We have an 8 month old boxer. He has been eating Fromm’s gold large breed puppy but he poops a lot and his stools are softer than they should be. I’d like to try a new food to see if that resolves the issues but am not sure what to look for…more/less grain, more/less calcium, more/less/different protein? At about 4 months old, the vet suspected he had hypertrophic osteodystrophy. His HOD symptoms have disappeared, as the vet said they likely would, but he is still growing. He is 75 lbs and a 4 on the body comp scale. I’d really appreciate any suggestions for new hard food to try?
P.S. We also have a 12 year old female boxer who eats the senior/reduced activity Fromm’s and does very well with it.
Dawn A,
I feed raw, but I use a commercial, complete and balanced diet. If you are making your own, please research how to make a balanced homemade recipe. This is particularly critical since your dog is a puppy and nutritional deficiencies and/or imbalances can cause some really big problems as they grow, particularly in large breeds.
Dr. Becker, Whole Dog Journal, dogaware.com are a few places to start.
Eukanuba Large Breed Puppy actually gets fairly good reviews on this site, however whats a star rating if your pup won’t eat it, right?!
My vet actually likes Fromm and says it’s one of 2 natural foods he recommends to his patients. Do they know what caused the bacterial infection?
Hi again there’s also Pro Pac Ultimates Large Breed Puppy Chicken & Rice formula made by Earthborn Holistic, Pro Pac may be a bit cheaper & doesn’t have as many ingredients as the Holistic Select kibbles have…. also if he did well on his last kibble then find another kibble with similar ingredients & around the same fat % & fiber % if his stool were firm on the Blue Buffalo Puppy…..
http://intl.propacultimates.com/natural-dog-food/large-breed-puppy-chicken-brown-rice/
Vomitting from overfeeding is very common and doesn’t actually indicate a sensitive stomach. If he is underweight the problem is going to be getting him back to an ideal weight without causing weight gain which can lead to skeletal and growth problems. He’s a large breed, so he needs a large breed puppy food with controlled levels of calcium to promote slow growth. This will also aid in preventing skeletal and growth disorders. They will also be higher in calories, but you and your vet will need to determine his ideal weight so you know when to start feeding to maintain that weight.
Fromm and NutriSource both make excellent LBP formulas that are highly palatable.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 6 months ago by
Pitlove.
Hi, does the brand his brother eats have a large puppy food? To gain weight google the food your interested in feeding & look at the Kcal/per cup Calorie content, its normally under the “Feeding Guidelines” some companies just write the Kcal/per kilo not per cup…..I always try & buy a kibble that’s over 400Kcal/per cup, that way you need less kibble to feed but I still feed a bit more then recommended, an extra cup divided between the 4 meals a day…Patch also has sensitive stomach IBD & has trouble keeping on his weight…. I have found with wet tin foods he regurgitates them back up into his mouth when he burps but your boy might be different, Patch also lost weight on the wet tin food, he needed to be feed 2 large tins a day, its seemed too much no wonder he was burping the food back up…..I was feeding 1 full cup of kibble for Breakfast & wet tin food for lunch & dinner, now I feed 1 full cup of kibble 406Kcal/cup breakfast & cooked chicken & sweet potatoes for lunch & dinner, he seems to keep his weight on better eating cooked chicken, then when he was eating the wet tin foods & its cheaper buying the fresh chicken pieces & sweet potatoes cooking then freezing weighed meals, then buying the wet tin foods & I know what he’s eating when I cook his meals….I bought one of those Dog Meat Rolls today from Pet Shop, Kangaroo & Potato, preservative free, gluten free, for skin/stomach allergies…. I’m going to give the Roll a go & see how he does….
Try & feed 3-4 smaller meals thru the day if you can….Holistic Select have a Grain free Puppy & Adult Anchovy, Salmon & Sardine kibble, its only but its only 341kcal/per cup that way they can both eat the same kibble, Holistic Select also make wet tin food but I have found its cheaper to buy a couple of kilos of chicken pieces, I remove all the skin then put them in a big pot & boil 20mins you collect all the cooked bones then slowly boil the bones over night & make bone broth, bone broth is very healthy… http://holisticselect.com.au/recipes.aspx?pet=dog
Also here’s a link for a Calorie Calculator, it’s for German Shepherds but its still works for any breed of dog, it gives you an idea how many calories your dogs needs to eat a day, work out how many calories your boy should be eating a day, email kibble or wet tin food companies & ask how many Kcal per CUP is their food..that’s what I was talking about Kcal/per cup, if I feed a kibble that’s 400kcal/cup then I feed just under 3 cups a day Patch needs around 1100 calories a day…..
http://www.german-shepherd-lore.com/dog-food-calculator.html
Hi Debbie.
