[Dog_Obsessed]

So I don’t usually post here, because my dog is about six times too small to be considered a large breed. I just wanted to weigh in about rotational feeding and stomach upset. Erin, does the stomach upset seem to happen most while or right after transitioning foods? If so, that could be what is causing it, but rotational feeding does have many benefits. Like OnyxMom said, adding a digestive enzyme, such as THK Perfect Form, could help. The cat food could definitely cause it too, and adding an enzyme could also help with that.

[theBCnut]

If changing foods causes upset tummy, that means that the gut isn’t as healthy as it could be, and the best way to improve the health of the gut is to continue rotating foods, not to do it even less and stay in the rut that caused the problem in the first place.

[Dog_Obsessed]

Totally agree with BCnut. While there are rarely some dogs that just don’t do well with rotation, most will do well once their stomach has had time to adjust.

[frostyrockyk]

@ Sue’s Zoo … LOVE THAT PUP !! @ Dog Foodie…… I found this spot to try & learn what you were warning me about , because I don’t know . I live on a lake with sharp chert & limestone gravel as a shore line , my pup would run to the shore & gobble it up like it was candy . He knew I didn’t want him to have it so he would just slam it ! I was at the end of my rope , I couldn’t leave him alone outside . None of my other dogs ever did this & my vet said this must stop or else. Some would pass, but I had a real problem , as the vet said I TOPPED with cottage cheese & it worked well & fast to get him off the rocks . I think it was beniful puppy , at the time , I thought that was good food at the time . My 5 yr old has now had her 2nt can of wellness , I got 4 different grain free as a back up to my home cooking , she likes it & no barfing . Thanks to the person that put this thread back up front .

[Trout-lily]

I’ve rotated her food frequently since we brought her home in June and to be honest it was only because I was trying to find my medium with budget and a quality puppy food. She did well on Dr Tim’s kinsis for a while and then I recently switched to Innova large breed puppy. I also couldn’t resist the Black Friday deals for wellness core grain free. Denali was having small issues with th innova before I started to introduce the wellness bag. I thought about switching her back what she was previously eating, dr.tims kinesis, but I might try the digestive enzyme first to see how that works. We eliminated the cat food temptation over the weekend and it made her accidents less frequent but it still isn’t solving our issue

[crazy4cats]

Hi All-
There are a lot of recent posts regarding loose stools. Please check out this link: http://www.dogaware.com/health/digestive.html

I believe it contains a lot of great information regarding different types of diarrhea and loose stools. My favorite subject. LOL!!!

I learned about the following supplements on that site and have had pretty good success rotating them: Gastriplex by Thorne, Perfect Form by The Honest Kitchen, Vetri-Pro BD, by Vetri Science, Phytomucil by Animal Essentials and canned Fruitables Digestive Supplement.

Of course, make sure to have a thorough fecal test done to check for Giardia and Coccidia. They are both fairly common with puppies and sometimes hard to detect.

Good luck! It is a frustrating issue.

[David G]

Hi Everyone,

We just got our first rottie puppy and have been doing our homework on the large breed puppy foods. There’s so many options it’s almost overwhelming. We give our other German Shepherd mix Kirkland Nature’s Domain, and like it a lot. We feel it’s a great bang for the buck.

Some of these puppy food formulas are almost double $60 – 30lbs. Can anyone recommend an affordable food for our baby boy? I saw somewhere that the Kirkland Natures Domain may be suitable for large breed pups as well.

Thanks. I checked out the google doc as well but it seemed limited because she only had so many companies respond about the calcium levels.

Sorry for the redundancy and thanks in advance!

-Dave

[Mike Sagman]

Hi Dave,

As you may already know, large breed puppies have special nutritional needs that are different from those of most other puppies. The following article may help point you in the right direction:

How to Choose the Best Large Breed Puppy Food and Lower Your Pet’s Risk of Hip Dysplasia

Hope this helps.

