Thanks InkedMarie,
here’s the link for anyone that comes in to this thread asking the same question
/forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/page/88/
Yes….in the “Diet & Health Issues” forum below, there is a stickie, highlighted in yellow. Go to the last page (pg 88) and see the list of appropriate foods for large breed puppies.
Hi,
I’m sure this has been asked. I searched but only found “best puppy wet food” and the puppy foods on the editors list are all dry.
I have a 4 month old German Shepard and we’ve been feeding her Wellness Core Grain Free Puppy Formula (Wet) but it’s getting harder to find at Petco and petsmart, not sure why.
Can someone suggest alternatives?
Thanks!
I have a yorkie but he weighs 7.3 lbs. I feed mine canned freeze dried and I cook for him too. I love wellness stews, weruva go fit , fromn. I give him for treats blueberries, raw carrots, bananas, apples. I give him Nordic natural fish oil(3days a week) and organic coconut oil 3 times a week. I ‘venever had much experience with one that large. Good luck with ur new baby. They are my absolutely favorite breed. This is my second one and I’m trying to talk hubby into a little female.
Orijen is an excellent food, that being said, it is not for every dog. I know a few people who’s dogs have severe allergies (they are GSD’s not pitbulls but still) and their dogs can ONLY eat Acana. My pit was the same exact way about food. He was not interested in eating. He would eat for a few weeks then he would walk away from the food and I had to hand feed it to him. When I introduced canned food into his diet, he instantly starting eating again. Now he loves eating so much I can add just 3 spoonfuls of canned food on top of his dry and he eats no problem. I can make 1 can last for 4 meals that way! Whereas before, I was blowing through 2 cans a day.
As I highly recommend keeping him on a high protein food given that for a large breed he is considered a senior and they do have a higher protein requirement.
If your bulldog is not allergic to chicken I would highly recommend looking into the Wysong Epigen 90. It’s the only food on the market that is completely starch free which would help with the gunk build up in the ears which sounds like yeast.
Hi! I am a new member and have been researching dog foods for years now. I have been involved in animal rescue for 3 years and now have 7 dogs and 2 cats of my own. My dogs range in age from 4 months-12 years old. Most are large breed with 3 being medium size. I have had my dogs on everything over the years from Iam’s, Wellness Complete, Core, Blue, Blue Freedom, Basics, Science Diet Sensitive Stomach, Active Maturity, Large Breed, Advanced Fitness, Simply Nourish, Natural Balance Limited Ingredient, and a few more….I have a 4 month old lab, 2- 17 month old mixes (unsure of breed), 4 yr old border collie mix, 4 yr old golden, 5 yr old lab and a 12 yr old lab….so we need different ranges/types of foods. Biggest problem is allergies with our Border Collie and size/growth for our labs…any thoughts??
Thanks so much,
Jessie
Deanna- As far as I’m aware Orijen LBP now meets the requirements for calcium and phosphorus. Orijen is an excellent food and a great choice compared to ProPlan. Another food that I really like and intend to use for my next dog which will also be a large, actually giant breed, is Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy.
Protein is of no concern when it comes to optimal growth for large breeds. Many many current studies have disproven the myth that high protein diets can cause overgrowth in LBP’s. You can feed low, normal or high protein with no different effects as long as the calcium and phosphorus levels are correct.
To answer your last question, you can start with the recommended amounts on the bag and adjust as you moniter is growth. You will be feeding less with Orijen than ProPlan because it is a more nutrient dense food.
Lastly, congrats on your Boxer! They are great dogs š
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This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by
Pitlove.
