[Susan]

Pitluv
I am not talking about the Pro Plan Sensitive Skin & Stomach, Salmon & Tuna, AU, I’m
talking about Pro Plan Sensitive Digestion AU…. I can’t understand why you’d feed your poor dog that crap especially when you have so many good foods to pick from in America….
If Purina Pro Plan is soo good how come I never see you recommend the Pro Plan Large Breed Puppy?
Just cause a dog is doing firm poo’s doesn’t mean the kibble is good, it means they have added certain ingredients to firm poos up Hills, Purina & Royal Canine are good at adding these ingredients to make poos firmer & people believe the kibble is a really good kibble cause their dog is doing firm poos now…

[Bernie O]

So happy for all the info. on Orijen – Acana made in Kentucky. My 3 1/2 month Golden was doing great on Wellness Core puppy and all of a sudden he has developed diarrhea,, when we slow reintroduce the Core puppy again after he became stable the softness began again. I’m thinking the Core puppy and it’s higher protein made be to rich. Was thinking about changing to Acana ,, but now now after what I just read. Any thoughts or suggestions on another high quality large breed puppy food ? Thanks to all !

[pugmomsandy]

Here’s an article about choosing large breed puppy food (in case you haven’t seen it yet). It contains a calculator for calcium and phosphorus.

/best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/

[pitlove]

Kathy-

Lamb meal is nothing to be scared of. Meals contain more protein than whole meats. Both their Large breed adult chicken or the lamb would be excellent choices. They also both have large kibble size which helps to encourage chewing. Very important for large dogs.

[Kathy B]

To further expand…. yes, I am one of those dog moms that want to give her “kids” the best….. when she first came to us she did have constant diarrhea, after four months with us Molly doesn’t have constant diarrhea but at least once a day, the vet felt that since the tests show nothing and she was a rescue possibly had limited opportunity for outside time she was reacting from that and “making” herself go thus runny stool, although she gets often outside time…most are “normal” although gas was HORRIBLE was questioning if the current food we were feeding was too “rich” thus my questions on this forum. She does have some food aggression that we are working through, also after we put down a large waterer she began wetting in the house. We questioned if she wasn’t thinking of a time of when she didn’t have water and would drink as much of the 5 gallons that she could and then not be able to “hold” it. We have since went back to regular water bowl and the accidents have stopped. All of this is the risk of getting a pup in which you don’t know how the first 15 months of her life was as to our other girl that we got from a very good breeder at 12 weeks. But we won’t give up on her! I am going to try pitluv’s recommendation of trying Nutrasource and spoke with someone else who used it and thought it was great food. However I am now debating Large breed (she weighs 72 lbs) versus regular and why offered is LAMB MEAL and why meal not lamb…. and is this one of those foods that can be exchange between fish, chicken….as a variety. If the issue continues I may try the forti flora but thought one thing at a time and to give it time.

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Kathy B.
• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Kathy B.

[S B]

His vet is with Banfield, we have been going to ever since we got him. The only other times we have had to take him to the this vet was for check ups and when he hurt his lag and ate some fertilizer last summer. I will look at some GSH for foums. He usually eats “Nura-source Large breed adult food” and has never had any problems with it. Unfortunately we bought him off of Craigslist and the seller didn’t give us any info of his parents.(We aren’t even 100% sure he’s a pure breed). His vet did check for pancreatis. We didn’t put him on antibiotics because they woulld cause even more tummy aches but he will probably be going on them or something like that. We are going to call the vet tomorrow and also will ask about lupus.

[Kathy B]

Yes, the stool sample to the vet was one of the first thing I did. We’ve been feeding Wllderness for large breed and according to their bag at her weight of 72 lbs she should get four cups per day. We are going to introduce NutriSource and it recommended feeding is 2 1/2 cups per day….. makes me question if we weren’t over feeding her. We have an older dog (11) that weighs 100 lbs but because of lack of activity was only feeding her 2 1/2 cups per day of the wilderness and had no issues with her but then we got her as a 12 week puppy. Molly came to us at 15 months….. of course she might not appreciate the reduced amount! LOL

[Randy D]

Ok, so after days of reading reviews and this thread, I finally settled on Fromm’s large breed gold puppy food. Two days in, we’re at 50/50. He loves it. I have a question-he is pooping 4-5 times every day. They’re perfect, like a warm tootsie roll, but is there an issue with him going so much?

[Kathy B]

To clarify my first question/comments…. I didn’t think that glucosamine would help with the poo issue I was looking for a good quality food that had the glucosamine/chongrotin for large breeds and fiber that would help with diarrhea. She does get Dasuquin with MSM everyday as well. I will definitely check out the NutriSource, found it to be a 4 Star food but oddly enough not sold at Pet Food stores but our local hardware store.

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Kathy B.

