"Plus, it’s not good for Labs to grow too fast, which puppy food encourages"
Annette
believe it's the opposite; adult food encourages too fast of growth, or so they say. agree with the all-life-stage food as an alternative.
love your picture.
Annette47 (07-12-2016), ZoeysMommy (07-19-2016)
o.k., you're right!
Memory tells me it has to do with amount of fat and calcium in the food.
It's been 18 months since I spent time reading about the difference 'tween dog foods and the OP should do the same or believe whomever he wants to believe.
What I know is I took Rocco to the vet @12 weeks old holding a bag from Sportmix chicken and rice dog food, recommended by the breeder, and she said "I'd rather see him on a puppy food as it has all the vitamins and such he needs", never pushing any one brand. Then I did my own homework and made my own decision.
I look for higher fat in my Labs' food. 30/20 is optimal IMO, and I don't think I'd feed less than 16% fat. For puppies, the concern is not fat but moreso the calcium/phosphorus ratio. Like I said earlier, if you did your homework on your breeder and picked a good one, and you want your dogs to fulfill the physical potential of their pedigrees, why would you disregard food recommended by your breeder? At minimum, I'd at least discuss any food changes with my breeder and get feedback. A good breeder knows their lines best.
Yes—stick to what the breeder recommends. If you don't trust this recommendation, then you de facto do not trust your breeder (and should therefore find another one).
We—having done a load of research but still not really knowing anything—had purchased a bag of "Taste of the Wild" or some kind of trendy health food for Hoku. A couple days before we were to get her, the breeder sent several "puppy packets," one of which had very explicit instructions for feeding—type (ProPlan sport), quantity, frequency.
Went to pick her up, and I think we mentioned that we had "Taste of the Wild." Her response was along the lines of "you can feed her whatever trendy food you want to after the first year, but until then, why don't you trust the companies that have put literally millions of dollars into their research?"
Hoku's still on ProPlan, supplemented with fresh fish and vegetables, spirulina, and MSM.
Trust your breeder!
Hidden Content Hokule'a ("Hoku") / b. 06.08.15
windycanyon (07-20-2016)
Not Eukanuba Lg Breed Puppy formula!
Not all puppy foods are considered equal, which is why people just need to trust their breeder's experience (given the breeder has some experience anyhow!). I remember comparing Purina Pro Plan puppy vs their adult and wondering why anyone bothered w/ puppy formula there since there was little difference. So again, just follow what your breeder has been successful with!
Gosh I know of a long time breeder whose pups were fed Purina "puppy chow"... and her pups didn't grow well on any of the foods the rest of us have mentioned here. Funny thing, she mentioned to me she thought food had become one of those epigenetic issues... she may have been onto something.
Hidden Content
The WindyCanyon Girls (taken Summer 2018)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Northern Spy CDX RA JH OA OAJ CC (14.5 yrs)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Ruby Pink BN CD RA CC (4.5 yrs)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Kanzi BN CDX RE JH (5 yrs)
IntCH WindyCanyon ItsOnlyMoneyHoneycrisp BN RN CC (16mos)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Pippin BN RI CC (2.5 yrs)IntCH WindyCanyon's Envy CDX RE JH CC (10.5 yrs)
IntCH HIT WindyCanyon's Kiku A Fuji Too CDX RE JH CC (10 yrs)
I just went thru something similar today w/ an owner of a 6mo old. Puppy is looking "portly" and she made the mistake of asking me if he looked too fat and should they cut back on kibble (this after she already admitted she can't feel his ribs). I asked how much they were currently feeding... and in addition to the Euk LBP which is what I feed/ recommend, she was adding cooked chicken, yams (sweet potatoes), beans etc. I asked why... well because that's what they've ALWAYS fed their other dogs!!! Well this is a puppy, and how the heck am I to help if they aren't bothering to follow my directions on feeding? Heck, I don't know how many calories/ fat/ Ca: P etc she's adding there w/ all the extras!!! Ughhh. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother... except should something go wrong, I'm sure I'd hear about it.
Hidden Content
The WindyCanyon Girls (taken Summer 2018)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Northern Spy CDX RA JH OA OAJ CC (14.5 yrs)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Ruby Pink BN CD RA CC (4.5 yrs)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Kanzi BN CDX RE JH (5 yrs)
IntCH WindyCanyon ItsOnlyMoneyHoneycrisp BN RN CC (16mos)
IntCH WindyCanyon's Pippin BN RI CC (2.5 yrs)IntCH WindyCanyon's Envy CDX RE JH CC (10.5 yrs)
IntCH HIT WindyCanyon's Kiku A Fuji Too CDX RE JH CC (10 yrs)
Abulafia (07-20-2016)
Hello, I've find some helpful information here in exoticonlinepetstore about what kind of Foods to Give Your Pet and How, and they have a lot of information there that can help you with your question.
Last edited by Rosy; 07-20-2016 at 08:14 AM. Reason: typo
windycanyon (07-20-2016)
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