Hi Emily- Here’s a few brands that I like and would recommend for a LBP
Precise Holistic Complete- Large/Giant Breed Puppy
Fromm Gold- Large Breed Puppy
Wellness CORE- Puppy
Holistic Select- Large Breed Puppy
Fromm Four Star Nutritionals- Chicken A La Veg
Fromm Four Star Nutritionals- Duck and Sweet Potatoe
Wysong- Epigen
Emily-
Here is the link to the list on page 36:
/forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/page/36/
My only problem with this list is that it has not been updated since Oct. 2013. There could have been some changes made to some of the recipes on the list. I’d still use the calculator provided on this site that I included in my post above to make sure they still are within the guidelines. And, like AGT mentioned above, even if the bag says it is for large breed puppies, you should double check the ratios. There are no legal AAFCO guidelines for large breed pups. I hope this helps. š
don’t take something that says large breed puppy at face value, some of them don’t actually have the proper formulation. C4C linked an excellent thread with great information, and on page 36 or 36 there is a list of foods that have acceptable calcium to phosphorus ratios for lgp
Usually with big dogs especially when they are going to get real big it maybe best to get a large breed formula because they tend to have better supplements in them for the bigger breeds. But you might want to check with your vet. Mine I have on Buffalo Blue Large breed formula (chicken and brown rice formula). As far as giving him something else I wish I could, he has a lot of allergies and this is the only food that doesn’t make him sick.
Hi Emily-
Have you taken a look at this article that is on the review side of this site?
/best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/
It may be helpful for you to choose a puppy or all life stages food that is appropriate for your large breed puppy. I can only imagine how cute she is!
bigthree: It is not a Large Breed Puppy mix it just says Puppy mix so I was not sure if it would still be fine with our St. Bernard. I saw that there is a brand Eukanuba that has a specific Large Breed Puppy formula but if Taste of the Wild Puppy mix is good then I will get that then.
Congrats Emily on a great breed of a dog. I have a St Bernard thats about 5 years of age. I can tell you this taste of the wild large breed puppy formula should be fine, just keep an eye on his coat because some of them will get skin allergies. Other than that enjoy him they are very docile and love to cuddle.
Hello. We just bought a Saint bernard 8 1/2 week puppy. We are to pick her up later this week. I have been researching different kids of food to get her but still try and stay in our price range. We use Taste of the Wild for our other dogs and is really good. I am not sure if there are any options from Taste of the Wild for Large Breed Puppy. They have a puppy mix but I am not sure if it is good for Saint Bernards. Do you have any knowledge on Saint Bernards and what they should eat? I have looked and they should eat Large Breed Puppy mix until about 1 year. We have loved Taste of the Wild and want to try and stick with the same brand of food because we have loved it. Please advise.
Hi Tyler G!
Everyone has given you some good advice! As long as the food is working digestively, you can use whichever she likes. I do rotate my foods as the others do. If the Orijen gives loose stools, you might want to go with the Acana. They’re both good foods. I do think you might be feeding too much. I have an active 13 lb dog and she gets about the equivelant of 2/3 cup of food per day even though she takes long walks (over a mile) daily. If you need to get her to gain weight, you could also feed her a midday snack to get her weight up. A lot of fosters do this to get the skinny dogs to gain weight. How does she look? She should have a distinct waist when viewed from above and a distinct tuck from her ribs to her back legs. You should be able to easily feel her ribs without pressing in. You should not see her hip or spine. Sometimes we think they’re too thin because we are so used to seeing overweight dogs. As aquariangt said, you want to keep your Doxie on the slim side to prevent back issues.
Deanna Y, I think the Orijen has been reformulated with a lower calcium level, but I’m not feeding any LB puppies currently. Here’s the DFA forum link that’s really helpful:
/forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/
Hello. I am brand new to this site and finding lots of great info! We just got a boxer on Saturday – he is 9 weeks old and truly the sweetest. I bought Orijin for Large Breed Puppy, and will transition him over from what he is currently on now which is Purina Pro Savor for puppies. I have never had a large dog and want to make sure I am doing everything right by this pup. Is this the best food for him to be on? I am confused about the calcium and proteins and am hoping we made a good choice. Also, ideally with this being a “better” food, how much should he be getting daily? THANK YOU for you input.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by
Deanna Y.
Supposedly elevated bowls “can” cause bloat. But I believe the study that showed this was for large/giant breeds, not yorkies. š But even then, there are other studies that dispute this.
Regarding the gas x- call your vet and ask. I know I wouldn’t give anything to my dog with sorbitol in it.