I have a 10 m/o medium/large mixed breed and after my initial puppy paranoia I decided to feed him a variation of different brands wet & dry.
I find great deals on some really decent food and it has helped to keep things w/in reason on food costs. Luckily he doesn’t have allergies so I’ve not had to worry there and his tolerance to switching has been fantastic.
I might add there are a lot of different pet food suppliers nearby, so I can kinda shop around which is great for finding deals.
Hi,
I lost my corgi of 5 years this summer to cancer and was ready for another dog this month and adopted a 7 year old (they think) corgi mix. He had some teeth issues that resulted in all of his upper back molars being pulled. I am currently feeding him the food the rescue fed him (Nature’s Recipe) softened, but he doesn’t seem very excited about it. He also gets ~2tbps of canned food (pedigree, which I plan on changing) at dinner.
I fed my corgi ~3/4 – 1 cup of Wellness core/day + dental stick and he maintained ~33/34 pounds (he was larger than breed standard). My current dog (26/27 pounds) was being fed 1 cup/day + 2 tbsp wet food + 1 milkbone (which I haven’t been feeding him). I am looking for suggestions on dry food that does well when softened and how much to feed with the minor addition of the wet food.
According to the calculator, my corgi should have been fed 2 cups/day. My parents dogs are fat because they feed them too much and I don’t want that to happen to my new dog.
Right now it is hard to tell if my new dog is not interested in the food due to dislike of how it tastes when it is softened or if his teeth are hurting (vet had me stop painkillers due to adverse reaction). He always gobbles up the wet food, but I have no idea how much wet food to feed and if that amount would be cost prohibitive.
Roger- No problem! That is such a common mistake, but its funny because when inputting the minimums, just about any food looks like it could work! lol. I asked about which formula for Taste of the Wild Puppy he tried because they are actually both safe for large breeds. Perhaps he would like the Pacific Stream one if you’re still interested in the brand.
Hi DF:
I am still hoping Glenn will show up in Alexandria. š
Hi Roger:
You can also join the DFA Editor’s Choice for a current list of recommended large breed puppy foods.
Hi Roger,
I was in the middle of a response last night when I got totally derailed by The Walking Dead.
Have you seen this list (which appears on page 36 of this thread): https://docs.google.com/a/dogfoodadvisor.com/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFTXhUdi1KazFzSUk/edit?pli=1
This list has aged a bit since Hound Dog Mom first created it, but at the time she put it together, all of the foods on the list were four and five stars and have appropriate Calcium for large and giant breed puppies. Double check anything you might choose off of this list in the event the formula has changed.
You should feed your pup a controlled level of Calicum until they reach at least 80% of their full adult size, which is about a year (give or take) depending on the breed. It’s longer for giant breed pups. Obviously, also, avoid over-nutrition and over-exercising.
No problem! Fromm meets close the 1:1 ratio with all there foods, it’s a good high quality brand, it was unfortunately my pup didn’t do well on it. However, Acan Pacifica meets the 1:3:1 ratio. I only got acana Pacifica because it’s all life stages and I have a mastiff, cane corso, and on their page everyone recommended TOTW or ACANA and earthborn to meet the calcium and phosphate needs, as well as giving them steady growth, since their large breed. If your looking for adult food, majority of adult food has even a less calcium and phosphate. I was researching like crazy to find a good food and when I did, it just didn’t work out, so don’t be too stressed out like I was. Victor, candaie, and I believe nutro also meet the ratios.
Thanks for the replies, Erika & Circa. I’ve been using the calculator on this page: /best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/ and seem to really be struggling finding an adult food that fits the bill of enough calcium without being too much. He tends to like larger kibble (we think that’s why he refused the TOTW), so that’s where my search is right now.
I’ll do some research on the Fromm Beef and hope that might be it. Any additional insight is appreciated.
R/AD
Roger,
So long as the adult food meets the calcium requirements for a large breed (~1% calcium/1% Phosphorus), your dog should do fine with the adult food. Recent research has determined that often, the extra calories of the large breed puppy foods are empty calories, and by including adult foods that meet the requirements in your search, you can expand to additional foods that use other protein sources than chicken.
Hello everyone, long time listener, first time caller.
We have a 4.5 month old GSD that may have a chicken allergy. He’s super itchy, even with the benedryl the doc put him on. I’ve been in search of and been researching to find a non-chicken large breed puppy food that looks acceptable, without much success. (Breeder had him on Royal Canin Maxi Puppy and Chicken Soup for the Dog Soul Large Breed Puppy. He has stayed on the RCMP, though we’re looking to move him off of that. He didn’t like the TOTW Puppy, just for the record)
Before I pull the rest of my hair out, I thought I’d ping the community. He’s about 52 pounds right now, with males from his parents generally being in the 115-140 range as adults. Any insight is appreciated…
AshDad
yjessie~ I have a 10 m/o mixed breed who’s eventual adult size we were unsure of (still growing!) so I went for the foods that were w/in the limits of the large breed calcium guidelines. He’s lab/shep/husky/clown.
