Your favorite puppy chow recommendations?

[Marty]

Amy was on Purina Pro Plan Puppy Chow as per the breeders recommendations. No problem, except that we ran out and no one was heading over to Chattanooga last week to pick some up at Petco for us.

So, in a pinch, I got her just regular Purina Puppy Chow from the store.

She looks horrible!

She's so gawky and gangly and skinny and you can see her little rib cage!

I'm not saying it's from the food though. She looks so horrid that I drug her into the vet for a quick look.

The vet said she is simply growing like a weed and at a very rapid pace and just to keep feeding her up real good. He also gave me some vitamins for her too and told me to quit worrying while she has these spurts.

Heading out to Chattanooga for more puppy food so which kind do you all suggest for this growing puppy that looks like a refugee from the war?

 

[Mona]

When I raised dogs for many years, I too fed Purina Pro Plan Puppy Formula. I have tried Puppy Chow a couple times in the past, and I absolutely HATE it, and will never waste my money on it again. :no:

 

[ChrystalPaths]

Marty, I would try to find a "large breed" puppy food with as little corn as you can. I had the same trouble with my rottie yrs ago. Their bones grow faster than they do and they look awful at that 4 to 9 mos stage so I went with a "large breed puppy" food and what a difference!

 

[Reble]

I like Nutra Natural choice Puppy food, can get it for large puppies.

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[Jill]

Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Puppy Food

That's what we fed our blue merle collie, Kelsey, and she grew up beautifully.

 

[White Socks Miniature]

I reccomend a large breed puppy food. They are high in nutrient value so they still get the nourishment they need but they are lower in energy so your pup isnt growing too fast which can cause obesity and joint problems due to the fast growth rate. I reccomend nutro natural choice large breed puppy, hills large breed puppy or royal canin large breed puppy, there are also other high quality diets that you can get from a pet store or from your veterinarian. Try the nutro tho very good price for a high quality diet.

 

[mininik]

Nutro Natural Choice, Nature's Recipe, Natural Balance, Avoderm, Pet's Promise, Evo, Innova, Canidae, Wysong, Solid Gold, Timberwolf Organics, Blue Buffalo... etc. Our dogs love variety and are always enjoying several excellent brands and flavors at once. If you think about it, who would want to eat the same thing for life and how could that possibly be nutritionally complete? I would stay away from anything available at big box stores like Walmart. Petsomethings are now carrying some good brands. I do not recommend Purina, Iams/Eukanuba, Science Diet, Pedigree, Ol Roy, Atta Boy and others made up of lots of advertising, by products, something "meal," and other cheap fillers which often result in or trigger allergies.

 

[liltnt]

Nutro Natural choice/ I love thqat stuff for any size dog or puppy. My pyg has been on it since I got her and she is as healthy as they come. Bless her little heart

 

[tagalong]

I do not recommend Purina, Iams/Eukanuba, Science Diet, Pedigree, Ol Roy, Atta Boy and others made up of lots of advertising, by products, something "meal," and other cheap fillers which often result in or trigger allergies.

I agree - basically - if you can buy it at the grocery store - DON'T.

Nutro is good - the large breed puppy recipe. I also like Precise... or Pinnacle.

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[luckymeacres]

Bil Jac Puppy Food is very good

 

[Steph_D]

I'm feeding Casper Nature's Recipe. He get the healthy skin formula for allergies, just because that's what I feed my other house dog. The vet said that's just fine for him and he's doing great

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[lvponies]

Marty,

Our GSD puppy is now about 5 months old. He too is very skinny where you can feel his ribs. I've never had a skinnier puppy!!! But....he has a nice healthy shiny coat, tons of energy and is bright eyed. I've checked with my vet too and also a GSD breeder and they said it is perfectly normal. They are growing so fast that they can't keep any fat on them. I've tried the Purina Pro Plan, IAMS, Purina puppy foods and no change. I have been feeding him a large can of dog food twice daily and am cooking him eggs with cheese too. Mixing this with his dry food. No change. Still skinny. I did read on the web that it's not recommended to feed puppy food to GSD's after they are 5 months old. Causes too much bone growth too fast and problems with their joints later on. One GSD breeder I checked with who was here looking at horses, said he will really look terrible when he's about a year old. She said to not expect him to fill out until he's about 2!!