[Susan]

Hi Kathy, have you seen a vet that specializes in IBD?? what works for one dog doesn’t always work for another dog, if you go onto the “Review” section “Natural Balance” there’s a few dogs that are doing well on Natural Balance…
Sometimes a dog needs a lower fiber diet when they have bowel problems, I cant see the Glucosamine firming up her poo’s, it’s best to give the Glucosamine & Chondroitin tablets your self & add to her diet, add tablet with one of her meals, this way she gets the proper amount she needs, the amount of Glucosamine in a kibble isn’t enough for her bones & joints…..
What colour is her poo’s ?? When it’s the small bowel with problem, poos will be real yellow & sloppy, (S.I.B.O) when it’s the large bowel poos are darker & look like cow patties, your vet needs to do tests & work out is it food intolerances is she reacting to a certain ingredients??? does she need a vet diet with more In-Soluble fiber or more Soluble fiber?? Royal Canine Vet diets have a few vet diets low & high in fiber, then you’ll start to get a better idea what the problem is??
My boy didn’t do well on the Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Digestion, read the ingredient list it’s not good, it doesn’t digest easy, so don’t always believe what they right on the kibble bags..
Two really good kibbles that have worked for Patches IBD are “Taste Of The Wild” Sierra Mountain, Roasted Lamb, a grain free, single protein, (no other proteins just Lamb meal) limited ingredient kibble…
“Canidae” all life stages, Large Breed, Turkey Meal & Brown rice, Adult, Puppy & Senior formula’s it’s new in Blue packet on page 4.. it has 750mg/Kg Glucosamine, but your still better off adding your own Glucosamine to your dogs diet.
http://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products
I would be trying the TOTW Sierra Mountain Roasted Lamb & see a vet to put her on a course of Metronidazole tablets for 21-28 days to kill any bad bacteria she may have in her stomach & small bowel & just feed the limited ingredient TOTW kibble or their Pacific Stream Smoked Salmon has less fiber at 3% a lot of dogs with EPI & IBD & IBS do really well on the TOTW Pacific Stream & Sierra Mountain, I don’t know why?? maybe cause the water TOTW use is Purified or the probiotics they use are the right ones for dogs with Intestinal Stress I don’t know but TOTW was the only kibble that helped him do firm poos where the vet diets made him itch & smell cause he has food intolerances to most of the ingredients in vet diets. TOTW & Canidae are both money back guaranteed kibbles & wet tin food..

[Kathy B]

We have a 18 month old Old English Sheepdog rescue that had been fed Tractor Supply dog food, when we got her had lots of issues with diarrhea so I looked for food with a high fiber content and had glucosamine chondroitin, it helped but we have at least one running stool a day ended up with Blue Wilderness Large Breed. Thought perhaps it was too rich for her and started looking at some limited diet food, Natural Balance was recommended but they don’t have the glucosamine so now I’m looking at Blue Buffalo Basic which has almost 1/2 the protein that Blue Wilderness did and I hear that’s not a bad thing but I wonder if anyone has any other suggestions before I switch her. I read that Pro Plan sensitive stomach was supposed to be good but then pet food store said they would not recommend it……..

[aimee]

Hi Shandi,

As you are new to making a homemade diet my recommendation would be to wait until adulthood to introduce a homemade diet. Use a commercial food during the critical growth period. One that is complete, balanced and has been through growth trials for a large breed dog. Growth is a demanding stage and mistakes in nutrient balance can have life long consequences.

The one pup I know raised on homemade raw, by an owner that had been feeding raw for years to her adults, ended up with poor growth, anemia and needed orthopedic surgery to correct the bone growth problems.

This life stage, growth, is unforgiving. It isn’t the lifestage for you to “cut your teeth” on in regards to raw feeding.

aimee

P.S. Petfooled doesn’t in any way reflect what is happening is the pet food industry. It contained a lot of misinformation. Heck, the producers even went so far as to mislabel the anatomy and taxonomy of the dog in order to fool the person watching it. It is easy to be fooled by PetFooled. They were very good at accomplishing the what they set out to do.. Fool the pet parent hence the title.

[Martha O]

I have tried several large breed puppy foods and am currently on Origen large breed puppy. Whatever I have tried my boxer puppy has soft but well-formed stool initially in the day, but later has multiple small amounts of “cow-pie” diarrhea. This happens also when he exercises. My vet has suggested switching him to a good quality adult food. I prefer grain free, low glycemic, and no potatoes. I am not adverse to frozen raw or dehydrated food. I have started giving him Grandma Lucy’s dehydrated chicken for one of his 3 meals, but this has not made any difference. First of all, I cannot find a good quality adult food (not all life stages). Boxers are notorious for stomach issues. He is in otherwise excellent health. Any suggestions?
Martha and Pepper

[Kathy B]

I also have a rescue (OES) and when first got her she had constant diarrhea so I researched looking for a higher fiber food and went with Blue Wilderness Large Breed so now I get an occasional firm stool but at least one very loose stool daily, then I started noticing the gas. In looking I saw that ProPlan Sensitive Stomach is good and helps reduce shedding. Does anyone have any experience with this or have another recommendation. I most definitely want a good quality food. And one of the reasons I chose Blue Wilderness Large Breed was because of the glucosamine and chondroitin.

• This reply was modified 9 years ago by Kathy B.

[pitlove]

Hi Shandi-

If you are going to be a raw feeder, you can’t be opposed to by-products. Organ meats are by-products and are a key point of a raw diet.

