Our golden retriever puppy is fourteen weeks old and we have him settled on a diet of chappie plus JW. My concern is that the Chappie is not a 'puppy food' - is this okay? He seems fine on this and loves the Chappie.

Ruth

Thought I'd seen this topic before, is it JW puppy you are feeding? Ja:)kie

Dear jackie,

Thanks for the reply. It's puppy/performance but he doesn't eat anywhere near the recommended amounts.
It's a great place - but very confusing with all the conflicting information!

Ruth

Confusing yes well thats what happens with lots of opinions at least you should find one that suits. Suggestions are just that, so it is a case of taking things on board and then deciding for yourself what will work for you. No one is always right and no one always wrong. Now back to food, the most important thing is not to over do the protien and as far as pos to keep it in balance. So try mixing a small amount of Chappy with some warm water and pour it over the JW and see if that works. Can't remember if I ever knew, what breed and what age, can you let us know. Ja:)kie

Hi Jackie,

Sunny's a fourteen week old golden retriever. I understood that they would eat anything. In fact, he's got a preference for used tea bags?!! when he can 'retrieve' them out of the bin!

Ruth

Don't worry too much, puppies go through stages of not eat and then eating and we run around worring and changing their food. If the amount of Chappie you are feeding is small then carry on with what you are doing, take no notice of what the manufactures of the dry food reckon the pup should eat, they are sometime as much as twice what the pup will eat. Are you still feeding 4 times a day, and have you tried cooking some mince beef in a fair amount of water and giving the gravy poured over the JW warm. Warm food is alway more interesting than cold. Ja:)kie

Dear Jackie,

He's being fed three times a day now with treats mainly for training. He did go through a very bad phase with his tummy for about three weeks when we first got him home. After lots of chicken, rice, fish he seems really settles. I'm happy with what he's eating now although he can go through a 'eat it one day, leave it the next' phase.

Many thanks for your input. I really appreiciate it.

ruth

Sounds normal to me. Pups often get a bad tummy when they go to a new home it is because, if you'll excuse me, your bugs are different to those of the breeder. Don't think too hard about. Ja:)kie

Dear sunny, the main difference between puppy food and adult dog food is how much protein the product has. Puppies need more protein than adult dogs (in proportion to their weight) because they are still growing. You can feed your puppy adult dog food but he will need to eat alot more of it to meet his daily nutritional requirements.

However, some breeds don't require as much protein as others because they are less active. Also, the type of protein that you feed your dog is very important as well. Meat protein that consists of organ meat or muscle meat is the best in my opinion. Animal protein consists of any part of the animal that contains protein. For example, hair, hooves, ips, and eyelashes fall under this category. Vegetable and grain proteins should not be fed because you have to feed them alot more of this for them to meet their daily nutritional requirements. Additionally, this type of protein contains a large amount of unusable protein and it can cause stress to their kidneys. Anything that spells out "gluten" in the ingredients is hard to digest, low quality protein.

Stick with meat protein as it is the highest quality and easiest to digest. Thus why alot of dog owners feed their dogs homeade foods instead of kibble.

Ask your vet what kind of food your dog should be fed to your pup as he has is probably more experienced when it comes to proper puppy nutrition for many different breeds.

Sorry Rob have to disagree again, if you ask your vet about what to feed your puppy he will sell you what he has in stock and no dougbt it will be expensive. If people don't belive me or disagree with anything I have said then I would suggest the they ask the pups breeder. Any complete puppy food will be fine for the pup, but only if it eats it. Ja:)kie

Dear Jackie,

It's true about vets. My vet recommended Hill's but Sunny wouldn't touch it - not in the amounts that he needs anyway.
You'll probablly have read the not to Rob. I tried Sunny with some raw minced chicken after reading about the BARF diet. Whilst I'm not a total convert, Sunny's response to it was phenomenal! The bowl was licked clean - totally. He's never done that with any of his food yet. I'm just worried that giving him raw meat will take him back to his 'wolf ancestor' days and he won't be a calm, placcid retriever!

Ruth

Hi Ruth,
I eat an awful lot of chinese food and my eyes haven't changed a bit!! :D if you get my drift!!! Seriously though - raw meat won't change his temperament!!! (my golden was called Sunny too!!)
Julie:)

Dear Julie,

Thanks - point taken!!
I was impressed by the way he ate though - calls for a bit more research.

Ruth

Hi Ruth,
I'm a recent convert and my dogs love it, would you like some links to sites? Where are you, don't want to go to your profile to check in case I upset the computer :-)
Anne

Dear Julie,

So far it seems to be the way to go - I never thought I'd get this silly over a dog. Apart from which, he's my husband's dog!! Still, we do want the best for him.
I'm at Martynandruth@aol.com. Sites would be great.

Thanks

Ruth

The first time I gave one of my dogs a chicken wing he growled at one of the others when she went near him and I worried that perhaps raw food was not going to be good for their temperaments. It has never happened again though and mine are fed on raw food all the time. They are still the same dogs as before.

Joan
Take the rough with the smooth

Dear Joan,

That rings a bell. When I gave Sunny his first taste of raw food she growled at me even though I was standing a yard away from him! I really do think that he has been underfeeding all the while we've had him (four weeks) because he wasn't enjoying his food.

Thanks

Ruth

Dear Joan,

Are there any specific requirements for a puppy on the BArf diet? The more I read, the more convinced I am that it is the way to go. I just want to get it right.

Ruth

Not really. They can be fed the same as adults, but more often. You might want to grind up the raw meaty bones at first until they can handle them whole.

I would suggest you get a book about it - Ian Billingshurt has one called 'Grow your pups with bones' which would be ideal to start with, and you might like to join an email list for people who are interested in BARF. BRITBARF in particular is extremely helpful. I can give you further info if you mail me privately.

Joan
Take the rough with the smooth

Dear Rob,

Thanks for the info. Actually, having read a lot on the board about the BARF diet, I tried Sunny with minced raw chicken this morning and I've never seen a clean bowl before today! I mixed it in with his usual food and he devoured the lot! Perhaps there is something in it?!

Sunny

My golden was picky at times, I used to add a tiny amount of tripe to her complete food and mix it in to make her eat it! I don't think a small amount will do any harm, it more if you mix a complete food with a lot of something else you upset the balance. I am having trouble deciding on a brand myself at the moment. What suited one of my dogs doesn't suit another! julie:)

I'm sure the BARF diet if fine provided you understand about the aditives you will need to supply and the fact that the normal BARF diet is not suitable for pups, speak to your breeder. Ja:)kie

Just wanted to say there are breeders out there who raise thier pups on the barf diet, but i think thier are others on this site who could give you more info about this than i can.

which brand do u use boxer?