I have switched his foods around pretty regularly since we got him at 8 weeks, but always with an eye on the calcium & so far so good. And I swap his food around a lot. Dry & wet, different companies, different proteins.
There are occasions when he gets a squirty crap, but nothing note worthy. Like my husband says, that dog has better turds than I do.
Hi- Firstly, thank you for rescuing her and I hope the fighting dog was rescued as well and rehabilitated and given a chance at a home as most are not.
Since Aurora is still a puppy and was probably not fed a proper diet if she was being used as a bait dog, its critical now that she recieve proper nutrition. She is a large breed and large breeds, especially GSD’s, are predisposed to orthopedic and growth disorders that are devastating for both the dog and the pet parent. I would highly recommend keeping her on a large breed puppy food that has controlled levels of calcium and phosphorus til she is at LEAST a year old, if not older. However, I did switch my large breed to an adult food at a year and he is fine. GSD’s by breed standard are on the thinner side, so make sure she is not underweight, but at an ideal weight for her breed and age. Extra weight from overfeeding also contributes to these growth disorders.
A lot of her issues could be brought on from stress, especially if feeding her a protein that I highly doubt she was exposed to didn’t help. Also, and this may seem obvious, but make sure you check her really good for fleas. GSD’s have thick double coats and with the conditions she was likely in as a bait dog, I doubt she was on a flea preventative. Fromm is an excellent food, so I think thats a great choice. Both of the Taste of the Wild puppy formulas are safe for large breed puppies so I’d go with High Prairie since you have already tried a fish based formula that did not work. Also cleaning her ears regularly with an ear wash and removing the gunk with a cotton ball or gauze will help reduce any ear infections or yeast in the ears.
My vet told me that licking the paws is usually associated with an environmental allergy, so its possible that something she is being exposed to now outside is affecting her.
I’m curious. I have a 90 pound mixed breed and a young 65 pound Shepard. Based on the reviews, I’ve had my dogs on Blue Wilderness Rocky Mountain Recipe for Large Breed Dogs (dry food) and Newman’s Own Organic Beef/Liver Canned Food (1/2 can per dog per day mixed with dry food in the evenings). The 90 pounder was raised on it and has done well, and the Shepard also does well on it, although we’ve only had her for six weeks. I additionally had my older lab on it, however, he passed away about 3 months ago from bone marrow cancer. He did extremely well on it. Why are these still on the 5 star listing, but not the Editors Choice?
I’m a new fur mom. I fell in love with and rescued a GSD with a little something extra (mix), after she had spent her first 8 months being abused and used as a “Chew toy” for a fighting dog. Aurora has been with us for 5 months now and its been a learning experience, so forgive me if what I ask sounds ignorant.
Aurora has had issues with her ears bothering her and significant shedding, then she Really started scratching A Lot and incessantly licking her front legs/paws.I placed her on Diamond whitefish and potato after speaking to a dog supply small business owner. I didn’t know her ear issue could also be caused from food allergies, until I started reading reviews while researching dog foods online. Anyway I don’t think she is any better with the fish/potato. Fromm Prairie Gold was suggested to me and I saw it comes in Large breed puppy, but I will be ordering it online and don’t know what to use in the interm (she has just finished her LG bag of food). EVO red meat, Taste of the Wild, Natural Balance LID……? Help. What about puppy vs adult.
Also, I have seen chicken meal, chicken fat, or chicken bone-something and eggs in almost everything. I learned the hard way that eggs make her really itch and I’m not sure if the rest of these chicken extras will be an issue.
Hi Becky- I’m on a tight budget as well and feed Fromm Gold Large Breed Adult to my pitbull along with Grizzly Salmon Oil for each meal. The bottle will actually tell you how many pumps to give depending on weight.
My dogs hair was falling out and he had oily flakey patches of skin and after one month of the Salmon Oil, his hair has grown back and he does not have any more flakey patches of skin. The Grizzly brand was recommended to my boyfriend by someone who had a rescue pitbull with even worse skin than my boy and he healed amazingly as well. Definitely worth it!
I often feed my dogs combo and change their food every 3-4 months. It’s been great as far as avoiding recalls and it helps them create their own good bacteria. The body gets used to the same food.
Right now I have a 4 month old German Shepherd puppy. And I have been dealing with diarrhea off & on. I found out it could be due to teething. They produce more saliva. That ends up in the stomach and what comes out isn’t pleasant.