I would recommend paying for a consultation on BalanceIt.com with one of their veterinary nutritionists since you have not only a puppy, but a large/giant breed puppy coming. I have seen a lot of raw fed large breed puppies with nutrient defeciences because the owners decided to “wing it” and not consult a nutritionist during the critical growth period of the dog. Large breed puppies have extremely strict dietary requirements to help reduce their risk of orthopedic problems during growth and later in life. Think hip dysplasia. If you want to do raw, do it right. Your pup will thank you.

[George D]

How do I search the editor choice for large breed recommendations?

Thanks
George

[pitlove]

Hi Eric-

Hound Dog Moms list is likely obsolete now considering the recent revisions AAFCO made to their nutrient profiles, including their criteria for large breed puppies.

My go to food for sensitive stomachs is NutriSource. They make an excellent LBP food. I consider NutriSource to be budget friendly, so hopefully it will work for you.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Jennifer-
Costco has a large breed puppy food? Where did you see it?

[pitlove]

Hi Traci-

I would not keep them on Nutro Max large breed puppy for too much longer. I had contacted the company a while back asking for the max values of calcium and phosphorus on their max large breed puppy and come to find out the levels were much too high to be appropriate for growing large breed. As far as your price concerns go $30 for a 25 pound bag of food is probably going to be a little difficult. The only one that I would probably trust at that price point would be Purina One large breed puppy other than that you’re probably not getting a good product.

[Jennifer]

Traci T. Congratulations on your new family members, I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Economically priced large breed food is harder to find, but other owners of giant breeds (I’m a proud mom of 3 Great Danes) have spoken very highly about the Costco large breed puppy food. The nutrient you most want to monitor is the calcium levels – which should be around 1.1%. Good luck to you and you lucky kids and pups! Jen

[BigHeart]

My kids and I were planning on getting a dog soon, but sibling 5 month old 37 lb Greater Swiss Mountain/Lab mixes took us by surprise while I was at a shelter. These two super-sweet-eager-to-please puppies had been there a while because of their size and were fast moving up the kill list. We have plenty of room, land, and love – so I adopted them. They have some temporary health issues from being at the shelter, and I’m sure they’ll continue to have significant vet bills after their rough start at life. I transitioned them from the Purina puppy chow the shelter feeds, to Nutro Max Large Breed Puppy food and they’ve been on it a little over a week. They are still having really soft stools/diarrhea. My question is, the increase has my pet budget considerably stretched and I’m a single mom of 3 kids. Does anyone have recommendations on a good quality large breed puppy food that is on the lower end of the price range? Anything under $30 for 25 lbs would be incredibly helpful.

[Linda B]

We are adopting a goldendoodle pup in a few weeks who will be 45 – 50 pounds as an adult. We recently changed to Annamaet Grain Free with our five year old goldendoodle. He was previously on Acana but we’re concerned about Acana’s new production facility in Kentucky. Can anyone recommend Annamaet as a puppy food? The editors list included Annamaet Encore for large puppies. The puppy has been raised on Life’s Abundance by the breeder.

Thank you!

[pitlove]

I can’t say for sure, but it seems most folks are keeping the pup on an appropriate large breed puppy food until maturity and then beginning to add in extras.

If it were my pup, that is personally what I would do unless you consult with one of NV’s nutritionist and they offer you a solution that will not compromise your babies optimal growth.

One of the regulars on here said something once that really stuck with me about large breed growth. She said essentially that you only have one chance to get a proper orthopedic structure. I thought that was such an eye opening way of looking at this topic.

[pitlove]

Hi Karyn-

I would recommend contacting Nature’s Variety and asking if one of their nutritionists can write you back. They offer dry,canned, raw, and freeze dried meal toppers. They are probably the only brand I would trust with a growing large breed. I’m sure they would be willing to answer some of your questions about your concerns with overfeeding too much calcium/phos. One of the nutritionists on their staff is renowed holistic veterinary nutritionist Dr. Susan Wynn.

[Karyn S]

Hello,
I originally posted a similar message to the Large Breed Puppy forum and am re-posting to this forum hoping to gain more feedback.

I will be welcoming a German Shepherd puppy in about a month and have been trying to determine the best dehydrated, freeze-dried or raw diet to start her on. (I do not have the capacity to do an entirely raw diet, but could add raw toppers to meals.)

I’ve read through all pages (in the Large Breed Puppy forum) and just when I feel I have a direction, something changes it.

I started with Hound Dog Mom’s latest list, which includes some Raw and a couple of The Honest Kitchen dehydrated options for large breed puppies. Since the list is a bit older, I reached out to a couple of the companies (for far, Stella and Chewy’s and THK) specific to average/maximum calcium and received conflicting information, which leads me to believe formulas have changed since list was compiled.

Does anyone have recommendations for a dehydrated, freeze-dried and/or raw option(s) that would have safe calcium/phosphorous levels for a large breed puppy?

Thank you in advance!

[pitlove]

Hi Honey Bar-

Firstly about Pet Fooled. I too watched it, but had a different reaction than probably most did. I’ve spent several years now researching nutrition, the pet food industry and pet food. When I first started out, I read about a lot of the stuff discussed on that documentary and I was outraged. I, like you, swore I would eventually fed my dogs a raw diet I prepared myself and would not “support” the large pet food manufacturers like Hill’s. It took me a while to realize that the vast majority of the voices making the claims like the ones in Pet Fooled were more concerned about their own agenda than the truth.

