Hip Dysplasia in Dogs Linked to Improper Diet

by Mike Sagman
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Hip dysplasia in dogs is a common condition in which the hip joint becomes malformed. The disease typically appears before a dog turns 18 months and can lead to severe arthritis and lameness.1

This video by Dr. Karen Becker shows how proper diet can help prevent this crippling condition.

Doesn’t a High Protein Diet Cause
Hip Dysplasia in Dogs?

Although there are many who still believe high protein can be a health problem for puppies, more recent studies tend to disagree.

The rapid growth which causes skeletal disorders (like hip dysplasia) in larger breeds is now believed to be more appropriately linked to genetics2 — and made worse by excessive dietary calcium3 or overfeeding during the puppy phase of life4.

For more in-depth information about this controversial subject (including references and footnotes), you may wish to visit our article, “Best Puppy Foods“.

In large breeds, be sure to look for puppy foods with comparatively lower calcium content.

Footnotes

  1. Wikipedia, “Canine Hip Dysplasia” ↩
  2. A Hedhammar, Canine hip dysplasia as influenced by genetic and environmental factors, EJCAP, Oct 2007, 17:2 (pp 141-143) ↩
  3. Richardson, Skeletal diseases of the growing dog: Nutritional influences and the role of diet, Canine Hip Dysplasia: A Symposium Held at Western Veterinary Conference, 1995 ↩
  4. RD Kealy et al, Effects of limited food consumption on the incidence of hip dysplasia in growing dogs, JAVMA, Sep 1992, 201:6 (pp 857-863) ↩
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  • Tonka’s Dad

    Whats the calcium limit for a small dog?

  • Bcroome

    We just lost our 5 year old Aggie to lung cancer.
    We know your loss and send our condolences

  • EvesHumanMom

    I am sorry for your loss.  It must be so hard for you right now, but Zak was lucky to have you.

  • Hound Dog Mom

    So sorry to hear this about your dog. At least he’s in a pain free place now.

  • Tlpandco

    Thank you for your reply.  I have very sad news  our Zak was xrayed again at 1 year and we took him to Cornell Animal Hosp. to an ortho specialist.  His hips had not developed since he was 4 momths when first xrayed.  We did all we could do for him and he was in so much pain and so unhappy his agression increased and with a very broken heart we had to put him down.
    There was nothing they could do for him.  The surgeries were not recommended as they also felt he had a genetic temperment disorder causing high fevers and he would not be a canidate for the long rehab required.  It was the hardest thing I have ever had to do.  I loved him so much but his pain meds wore out and he had only about 3 hours a day where he was my happy boy.  I know it was the only kind thing to do for him but I cry everyday and miss him so much.

  • Alexandra

    Thanks for the wonderful information HDM!

  • KellyLight

    Wow, thanks HDM! I wish I had your list when my Tank was a puppy…I always struggled trying to find something appropriate, especially when so many of the foods formulated for large breed puppies actually aren’t. I know this is something that can help a lot of people!

  • aimee

    Hi HDM,

    Grrrreat Job!!

    Thanks for all your hard work tracking down this information and putting it here for others to access!

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com/ Mike Sagman

    Dear Hound Dog Mom,

    Wow. What an incredible job you did! And what a great service to owners of large breed puppies.

    Congratulations on the completion of such a useful project and a special thanks from all of us for being kind enough to share the fruits of your labor with everyone.

    We love you, HDM!!!!!

  • Hound Dog Mom

    Hi Everyone –

    I’ve been working on this for awhile, it’s a list of foods I wanted to put together that I believe are appropriate for large and giant breed puppies. I have a lot of people come to me asking for advise about what to feed their lbp’s so I wanted to compile a list – I thought I’d share it with everyone here on DFA too. Unfortunately, many large and giant breed puppy owners have the best intentions when wanting to feed their new pup a high quality grain-free food, but many are grossly excessive in calcium and can potentially do more harm than good. All of the foods on this list are rated at least 4 stars, grain-free, meet AAFCO nutrient requirements for all life stages or growth, and have 3.5 g. calcium per 1,000 kcal. or less. I contacted all the companies directly to get the actual calcium content and the calculations are based on that.