I gave him pumpkin, bland diet and probio. It helps.
Now I am giving him raw unpasteurized goat milk. So far so good.
The only thing is I am very careful about his calcium intake. He is not to exceed 1.5% per day. Even that is higher than I like. I try to keep it around 1-1.2% max.
I hate doing the math, but I know how important it is to control his growth. It’s important large breed puppies do not grow too fast.
Orijen is an excellent food. I am changing him to Acana. Orijen is a little out of my price range right now.
I would suggest that if you need to give him rice for diarrhea in the future that it be white rice not brown. The brown can be too much work to digest when their bellies aren’t feeling well. I used to give brown also until I was corrected.
Whatever direction you go in just be sure to keep track of the daily calcium amounts. Stay as close to 1% as possible. I believe the guidelines are .75-1.5%.
Often this mean contacting the dog food companies and asking what the MAX amt is in their food. They often list min amt if at all.
I really love that site. It convinced me to try the goat milk for my dogs. The only pet store that sells raw milk only carries Primal. They love it.
I was hoping it may be an alternative to giving glucosamine & chondroitin supplements. I have a horse that gets so many supps I hoped to avoid that with my large breed dogs as they get older.
One of my girls is having a flare up of her Lyme. The vet suggested she not have the milk until she finishes her treatment. This time we are giving her Minocycline instead of Doxycycline since the side effects were too much for her.
I’m not sure if I want to stop giving her the milk. It has anti-inflammatory properties and good bacteria. But I also don’t want to mess up the antibiotic.
The vets at this hospital are amazing, but I don’t think they all keep up with the latest & greatest natural stuff. I’ll be contacting my integrated vet today.
Thanks for the suggestions. Even if Chevelle has to wait for her Lyme to go into remission before she can begin the goat milk, I can still give it to the puppy and my other girl.
Hi, Omega Adult has Yellow Maize (Corn) then wheat bran then it says fat & oil blend & names 7 oils & fats, no good….next ingredient is Sorghum another grain then maize gluten no good, then chicken digest which is another name for chicken by-products feet, heads, becks, everything we don’t eat…Omega Puppy started off good with Ostrich, ground rice then bad yellow maize, Chicken, Maize Gluten, sorghum, wheat bran, then the fat & oil blend with 7 different oils & fats, I’ve never heard of Salmon Oil powder….
…… if you scroll down you will see Acana, Orijen, Earthborn Holistic or Pro Pac Ultimates they are better quality kibbles then the Omega Adult & Omega Puppy…
Earthborn Holistic & Pro Pac Ultimates are made by the same company & have never had any recalls…… here’s Pro Pac Ultimates Puppy Chicken & Brown Rice & all their kibbles..
http://intl.propacultimates.com/natural-dog-food/puppy-chicken-brown-rice-formula/
Is your puppy a large breed pup cause the Pro Pac Ultimates 12kg is a cheaper kibble with good ingredients or the Pro Pac has a Puppy Kibble Chicken & Brown Rice.. when you click on the link hover over “Natural Dog Food” & all their flavours will come up….
Orijen & Acana are really good kibbles BUT expensive……
Right now because your girl is going through her critical growth period as a large breed puppy adding a food like Regional Red with far too much calcium/phosphorus could possibly lead to skeletal and growth disorders. The FirstMate formula you have as 80% of her meal is formulated correctly for a LBP. Could you perhaps try eliminating the Regional Red and seeing how she does? The problem with mixing these two foods or mixing any two foods right now is that you might be feeding an unsafe amount of calcium. You can add the probiotic powder to her FirstMate to help with the loose stools.
Thank you for the reply.
I did find Primal raw milk at a specialty pet store!!!!
The dogs will be starting it today!
It’s good to know that the other is acceptable should I not be able to get a hold of the raw.
Seeing how well the babies did on the pasteurized I am looking forward to seeing if the real deal works better.
I kept 1 of the pups that I fed the pasteurized milk to. He loved that kind so I have no doubt he’ll love this.
Now I have to do the calcium math. Ugh. Large breed puppy.
Hi Lynda W,
Being a Lab lover and owner (Chocolate and Black), you might want to look into large breed puppy food both on this forum and on the DFA’s reviews. While Costco’s brand gets a decent rating (3.5 stars) there are many on this site that don’t use it because of Diamond’s history in regard to recalls. Here’s the link for the review area:
/best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/
While economy is on many people’s mind, you will save money in vet bills and help your pup live the best life possible if you feed the correct foods. Good luck with your new pup!