Alright guys. I was looking into Holistic Select LBP for my boss because we weren’t sure if the calcium and phosphorus levels were too high and we carry it at work. The levels that are listed as the minimum when put into Dr.Mike’s calculator tool put it at 1.4:1 which is already approaching high. So I emailed WellPet for their as fed levels and they wrote me back today:
Dear Christa,
Thank you for taking the time to write about Holistic SelectĀ® Large & Giant Breed Puppy Health Recipe dry dog food.
Here are the nutritional values you have requested:
Large & Giant Breed Puppy Health Recipe:
Calcium: As Fed: 2.21% Dry Matter:2.40%
Phosphorus: As Fed: 1.25% Dry matter: 1.36%
Thanks again for contacting us.
Sincerely,
Michael
Consumer Affairs Representative
WellPet
When you put that into the calculator the ratios are too high. So would that be the correct levels I want to put into the calculator or the mins? I’ve been trying to find other foods to recommend LBP customers besides Fromm and Wellness Puppy to have more variety, but now I dont know if this one is safe.
Yes, the forums are rough for searching-not to mention I apparently lied and it’s in Diet and Health :), here’s a link:
/forums/topic/large-and-giant-breed-puppy-nutrition/
I did go back and read skeptvet link, and that’s why I edited, because for once I actually agree with him in that topic
as far as kcals per cup-the only thing that tells us is how much is in it š you feed less of a higher calorie more nutrient dense food, so you really want to look more for calcium ratios per calorie. Like I said, read some of those links-though it sounds like your research is going well- and hit up the page of LGP approved foods because that will give you a fantastic starting point. My one word of warning is HDM is quite busy (she actually helps with this site now) so it hasn’t been updated in a bit, so if it were me (I have small dogs these days) I would look up some foods, and verify the #s myself, as formulas change
I’m researching the proper food for a large-breed puppy (GSD) and I don’t want protein contributing any more than it should to her growth during the first 2 years. Yet I imagine she’ll be getting a lot of protein from high-value treats during training (eg, freeze-dried liver). My question is about how to best compensate for this extra protein?
I do realize kibble can also be used for training–should I simply minimize the use of high-value training treats and not worry about the extra protein in an occasional liver treaT?
TIA š
I’m gonna take a guess and says she allergic to chicken too? If she isn’t look at Wysong Epigen 90.
This is what I got when I put in the limited information you gave us::
Acana Singles – Duck and Bartlett Pear
Acana Singles – Lamb and Okanagan Apple
Addiction (canned)- Hunter’s Venison Stew
Canine Caviar- Lamb and Pearl Millet Dinner
Canine Caviar- Large Breed Puppy Dinner
Canine Caviar- Open Sky GF
Canine Caviar- Wild Ocean GF
PetCurean Go!- Sensitivity + Shine Venison
Check some of those out. Not sure what else your dog is allergic to or what results you got using that tool, but thats what I got with what info you gave.
Jonathan– Yes! anything over 50lbs at mature weight would be large breed and I believe most Boxers will reach that weight if not a little more. Also even if the dog does not quite hit 50 lbs you can still feed them like a large breed and it will still aid in preventing skeletal disease.
Alison– You’re welcome! I know it is very stressful. I will feed raw at some point in my life, but I can’t yet for certain reasons. If you have the aid of a properly trained canine nutritionist to help you with recipes, it will be as easy as following them and from what I hear once people make the recipes enough it comes as second nature about what to add and how much.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by Pitlove.
Good catch! Most of the boxers I see are very slim, so I forget they’re considered large breed. And hey, what do you know… that’s Dr. Becker in that video!
Hi Alison– First I want to say congrats on your Boxer pup. My aunt had one when I was growing up and he was such a great dog. Jonathan offered some good advice, but one thing I NEED to stress to you is the importance of being aware the large/giant breed dogs (like a boxer) have very special dietary requirements from 8 weeks of age to 8-10 months of age. They require proper calcium levels and a proper calcium to phosphorus ratio in order to support proper slow growth and help in preventing skeletal diseases that are common in large/giant breeds. If you are wanting to start your guy on raw which I highly recommend as large/giants have been known to live a lot longer on a raw diet, PLEASE make sure you consult with a nutritionist who KNOWS the actual dietary needs of a large/giant breed. Most should, especially if they are supportive of a raw diet.
