Hiya,

I have got a beautiful black lab puppy, and at the moment she is on beta, which she is very reluctant to eat.

She is nearly 8 weeks old and unfortunately had to visit the vets yesterday for ? cystitis and is on antibiotics so obviously I won`t change her food until she is completely well.
Her vet suggested scrambled eggs and toast for one meal so at least she is having one good meal a day.

Her reluctance to eat could be because she hasn`t been feeling very well though.

Thanks to everyones comments on here about the different types of food, I am thinking of trying her on burns or JWB, I was wondering (only roughly) how long would a 15 kg bag last?

Or how long does a 15 kg bag last a fully grown adult dog. Obviously I would like to feed her the best food that would (a) suit her, and (b) that I can afford.

Thanks Hilary

Congratulations on your puppy, I bet she's lovely!
I imagine a 15k bag would last an adult dog 3 weeks to a month, so it would last a pup a fair bit longer!
:)

Our lab is 5 months now and a 15kg sack lasts him a month. His food is going down a bit now - it's going to depend on what make of food. Our's is on Iams and is excellent on it. I would go on a sack lasting a month and then you know you've got plenty.

Thank you,

This gives me an idea when i`m working out the cost, weekly or monthly etc, and yes, she`s lovely and feeling much better today.

No soil left in the tubs, grass being dug up and has gone to sleep with a leaf sticking out of her mouth !!! Get the picture??

Hilary

Got it framed, Hilary! We used to have a black lab bitch!
:)

hee hee, thought I had it easy the first few days, she seemed a bit TOO quiet and GOOD, couldn`t really believe that a puppy really slept THAT much, but everyone assured me that puppies did sleep a lot but yesterday I she was crying when she was weeing and she had a slight bloody discharge so I took her straight to the vets hoping I wasn`t being a `fussy new puppy mother` and already after 1 day she`s a different puppy.

Goodness me, what a monkey, her names Skye by the way but after today, she`s been coming to monkey girl, after spending nearly £30.00 on `puppy toys` ready for the new arrival i should have bought a tub of soil, a fuschia bush and a privet hedge!!

Gone awfully quiet, whats she up to? At last crawled into her crate for a sleep. peace for a bit.

Hilary

Hi You could be describing Star my (almost) 9 week old yellow lab puppy. She too slept the first few days,had diarrhoea,and was on antibiotics. Now she is running away with shoes, has emptied my pot of pansies and dug all the soil out for me.My 2 young grandsons came to see her,and she had great fun playing catch the ankle and racing round the garden nudging a football which was double the size of her,much to their amusement.She cried when they left ,even though all they did was shout "NO" .Ah the joys. She has crashed out now Its great to see her being naughty after a rather bad start. I am thinking of putting her on to Burns food once gets over her touch of colitis.Is that the best one do you think?

Hi, we`ve gone a full week being dry in the morning in her crate, regarding the food, I honestly haven`t got a clue which food is the `best`.

I think it all depends which food suits your individual puppy / dog, I`ve been reading all the messages and have been on the different web sites.

I have also found out all the prices (roughly) of the different types of dog foods, for example, Hills seems extremely expensive.

The thing about Burns I liked is that they deliver and its free if you spend over (I think its £25) and have a wide variety.

But she`s eaten all her last 3 beta meals so there isn`t such a mad rush to change her, I shall still think maybe of swapping her food later but her poos are solid although she is a bit slim, but the vet didn`t throw his hands up in horror, her coat is sleek and shiny and she has BAGS of energy. AND as they say.........IF IT AIN`T BROKEN DON`T FIX IT!!!

Congratulations on having a perfectly normal labrador.

You may also find that carpets, stairs, bannisters etc also come under attack soon.

Burns is a nice food with no additives and whilst a bit more than some of the others s better quality IMO.

Enjoy her, they are wonderful.

Julia & hooligans

Thanks, I am enjoying her so much, am worrying slightly about the amount of stones and earth I am taking out of her mouth, I`m sure she will be rattling soon.

No seriously she does always seem to have something in her mouth, I suppose this is normal ?

She has plain beta for breakfast (6am) with warm water on, (she prefers it that way rather than dry) at about 11 am she has beta with a sardine in tomato sauce mashed in. Lidls the cheapest!!

At about 4 pm she has moistened plain beta again and at 8pm she has 1x scrambled egg with beta again.

The vet suggested scrambled egg when she was ill.

Shall we drop the evening scrambled egg ? does it sound like we are `spoiling` her a bit and making her into a `fussy` eater?

Any suggestions please. thanks. Hilary

All puppies like to have things in their mouths, but for the retriever breeds it's almost a compulsion. Because they have been bred for generation upon generation to pick up game and return it to their handler, carrying is now as ingrained in most of them as herding is in the collie breeds. It is, after all, the sole reason their ancestors were bred!

I have raised puppies on Beta and they have been fine on it. It doesn't suit all, though, but if it suits, pup'll be okay. All dried foods are best served soaked/moistened, especially for puppies, because they are very dehydrating otherwise, so you're doing theright thing there.

Basically, if your pup is growing properly and not getting too fat, and her bowels are fine, and you're happy with what you're feeding her, it sounds like you're winning!
:)

Hi Hilary !!

I would be very surprised if you made her a fuss eater ! Any Lab I have had or known will eat anything given the chance !! Tyr and make sure you get her out of the habit re eating stones as they are liable to swallow and this could cause major stomach problems if she is allowed !

I would try and stick, as she is not poorly now, to just the puppy food as this is a complete food and will have all that is needed for her normal development !:)

Good luck and enjoy her and be prepared for lots more chewing ! :) :) oh yes and digging :D :D and most of all the love you will get from her !! ;)

Lucy

Hiya,

Thanks for all the advice, have stopped the evening scrambled egg, is now on 3 x plain moistened beta and 1 with something in it.

Her favourite meal of all is GUESS what??? SLUGS ..... (The long ones with orange bellys that go fat when touched)

I`M gipping when i think if it, she grabbed one the night before last and before I could even think to say no she had munched it and nearly swallowed it but got some stuck between her little teeth at the front, she couldn`t get rid of the slime from her nose or rid of the bits stuck between her teeth, (this is where hubbies come in really handy) he had to pull the rest of the slug from between her teeth.

Yesterday (Saturday) despite me flicking quite a few over next door!! (at 5.30am hope nobody was looking ) she still managed to eat another one.

Anyway she went for her first injection at the vets (but he wouldn`t give it her because she still has a slight discharge from her cystitus/vaginitus) he assured me that slugs wouldn`t harm her as long as they hadn`t been poisoned which they haven`t, which is the reason we have got so many!!!!

Ah well might not bother feeding her at all today, obviously getting enough protein and nourishment from the slugs, soil, flowers, guinea pig poo, grass and worms.

Bye Hilary xxxx

PS I AM ONLY JOKING. I MAY GIVE HER 1 MEAL!!! HEE HEE the little monkey

please do not allow your dog to eat slugs and snails; they are a vector of lungworm and can make your dog ill.

Thanks Tohme

She hasn`t eaten any more at all, she has sniffed at them but when I have said NO quite sharply she has walked away.

Thanks for your advice

Hilary