“Sheās a Saint Bernard, English Mastiff, and Presa Canario ” Wow, sounds like a beautiful combo. I love Presa’s and Cane Corso’s in particular for the Mastiff breeds. Its great that you are doing puppy classes since these are some pretty powerful dogs mixed all in one. Excellent family dogs, but need a strong leader.
Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy is a excellent choice for your XL pup. It is always the first food I recommend as I feed Fromm and love the food and the company.
For your other 2- I think an all life stages food within your budget that is good quality could do the trick. Feed the overweight one for her activity level and target weight (not current weight) and feed the active one for how active she is and make sure she is consuming enough calories to make up for what she burns so she is not loosing weight.
I actually prefer to shop online as long as shipping doesn’t make the price ridiculous! I have checked out Chewy and I love the idea of autoship! I can’t always get out to the stores, and my local stores sell out of quality foods really fast, so online is really my best option. I’ll check out that thread when I get the chance, but I am assuming it’s just a lot of options like the editors choice lists, which leaves me scrambling to check the quality, cost, and availability of each one and weigh the options for each dog and I start losing track of where I started and getting all mixed up! LOL I need a chart for this! LOL
I would like to get Roxie and Kovu on the same food if possible, but I know with her being mature and chubby and him being young and active, that might not be the best idea. I know Dessa needs to be on her own since she’s a puppy and a XL breed mix. I’m leaning towards the Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy Food, but that’s just based on what I’ve been able to find that’s of acceptable quality and I can find easliy from sellers I trust. I’m more than open to other brands though as I really have never used any Fromm products before.
I don’t have a set budget for pet food, I’ll work a bit extra if I need to, but I definitely can’t afford to feed Orijen and the like. I’ve been feeding Kirkland lately because it’s the only acceptable food that I can find reliably locally besides junk. I used to feed Taste of the Wild when Kovu was a pup, but it’s so hard to find locally I couldn’t keep up with hunting it down.
There is a few options here. If you go to the canine nutrition thread, there is a sticky for foods appropriate for large and giant breed puppies. Read the first few pages of information for the pup, and then page 36ish or so has the most recent one. Any food on that list is formulated for growth-also known as puppy food or all life stages food. You can keep all the dogs on this. Feed the overweight/not so active dog for the desired weight, and the other two appropriately.
Alternatively you could feed a weight management food for the one, and the other two on the same one.
Hi Lisa B,
InkedMarie and Pitlove gave you some good suggestions. I’m curious, what food is your dog currently eating? You don’t want to switch to something that’s too radically different if she’s been eating the same food all her life.
I have had and currently have some “senior” dogs (large breed)as well as adult large breed, but I don’t feed any senior foods ever. The only reason people might consider a senior food is if the dog is overweight, and that’s not really a good reason either. It sounds like your dog wouldn’t need it. Try to avoid the potatoes in any of the food, as InkedMarie said, as they worsen arthritis by causing inflamation. Fish oil is an anti-inflamatory, and is also helpful with arthritis, but add it slowly. I use human grade fish oil pills as they tend to be more pure than traditional dog fish oils.
Some other things you might consider feeding is some fresh and/or wet food. This would help keep your dog more hydrated and might encourage eating since they often lose their sense of smell as they age. Again, a word of caution: only change or add one thing at a time, including supplements. They can change stool consistency and you won’t know the cause. Good luck!
I have no experience with large breed dogs, I don’t know if they need anything special as adults. Senior dogs need a high quality higher protein food. Outside of Orijen senior, I think the rest of the senior foods are too low in protein. With an arthritic dog, I’d find a food without grains & potato as they can be inflammatory.
Is she getting joint supplements? Look into making Golden Paste for her. A large breed dog should be kept lean as opposed to too heavy; can you share a picture of her?
I have a 13 year old 90lb great pyr mix who’s a bit underweight and super arthritic. Looking for any recommendations for her.
Farmina N&D Grain-Free (Chicken & Pomegranate) Large Breed Puppies (Maxi)
A benefit beyond the label: Larger sized kibble makes for easy hand feeding, using as a training treat
Hi Erika,
Not a Mastiff owner… but in the 90’s when I was showing labs my friend showed Mastiffs. At the time she had the top winning female in the history of the breed. Went BOS at Westminster!
About 7 yrs ago?? I went to the nationals with them. When there I asked every breeder I came across what food they thought best for raising their dogs. Everyone of them said Eukaneuba. Eukaneuba was what my friend was feeding too to her show dogs. She said she tried many others but always went back to that brand as her line seemed to do best on it.
When I choose a food for pups I always stay with a company that has veterinary nutritionists on staff, and I want a product that has undergone feeding trials preferable with large/giant breeds.