[crazy4cats]

Dave-
Yes, definitely check out the new large breed article on the review side of this site that is noted in the above post by Mike Sagman. The ones from the list that I am familiar with are:
Nutrisource large breed puppy, Pro Pac large breed puppy and Victor Select chicken or Victor Select Lamb. These all contain grains. The grain free are: Earthborn Coastal Catch or Meadow Feast and Wellness Core. Again, please check the label to make sure they still fall within the posted guidelines. Have fun with your new pup!

[DogFoodie]

Hi Dave,

The way I figure, if a manufacturer failed to respond to HDM’s simple request for nutritional information, I’d rather not feed their products anyway.

[InkedMarie]

Dave,
I suggest you print the list of recommended foods in this thread, go to Chewy dot com and Pet Flow dot com and see what ones are in your budget. Don’t forget, you get what you pay for.

[David G]

Mike Sagman – Thanks for the reply. That article was one of the first things I read here and it was awesome. Always looking to gain more knowledge on the topic. Just need help finding one that fits the criteria and our budget..

crazy4cats – Thanks crazy4cats! I’m going to go down the list and check the websites that were recommended and go with it. The Kirkland puppy food isn’t specific for large breeds so poor little Tanky’s stool is consistently soft/loose. Trying to fix the situation asap!

DogFoodie – While I understand the logic, if that were applied across the board there’s very few companies I’d use in life. Keurig, Coca Cola…I can’t say I’m surprised Costco/Kirkland didn’t reply, and don’t want to rule it out based on that. I would just say it’s icing on the cake for the companies that did respond.

Edit: I see Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain on the list actually. We may just go with that since we’re familiar and have had a good experience. I’ll double check.

InkedMarie – I’m going to do that right now. We want to get something that’s affordable, but above all else provides the nutrition and quality. Definitely not trying to cut corners when it comes to his health and growth. Thanks again.

-Dave

• This reply was modified 9 years, 10 months ago by David G.

[InkedMarie]

Dave,
Some people are reluctant to order online but I personally find cheaper prices than my most local store with a good variety of food (35 min drive) have and no gas! I prefer Chewy especially if you’re trying a new food; they have a great return policy.

[David G]

Great InkedMarie, thanks for the suggestion!

Browsing the site now for the foods in the list.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1SytEa11UUK3tlgamYEXilZ8pV8yw03CKuXcdduvQL0o/edit#

This is the list I’m using, correct?

[aquariangt]

the document names themselves look fairly similar. Was it the one from page 15? afaik that is the most recent one. Good luck!

[InkedMarie]

thats weird, it said access denied. I requested permission…

[David G]

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFY183Q0NVRXlidWc/edit

That’s the one I think. I posted the wrong link.

I am looking at the Fromm Gold Holistic Large Breed Puppy Dry Dog Food.

Seems very affordable and high quality. Might pull the trigger!

[David G]

Sorry, not sure what I’m messing up here.

It has this at the top:

“Large Breed Puppy Food List
Criteria:
-Dry food (kibble or dehydrated).
-Rated at least 4 stars on DFA.
-Grain-free.
-Meets AAFCO nutrient requirements for growth or all life stages.
-3.5 g. calcium per 1,000 kcal. or less.”

[aquariangt]

Good choice, Fromm is an excellent company

[theBCnut]

Grain free is the old list. The new list has grain inclusive, grain free, and raw on it.

[DogFoodie]

Hi David,

You’re looking at an old list. I believe this is the most current list. It’s on page 36. It includes grain inclusive, grain free and raw. I agree with the others about Fromm. It’s a solid manufacturer.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFTXhUdi1KazFzSUk/preview

[crazy4cats]

I think it is page 35 or 36.

[David G]

Ok perfect. That was the other list I was looking at as well.

Seems like Fromm has a good reputation around here, so that’s great to hear. I’m so excited to get the food and nylabones in. Poor Tank has been having almost complete liquid stool. It kills me.