    https://docs.google.com/open?id=0BwApI_dhlbnFY183Q0NVRXlidWc

    This article, provided to me by a veterinarian, is where I got my calcium limits from:

    http://portais.ufg.br/uploads/66/original_Racas_grandes.pdf

  • Gina

    Hi Tasha,

    Sorry to hear about your baby.  My 10 year old Lab just had xrays done and as my vet put it, “She has severe hip dysplasia and her hips are terrible”.  We have started adequan injections and Rimadyl as needed.  Have heard good results with the injections, so hoping it will help my baby and may be worth a try for Loki? I also used to give the Tramadol and my vet said to stop it and decided to try the Adequan as it has minimal side effects. To add to the news of her hip dysplasia, we have found out that she has high ionized calcium levels and the blood work is pending (Crossing my fingers, toes, etc.  that it is nothing terrible. It is so heartbreaking when they are in pain. Best of luck to you and Loki.

  • http://www.facebook.com/haughpaw Barbara Haugh

     I totally agree

  • Hound Dog Mom

    I’ve thought about the same thing with dehydrated diets. When I fed THK I put it into giant ziplock bags and shook it up before every feeding. Plus my two dogs when through a 10 lb. box every week, so like you said with larger dogs distribution shouldn’t be as big of an issue.

  • aimee

    Oops… Sorry I assumed that you were advising her to contact companies regarding diets other than the ones you mentioned.

    The one concern I have with dehydrated diets and growth is if the nutrients are evenly distributed vs settles out. I’d think with a large breed this is prob. not a concern due to the shear volume fed  you’d go through a box fairly quickly.

    I worry though about small breeds as there is a published report of severe bone thinning in a sheltie pup and Ca was way too low when eating a dehydrated diet. It was SoJo’s. The needed Ca may very well have been  box but I have to think it settled out and the pup was eating a Ca deficient diet.

  • Hound Dog Mom

    I agree, which is why I suggested she contact the companies to confirm average calcium level and maximum levels. These were just some suggestions that appear to be appropriate.

  • aimee

    HDG,

    Did you confirm Ca levels with these companies as on the website min are only given for some of them?

    On the other hand Nutro products max is 1.5%  a little high for my preferences.

  • Hound Dog Mom

    Hi again Corsomom :)

    That’s wonderful that you dog’s parents were OFA tested. Good genetics are the first step in avoiding conditions such has hip dysplasia.

    I’m not a fan of Iams at all, it does have appropriate calcium levels but the ingredients are awful. Some higher quality suggests with appropriate calcium levels would be: The Honest Kitchen Love (1.1% ca.), The Honest Kitchen Thrive (1.3% ca.), Innova Large Breed Puppy (0.9% ca.), NRG Max (0.95% ca.), Petcurean NOW Grain-Free Puppy Recipe (1.2% ca.), Summit 3 Meat Puppy Recipe (1.2% ca.), Grandma Lucy’s Pureformance (1% ca.), Eathborn Holistic Puppy Vantage (1.2% ca.), Precise Large and Giant Breed Puppy (1.2% ca.), Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy (1.2% ca.), Nutro Ultra Large Breed Puppy (1.2% ca.). Most of these are rated 4 or 5 stars. There are others too. You may also want to contact the companies and ask what the maximum or average calcium levels are.

  • Corsomom

    Ok so wow…Iams isnt the best quality “rating” wise for a diet but it is ok for the large breed as far as the calcium intake. I have the parents records according to hip displaysia and the dad has an excellent score and is 140 lbs…he was raised on Iams as a pup and now is on the adult large breed. What is everyones thoughts on this…I canNOT get passed the 2nd and 3rd ingredients which are corn meal and chicken byproducts…

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com/ Mike Sagman

    Hi Betsy,

    Thanks for taking the time to post this interesting letter from Champion. I’ll defer judgement on their the company’s response until some of our resident large breed regulars take a look.

    Thanks again for sharing this note with our readers.

  • Hound Dog Mom

    I do not agree with them at all. I agree that large breed puppies should not be overfed so that they don’t grow too quickly, but this doesn’t mean fat levels and calorie levels need to be reduced – it means the owner needs to monitor the puppy’s body condition and cut back the amount fed if it’s growing too quickly. Also, the reduced calorie content of the large breed puppy formula actually results in the puppy consuming MORE calcium than they would eating the regular puppy formula – both formulas have the same calcium content yet the regular puppy formula has 70 more calories per cup so a puppy would have to eat less of the regular puppy food to meet its energy needs because it’s more calorie dense and more food would have to be consumed with the large breed formula to meet energy needs because it’s less calorie dense, but they have the same calcium density so the higher volume of food required on the large breed formula would result in higher total levels of calcium consumed.