Here is a testimony of a Newfoundland breeder who feeds a raw diet to his pups and his Sir’s and Dam’s. One of his newfie’s lived to the impressive age 17 years old!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=806j18u4S_g
Hi again Jonathan-
I’ve heard a lot of things about pet food storage as well. I work at a small pet boutique that mainly carries natural dog foods with natural preservitives. If we catch a bag with a hole in it, even a tiny one, it gets damaged out and put on the return shelf because once air has started hitting the food the fats start going rancid.
Most of what I’ve heard about what size bag to buy depends on how fast you go through the food. I can buy 5lb or 15lb bags for by 68lb dog and I store them in a Gamma Vittles Vault air tight container. A 5lb bag will last slightly under a month and a 15lb bag will last me well over a month for him. I don’t buy the largest size bags anymore as I switch foods more frequently than that size bag would allow. That being said a small breed dog or toy breed dog is not going to eat a 30lb bag before the food would start to go rancid, so it would not be smart to buy such a large bag for a small dog. That size would be fine however for a large or giant breed dog that was not eating canned food as well (my dog eats canned so my dry food lasts longer).
I just adopted my third dog recently and have been considering changing the food to a More budget friendly one. Right now I feed Acana which seems to be very good food and everybody brags about it rather than complains about it. Unfortunately it’s a bit pricey. Especially considering a 25 pound bag only lasts me about four weeks right now.
So I looked on this forum And found some budget friendly foods that Mike has listed and I find the horizon complete to be something I would consider feeding my dogs and the price is much cheaper.
My question is has anybody fed this to their dogs and what did they think about it? And also two of my dogs are smaller breeds one is small terrier the other is a border collie so he’s kind of medium and then I have a large round who’s about 70 pounds.
I was considering feeding them the complete lifestage because the ingredients are pretty similar my big I could use the glucosamine but I think I can accomplish giving them that with a supplement. I would just be interested in any kind of feedback from people who may offend this food to their dogs.
Thanks InkedMarie and Crazy4cats for the quick reply!
I looked through the first 20 or so pages of the thread but there are 87 pages! LOL. Anyway, if you are referring to the list compiled by HoundDogMom, yes I did see it but that list includes only grain free foods and Fromm’s large breed puppy is not grain free.
Would love to hear your input. And If HoundDogMom can help I would live to hear her input as well.
Belinda, I live in Denver too! Also, I want to clear something up. I believe that as long as the calcium:phos ratio is between 1.1:1 and 1.5:1 you should be fine. I don’t think it matters if it’s puppy food or adult food as long as that ratio is appropriate. Do you all agree with that?
Thank you so much for all of the expertise!!
Hi there. I’m a little late to this party but do you think Fromms large breed puppy is an appropriate food for a newfoundland puppy?
^ Studies have shown that small dog bites are significantly less likely to be reported than bites from large dogs. Of course it can happen, especially if its a bad bite, but it is less likely. The article I read stated Dachshunds in particular as the most likely breed to bite, according to the study, but highly underreported, along w/ bites from other small breeds.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by
Skye G. Reason: typo
Hi Sara- How long have the loose stools been going on? When you switched to Solid Gold did you have any of the old food to blend to do a proper transition with? If he was eating one food for a long time and because of your move, you had to switch his food suddenly he might be having loose stool because of that. Also was the move recent? Could be stress at 7 years of age, from the move. 7 is moderately old for a large breed.
Hey guys so I spoke with my vet today(thank god i had a good in with my cat who likes to fignt raccoons) and she said to not switch his food again, she said just make sure he drinks plenty of water and if the diahrea doesnt stop within 48 hours then to bring him in. She also suggested the pumpkin in the food which i will try tonight. I also used the calculate for large breed puppy foods on the you guys provided and found out the the hills is within the suggested areas for calcium calories and phosphorous so i think i will just keep him on that and see where it takes him. Thanks for all the advice and i will give another update within a few days to let everyone know how he is doing
It could be from all of the above. It’s common for pups to have loose stools when you first bring him home. That is why it is usually recommended to feed it the same food he was already eating for a while until he gets settled in new home. However, after three days of being that bad, I’d take him to the vet to make sure he is not dehydrated. They can give fluids to him if he is. Also bring a stool sample for the bet to check for parasites and/or worms as well. I sure hope he gets better soon. Good luck!
