Food

okay 2 questions. since Gideon is large breed puppy does he need large breed adult food, or can he have regular food, and he is 8 month day after tomorrow, and i was wondering is adult food okay to give him?

Thanks,
Amanda!

This is a good read for you GG, awosme Link to as the author is focused on the GSD when talking of large breed requirments in food.

Quote :

There is considerable controversy regarding the role of nutrition during the developmental and growth periods of puppyhood, and its possible effects on the musculoskeletal system in later life, especially in our larger (greater than 60 lb) breeds. Certain problems are believed to be at least modulated by over supplementation of various nutrients, in the mistaken belief that rapid growth is desirable. Included in the list of medical problems that are believed, in part, attributable to over supplementation are: Hypertrophic Osteodystrophy, Osteochondrosis, Hip Dysplasia2.

http://www.newmanveterinary.com/large.html

So yes Gedeon should have Large breed adult food as he is a large breed and needs food that will meet his requirements so he can prosper in life

okay good!!! Thanks for all the help

I prefer to stop puppy food early and use a good quality adult food, I don't get foods that are specific to breed size, I don't feel its needed If you are feeding a good food- tend to like smaller size dry foods that don't do the mega puffy thing in the water dish. I have tried many food and here are my favorites. Timberwolf organics salmon and elk and natural balance duck and potatoe. TWO is in some stores or online www.timberwolforganics.com - I also order the salmon oil from the online store. Petra like many shepherds has a sensitive stomach. Petra has been on eukenuba, natures recipe, and solid gold before. The first was by the breeder(she claimed petra didn't like it.. no wonder I wouldnt eat it either!) the second was by my friend and the third was by me. Solid gold is a good food but petra has a sensitive stomach and it didnt agree with her. So I now use TWO dry salmon and elk, nat. bal. duck and potatoe canned (just one scoop per bowl) I add water to mix (and help with digestion and prevent bloat) These are both good for dogs with allergies, which I think she may have- other foods didn't give a good coat. I also give nuvet plus and nuvet joint supplements daily.She also is supplemented with salmon oil and vit e daily in her food (need to use them together or vit e is depleated from the body). I also feed her three meals a day- one cup dry, one spoon full of canned for each. This combo has really brought out a GREAT coat and soild muscle. She has had no signs of pano and the vet said her hips look great. Some people don't think a dog needs supplements but I have had great luck with them after coming highly recomended by a shepherd kennel. The website is www.nuvet.com if you care to check them out. ask me for a code to get a discount, you can use the one I use.
If your dog happens to have a problem with loose stools (since you want to change his diet)add a little canned pumpkin it's a great natural way to firm them up. Petra had loose stools when I got her and this worked better than anything else. If they act hungry, sometimes I add sodium free chopped canned green beans- fills them up. Basically you want to keep an eye of protin and calcium levels too much can cause damaging growth spurts. I also give meat scraps as a treat but am begining to think beef makes her a little itchy.THis is what worked for me - hope it helps you out- sorry so long
Ohh also, Petra is about the same age as yours - her birthday is March 12th

thanks for the helpful info!! those sound like really good foods!!

I know it is a bit pricey but I highly recommend Royal Canin German Shepherd. It really keeps Odie's coat beautiful and is balanced for gsd's. I get compliments on his condition frequently and considering his sensitive stomach he does really well on it.

Everyone has there own preferences though!

Yah thats what im going to be getting him. Its expensive but Gids is totally worth it!
Thanks agian!

You should most certainly have Gideon on adult formula at six months old or younger to stop fast growth that causes alot of joint problems then we blame the parents. We are often to blame for reasons our dogs go bad. Jumping off tailgates, running on hard pavements, feeding tooo much and too strong of dog protein feed. Slow down growth the dog will get the normal size he is bred to be, so just go at it slowly however.....

I'm a raw feeder so I don't know that much about kibble food. But I have heard that high protein foods are not good for bones of growing pups.

I definitely recommend the large breed adult formula's. However I am also a strong believer that shepherds should be moved to adult food rather early. (Switched Rain to an adult formula exclusively around a month a go. He is six months now) It really depends on the breed. The larger dogs I have always switched earlier, especially since GSD's are so prone to Pana since they grow so fast, they don't need help growing faster. IMO Smaller to medium breeds though I would leave on puppy food anywhere from 6-12 months. I also feed some raw.

I never feed my pups puppy food. It is all a big hype with the dog food companies to make you think you would feed the puppy food. If you look at all the higher end dog foods out there very few carry puppy food. If you feed them adult food right from puppy they are not going to change the characteristics of the dog if you were to feed them puppy and then switch to adult.

That is my 2 cents no need to feed puppy just do the switch to adult right away