  • Betsy10360

    Hi Everyone!

    I received a reply from Orijen today regarding my question to them regarding what seemed to be a high Calcium level in their large breed puppy formula.  

    I’ll be curious to see what you think.

    Blessings, Betsy

    Here is their reply:

    Good Afternoon Elizabeth, Thank you for taking the time to send us an email. Congratulations on your new puppy J Energy and mineral content are the two main factors that can affect large breed growth and development. The American College of Veterinary Nutrition (ACVN) states that growing large breed puppy diets should have a moderate energy intake and an ideal mineral ratio.  When you have a large breed dog you want to be concerned with controlling their rate of growth. You do not want them to grow so fast that the bones and joints do not have the time necessary to develop correctly. The Large Breed Puppy has a reduced fat content to help us regulate the growth of Large Breed Puppies. Lowering the fat content lowers the calorie count of the diet because a gram of fat has roughly twice as many calories as a gram of carbohydrate or protein. Our ORIJEN Large Breed Puppy diet is formulated with these specific needs in mind: 1) The energy content in ORIJEN Large Breed puppy is lower than our Adult diets to prevent an excess of energy(calories) and improper growth. 2) Our calcium content is a guaranteed maximum of 1.7%.3) The ratio of calcium and phosphorus is within what AAFCO has defined as optimal for growing large breed puppies (1.2:1-1.4:1) The ideal calcium content for large breeds is thought to be between 1.0 and 1.4% on an as fed basis. This is the ideal content and nowhere near the upper limit set by AAFCO. The ORIJEN Large Breed Puppy has a Calcium minimum and maximum of 1.5% and about 1.7%, and Phosphorus has a minimum and maximum of 1.2 and about 1.4%. AAFCO sets an upper limit on calcium and phosphorus for a reason: the upper limit for dogs is 2.5% for calcium and 1.6% for phosphorus. The ideal calcium to phosphorus ratio is 1:1 and maximum ratio is 2:1 and we get as close to the optimal ratio as possible. Once the dog is no longer undergoing any growth spurts, it can be fed a more energy dense food as the vitamin and mineral needs have decreased and there is no longer the risk of excess energy being transferred to improper growth and development. I hope this helps to clarify your concerns. Please feel free to write back to me if you have any other questions. Have a fantastic day, AngelaCustomer CareChampion Petfoods LP Toll Free 877-939-0006 11403 – 186 Street | Edmonton, AB, Canada | T5S 2W6                      championpetfoods.com                                                                                         

  • aimee

    Hi Betsy10360,

    Take a look at diets I posted back further in this comment section and see if any of those fit your needs. I’d feel comfortable with those.

    Since vet nutritionists say you can safely add 10% unbalanced ingrediets to a diet  I used tiny pieces of cooked lean meats for all my puppy training so as to boost protein levels.   

  • Hound Dog Mom

    Betsy10360,

    Unfortunately THK is pretty expensive, especially for big dogs. :/

    The C:P ratio does make a difference. It’s better to have as close to a 1:1 ratio as possible for large breed puppies, but an overall high calcium level is still potentially harmful even if the phosphorus level is higher as well. If you’re interested in Orijen you should consider Acana Wild Prairie – it’s suitable for all lifestages and Acana is made by the same company as Orijen, they’re basically the same food Acana is just slightly lower in protein. The Wild Prairie formula has 1.3% (although I’d inquire about max, just to make sure it’s not too much higher). This is slightly on the high side with 1.3% being generally considered the upper limit for large breed puppies, but I think if you mixed it with an all meat food to dilute the calcium a bit it would be fine. Tripett is has a 1:1 calcium to phosphorus ratio with only 0.33% calcium and 0.33% phosphorus (dry-matter basis). Once your pup was full grown you could move to Orijen or some of the other Acana varieties.