Anyway, needless to say, I no longer agree with the opinions expressed on that documentary.

As far as your families choice of Hill’s goes. Looks like it has been a good one. 12 years old and still going strong is great for a large breed. If you would like to see what even a huge Hill’s critic like Whole Dog Journal has to say about the company itself here are a couple articles they wrote about their trip to the Hill’s research facility in Kansas back in 2012
https://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/15_6/features/Pet-Food-Research-Practices_20547-1.html

https://www.whole-dog-journal.com/blog/Hills-Science-Diet-Dog-Food-Manufacturing-Plant-20492-1.html

Whole Dog Journal is notorious for their slander against the big pet food manufacturers and even they could not say anything negative about the company when they toured the facility and manufacturing plant.

As far as searching for crediable information goes, I don’t know that I could, as an intelligent person judge the crediability of the information someone presents based on their number of followers on Facebook… In college and grade school we are taught to use peer reviewed scholorly research articles when writing a paper and doing research. The same applies to the topic of pet nutrition.

Here are the websites of two veterinary nutritionists who are renowned in the field: http://www.susanwynn.com/

https://www.petdiets.com/

The second site even has a function that allows you to ask a question and receive an answer from one of their nutritionists.

To touch on your question about raw feeding. While I am not against the incorporation of fresh foods to any living creatures diet, I have never quite understood this desire to feed a raw diet simply because the owner wants to feed their dog like a wolf. Wolves in the wild do not eat an optimal diet and do not live very long. Yes, other factors like predators come in to play, but in most regions(at least in the US) wolves reign supreme on the totem pole.

My belief is that when an owners sole reason for wanting to feed a raw diet comes from this thought that your dog is the ancestor of a wolf and therefore should be fed like one, this is when problems arise when a deficient diet. You see a lot of folks feeding raw chicken and potato and calling it a day and proudly saying they are feeding a “BARF” diet.
Fed long term, that diet will cause extreme sickness from multiple vitamin and mineral deficiencies that could even be fatal.

All that being said, it is important that you discuss your thoughts with your parents as you are living with them like you said. It’s moot to even consider the option of a raw diet before that conversation happens.

Oh and as an aside: Isn’t the pup in my profile picture just simply gorgeous? He eats Purina Pro Plan 🙂

[Karyn S]

Hello,

Thank you to all who have contributed such a wealth of information to this forum. I will be welcoming a German Shepherd puppy in about a month and have been trying to determine the best dehydrated, freeze-dried or raw diet to start her on. (I do not have the capacity to do an entirely raw diet, but could add raw toppers to a meal.)

I’ve read through all pages and just when I feel I have a direction, something changes it.

I started with HDM’s latest list, which includes some Raw and a couple of THC dehydrated options for large breed puppies. Since the list is a bit older, I reached out to a couple of the companies (Stella and Chewy’s and THC) specific to average/maximum calcium and received conflicting information, which leads me to believe formulas have changed since list was compiled.

I’m also a member of Editor’s choice and there’s only 1 non-dry food option (FreshPet) noted. I have been researching for hours on end and it seems I am nowhere closer to a decision.

Does anyone have recommendations for a dehydrated, freeze-dried and/or raw option(s) that would be safe for a large breed puppy. I’m trying to avoid feed kibble if at all possible.

Thank you!

[Marcia]

I couldn’t even get to the end of this thread before I commdnted. I have 4 dogs, all born in 2011. For flea and tick control, I at first used Frontline, but one of my pups started having horrible reactions for up to 12 hours after – I think she was itching or burning, or both. I tried Advantix. Omg so much worse. My other 3 even reacted. My vet recommended Bravecto, so I put them all on it and have noticed no issues. My babies are my heart and I am very attentive to their moods, eating habits, etc. I do not give Bravecto all year round – 2 to 3 doses a year. I live in WI so even though the vet says I should give it year round, I won’t because I want them to have a break from it and the winter months are less risky for fleas/ticks. Same with heartworm meds, I stop in late fall. I have a woodsy backyard which they spend a lot of time in in good weather, and, I run them every other day for a mile and a half at nature reservoir with 3 large ponds – lots of grasses, weeds, reeds, waterfowl, and other wildlife, as well as scat from other dogs that run there. So I want them to be protected. I have never found a flea or a tick on any of them, nor has their groomer. My sister runs her dogs with me, and she has found dead ticks about 3x in 6 years. She uses topical flea and tick control, I believe.

As many of you have said, we all have to choose what we feel is right for our situation and our babies. Factors like geography, general health of our pups, their age, their breed, etc., our own financial and living situations that also factor into these decisions. No 2 people will have the same circumstances.

Being snarky and using thinly veiled insults only produces more of the same, and draws negative energy to yourself. Be kind to each other. We’re all here to help each other and learn from each other because we have infinite love for the creatures who depend upon us. Show some of that compassion and respect to each other.