Thanks so much for the help everyone. This site is an invaluable source and I look forward to learning more and more, so I can take the best care of my current and future dogs.

[David G]

Turns out our pup (and most likely our other dog) have giardia. The fecal test came back positive today. So that would explain the stool issues, and loss of appetite in our germ shepherd.

They’re on panacur for 5 days, and again in 3 weeks. That should help along with the Fromm. Thanks everyone.

[DogFoodie]

Hi David,

Sorry to hear about the diagnosis.

I know C4C has experience in dealing with Giardia. I hope she’ll see this and weigh in.

In the meantime, here’s a thread you might find useful:/forums/topic/puppy-with-giardia/

You can always go to the forum home page and specify search terms.

[Karla C]

Hi everyone! I am new to this forum and have come here for advice. I have read through many threads/replies but I want to ask specifically for the puppy I am rescuing. Her mom is a lab/hound mix and they think dad is a heeler. I will be getting her this Friday at 8 weeks old! Back in April I had to say goodbye to my 15 year old lab/golden mix. But I am now excited to be getting another dog! I didn’t pay much attention as far as researching best foods for my previous dog and unfortunately she became diabetic and had to give her insulin twice a day. She ended up losing a lot if weight (in a healthy way) and her last years were the best!

I want to start out right with my new dog. The foster mom who has the litter is feeding them whole earth farms puppy food by Merrick (dry mixed in with a little wet)…so here I am looking for advise to see if anyone has a lab/hound/heeler mix and what has worked best for them. Thank you in advance! Thankful that I stumbled across this forum 🙂

[crazy4cats]

Here I am!
Hi David-
Unfortunately, I have more experience with that darn parasite than I’d like to mention! First of all, I’m ecstatic that your vet is recommending the panacur for 5 days instead of the typical 3 days for worms. Also really happy that they are suggesting to repeat it You might have better luck than me with ridding of it that way. My vet only said three days of it and 10 days of Metronidazole. I ended up giving them Metronidazole 4 or 5 times without success. Only ruining their digestive systems.
I have a ton of holistic remedies, but I’d hold off on too many of them until you get another fecal test to see if the traditional method works. But.. with that being said, I would highly recommend to feed fresh crushed or chopped garlic 3 times per week if you are comfortable using it. Also, bump up the fiber and add pre and probiotics. Just start with that while you are treating. Then if needed…The top remedies that the Alternative Medicine Review suggest are: Probiotics, Fiber, Prebiotics, Wheat Germ, Sauerkraut
and Berberine-containing herbs. The CAPC recommends Drontal Plus if the Panacur doesn’t work. http://www.capcvet.org/capc-recommendations/giardia. And the NCBI Pub Med suggests Enteroccoccus Faecium. There are some cleanses and tinctures that I used that contain some of these, but again, we’ll talk later if your first set of treatments do not work. I used them all :-/

Remember that it is highly contagious and can be transmitted to humans as well as other pets. Make sure to clean up their poop ASAP and douse the spot with hot bleach water if you can. Keep their bedding clean and take off your shoes before coming in. It can actually live in the soil and could get on your shoes.

Also, you can find Panacur OTC so much cheaper at http://www.healthypets.com, Amazon.com, Entirely Pets.com and even at Fred Meyer (Kroger) or Costco.

Good luck, let us know how it goes!

[David G]

Hey C4C, thanks for chiming in!

I looked online and as much as I wanted to save a few bucks (it wasn’t much different) I just wanted to get it in their system ASAP. So this time around I just bought it from the vet, which I don’t mind supporting once in a while anyway. It was $53 for 5 days of treatment for both dogs (20lbs and 50lbs). Something I’ll definitely explore in case of any future incidents. I research everything I want to buy online first, especially price.

They told me they will only use metronidazole as a last resort for treatment. It seems the panacur is working from a glance. Tank’s stool is showing signs of firming up and my GS mix is getting her appetite back. Fingers crossed.

