[Wworm]

How long have you kept (or are planning to keep) your dog on puppy food?
I've heard some places say that dogs are still puppies until they are 2 yrs old...
Are there people who have fed puppy food for that long...?

 

[Mikey T]

I've heard some places say that dogs are still puppies until they are 2 yrs old...

it depends entirely on the breed on average all the growth plates on a basset aclosed at 12-16 months of age. at that point puppy food does not have any advantage plus the disadvatage of higher caloric density The typical age to ween off of large breed puppy food is 12 months, back in the day becore large breed puppy food it was 6 months or earlier. That said al long as you maintain the dog at a healthy weight it really is not going to matter much. when you switch.

 

[Bella the hound dog]

is large breed dog food the right food for a Basset? It is what I have been feeding Bella. She is 50 pounds (and so is my other dog), so they eat the same food. They eat the Iams large breed food. I'm just curious if I'm doing it right.

 

[Gracie's Mama]

I'm feeding Gracie large breed puppy food. I asked our vet and he said it was fine.

 

[Boomer's Mom]

When Boomer started getting low on puppy food before he turned 1, I started the gradual switch over to adult dog food.

I also fed him large breed puppy food, but now I feed him regular dog food.

The transition went smoothly, and I doubt that he noticed the difference.

 

[mhvonalmen8908]

When Doppler was about 9 months old we switched him from puppy to adult food because he put on a lot of weight in a short amount of time. We figured it was time to switch and his bag of food was getting low anyway. We did that gradual switch over too and he slimmed back down pretty quick as well. And Virga, at 9 months now, has been switched over from puppy to adult food because she was doing the same thing. So our dogs got switched a little earlier. But Doppler did get large breed puppy food because he's about 70 pounds now and was pretty hefty at 4 months when we got him. But Virga, being so small, just got regular puppy food. We don't see her getting anywhere near 50 pounds which was the "cut off" for the large breed puppy food.

 

[Mikey T]

I recommend large breed puppy to all that ask. It has lowere calcium levels than even adult food which likely reduces risk for certain orthopeadic problems and is a good blaance between regualar puppy food and adult food in provide a colorically dense food necessary because of the high energy useage for growth by puppies but small digestive tract capacity and too hijgh of a coloric content leading to obesity and rapid growth and weight cain that again abnormally stress the bones leading to a host of orthopeadic conditions.

 

[Wworm]

Thanks for the info, Mikey.

hmmm, it occurs to me to ask if it's a bad idea that i've been giving Worm yogurt daily? he gets it right before bed to prevent upset tummy in mornings. i'm looking at the calcium and it says a serving is 40% of human RDA, which a quick look at the internet shows maybe that's 1000mg.

Worm gets 1/2 serving, so that's ~200mg of calcium i'm guessing, from yogurt. wonder if that's too much, in addition to his puppy food...?

 

[Mikey T]

Large Breed Puppy Food

While not all studies agree, the majority show a strong link between high calcium levels in the diet and bone problems, even when the levels of calories and other nutrients are the same. Though the level of calcium which increases the risk of skeletal problems varies with age, a calcium level of 210-540mg calcium per kilogram of body weight per day appears safe for large breed puppies of all ages. [2,5,10-12] While not all studies agree, the majority show a strong link between high calcium levels in the diet and bone problems, even when the levels of calories and other nutrients are the same. Though the level of calcium which increases the risk of skeletal problems varies with age, a calcium level of 210-540mg calcium per kilogram of body weight per day appears safe for large breed puppies of all ages. [2,5,10-12] [/quote]

Disorders of mineral metabolism in puppies and juvenile dogs

Surplus calcium in the presence of natural amount of vitamin D causes the metabolism disorders in the organism and hampers its' normal growth.
This effect was clearly demonstrated in the experiments of Dr. Hazenwinkel. He compared the development of Great Dane puppies at different amounts of calcium in their diet:
5 puppies received 1.1% calcium.
6 puppies received 3.3% calcium. Puppies that had surplus calcium (3.3%) grew slower, had bad appetite and incorrect position of legs resulting from bones deformation.

...
Preventive: do not exceed daily dosage of calcium (500 mg per 1 kg of puppy's bodyweight and 259 mg per 1 kg of adult dog bodyweight).

Depending on the mg the dog is getting from the dog food it is unlikely that 200 mg is going to be a problem. but keep in mind you need to investigate vitimin D levels as well might be exceeded as well.

 

[Wworm]

You da man, Mikey!
Thanks, and i get to keep my yoguht,
--Worm