AGT- I’ve noticed a few recent updates to her site as of late. She actually has it posted now that protein does not effect the growth of large and giant breeds, which is a nice step in the right direction for updating her information. Regardless of her website or the crudness of it, she is a pretty well recognized figure in the Dane community and shes fairly trusted overall. I’ve seen what her top recommended food (Precise) can do and the results speak for themselves. My boyfriends brothers Great Dane has been on it his whole life and hes in great health.
Jenn- Labs are known for being food motivated and food driven. They would also eat themselves to death. One of the regular posters on here, Crazy4Dogs, has labs and she would tell you the same thing. If you don’t control their portions, no matter how much they argue, they would eat until they were very overweight. I don’t know GSD’s well as a breed for how food motivated they are, but I’ve never really heard of them being like labs are. Their food obsession is a huge stereotype of the breed, but its true.
The most important thing for the pup that your concerned about is that he grows slowly as you know. Genetics helps, but more and more research thats being done about LBP nutrition is showing how big a role food plays in the optimal growth of LBPs. Some say it overshadows genetics. I think feeding a quality kibble until they are fully grown is the safest route to go that requires the least amount of math (lol!) to know that your pup is recieving the best nutrition for slow growth.
Personally, I’ve jumped off the grain-free bandwagon. I’m not against GF foods, but I’m not so crazed about only feeding grain-free foods. My dog is eating a grain based food right now and this is the best he’s done yet.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 8 months ago by Pitlove.
Hi, I’ve already posted to you on your other thread, and while I have a large breed (pitbull) not a giant breed (though they require the same nutrition as puppies), my boyfriends brother has a Great Dane. His brother used Precise Holistic Complete Large &Giant Breed Puppy and now the Adult version. Cash(his Great Dane) grew perfectly, no skeletal or growth disorders, he remains lean and muscular and hes in great health. Cash is living proof for why this is one of my top recommended foods for giant breed puppies.
Thats my opinion and little anecdote for you, hopefully other giant breed dog owners will share.
After doing a bunch of researching on websites regarding protein, calcium, phosphorus, and listening to people’s and vets feedback, and opinions. I have decided to narrow it down to these 4 dog foods and was wondering what we’re your experiences, if you have any when feeding these dog foods, overall good? Why bad? Or simply which one would you choose or prefer and why? (Mastiff owner or giant breed owner)
Royal canin size health nutrition Giant puppy dry dog food: (vet recommended royal canin, I disagree)
32% protein,
calcium (min) 0.82, (min) – not max
phosphorus (min) 0.67% (min) – not max
3584 kilocalories, 340 kilo calories ME per cup
1st two ingredients brewers rice, chicken by product meal
Large & Giant breed puppy – precise holistic complete.
23% protein
Calcium 1.30(min) – not max
Phosphorus 0.95 (min) – not max
3528.84 kcal, 400.10 ME per cup
1st two ingredients chicken, chicken meal,
Fromm Gold
26.58% protein
Calcium 1.01 (as-is) 1.08(dry basis)
Phosphorus 0.95 (as-is) 1.02 (basis)
1st two ingredients duck, chicken meal
-does not have fruit, only veggies
Nurti source Large breed puppy
26% protein
Calcium 1.0 (min) – not max
phosphorus 0.8 (min) – not max
3,924 kcals per kg, 400 kcals per cup
1st two ingredients chicken and chicken meal
While I haven’t seen her website, I haven’t been in agreement with some of her advice/suggestions. Thought maybe it was just because she has extra large breeds and I am only really familiar with large breeds. I know there are some similarities in controlling growth & their nutritional needs, but not sure if both sizes require the same things.
Hound Dog Mom is often informative. I agree she seems to have more utd info.
Didn’t see what Great Dane Lady has to say about The Honest Kitchen. But I will say that I have been in touch with them a lot over the past week and they have been nothing less than prompt, patient and helpful. They have been very open to answering the million questions I’ve asked and as far as I know they have been on top of the quality of their products. Even doing voluntary recalls when they just suspect something may be wrong. And I haven’t found any animals to become ill from their foods.
Hi Erika,
Did you happen to take a look at the links I provided to you yesterday over on the review side?
Here’s the link to the forum thread I suggested you start with: /forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/ This thread has gotten very long, but there are lots of very helpful posts and links within the first few pages. This will answer the reason why you need to feed a controlled level of calcium to avoid skeletal disorders including hip and elbow dysplasia. You should also avoid over-nutrition (over feeding) which causes undue stress to growing joints and over-exercising for the same reason. You can use the calculator on the review side that you originally posted on to plug in your numbers to make certain that the food you’re looking at is appropriate for your giant breed pup. Your giant breed pup should be fed controlled calcium until he reaches at least 80% of his adult size, which is longer for giant than large breed puppies.