[Lora J]

Congratulations on your new dog! I have large breeds, myselfso I cannot comment on that. But I have found this dog food rating system on this website a valuable tool for finding the best food for our budget. I have found it takes some time to search through the higher rated foods, thrn shop around to price check, but worth it. Buy the highest rated food you can afford. I also supplement my dogs’ dry kibble with raw carrots and broccoli as treats for additional enzymes and antioxidents. I am sure you will get additional helpful comments here. Good luck!

[pitlove]

Hi Caleb-

If you are dead set on doing a raw diet for a large breed dog like a Lab, you will want to contact a veterinary nutritionist to help make sure your diet is formulated safely for a large breed. Large breed puppies have extremely strict dietary requirements during growth to allow for slow growth. They are at high risk for devasting orthopedic disorders like OCD, HOD, Pano, Hip Dysplasia, Wobblers Syndrome etc. I have seen raw diets gone wrong with large breed puppies and it is horrible. They can barely walk, are in horrible pain, lethargic etc. Consider going through a website like BalanceIt.com for help.

[Janice K]

My 8 week old puppy did the same thing. She had many tests by our regular vet, including a barium x-ray, but nothing showed a cause. Was referred to veterinarian specialists. She saw a neurologist, and internal medicine specialist. Finally a surgeon did an exploratory exam under anesthesia. They found she had an anal structure.(fibrous band). They gave us the option to do a balloon dialation to enlarge the anal opening. We elected to try it. It worked. They said she might have to have it done again as she grew larger, but that is not the case. She is 5 years old now and doing great. She does have to take a liquid (lactulose) medicine daily for life. She has taking it since 8 weeks of age. She is so cute. I say Dolly time for your medicine. She comes to me and opens her mouth for the syringe. Her stools are firm and normal with no more yelping. She eats Horizon Amicus small breed grain free dry food with raw freeze dried mixers mixed in. She is a great little girl. I call her my million dollar baby.

[Erica H]

Hi there,

American Natural Premium is a brand carried on Chewy.com that was suggested to me by a breeder. It is an American-made food that appears to have quality ingredients and meet calcium profiles for large dogs. I would be interested in reading a review on this food brand for use in large breed puppies in particular.

Thanks!
Erica.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 1 month ago by Erica H.

[term]

I have a small breed dog, which seems to have developed a skin condition on its back and somach after it turned three years old. After taking it to a couple of vets, they both concluded that it’s a rash most likely being caused by food, so one of the vets suggested I try to feed it with Royal Canin Selected Protein prescription wet food, along with Apoquel medicine. The dog was fine for almost three months with no outbreaks on its skin, but after the allergy meds and canned food ended, the rash returned, and the wet food seems to cause the dog to have teary eyes (which would happen with just about every other wet food I’ve tried in the past, before it developed the rash). I’ve had good results with regular Wellness dry food up until the point the dog developed the skin rash on its back.

Would it be a good idea to try Wellness Simple grain free line of food for the dog? I’d rather switch it to dry food, because up until the skin issue came up, it was doing the best health-wise when eating dry food. Royal Canin has dry food version of Selected Protein, but it has large kibbles, which my dog can’t eat, and it won’t eat them if I soften them up with water. Breaking them into small pieces is a very tedious task, especially if the dog is eating 2-3 times a day. The food is also a bit on the expensive side.

[Katherine T]

Is there much of a difference between food for adult dogs. I read some articles saying that the formulations for large breeds have glucosamine and chondroitin, whereas other articles say the only difference is the size of the kibble.

The reason I am asking is because my 80 lb dog LOVES N&D food for “small breeds.”

[Susan]

Hi Aimee that’s why I wrote email the kibble companies & ask their vet & they will say, don’t feed etc …….My 8yr old boy doesn’t have any kidney problems only IBD & Skin Allergies & finding a kibble can be very hard, a few Australian kibble companies have brought out grain free Large breed puppy formulas, that are Lamb, lower in fat & protein & have the omega 3, what he needs for his IBD & Skin, so I’ve been trying them….

[Susan]

Hi can you buy each dog their “own” bowls, all different colours, make them all sit, call each ones name & give him/her their dinner in “their” bowl, the way your feeding them at the moment you don’t know if one dog is eating more then another dog, if one dog isn’t eating much one day & is feeling off…..I have a kitten 11months old & dog the kitten is very impatient when her food is being put into her bowl, so she is feed first up on her scratching post thing, Patch is feed in the lounge room so I can sit down on lounge & put a few kibbles in his bowl at a time, other wise he gulps all food under 1 min, he has IBD mainly stomach…..

