puppie food

[fatboyfras]

having just bought a 8 week old boxer puppy, i,d like some advise on best dry complete food to feed him

[Carol]

Your vet is a great source for this. Your pup I am hoping has had some of his shots by now and will finish them soon. If all is well with the pup's health and you have no allergy issues or itchy skin, likely a good puppy food from your local pet supply will do until he is old enough for adult food.
The type of food you buy is usually directly related to issues with the dog's health or behaviour.
Some dogs are sensitive to grains or corn etc so reading labels becomes a real necessity.
I have a cocker spaniel and she requires fruits and veggies, not very much meat so I am a real label reader now.
She used to have itchy skin and lots of ear problems.
The proper diet and religious ear cleaning weekly has cleared her of these problems.
So you see, you need to rely on your vet to let you know how your pup is doing and give you advice on a great food for him.
Welcome to the site.
We would love to see a photo of your new pup.

[May209]

What I have learned from me vet is that any food where the #1 ingredient is meat real meat not by product is usually a good food. You usually pay a little more for it but it is worth it in the end. Less health problems. There are alot of good foods out there just look at the ingredients on the label. There are other things to watch for like certain preservatives but making sure the main ingredient is meat is a good start. Just by changing foods with my cocker cleared up skin problems he used to have. Just my experience.

Amy

[bulldog1]

I would personaly stay away from any form of commercial dog food it contains so much un-natural ingredents I will put up a puppy raw feed diet sheet for you

[bulldog1]

8am 12pm 4pm 8pm
Monday Fish & Veg Goats Milk Heart RMB
Tuesday Minced meat & Veg Goats Milk Tripe RMB
Wednesday Minced meat & Veg Goats Milk Tripe & Egg RMB
Thursday Fish & Veg Goats Milk Tripe RMB
Friday Minced meat & Veg Goats Milk Tripe RMB
Saturday Minced meat & Veg Goats Milk Tripe RMB
Sunday Minced meat & Veg Goats Milk Tripe & Liver RMB

Puppy Diet

Mince = Lamb, chicken, turkey, pork, rabbit.

Tripe = Make sure it is black/green as the tripe you can buy in the butchers is white (bleached) and has to goodness taken out of it. Tripe is very good for the dogs as it full of vitamins and calcium.

RMB (Raw Meaty Bone) = For puppies I would give either a couple of lamb ribs, a couple of chicken wings or part of a rabbit. When they first have bones they may try to swallow them whole instead of chewing, if this happens then you have to teach them to chew it, you do this by holding one end of the meat whilst they chew.

Heart = Pigs, Lamb or Ox cut into manageable size pieces.

Veg = Any vegetable is fine apart from some root vegetables, do not give onions as they are toxic to dogs and potatoes are not too good for them either. Do not cook the veggies, blend them up in a normal blender and add about one tablespoon to their meal.
The veggies I use are: Cabbage, Asparagus, Broccoli, Sprouts, Cauliflower, Celery, Collard, Cucumbers, Green Beans, Kale, Lettuce, Parsley, Spinach and Squash.


Milk = Either Goats milk or tinned evaporated milk (mixed with 1 ½ parts water). Never give cow’s milk as dogs cannot digest it!

Fish = I give a whole tin of pilchards in brine (make it is drained off first though).

Liver = A pup should only have a little chunk of liver (approx 1 tablespoon)

Egg = A whole raw egg once a week mixed into their food.

This diet is safe to give your puppies from 5 weeks of age.

As a guide a puppy should have between 4-5% of his body weight daily.

As your pup grows you can cut out the milk and gradually bring the meals down to 3 times a day then when he/she is about 6 months old he should be on just two meals a day.

All you really need to remember is that VARIETY is the key.
I.E. If you feed chicken mince in the day then give a lamb bone at night or if you give lamb in the day then give rabbit at night etc.


You dog can still eat every else like table scraps etc, but just make sure that BARF is their main diet.
Please remember that dogs love fruit and cheese, so consider these as a treat.


Supplements

ESTER-C - Probably THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT SUPPLEMENT you can give your dogs. It is virtually a miracle cure for hip dysplasia and actually prevents it happening in the first place. It builds collagen around the joints and given in high doses can bring very lame dogs back to life. Your dog can NEVER overdose on Ester-C
0-3 months – 250mg twice a day (1 tablet)
3-6 months – 500mg twice a day (2 tablets)
6 months+ 1000mg twice a day (4 tablets)
The puppies should be on 2000mg until they reach 18 months of age.
I have found the cheapest place to get Ester-C is www.healthspan.co.uk or you can call them on 0800 73 123 77. You get 120 tablets for £8.45 with free P&P.
We crush the tablets in a pestle and mortar and mix it in with their food.

Vitamin E – Helps the body absorb the Ester-C better. 1 tablet once a day.
If your dog has any skin problems in the future then I highly recommend the products from www.first4pets.co.uk

[shell]

I have an 8 month old Bichon Shi Tsu/ Miniature Dachshund x who has... "gassy issues". I have him on some food from the local vet clinic called medi-cal, but it is fairly expensive; I've switched him to other stuff, but medi-cal is about the only "stink proof" stuff that I can find. As I'm also a single mom, I'd love some other options.Please help!

[bulldog1]

with dogs and food it is very much a trial and error thing what works for 1 dog dont always work for another I dont use any comercial food what so ever but if I was to then prob go for royal cannin also very expensive tho have you ever tried raw feeding?

[shell]

:D THANX FOR THE INFO, BUT AS i SAID, i'M A SINGLE MOM ON A BUDGET. i LOVE MY PUP, BUT i HAVE TO SUPPORT A CHILD TOO. iF YOU COME ACROSS ANYTHING IN THE FUTURE, i WOULD VERY MUCH LOVE TOO HEAR ABOUT IT. i'M JUST HOPING THAT BANDIT'S ISSUES WILL CLEAR UP ONCE i SWITCH HIM OVER TO ADULT FOOD. i DID FIND THAT HE WASN'T TOO BAD OVER THE WEEKEND WHEN HE SPENT THE DAY WITH MY DAD'S SHEPHERD PUP- AT LEAST HE DIDN'T CHASE US OUT OF THE CAR ON THE WAY HOME!

[crazydays]

Hi Shell.
It is tricky coming up with the right combination for your dog. You mention your dog has gassy issues. Are you having any issues with soft or loose stools? The Vet put him on medi-cal. I just have a few thoughts.

There is a product called D-Zymes. It is found at a good dog food store. One brand is Solid Gold. This powder aids in the digestive process and especially gas problems. It is also effective for allergies,skin problems etc. One container is good for 160 cups of food. So, you add it to the chosen food. If it helps that great.

Have you been able to isolate what it is that causes your dog problems? For example did you go from chicken based food to lamb based food?? I would suggest you go to a good pet food store like Global pets or Pet Value. Tell then the problems you have been having and as well your monetary restraints. A good business person will have knowledge and be able to direct you well.
Maybe you have already resolved your problem since this post occurred in
Feb07--hopefully this is resolved!!!

[april33]

Bestnaturalpet.com designs food just for your pet based on his age, weight and breed. They send it to you in daily packages. It is a cross between wet and dry food there is nothing else like it in the market. It is also all natural and holistic and has never been a part of the dog food recalls. Check it out at: Bestnaturalpet.com