I know I already shared this too, but to keep everything in one spot, here’s the Google doc with the list of foods with appropriate calcium levels. But, remember I also mentioned that this list is aging and to double check calcium levels before you decide on foods that you like. https://docs.google.com/a/dogfoodadvisor.com/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFTXhUdi1KazFzSUk/edit?pli=1
I just wanted to post this real quick, but have to run again!
Some people like Lisa Arnet (The Great Dane Lady) believe in not feeding grain free foods to LBP’s because the grain free foods have not been feed trial tested yet with LBPs in mind. http://www.greatdanelady.com/articles/criteria_list_of_better_foods.htm
Jenn- Your dog is not starving. One of the worst things you can do for a LBP is over feed them. As far as I know WellnessCORE Puppy is still safe for LBPs. Some great grain inclusive LBP foods are Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy, Precise Holistic Complete Large&Giant Breed Puppy and Nutrisource Large Breed Puppy.
No Natural Balance is not formulated correctly for a large or giant breed. My top picks for LBP foods are Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy, Precise Holistic Complete Large&Giant Breed Puppy and NutriSource Large Breed Puppy. These are all KNOWN safe LBP foods and they are very good foods.
Edit: You can also look at this google.doc, but its 2 years old and needs some updating
https://docs.google.com/a/selu.edu/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFTXhUdi1KazFzSUk/edit?pli=1
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This reply was modified 10 years, 8 months ago by Pitlove.
Does anyone feed their dogs a diet of kibble and canned/raw/dehydrated?
I have large breed dogs that I like to supplement their dry when the weather gets cold to keep their weight up.
My real.concern is my puppy. He’s 4 months old. GSD. Approx 30 lbs. I know I have to keep his calcium at 1.5% max. Because of that I am having a problem finding the right food.
He acts like he’s starving to death even though he gets 3 3/4 cups fed over 4 meals. Right now he’s on Wellness Core Grain Free Puppy.
I’m looking for either a food that will satisfy his appetite or something I can supplement/replace some of his kibble with that will allow me to stay within the calcium guidelines.
While I am not opposed to canned, raw or dehydrated, I cannot feed strictly those types of foods.
I would also prefer a NON grain free food. Unless a dog has allergies I know they actually need some grains. Plus it seems that grain free has far more carbs than non grain free.
I appreciate any suggestions.
Thank you.
Finding a quality all life stages food could work. I’d say go through the list of 5 star foods to see which make ones that are AAFCO approved for all life stages. Since you have a small breed puppy it will be much easier than if it was a large breed.
Like I said, your dog is past the point where the calcium/phosphorus ratio needs to be worried about. So I wouldn’t worry about that. I like the Fromm Gold and most large breed adult formulas because they are lower in fat than regular adult formulas which helps keep my pitbull at an ideal weight when its summer and humid down here in the south.
I would say they are important. Some large breed formulas contain trace amounts of glucosamine and MSM. Fromm Gold has chicken cartilage as the natural source of both. However, some argue that there isnt enough of an amount of either in foods to make it theraputic. Others say its made a huge difference in their dog. I feel that excersize is the key to keeping joints mobile, but when they do get older a supplement can be useful too aside from continuing regular excersize.
Hi thanks to you both. I am checking out that link and the Fromm .gold website.
Btw How do I know the correct calcium/ phosphorous ratio? Also how important is glucosamine and Msm for large breeds bones ?
Thanks again
The echo is important to rule out a leaky valve, found a decent article on mitral valve insufficiency. Excerpt below: Can’t post the link but you can find the complete article at:
Doctors Foster and Smith Pet Education, Search articles for: Heart Failure (Mitral Valve Insufficiency) in the Dog
Treatment of dogs with mitral insufficiency depends upon the size of the heart and if clinical signs are present. Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of valvular heart disease in dogs are based on classifying dogs into several stages:
ā¢Stage A: Dogs with no murmur or symptoms but who are at risk of developing valvular heart disease. These include Cavalier King Charles spaniels and small breeds of dogs.
ā¢Stage B1: Dogs with no heart enlargement or symptoms.
ā¢Stage B2: Dogs with enlarged left atriums and/or ventricles but no symptoms.
ā¢Stage C: Dogs with heart enlargement and symptoms of congestive heart failure.
ā¢Stage D: Dogs not responding to treatment for congestive heart failure.
Dogs in Stages A and B1 generally do not receive treatment, but are monitored for any changes in heart size or progression into symptoms.
Treatment of dogs in Stage B2 is controversial. Some veterinarians believe treatment of these dogs will slow progression of the disease, others do not.