For your old boy have a look at “Canidae” Pure Meadow Senior kibble, it’s easy to digest & has only 7 ingredients, excellent for dogs with sensitive stomachs, I would send Canidae a email asking what is their lowest Phosphorus kibble, normally large breed puppy formulas are lower in Phosphorous & ask can is their large breed puppy formula Duck Meal Brown Rice & Lentils formula wet & dry be feed to your girl with Kidney problems, its 0.80% Phosphorous & kibble size is nice & small, all Canidae formulas have small easy to digest kibbles…
I know when I’ve emailed kibble companies asking can my 8 yr old eat their new large breed puppy formula, they have all said yes, puppy formulas normally aren’t over 30% -protein, fat isn’t high & have DHA which is excellent for skin, joints, eyes, brain, heart etc so it will also be good for a senior dog as well….
When I emailed “Taste Of The Wild” last week, 2 vets emailed me back within 24hrs asking further questions about my boy health problems, then they recommend which formula’s NOT to feed, so you could give TOTW a try & have a look at their wet tin foods for your young pup, dry kibble isn’t good for dogs with kidney problems, wet food is better…
If you email Hills or Royal Canine or Purina, ask can a vet nutritionist please contact you…

I don’t know if all your dogs can all eat the same formula??? this is Canidae’s Large Breed Puppy, all Life stages formula & it’s low in phosphorous, email Canidea & ask them, it come it wet tin as well..
https://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products/canidae-life-stages-large-breed-puppy-duck-meal-brown-rice-lentils-dry-formula

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by Susan.

[Amanda B]

So i am an employee of Pet Supplies Plus and I have a run down of Reford information. It is made in Kansas not Michigan (It is named after a city in Michigan) It is very similar to Taste of the Wild, Blue Buffalo and others. It comes in 3 varities (regular, grain-free and LID) (currently) with 2-6 flavors and 4 stages (adult, large breed, small breed and puppy which is available limited with certain varieties) It is all life stages, constantly on sale or has coupons, made and mostly sourced in the United States (lamb is from New Zealand and salmon is from Chile or Canada). If you have questions the employees at Pet Supplies Plus are able to answer most of them (some they may not know or have never been informed of).

[Acroyali]

He sounds cute, I love Chihuahuas!

Whenever we have a toy breed puppy in the house, either our own or keeping one for a friend or neighbor, we keep Nutri-cal or Nutri-stat on hand. These little guys seem to have their blood sugar drop more often than a larger or older puppy would. I can’t swear by it or guarantee it’s worked, but it seems to have helped prevent such instances along with very small, very regular feedings like Anon101 suggested.

[Jennifer]

First, what a great gathering of other large breed puppy owners – all the great advice is invaluable.

Now on to my questions/ issue. I have a 6 month old Great Dane puppy – Finn is my 4th Dane, one I’ve lost, Shiloh is 13 (a miracle, I know!) and Liberty is 18 months. Until I brought him home I fed all my Danes Wellness Core Large Breed. Then Libby developed allergies so we switched to Wellness Core Wild. And when I brought Finn home I started him on Wellness Core Puppy. Unfortunately he didn’t like it, so after doing a lot of research, I transitioned him to Orijen Puppy Large and my other pups are eating Orijen Regional Red.

Overall, I’m really happy with the food, but Finn’s growth pace has slowed from an average of 5 lbs/week to about 3 lbs/week, which is much sooner than my other pups, and his front paws shake when he’s at rest. The vet checked for growth plate/ligament issues and found nothing of concern.

Has anyone else seen this kind of issue? Has anyone had any issues with Orijen Puppy Large food?

[pitlove]

Hi Corsomomma21-

Too many treats add unneeded calories to the diet and can result in a fat puppy. It is important to train, but not every aspect of training requires a treat. Sometimes praise and pets are the best type of reward. For the times when a treat is really needed as part of her learning an important command such as recalling to you, you can use things that are high value. Cooked or freeze dried organ meats are usually high value. Another good idea is using her food as treats if she turns out to be food driven. You can keep track of how many pieces of dry food you use as treats and subtract that from her meals so you keep the calories down.

Also congrats on the Corso puppy! Between pitbulls and Corsos those are the two breeds I’m most passionate about. I’ve already got my Corso breeder picked out for when we upgrade to a larger house.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by pitlove.

[Susan]

Hi, “Canidea” formulas are all small in size, the size off small finger nail……
Small kibble digest easier, so less chance of getting bloat, a few kibble companies are making their kibbles size smaller now… I always go to pet shops & feel the kibbles thru the bag, I don’t like “Wellness” kibbles, they are big, thick triangle in shape…..

“Holistic Select” Adult/Puppy Salmon, Anchovy & Sardine grain free kibble is small & excellent for skin, joints, high in omega 3 fatty acids & has added DHA for brain & eyes they have a Large Breed with grains or grain free, email Holistic Select & ask is their Grain Free Large Breed kibble have small size kibbles like their other formulas?

“Pro Pac Ultimates”, Meadow Prime Lamb & their Bayside Select Whitefish has nice size kibbles & cheaper in price same makers that make “Earthborn Holistic” also has small size kibbles but is dearer in price….my cat loves the Pro Pac Ultimates dog food…

Canidae- http://www.canidae.com/dog-food/products
Pro Pac Ultimates- http://www.propacultimates.com/dog-food/
Holistic Select- http://www.holisticselect.com/

[M N]

I peaked at the Nutrisource formulas. IMO there is not a significant enough difference between them and the TOTW I am feeding now to justify the 30% price increase.

However, I dug pretty deep into the Sportdog Elite formulas, as well as the Black Gold Salmon formula. KCal/KG, protein/fat ratios, carbs, and cost to feed are all very close to the TOTW that I have been feeding (within $12 a month from the cheapest to the most expensive). However, they do have calcium and phosphorous levels that I feel are more appropriate for a young, “large breed” dog. The Omega ratio also looks better, and they have lower ash content (which is expected due to the higher calcium/phosphorous levels in the TOTW).