    Another option if you did like the Honest Kitchen would be their Thrive formula. It’s only rated 4 stars as it’s lower in protein than the Love formula, but it’s also suitable for all lifestages and has 1.3% calcium. This formula is also quite a bit cheaper, it’s $68 on doggiefood.com. And remember a 10 lb. box of THK makes 40 lbs. of food.

    Some other options: Petcurean GO (regular puppy formula has 1.2% ca.), Innova Large Breed Puppy (0.9% ca.), Earthborn Puppy Vantage (1.2% ca.), Nutro Ultra Large Breed Puppy (1.1% – 1.5% ca. – so should average at about 1.3% which is okay), Wellness Super5Mix Large Breed Puppy (1% ca.), Holistic Select Large and Giant Breed Puppy (1.1%).

    Also for companies that only list minimum calcium levels, inquire about what their maximum is to make sure it’s not too excessive.

  • Betsy10360

    Thanks, HDM! I knew I had looked at THK Love previously and wasn’t sure why I didn’t have it on my short list of contenders… so I re-read the review and loved what it said. Then I went to PetFlow and that refreshed my memory… Cost. Yikes! It’s almost $10 per pound. I spend at least that on ZiwiPeak for my Cavalier, but she only eats a tiny bit (half a scoop) once a day. It’s still a great suggestion based on the brands I already choose so it’s definitely worth further investigation.

    I will let you know what I hear from Orijen Granted, I only know enough to be a teensy bit dangerous… but, I was wondering about the correlation between their higher calcium level along with the higher phosphorous level. Is it possible that this creates a safe and appropriate ratio?

  • Hound Dog Mom

    Betsy10360,
     
    Make sure to share Orijen’s response to the reasoning behind their excessive calcium levels because the 1.7% calcium in their so called “large breed puppy” formula makes no sense to me…you’d think they would know better!

    The Honest Kitchen’s Love formula is suitable for all lifestages and has only 1.1% calcium, it’s grain-free and rated 5 stars. I fed it to my last bloodhound puppy, you may want to consider that for your new pup. :)

  • Betsy10360

    I agree, Jennifer!  I already have a Cavalier and am picking up our newest addition, a Golden Retriever pup, in a couple of days.  I do all of my food research here and made what I believe are excellent choices that I have a lot of confidence in for my Cavalier sweetheart, Arabella.  She gets a rotation of Darwins, ZiwiPeak (dry & canned), Orijen and Wellness (canned).  I’ve found however that large breeds have significantly different nutritional needs and after hours… make that days… of research, my head is spinning!  In fact, I’ve emailed Champion and asked them to explain (in layman’s terms) the reason for the high calcium level in their large breed formula.  Clearly, there are people here who have a ton of knowledge whose opinions I have come to respect and if they’d be willing to go out on a limb and help me choose (or just go ahead and choose for me), that would be awesome!  …I’d be happy to sign a hold harmless…  ; )  Aimee??  Betsy10360@aol.com

  • aimee

    Jennifer,

    I don’t think there is a one perfect food. A lot of it depends on how a particular food fits with your puppy and your preferences.

    I don’t have a bias against grains so a grain free isn’t important to me. Nor do I limit my choices to 4-5 star products.

    It is more important to me how a company handles a recall vs that they have never had any. 

    During growth I feed products that have passed feeding trials and come from a company that has veterinary nutritionists on staff. 

    My last pup I raised on Purina Pro Plan, a food that only earns 2.5 stars. Her breeder told me after trying many brands of food her line did best on Pro Plan.    

  • Jennifer

    Aimee, just curious, if you had to choose, which food would you pick to feed a large breed puppy taking everything into consideration (calcium, protein, grain free, pet food recalls, 4 vs. 5 star foods, expense, etc)?

  • hounddogmom12

    TLP,

    Even if your dog parents were OFA tested with good or excellent hips there is still a 25% chance your the puppy will have dysplasia. When breeders OFA or PENN Hip test their breeding dogs they are not guaranteeing pups will not have dyspasia they are merely being responsible and decreasing the odds that the pups will have dysplasia. Also genetics are only 50%, too much calcium and/or too much exercise is the first 1 1/2 year of life can cause dysplasia. Also trying medizym-fido tablets when he’s experiencing discomfort.

  • Kaliberknl

     I am so sorry to hear of your puppy’s misfortune.  Did you know that you can look at his hip pedigree online at http://www.offa.org ?