I was thinking of adding the fiber and pre/probiotics (which I’m actually a proponent of for us humans as well) so this confirmed that notion.

It’s my understanding that dryness and sun exposure can help eradicate it from the soil? To be honest, it’s been snowing and raining like crazy and there’s no way for me to make sure every spot they went on is doused with bleach.

Thanks again!!

[crazy4cats]

Yes, that is true that it does not survive in dry heat. We had a pretty good stretch of very warm weather this past summer. I hope that it killed it at our house. However, I live in the Pacific NW and giardia loves our mild wet climate.

I highly recommend adding pre and probiotics along with the fiber. I also think that the garlic was very beneficial to getting rid of it also, but I know not all are comfortable feeding it. Another thing that I did that isn’t controversial, is I gave the dogs digestive enzymes on an empty stomach. I think I actually learned about that on: http://www.littlebigcat.com/?s=giardia. I did not use their whole protocol, but did give the enzmes.

My fingers are crossed for you and remember that it can go in cycles so the stools might be fine one day and not the next. Also it is recommended to get the stool checked a couple of times after it has cleared up as it is sometimes hard to detect in every sample. I’m sure glad you caught it early. I struggled with changing foods because I thought that was the cause. I had never heard of giardia before.

Like I said before, lets hope this works and do not have to resort to some of the witch’s brew I used to rid of it. Good luck!

• This reply was modified 9 years, 10 months ago by crazy4cats.

[CircaRigel]

I’m getting a Shiloh Shepherd pup in about 10 days. The breeder recommends Eukanuba Large Breed Puppy because of its low calcium/phosphorus. I didn’t see that in the list, though. Is there a problem with Eukanuba?

• This reply was modified 9 years, 10 months ago by CircaRigel.
• This reply was modified 9 years, 10 months ago by CircaRigel.

[Daren S]

Hound Dog mom, thanks for all your info. I am quite confused after reading all this, vet info, breeder info etc. I am trying to choose a great puppy food and, once he’s full grown, a great adult food, preferably cooked frozen ……for my 5 month Bullmastiff puppy.

After all the reading and because I am not a big raw fan (will feed occasionally as a mix in) I think I prefer the cooked frozen diets as they are not as processed as dry kibble. Sounds like I should stick with the Wellness Large Breed dry puppy food (DFA 5 star) until he is full grown. Then maybe switch to a cooked Frozen food like Maverick’s Nature’s Kitchen (DFA 4.5 stars). I will always mix in healthy human foods, to have variety and excitement.

My bully is now 5 months and 80 lbs should grow to about 140 lbs.

Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated. 🙂

[David E]

I cannot open No. 4. “Feeding Large Breed Puppies” by Jennifer Larsen DVM, PhD, DACVN
http://mobile.vetlearn.com/Media/images/pdf/2010/PV/PV0510_Nutrition.pdfn

[Kym G]

Hello,
We are new owners of a 6 month old Pyredoodle. His mom is a Great Pyrenees, 100 lbs, and his dad is an 85 lb Poodle. I am trying to decide what type of food to feed him so he does not have growth issues that large breed dogs tend to get. I also want good probiotics and digestive enzymes that will not break the bank but are still high quality. I am quite overwhelmed by all the info and mis-info on the web regarding these things. Is there a current list of 5 star foods that are grain free, soy free, corn free, and non gmo, but are the right amount of calcium and protein for this big boy? Also, how do you determine how much to feed him and what dose of probiotics to give? Any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

[Peter G]

I have a GSD/Doberman mix puppy. She was started on Merrick Grain Free puppy but I then read that the calcium content was too high. I am thinking of Orijen Large Breed puppy but noticed it is not on the list (see below). Can someone tell me why it is not on the list as it is supposed to be a superior dog food?
https://docs.google.com/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFY183Q0NVRXlidWc/edit

Roxie

[DogFoodie]

At the time the list was assembled, the Calcium in the Orijen LBP formula was too high.