I would have to order the Sportdog, and I get a pretty substantial discount on Black Gold and TOTW locally which makes the Black Gold about $150 a year cheaper for me to feed. Black Gold also claims the highest digestibility (96% VS TOTW 87%, and “high” from Sportdog). Smaller puppy piles are always a nice bonus…

I think unless I can find some substantial reason not to, I am going to try the Black Gold, and consider a rotation with Sportdog…

[HoundMusic]

“We spoke with our vet, who recommended against our current feeding regimen; saying it may be too small of a portion, causing him to go into starvation mode.”

Your Vet is 1000% correct. When the body is deprived of food, the thyroid gland will slow down the metabolism, causing the animal to not only gain weight, but to make weight loss very, very difficult. It’s why recovering anorexics often have hypothyroidism, and why people with hypothyroidism have problems with their weight stagnating even when they barely eat and get plenty of exercise. In fact, if the dog does have a thyroid problem, increasing exercise at this point might make weight loss impossible.

Consider this: when I was a teenager, I knew someone who fed a 40lb dog *one* 6oz can of Mighty Dog daily. The owner’s reasoning being that was the ration her last dog received, never mind he was a 20-ish lb lhasa mix. Needless to say, she wasn’t the brightest spark. However, despite both her dogs being underfed, they were actually overweight; the larger one at one point grossly so, despite the fact the she was being outright starved.

Offhand, I’d say for a 75lb inactive dog, no less than 2-2.5 cups per day should be fed. Just to give you a better idea of how low the amount you’re feeding is for a dog that weight, my 30lb Beagles get slightly less than 1.5 cups daily, and my 25-ish lb Beagle pup gets that or slightly more. When I had my 65lb Shepherd mix who hardly ate anything to keep a healthy weight would get no less than 2 cups. My purebred GSD was the same weight as the mutt, but had a higher nutrient requirement, and normally ate around 3.5-4 cups daily. Both were lean dogs, with not an ounce of spare fat.

For what my humble advice is worth, I would suggest taking this dog off Wellness altogether. Of all the feeds I’ve tried over the years, it was one of the absolute worst. Think I had somewhere around 13 adult dogs and a litter of pups on both the original grain inclusive formula, CORE, and Small Breed Puppy – and not a single one of them did well on it. Coats went to pot, problems with hypoglycemia and loose stools, etc.

Look for a feed that has a relatively low kcal content, so that you can feed this dog more food without giving an excess of calories. Aim for something around 340 kcals per cup or less, with moderate amounts of protein and fat. Be VERY careful with those grain free fad diets, because they often contain an unhealthy excess of protein and other nutrients. Or are made more with the owner’s sensibilities in mind than what the dog actually needs. And if it comes down to a prescription diet, that’s a far better alternative to the health problems being overweight will cause.

[pitlove]

Hi Wagarfamilydad-

The AAFCO just recently revised their nutrient profiles, which meant changing their min and max appropriate calcium and phosphorus levels for large breed puppies. A ratio of 1:1-1.8:1 is now considered safe 1.8% calcium being the safe upper limit.

So yes, those ratios are appropriate.

Grain inclusive vs grain free is a non-factor in LBP growth and should be of the least concern during growth. Dogs are perfectly able to digest and use grains efficently. Personally, my dogs do much better on a grain based diet, and actually even better on corn based diets like Pro Plan.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Monique-
It does seem like most of the foods acceptable for large breed puppies include grain. Is there a reason that you are looking for a grain free food? I feed my dogs both with and without grain kibble. I don’t think food that uses peas, potatoes or tapioca are necessarily better than food that uses oatmeal, rice, corn and/or millet for its carb. Unless, of course, the dog has an intolerance to one of those.

Keeping your pup lean and feeding a food with the right calcium level is of the utmost importance, however, for a large breed puppy.

Of the foods on the EC puppy list, I’ve fed Whole Earth Farms and Eagle Pack with great results. Dr. Tim’s and Fromm also get high marks from other posters on this site.

What kind of dog do you have and how old is it?

[pugmomsandy]

For your adult dog check out BalanceIt.com. They make a supplement to add to meat and carb of your choice. Also, there’s an easy recipe video with few ingredients. Search “Homemade dog food recipe Rodney Habib” on youtube. These are suggestions for your lab.

I would recommend further research for your Bernese. Calcium/phosphorus content and ratio is very important or wait until he is an adult.

/best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/

Edit: about your rough draft raw menu. It isn’t a complete diet. Have a look at DogAware.com.

http://www.dogaware.com/diet/homemade.html

• This reply was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by pugmomsandy.