  • Kaliberknl

     I was sorry to hear of your puppy’s misfortune.  Has your vet discussed surgery with you to alleviate the pain?

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=543090876 Tasha Hermanson

    TLP, My Malamute, who grew to 110 lbs, has hip dysplaysia. He was diagnosed as well as a puppy. He expressed his discomfort quite similarly! A lot of biting and grabbing my arms or pouncing at me. Ask your vet about giving him buffered aspirin for pain (only aspirin, dogs cannot take tylenol or ibuprofen!). That pretty much stopped Loki’s biting at me, when we appropriately managed his pain. As he is a large dog he could handle 325 mg 2x a day if it was an active day. Glucosamine is great, I also recommend omegas. Our vet initially told us Loki would not live comfortably past 4-6 years of age but his 6th birthday is Saturday! He is pretty spry yet, until he lays down or tries to get up he groans but is fine once he’s moving. later on down the road (a few years) Rimadyl is great for as necessary pain management. We have stopped that now because Loki’s liver numbers are high due to muscle deterioration (not the rimadyl) and have started a treatment daily of gabapentin and tramadol. I wish you luck! Its a tough road but not the worst. Most important is pain management In my opinion. It really made Loki stop having his bad behaviors (as he was trying to tell me he hurt by hurting me!) and for my husband and I in talking about med side affects, we decided we would rather see our baby live a shorter but happier life than a possibly longer and more painful one. 

  • TLP

    Hello,

    I have an 8mo old Golden puppy.  He had to have xrays for a
    digestive concern and they also did his hips because of tenderness and behavior.  He has dysplasia in both hips.  His
    parents, grandparents and greatgrand all were OFA w/good to excellent.  I was told it may be a resesive gene ???Unfortunately, he learned to express his pain from his digestion and the tenderness in the groin area by biting my arms and being very demanding.  I have had a very hard time
    controling him.  If I can see it coming I can sometimes revert the reactions.  I am working with a great trainer to learn how to work with the bad behavior and turn it around.  My vet put him on adult food..chicken, rice, and veggies containing glucosamine and tablets for a 1200 mg per day.

    I think he is more comfortable and he gets to run off leash
    in a fenced yard for about 15min two times a day.

    He would not jump up on the couch by invitation I had to help him lift his butt before and now he jumps up to lie down by me by himself.

    Now if I can totally stop the biting (pinching more than bite)
    when he is tired, hungry or over excited he will be PERFECT
    like all young Goldens  Ha Ha Ha

    Any ideas would be appreciated I hope to have a happy actice boy for many years to come if I can.

    TLP

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com/ Mike Sagman

    Hi Aimee,

    Thanks again. I’ve copied these all into my spreadsheet list for future publication. You’ve certainly invested a lot of time on this important project.

    BTW, the format you used this time – as a list with each product on its own line – made it easier for me to copy and paste these recipes into the storage document.

    So, thanks from all of us (especially me!).

  • aimee

    I went through Natura’s food line using their on line nutrient analysis and found the following  4 star foods:

    Innova Puppy 1.07% Ca, 82% P, 2.81 grams Ca/1000 kcals

    Innova Large Breed Puppy .9% Ca, .82% P,  2.52 grams Ca/1000kcals

    Innova Large Breed Puppy canned .38% Ca, .33% P, 2.87grams/1000

    Innova Adult dry ALS 1.23% Ca, .91 P, 3.33 grams Ca/1000kcals

    Innova Adult red meat ALS 1.16% Ca, .83% P, 2.96 grams/1000kcals

    Innova Prime grain free Salmon/Herring adult ALS  is a 5 star product and is close to desired levels at 1.49% Ca. 1.02% P  3.66 grams Ca/1000 kcals. 

    California Natural Chicken and Rice Puppy 1.32% Ca, .92% P 3.59 grams Ca/1000kcals

    California Naturals Chicken and Rice Adult ALS 1.51% Ca 1.03% P, 3.69 grams Ca/1000 kcals  

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com/ Mike Sagman

    Hi Aimee,

    Thanks for the clarification. I may ultimately take your advice when I complete my screening by using calorie-weighted basis.

    BTW, Aimee, your introduction on this forum about the value of calorie weighted (a.k.a. energy weighted ) basis is the primary reason you now see this figure posted in our dashboard.