[crazy4cats]

Hi Guys-
There is a fairly new article on the review side of this site that has a calculator and some information on picking an appropriate large breed puppy food.
/best-dog-foods/best-large-breed-puppy-food/
Good luck!

[Anya P]

I am a proud momma of an 8 week old Great Dane pup and I’ve always had older rescue dogs so I’m a little in the dark about what are a few good brands to feed for giant breed puppies. I’d love some suggestions 🙂

[Elizabeth T]

I have a 9 month old Great Dane puppy. He eats purina pro plan for large breeds. This was one of the ones recommended. It has just a little bit more protein than some suggest, but I really like it. Enjoy your new puppy!!! Great Danes are amazing!!

[theBCnut]

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwApI_dhlbnFTXhUdi1KazFzSUk/view

This is a list of foods that have proper calcium levels, at least they did a couple years ago when Hound Dog Mom did all the research and made the list.

[Anya P]

This is awesome info!! Thank you so much! My problem is that I live in nova Scotia Canada and many of the suggested puppy brands dont seem to be available here 🙁 I have a 6 week old Dane pup and want to be sure he is getting food that is made for his needs. Any suggestions for food that is available in Canada?

[aquariangt]

I’m fairly positive you can get Fromm in Canada. Do Chewy or Petflow deliver there? Amazon is a good place to order as well.

[David G]

If you could get FROMM I would. I have my rottie pup on it and he loves this stuff. Coat looks great, tons of energy, and he jumps in circles every time he hears me dig into the bag.

• This reply was modified 9 years, 9 months ago by David G.

[Jo B]

Hi! I’ve read a ton on this website and learned a lot. I looked around for a search box to specifically search this thread, but didn’t see one, so I apologize if this has (which I’m sure) been addressed.

How long should a large breed puppy (Golden Retriever) be on an appropriately balanced puppy food? 12mo? 18mo? 24mo?

And a somewhat related question…
I did have a litter of Golden pups. One male in particular has been big from the start. I didn’t see any particular teat hogging. Since they’ve been on solids the whole litter gets the same amount but these this guy is huge. They are 8 weeks today and he weighs 16ish# He has a big head and big, thick legs, and big feet. Much bigger than the rest. He’s probably just a big boy but, I’m now suddenly panicked that I’ve fed too much (Wellness CORE puppy) and he’s grown too quickly and put undue stress on his joints.

Any advice or reassurance?? Thanks

[Jo B]

I found the Optimal Feeding of Large Breed Puppies article here:
http://www.lgd.org/library/Optimal%20feeding%20of%20large%20breed%20puppies.pdf

• This reply was modified 9 years, 9 months ago by Jo B.

[crazy4cats]

Jo B-
That is a great link. Thank you!

[Heather H]