Btw, Hill’s Ideal Balance large breed puppy food is a four star recommended food for large breed puppies on this site.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by
crazy4cats.
Everyone here is absolutely correct and took the words right out of my mouth. I would absolutely go with Fromm Gold Large Breed Puppy. Much better company than Blue or Natural Balance and is correctly formulated for a LBP. I also like Precise Holistic Complete Large/Giant Puppy Breed Formula. My boyfriends brothers Great Dane did extremely well on that food and both are easy foods to transition to.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by Pitlove.
Hi Shawn-
Congratulations on the new puppy! I have two lab mix dogs. They are about to turn four in the next few days. Large breed puppies have some special requirements when it comes to food due to possible joint issues from growing too fast, too much exercise, or incorrect calcium amount in their food. Here is a link that will explain this in more detail:
/best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/
A couple of good choices in my opinion would be Fromm Gold Large Breed or Wellness Core puppy food. Hope this helps. Good luck!
Hi Shawn,
Go to the Diet & Health forum here (it’s right below this one) and read the yellow highlighted stickie for large breed nutrition. It’s a very long thread…I’d read the first couple pages then start from the last page and look for the list of appropriate foods for large breed puppies.
Hi Jamie-
Some follow up questions for you– How old is he and has he always been eating Merrick? If not, what other brands have you tried with him? Did they all contain beef? Has he had issues with beef before? If you did switch to Merrick from another food was this recent and did you allow enough time with the transition to allow his stomach to adjust to the new food?
My large breed dog used to be picky as well. He wouldn’t eat when I had him on only kibble. He even refused to eat if I put canned food on the top of his kibble and even more so if I took a pate style food and mixed the kibble in with it. Finally I tried sprinkling the kibble on top of the wet and BAM he loved it. Now he eats no problem. I also offer him a variety of foods and it’s kept him from getting bored of the food. Also I found that with my dog when I added a diegestive supplement and a probiotic (I use human kefir) to his diet he was able to switch foods and his stool remained firm. Now he only gets loose stool if he gets into something he shouldnt eat (like the half a pepperoni pizza he ate the other night!!)
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This reply was modified 10 years, 10 months ago by Pitlove.
Following! I started a thread on raw for large breeds but have not seen any recent comments. I thought I was mixing raw in their kibble, an 8 y/o husky and a 6 m/o Newf, only to find out the package “Vital Raw” is misleading and not Raw. I was going to just switch to raw as my pup has an ongoing infection when I read on another link of a man losing his 9 & 1/2 y/o Pitbull to I believe it was e-coli from chicken, but may have been salmonella, so decided to wait and see how others weigh in on this. It does not seem this has been an issue for others. I did want to ask a bit about the supplements though as others recommended omega 3’s and salmon oil’s for mine, but you mentioned flax seeds. Do you grind those daily and add them? Just a comment about flax seeds, as they are only active the day you do that, as they oxidize and then are of no benefit otherwise, including all the gel-tab’s etc. The market has us fooled, I am an R.Ph and learned that in an continuing Ed, only helpful w/ husks off for a couple hours.
Because my dogs are so big this seems like a very expensive way to go, even though I know it’s healthier. Does anyone do kibble in the AM, and Raw in PM? What about all the hormones in the meat from grocery stores? All concerns of mine.
Also for those of you that grind, how? Do you have a special grinder that does the bones? Trying to figure the most economical way to do this?
They will eat less than a large/giant breed dog and some like the “small bites” or a smaller size kibble, but I’ve known many who can feed a normal size kibble with no problems. Other than that I’m not aware of any specific diet requirements for small breed dogs.
If someone does, maybe they can share.