    Thanks again for this important input. Large breed puppy owners, please take note.

  • aimee

    Mike,

    All the values I reported are on as as fed basis, so while .40 % Ca looks low ( it should have been .4 not .44)  for the canned food on a dry matter basis it is  1.7% Ca and is  3.4 Grams/1000 kcals : )

    The Selects Chicken and Brown Rice canned entree is .41 Ca, .33 P  1.74% DM and 3.57 grams/100 kcals.

    The levels look odd because they are canned products and we usually talk about % Ca in large breed dry foods.

    On dry matter the Ca levels look too high, but both of these are high fat products.  I think these would make good toppers vs a complete food due to the high fat levels. 

    Caloric basis takes into account both water and fat levels which is why it is my preferred way to compare products and both of these would be appropriate as they are both just under 3.5 grams Ca/1000.

    I’ve noticed that you are now including caloric basis in your reviews which I think is a GREAT addition!

    I pulled a few 4 star products and even found a 5 star diet and will post those in the near future.

     

     

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com/ Mike Sagman

    Hi Aimee,

    Wow. On behalf of all of us. Thanks for a job well-done!

    I’m keeping these dog foods on a special list for future publication.

    When it comes to preventing skeletal dysplasia, folks with large breed puppies should overlook our star ratings in favor of one of these rare low calcium recipes.

    Thanks again for this sharing this valuable research with our readers, Aimee.

  • aimee

    Hi Mike,

    I’ve made a few inquires to add diets to your future list : ) 

    I’ve verified the Ca levels of these products based on average nutrient analysis.  IMHO if a company will only give a minimum Ca I don’t think they should be included on a list of recommended produsts. I’ve read it is a common practice to list minimums in diets whose levels are too high.  

    Hill’s nutrient analysis  are on their website  so they were easy : )

    Their Nature’s Best Line ( 3 star)  Puppy Chicken and Rice ( 1.29% Ca 1% Ph, 3.29  grams/1000kcal)   and Lamb and Rice Puppy ( 1.35% Ca 1.16% Ph  3.47 grams/1000 kcals) formulas  both make the cut.

    The Iams company was really easy to work with as they gave me all their formulas on a caloric basis.

    Iams Healthy Naturals Puppy 3 star is 1.6% Ca 4.1grams/1000  and their Premium Protection puppy is 1.5% Ca,   3.7 grams/1000 kcals  (  both higher than what nutirionist rec  3.5 grams/1000 but lower than NRC safe upper limit of 4.5/1000)

    Iams Pro Active Smart Puppy  Large breed is .8% Ca 2.2 grams/1000, and the Original is 1.2% Ca 3.3 grams/1000 so both of those make the cut.

    Eukaneuba Naturally Wild Salmon and Rice puppy 1.07% Ca 3.0 grams/1000 kcals

    Eukaneuba Pure Puppy is 1.2% Ca and 3.3 grams/1000kcals

    Eukaneuba Lamb and Rice puppy  is a little higher at 1.42% Ca and 3.78 grams /1000

    Eukaneuba Large breed is 0.8% Ca, 2.65 grams/1000 kcals

    Purina initally only gave me minimums until I asked for more specifics and then they gave me a nutrient analysis

    The only Purina line that  meets  3 star is Proplan select line. all of their products meet the guidelines
     
    The Natural Turkey and Barley for Puppies is 1.25% Ca .99%Ph, 3.09 grams Ca/1000 kcals 

    Turkey and Barely All Life Stages is 1.24% Ca .94% Ph 3.17 grams/1000 kcals
     
    Turkey and Barley canned for puppies is .44 % Ca .3 % Ph 3.43 grams/1000kcals

    I also called Blue Buffalo since the min Ca levels looked like I might find some good choices there but .. they said it is against company policy to give out a nutrient analysis as that is proprietary.  They also wouldn’t put a cap any of the Ca levels in their food, only say what the min was.
     I told them to please pass on that as a consumer I would choose to never feed a Blue product since the company is unwilling to give out basic nutrient information.

  • aimee

    To Allnaturalpetcare,

    I agree that ratios are important too! Additionally there are a lot of nutritional factors besides Ca/Ph levels that play a role in proper bone growth.

     But as you said we need to start somewhere and since it is established that high Ca causes orthopedic problems in growing large breeds it is a good place to start.  