[samlab]

First let me begin, this website that Mike Sagman has set up is superb. As you read my experience please don’t get caught in minutia of thought..just read this and hopefully this can and will help others. I love dogs, all dogs…cats too. I have been showing and breeding top Labrador Champions for over 30 years. So with to this I will assume that my input will be really about the large breed dogs and yes you may consider all dogs for that matter. I have tried all of these foods. Many work, some results are ok and others well just didn’t go well. Many dog foods since their really are just a few manufacturers, some are private branded under that specific companies ingredients, for their specific brand. I read many posts about this or that, and raw versus X.Y.Z, form of foods. Every time I try to go to the “other side”, well I end up, rather baffled at the terrible results. Therefore, I will let all of you know, grains, corn, etc. are not the cause of your dogs allergy’s, its all about the genetics. It you have a dog that has allergies, its about, the breeding. Same for cancer in dogs, it could be environmental, but less than 1%. It is indeed genetic. The longest lived dogs in the US have been on the following foods, this is research fact direct from the Doctors that did the research: Purina, Science Diet and Eukanuba Brands. To those that profess to Raw diets and rotating foods I will mention frozen or fresh raw foods (frozen still has salmonella once defrosted and eaten) is well your on your own. Rotating foods is not good either as it completely screws up the stomach and intestinal flora in a dogs digestive tract. No your not going to get good advice from the local specialty food store as these people have no idea about the foods they sell. Zero. Every dog is different and you will need to find out what works best for your dog…I will now share what typically works for Large Breeds and especially Labradors Retrievers and many others. But beforehand I will explain. I just went with another brand of puppy food T.O.T.W. over time it did not go well..at five months old and recently the same bag, the last 1.5 weeks, it reared its ugly head. Not Giardia either. I switched that 47lb boy straight onto Eukanuba Puppy Large breed yesterday, problem over best stool in his life so far. As I write this 1X more this morning per wife, that one perfect too. Grain free is not always the best way to go…..its really marketing b.s. and has always been. Even I get lectured by the top show Veterinarians! This is not knocking you or any other brand that works for you…but the finest show stock in the US are all on those three major brands above…blue buffalo duck and potato limited ingredient, grain free may be your best bet for skin allergy issue dogs. Also chopped or baby carrots, blueberry’s, strawberries, cantaloupe and even watermelon are fat free treats that dogs love too. Will add for those following: Especially Labs and watch their weight…for older dogs drop to 28% or then even lower 26%.. the in their prime Eukanuba 30/20 add 1/2 tablespoon each of Nupro Gold Label Supplement/ and then both of each the Silver Label Container for older dogs for arthritis with 1 tablet both meals of Cosequin tablets (250 count Bottles) its the a show/wellbeing secret obviously now for all of you. Also for my older dogs they get Dumor white 5 lb container with red lid a 1/2 teaspoon of MSM at Tractor supply or online (this brand only, measuring cup is inside, use the lower line mark on the measuring cup) some warm water mixed in morning meal only and boom in two weeks your going to be very happy indeed. Also for those that have a dog with surgery the MSM will heal them in two weeks and fur already growing back. The Vet will give you a strange look on the follow up…I assure you they will give you a weird look and be thinking boy this dog heals fast. Then you say its the MSM and he/she will laugh of course and say “I shoulda known”. Then they will know your in touch with the knowing. All the best always to everyone here and I hope this helps anyone that can use this information.

• This topic was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by samlab.
• This topic was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by samlab.
• This topic was modified 9 years, 2 months ago by samlab.

[Fatma B]

Hi! I’m a new member and first time dog owner – my American Bandogge is 8 weeks old. we got her at 5 weeks and i started her on large breed puppy formula from Taste of the Wild – as i liked the contents and wanted to stay away from grains… But now reading these forums i’m not sure it’s a good formula due to calcium content and contemplating to convert her to Orijen – should i do that? or is TOTW okay for large breed puppies? i really do not want her to develop hip displasia…
Thanks for your help!

[Acroyali]

There are risks associated with anything you feed; feed soft pliable bones (no weight bearing bones) and feed size appropriate (a turkey neck for an aggressive large breed chewer can be a serious hazard.)

As far as meat (quality), I do feel there’s a difference between organic and non-organic. I also feel there’s a difference between organic and grass fed. However, feeding organic pastured meats can become very expensive; source human-grade, clean meat from reliable sources and you should be just fine.

I have a lot of respect for any vegetarian or vegan who realizes that feeding their diet to a carnivore is not the best idea. Kudos to you, and best of luck!

[Matthew R]

Hey all,

I am hoping I can get a bit of help. New to the forum. I have an older great dane, she just turned 11. Over the years she has had the occasional bouts of colitis or irritable bowl. My ex and I have always cleaned up the subsequent mess got her on metronydozale and that would be the end of it for a few months. This past spring and summer, the problem has been becoming more frequent. It was only once every 5-6 months and it has progressed to almost monthly. My now current living situation is less then ideal as I rent rooms from a friend who has a big house. My dog has free range of the house during the day while i’m at work, and has made a disaster area of my friends room.
I need to get this under control. I took her to the vet today, and aside from going on the metro and tylan powder, he also recommended going to a different protein based food. she is currently on the Blue Buffalo Wilderness chicken and grain free senior diet. There is a possibility that she may have an allergy to chicken. I was thinking of trying the red meat version of the same brand, but when I looked at the ingredients, it still lists chicken meal and chicken fat. Does anyone have any high quality recommendations that I can switch her to? It would have to be a chicken free (no salmon either), senior based, large breed diet. I think grain free as well. Or should I stick with the Wilderness red meat?