Hi Robert- I have fed Orijen and I think it is a great food. My dog has always done well on high protein. We have a 10 year old English Springer Spaniel as well who is in the care of my boyfriends parents and they feed Purina ONE. He has terrible skin, he smells, his ears smell and he is losing hair. Spaniel breeds are known for their skin issues so IMO feeding a higher quality food like Orijen will greatly reduce the chances of skin problems down the line.
As for your vet’s concerns with high protein, dogs can efficiently process and digest quality animal protein. Orijen is human grade meats, poultry and fish. However, just like every other kibble it is still cooked. It is cooked at a much lower temperature than Purina ProPlan, but still cooked and those cooked animal proteins might not sit well with your puppy. That being said, if he is doing well and is not having loose stool or any other symptoms, no reason to be concerned.
Our Springer Spaniel is considered a large breed dog given his weight and yours will probably boarder on that too, so make sure you are not overfeeding him. That will aid him not having loose stool and also help prevent skeletal disorders like Pano.
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This reply was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by Pitlove.
I also am more confused than ever. I have another thread going on starting to feed large breeds raw. Also not only concerned about the pathogen’s that I would think if buying commercially would be at minimal risk, I would think that dogs in general would have the enzymes in their GI systems (that humans do not) to kill these serious bacteria?? But I read one article where a man lost his 9 & 1/2 y/o dog after twice taking him to the vet and the e-coli didn’t come up on routine test’s because they don’t test the GI tract.
Also of concern to me is I myself have a very weak immune system, but want what is best for my dogs, so could wear gloves, but what about where they walk, lick, one is a drooler??? Can’t control all aspects of it just with gloves. Think I will also get this book on my kindle.
Trainers telling me that they can feed raw chicken with the bones intact to large breed dogs and that the dogs don’t seem to be susceptible to salmonella..AND YET…I just now got an email alert from this website here saying some turkey sprinkles was being recalled due to salmonella…
?????? opinions/ actually would prefer some facts??
tks
I’ve been informed of some recent studies that suggest that large and especially giant breed pups may do best if they’re weaned to a low calcium/phosphorus adult dog food at 8 weeks old, simply because the extra calories the puppy foods tend to be empty calories rather than nutrition, and any excess weight in a large/giant pup can lead to Pano. It’s better they get the nutrition over the risk of too many calories- especially empty calories. Definitely by 11 months old your pup should be fine on an adult diet, as growth has slowed and isn’t as rapid as the first 8 months.
Hello,
First of all, I want to thank everyone for their contributions to this forum. I’ve read through a ton of the pages and it’s been very informative.
My wife and I got a Husky/Malamute mix, Nisa, and she is now 11 months old. Currently, she is about 70 pounds, and still growing. We’ve fed her Canidae, Merrick, and Nature’s Variety. She seems to do very well with all dog foods, but I’ve been bred to change my dogs food every 2-3 months. This leads to one of two questions:
When should I stop feeding Nisa Large Breed Puppy food?
After she is no longer in the Large Breed Puppy category, is there another list or forum that discusses Large Breed Adult Nutrition, or can she continue to eat Large Breed Puppy?
Thank you in advance!
Enjoy the holiday and be safe!
Has anyone else experienced hemorrhagic gastroenteritis in their giant breed dog? My 7-month-old Shiloh Shepherd puppy, Galen, just had a 24h stay in ICU after developing the condition. Fortunately, he was seen immediately, for as a service dog in training he is always with me, so there was no delay in observing the symptoms. Plus the vet we go to, Alameda East Veterinary hospital (you might recognize them from “Emergency Vets” has a 24h ER, fully staffed 24h ICU, and can do all diagnostics in-house using the latest tech… so his diagnosis was extremely rapid. He still ended up requiring a plasma transfusion, and a fair bit more than the high estimate for his care addressed, but his recovery is coming along nicely. After that 24h in the ICU, he was able to come home.
What I wanted to see if anyone had any dietary recommendations about this, for when he’s able to resume his normal diet in a couple of days. He currently gets Canidae Grain Free Pure Sea kibble and Tripett canned food (Green Beef Tripe, Tripe and Venison, and Duck, Salmon & Tripe varieties). I also have pre and probiotics I can give him- increasing the dosage at the moment as he’s still on antibiotics (oral starting tomorrow, as he had IV until this afternoon). His Canidae also contains probiotics, and Tripett contains digestive enzymes.
