Well folks back to the topic in hand - I did a bit of browsing last night and have come across a couple of complete feeds which appear to fit the need

The first is well known and is 18.5% protein

The second food is equally well known and is 18% protein

In the meantime we will go back to an elimination diet ie - home cooked.

I will pack up the Orijen and Wafcol ready for delivering to my brother in law next week for his garden wildlife. This year he had 7 badgers + 5 foxes coming to feed so will appreciate the feed donations

Crikey - that protein percentage in Orijen is sky high isn't it. It's a total minefield because I gather that some foods claim a much lower protein content, but in fact if you take into account the moisture content (which is sometimes massive) then actually the real protein percentage is very high.

Poor Harvey - but still, he will enjoy the home cooked stuff until you can find the solution.

Yes it does make the mind boggle

He had scrambled eggs & toast for breakfast For his second feed he had some tinned Butchers and potatoes with broccoli

I'm beginning to wonder if it mightn't just be best to home cook and fall back occasionally on tinned food - what do you think?

I think if you find home cooked food is agreeable for Harvey and you don't mind putting in the extra time and effort it takes then go with that.

A few years ago in my home-cooking phase, I fed my two boxers meats veg and a small amount of carbs. Turkey was the main protein because it was good quality from a bargain source.
If I cooked any rice it was well rinsed long grain rice.
I'll try not to get long winded but long grain rice has more amalose which aids it's digestion than the short grain sticky stuff.
My employer who had dogs used to joke that in his next life he was coming back as one of my dogs because they were better fed than he was
He didn't seem to be too bothered what he fed his dogs and I don't remember him having any problems either.
I never fed raw in those days as I do now.
If Ruby had problems with raw I would go back to home-cooked food as her main diet.

Im just a bit wary with home cooked in case he misses out on something & toying with idea of wet dog food or mixture of both

Did you home cook daily or in batches?

home cooking is very hard to balance correctly as cooking can destroy some of the good elements....i know of a few dogs that were home cooked and developed hepatic problems....reversed when put on a 'proper' dog food

I would cook a batch large enough to feed two dogs for the week.
I found it easier to cook and freeze portions for the week rather than cooking for them daily as their cooked meals were not what I cooked for us.
I never stuck to anything religiously.
Giving variety whether cooked or wet will give a wider range of nutrients.

If you believe protein is a major factor check out the need to balance the various amino acids from differing proteins.
I seem to recollect something I've read about getting too much amino acid from the same source throws things out of balance.

The Orijen I have fed to Ruby is Adult kibble which is a mix of proteins chicken turkey fish and eggs.

Has Orijen fish got too much amino acid from one source of protein ie. fish rather than just too much protein in general.

Sorry I'm a bit vague on that but something rings a bell.

This is becoming a bit like a Miss Marples mystery.

Interesting: a vet gave me a recipe a few years ago for home cooking but didn't mention liver problems. However I am a bit with you on that one especially with a young dog - could this not also be the case with a raw fed dog?

Depends on how you cook I guess. Vet said to use low fat spray in wok or pan and stir fry chicken breasts & veg. She said if you never used anything other than long green beans, you would never need to use anything else as they are full of fibre, vitamins and nutrients. She recommended varying the veg content. It certainly smelt & looked very tasty. No matter what veg I used, always included the long green beans

It is finding a food that he is tolerant to

This morning he had toast & sardines in tom sauce which he loved but got the bread everywhere - easily crumbled. We won't repeat it. The older cat & kitten argued over a sardine still in the tin - kitten won! (she's feisty)

It is becoming a bit of a mystery - frustrating one at that!!

That's an interesting theory - has the food got too much amino acid from the fish, you could right, would another source of protein be better - generally speaking most of them use Salmon. JWB does a White fish version however he is totally intolerant to it or any JWB foods we have tried

A dogsey member in another thread (cooks) uses White fish to cook - PAH sell frozen blocks so that is another option - freezer space is another consideration which has to be taken into account.

I was thinking this morning is the skin problem a superficial indication of maybe a digestive problem, should I really be looking at a food for digestion. I have long pondered if the digestion is poor could it manifest by visible problems such as skin conditions. Oddly enough a vet said the very same thing to me about six months ago.

Did you not find the rice tended to go all over the floor ? Boxer mouths are not really designed to eat rice although they do like it.

You have given me food for thought. ..

Yes it can be a pain but I didn't add much rice and I put it into the mix not as a separate item.
I par cooked it,rinsed it then added it to the meat and veg to bind it for the remaining cooking time.
It binds well with sweet potato.