I need some help. I have a 1 year old large Rhodesian Ridgeback. We have had food issues from the beginning with him. The breeder had him on a mix of Taste of the Wild High Prairie Puppy Formula and Diamond Naturals Large Breed Puppy. When we got him at 8 weeks we transitioned him to straight Taste of the Wild High Prairie Puppy Formula. Shortly after this transition he started having some difficulty having a bowel movement. He would go once regular, and then shortly after he would go again but it would be very skinny. Sometimes he would continue to try to go for sometime afterwards with nothing coming out. Our vet said it was probably just a nerve that wasn’t fully developed yet and that was making him feel like he needed to keep going. She said as long as he was having regular bowel movements, and he wasn’t vomiting, we shouldn’t worry and it would probably clear up on it’s own. At our five month check up, I brought it up again because it seemed to be getting worse. She did an x-ray and determined he was backed up, his stomach was still very full of food (even though it had been several hours since he ate) and he had several pockets of gas. She said there were a few places where his bowel looked inflamed and thickened. She put him on a pro-biotic and an anti-inflammatory pill for a week. It wasn’t any better on the medication. She was concerned that his stomach wasn’t emptying property and his waste wasn’t moving through the bowel as it should. She did a barium study to rule out any internal issues. Everything came back normal so she said it must be the food and recommended their in-house brand Prescription Diet D/D. After research, I decided not to try that kind, but instead find a food that was rated 4 or 5 that agreed with him. We spent the next 3 months transitioning to different foods. We tried other flavors of Taste of the Wild, Diamond Naturals Grain Free Beef and Sweet Potato, and one other, I can’t remember the name of at the moment. Some caused diarrhea, some made his bowel movement issues worse and he strained more. Finally, we tried Merrick Grain Free Buffalo and his bowel movements got drastically better. I still don’t believe they are 100% normal, but at least to the point where he wasn’t straining or trying to go for an extended time with nothing coming out. He has been on this for 4 with no changes or issues. I just bought another bag and it has caused HORRIBLE, uncontrollable diarrhea. We have taken it away, fed rice and pumpkin, twice. Each time we start mixing a little of the food back in, one feeding of less than 1/4 of a cup of food in 1 cup of rice/pumpkin mix, causes horrible diarrhea again. The second time we took it away we took him to the vet and she put him on a pro-biotic and an antibiotic. He was on those medicines and rice and pumpkin only for a week. When we reintroduced, it was the same thing. I have emailed the company. I’m not sure if we just got a bad batch or we need to switch foods. Should I just go buy another bag of Merrick and hope it isn’t the same batch and it works? Should I try the Chicken Merrick? My store only stocks a few bags at a time, and I am worried they are from the same batch. I have spent the morning researching foods. Some options I have come up with that our local stores sell are: Blue Wilderness, Wellness Core, and Earthborn. Does anyone have some insight or suggestions for me? Thanks!

[denverdog123]

Hi, we have a 13 week old male golden retriever puppy. We’ve been feeding him Orijen Large Breed Puppy and he LOVES it but he has so much gas from it. We’ve tried adding probiotics and a bit of pumpkin to see if it would help, but it hasn’t helped at all. He has solid stools, it’s really just how much gas he has. Can anyone recommend other large breed grain free puppy foods that we should switch too? I’ve read many articles on this and looked at the Word document, I just really don’t know which one to switch to. Any input is greatly appreciated, thanks!

[Alexus L]

Hello! Earthborn Holistic Coastal Catch label states the Calcium (not less than) is 1.3%, Phosphorous (not less than) is 1.0%. I spoke to a company today to find the ‘actual’ amounts. I was told they were variable and could be as high as 1.0%, meaning that the Calcium could be as high as 2.3%. This worries me.
Would appreciate your feedback.
Thanks and God Bless, Alexus

[CircaRigel]

My 10-week-old Shiloh Shepherd, Galen, is now on Holistic Select Large and Giant Breed Puppy Health Lamb and Oatmeal Recipe Dry Dog Food. He loves the food, and his stool consistency is great! His growth hasn’t been as fast as some of his siblings, but I see that as a good thing, for the vet says he’s a perfect weight for his frame and in great health. This looks to be taking excellent care of his joints. After all, when it comes to growth, it’s not a matter of how quickly one grows, and in large dogs it’s better that it be slow and steady (but he still grew 20% in 10 days- 20 to 24 lbs). The genes will dictate the final size.

It’s important that I look after Galen’s joints properly, for he’s training to be a service dog, to help with my PTSD and spine injuries. I was fortunate enough to find an organization that is quite happy to help train owner raised dogs, for after the Shiloh Shepherd I rescued 20 years ago (I didn’t even know he was a Shiloh at the time), I knew the breed has what is perfect for my needs.

[DogFoodie]

Congratulations on your new service pup, Belinda! I hope he blesses you with a renewed sense of freedom and confidence.

[Author]

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