He has every reason to NOT have developed this, as he’s not hyperactive, not a small or toy breed, eats top notch foods that are formulated with everything recommended for healthy digestion, etc… yet he still got it (I suspect it may be from either the goose poop he attempted to eat at the park Saturday, or the swim in a lake he took last week, but the cause of hemorrhagic Gastroenteritis (HGE) remains largely unknown).
At the moment, I’m nervous about anything that could effect Galen’s health. It’s pretty terrifying to see blood squirting out of my furbaby’s rectum as a purple jet. His vet highly approves of the diet I have Galen on, but I still would like to know what other’s think, and if anyone else has experienced this in a giant breed puppy that’s NOT hyper or overly stressed.
Question for HDM and others that can might can help me out. I am new to this forum and new to the large puppy breed. We recently bought an American Bulldog. She is about 12 weeks old at 25 lbs and I have realized she has been on a poor dog food called Diamond Puppy because that is what the breeder told us to feed her. Can you recommend to me a good puppy food along with any other regimes I need to have her on. And also do I need to take her calcium intake once I get her on the correct food?
Hi everyone.
I have a 6 year old American Bulldog Mix and a 6 month old Catahoula mix. I’ve been going back and forth trying to find a quality food brand to feed them. Right now they eat Castor & Pollux Organix Adult and Organix Puppy. And they share a can of Castor & Pollux wet food once a day.
Both Petco and Petsmart have essentially rid themselves of the brand. And while I can buy online, I’m essentially looking for a food that I can feed them both.
Both Merrick Grain Free (rated on here at 5 stars) and Whole Earth Farms (rated here at 4 stars) offer dry and wet All Life Stages foods. I know Merrick owns WEF. Is there a big difference in quality between the two? There’s an approximate $15 difference in price between them and I’m trying to figure out if it’s worth it. Or it WEF is a decent brand.
My dogs aren’t happy with the C&P food. Before that they were on Ideal Balance dry (which they also didn’t want to eat). I’ve spent a lot of time transitioning from one brand to the next and I’m hoping that Merrick (or WEF) will be a quality food they will look forward to eating. I know that big brands fill their foods with ingredients dogs love to eat and sometimes it’s harder to get a dog to adapt to a higher grade food.
My mother recently adopted a puppy and the shelter gave her a bag of Purina Smart One Puppy. She gobbles it up and won’t eat anything else. I’ve already schooled her on their questionable ingredients. I fed a small amount to my very picky eating puppy and I was not surprised to find the bowl empty 1 minute later and that she was literally licking it clean. It would be easy to feed her that (my vet recommends Purina Pro Plan and says he feeds his dogs that). But I know what’s in the bag and I’ve already attempted to feed my large dog their Pro Plan Large Breed dry a year ago on the vet’s suggestion, only to find nasty meal worms crawling around inside the storage container I had the food in and my dog’s food bowl (I know this has more to do with packaging/shipping than production, but still. I’ve since read up on the brand and am not impressed.
Merrick seems to be a decent brand of food. And on paper WEF seems just as good. Both are readily available at my local Petco and online. But it Merrick brand worth the extra $15/bag over WEF?
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This topic was modified 10 years, 11 months ago by
Christie.
Sharon,
Where are you in NH? I’m in Gilford! If you’re wondering how much to feed your dogs, go to the Hare Today website. Click the feeding calculator & it will tell you how much to start with.
Both Tracys (at Hare Today & Pawfectly Raw NE) have large breed dogs 7 they can help you.
I am getting quite an education which is what I need. See newest post from me. Trying to find source, and seems I have, and how to switch my Newf and Husky to a raw diet and this is the first post from someone with a larger breed that I have seen. I am so sorry for your loss. All of your St. Bernard’s, but would love to know their previous feedings as I embark on this. Hard to extrapolate from people feeding schnauzer’s and such. I also am in NH and both the Cambridge and NH sources seem very possible.
4 months ago