  • aimee

    Hagelult,
     
    I agree it can be frustrating as hip dysplasia is a multi factorial based condition. Progess has been made in decreasing its frequency but still a long way to go.

     

  • http://www.allnaturalpetcare.com/blog AllNaturalPetCare.com

    From the research I’ve seen, it’s more about balance (such as ratios) than percentages, but we have to start somewhere. 

  • hagelult

    Hip dysplasia is such a frustrating thing for parents of large breeds. I know first hand! My female bloodhound (now 1 1/2) came from parents who were both OFA tested with scores of good and the grandsires and granddams on both sides had OFA scores of good or excellent. I fed a combination of THK Love and Zeal (both under 1.3% calcium) and Tripett. I kept her very lean, and I was very careful with her exercising until she was a year old (no off leash running, 10 minutes leashed walk max per month of age, no long periods of heavy play). When she turned one I took her to an orthopedic specialist (the best around according to my regular vet) to have X-Rays and make sure everything was okay. Grade 1 Dysplasia! I was was shocked because I thought I did everything right to prevent this, the doctor told me 25% of all large breed dogs will develop some degree of hip dysplasia regardless of diet, exercise, genetics, etc. I think that really says something about where the modern breeders have taken breeding. Confining large breed puppies so they grow properly? Carefully analyzing calcium intake? I’m sure our dog’s ancestors did not have their exercise limited, calcium levels limited, and weight constantly monitored just so their hips developed properly. Monitoring calcium is definitely a good precaution to take but trust me it is by no means a guarantee.

  • Addie

    I definitely agree with you on the Ca minimum listing; it’s a little frustrating they don’t usually disclose the maximum. While I appreciate Orijen for disclosing their max levels, 1.7% seems high. Glad to hear the 1.2 and 1.3% is okay, but again that’s just the minimum unfortunately. Natura seem like one of the few companies who provides an average nutrient analysis. 

  • aimee

    I think levels like 1.2%, 1.3% can be fine.  Part of the problem is that Ca is often listed as a min. so we don’t really know how high level go!

     It is nice if a company posts an average nutrient analysis as I think that more closely reflects the actual Ca content in the diet.

    Also the higher the fat level in the diet the higher the Ca level can be while still hitting the target on a calorie basis.

    Ideally we should be able to call a company and ask what the Ca level is /1000 kcals. 

    Safe upper limit for NRC is 4.5 grams/1000 kcals but many vet. nutritionists prefer the Ca to be less than 3.5 grams/1000.

    On a practical level though I look for a Ca around 1%

  • Addie

    Oh, and Diamond Naturals Large Breed Puppy won’t make the list either at 1.2% 

  • Addie

    I know you can cross off Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover’s Soul Large Breed Puppy (1.2%) and Fromm Large Breed Puppy Gold (1.3%). I couldn’t find Ca levels on Royal Canin Maxi Puppy, so maybe aimee will be able to post that info? 

  • aimee

    Hi Mike,

    Addie just asked me to take a  look at Innova large breed puppy, it is a 4 star food and has a Ca level of .9% and Phos of .72%  and has undergone feeding trials too so I’ll  kick of the list with that one!

  • http://DogFoodAdvisor.com/ Mike Sagman

    Hi Aimee,

    I completely agree. For this reason, I’m planning to create a short list of those commercial dog foods (preferably rated at least 3 stars) that at least come closer to the more ideal 1% you mention here.

    Unfortunately, due to our current and ongoing project of updating all the reviews on our website, it’ll probably be a while longer before we can create this list.

    Any nominations for a good low calcium dog food especially targeted for large breed puppies to get us started?

  • aimee

    Hi Mike

    I think this is a great addition to your collection of articles. As you have probably noticed I frequently post on the special needs of large breed puppies.

    I think Dr. Becker has done a really nice job getting the word out that it is important to keep growing pups lean and to strive for slow controlled growth.

    I do however disagree with her recommendations. Many all life stage diets contain inappropriately high calcium levels for a large breed growth as do some foods specifically labeled as large breed puppy food. On the flip side many “general” puppy diets which she recommends to avoid contain very appropriate levels of calcium and fat in them. 

    As a general guidleline Ca should be about 1%  as fed for a dry large breed puppy diet.