Kim

 

[drivin*me*buggy]

Canidae, without a doubt. It is made w/ high quality ingredients. It is fed to all life stages, the amount varies on size and activity level. I first got it when my schnauzer was a pup. Schnauzers can be prone to skin issues. My dog has a beautiful coat, he glows and has great energy. Compared to Eukanuba which the breeder used, it is actually a little less expensive. Our old 14 year old lab is on it and looks good, even the vet commented. Check out

www.canidae.com

You won't be disappointed.

Angie

 

[anoki]

I wouldn't recommend a puppy food....

I use Nature's Variety and love it. I also have my sister's rotti puppy on Canidae, and she looks great. I tried both of my dogs (the corgi & my mixed mutt) and both got hot spots on it....so I switched to NV....it's a bit harder to find up here, but I am very happy with it!

~kathryn

 

[Lisa-Ruff N Tuff Minis]

My vet at a large small animal clinic in CA who was also a breeder of goldens..or labs I dont remember which one now told me he always fed his dogs pedigree and that there was no need for the expensive nutro feeds ect..

i can ttell you my dogs are all free fed Pedigree puppy and they are all fine and healthy and living long full lives. Not to fat nor to thin (with the exception of one who is spoiled and gets all the people food as well)

 

[rabbitsfizz]

I have always fed my puppies meat and biscuit- or brown bread.

My dogs are fed the same.

I did not feed supplements of any kind, I adjusted the levels of meat according to the puppies needs.

It was actually a lot cheaper than kibble of any kind.

Dogs are omnivores so anything off the table goes in the dog bin and it is all grist to the mill as far as they are concerned!!

Oh human grade meat only- if I would not eat it my dogs do not get it (well, not voluntarily anyway- they do still eat the horse poo and I have to admit drawing the line at that!!)

 

[minimama]

I stay away from puppy food altogether. I use Bil-Jac large breed for my big puppy kids. Never have had a problem. I have a shepherd too adn she has a tendancy, just like her mama, to go skinny on me when fed less expensive foods so I give her the Bil-jac too. Works wonders.

 

[mininik]

I find it so amazing when I hear what some vets feed and recommend. Truth is, vets had a lot of learning to do in school, are now very busy with their practice and don't have much background in dog nutrition beyond what they're fed by representatives of the companies with the most money to promote their brands. What's sad is that it doesn't take much to look at the ingredients on the back of a bag of Pedigree (Ol Roy, Atta Boy, Science Diet, etc.) and compare it to better quality brands with actual human grade MEAT (not by products, something "meal") and other healthful ingredients versus cheap fillers (such as corn, peanut hulls, etc.). Of course plenty of dogs live fine on a diet of McKibble, but that can be said of many humans, too... just makes me wonder how many are truly healthy and really benefiting from it?

 

[Sterling]

Years and years ago I used to feed commercial dog foods to my dogs...as time went by and I learned more and more about the commercial brands that they advertise as opposed to the higher quality/human grade meat/less cereal brands I switched over. I have noticed a big improvement on the condition of coats, growth, and weight. We had weight issues and skin issues before...whereas now we don't. I had been feeding my pups Nutro Naturals until that dog food recall made me rethink my program. I did'nt feel comfortable going back to them so I switched to Canidae. So far I love what it's doing for my girls....smooth glossy coats, shiney/healthy skin, good weight, less waste....meaning them eating it AND output of poo-poo. See for yourself...check out the ingredients.

http://www.canidae.com/dogs/all_life_stages/dry.html

 

[anoki]

I'll post this again if anyone is interested in some reading and research into many different dog foods

Dog Food Reviews

~kathryn