Treatment of dogs in the Stage C with heart enlargement and symptoms is based on medications to help the heart pump more efficiently. Drugs that may be used include diuretics that cause the dog to urinate more and thereby remove excess fluids from his lungs. These include furosemide (Lasix) or spironolactone .
Medications such as pimobendan or an angiotensin-converting-enzyme (ACE) inhibitor like enalapril may be given to help the heart pump more efficiently. Digoxin, another heart medication may also be prescribed. If the dog does not respond well to these medications and is in Stage D, other therapies such as amlodipine may be used. Cough suppressants and bronchodilators may be prescribed is there is a chronic cough.
Diets lower in sodium may assist in decreasing the fluid build-up. It is important to maintain adequate protein intake. Attempts should be made to maintain the dog at his ideal weight. The use of omega-3 fatty acid supplements is often recommended.
What is prognosis for dogs with mitral valve insufficiency?
Many dogs with heart murmurs due to mitral valve insufficiency may live for years before developing any symptoms. They should be carefully monitored however, so treatment can be started as soon as warranted. In those dogs with heart failure, approximately half will not survive for more than 6-12 months.
Cara, since your Dogue De Bordeaux is past the point of puppyhood, her body can correctly absorb calcium. Any skeletal or growth disorders that you dog might have would have already been apparent as they usually happen during their critical growth period. Something your dog is past.
I feed Fromm Gold Large Breed Adult to my pitbull. Its lower in protein than I prefer, but I don’t feed the recommended amount (I feed less because hes not as active right now) and he maintains his ideal weight. Also hes picky and this is a food he eats happily. No canned food or anything else on it to enhance flavor. Perhaps this could be a food that would work for her. The fat is lower too than the regular Adult formula which I liked.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 8 months ago by Pitlove.
“I have read that itās actually not good to keep dogs on puppy food for too long, due to them causing growth at a much faster than normal rate which can lead to hip and other health problems. But opinion seems to be all over the board on this one.”
This is true ONLY if the food is NOT correctly formulated to meet the needs of a large breed puppy. There is nothing all over the place about that. That is why even if a food says “Large Breed Puppy” on it, I STILL email the company for the max amounts of calcium and phosphorus to make sure its actually safe. Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy is and it is an excellent food and company at that. I would highly recommend it. If fact I’m feeding the Fromm Gold Large Breed Adult to my pitbull.
Your pup should be on the LBP food til hes a year old to play it safe. Their bodies can start absorbing calcium correctly at 10 months, but I think feeding them a good LBP food til a year is a lot better. Most people would say tranistion. I don’t need to for my dog, but I built up his stomachs health and strength. Fromm is an easy to tranisition to, easily digestiable food. If anything add a probiotic (LifeWay Kefir at Walmart is a good one) to the food if you don’t want to tranisition. It will add healthy bacteria to his gut and make him able to digest a new food easier.
This article is a good place to start:
/best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/
It’s not necessarily the percent of protein you need to look out for but the amounts of calcium and phosphorus and in the right ratio and not too much per serving.
Hi fellow dog parents,
I currently have both of my dogs (5 month husky/pyrenees and 15 month lab/border collie) on Horizon Legacy after reading great reviews on here. Before that, I had them both on Blue Buffalo (the youngster only for a month and my older one from 3 months through 14 months). I switched them to Horizon Legacy from BB due to the controversy surrounding Blue’s ingredients and my older one having plenty of lose stools on BB.
Having two rather large dogs (lab mix is 80 lbs, pup could get up to 100 – 130) I wanted to go to a more budget-friendly food. So I got a bad of Horizon Complete. After a day I felt uneasy knowing there was a better food out there so I bought Horizon Legacy and put the Complete away. I am down to my last 2 servings of Horizon Legacy. Their stools are hit or miss, though they are semi-soft or very messy (not full-blown diarrhea) about 50-60% of the time. I’m beginning to wonder if BB and Legacy are too high in protein or the grain free is upsetting their stomachs.
After more research I have decided to try Fromm Gold Dog Food. The local store that carries it is closed on Mondays, so I’m going to buy it tomorrow. My question is, with transitioning them, since I’m just about completely out of Legacy, would it be ok to use some of the Horizon Complete that I have to transition them to Fromm? Or do I have to buy a small bad of Legacy since it’s a different food than Complete? Only pain about that is the closest store that carries Legacy is 40 minutes away.
On a side question – how long would you keep a pup on puppy food? I gave my 5 month old puppy BB, then Legacy all-life stages (they were out of the puppy food and all-life stages met the guidelines on this site for puppy foods), but I will probably buy a bag of Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy for him. I have read that it’s actually not good to keep dogs on puppy food for too long, due to them causing growth at a much faster than normal rate which can lead to hip and other health problems. But opinion seems to be all over the board on this one.
4 months ago
