 weeks, weighs about 5-6 lbs. She needs to go about 5-6 times per day eating about 3/4 cup of food, 2 times per day. We currently use Purina One puppy but I am thinking we may need to switch due to low digestability or is that volume normal? We have also had a setback in potty training (outdoors) - she was making it through the night without accidents in the crate but is now waking us up mid way through having pooped or peed in her kennel and wailing to be cleaned up. We give no food or water anywhere near bedtime but she has been doing this now for about 2 weeks.

A: Certainly the volume and frequency of food is not the problem. Going to a higher digestibility food will reduce stool volume and that may solve your problem. Unfortunately digestibility is not required as part of pet food labeling, often cost is a good indicator. Generally the lower the cost the lower total digestibility will be. The exception to this are the “designer” foods often with unique nutrient sources. Here is a list of foods for starters: Natures recipe c d Iams woof soft Iams Eukanuba small bites d Royal Canin c d Pro plan savory soft Hills ideal balance c d Castor pollux organically Simply nourish c d Blue Buffalo c d Wellness c d Bil jac frozen C-canned d-dry