OK - This is my first post, & I am a tired and emotional mother of a 5 month old Lab. called Meg - so be kind!!! (I have read so many posts that have turned 'narky'!)

A little history - When we got Meg at 10 weeks she was on Bakers Puppy. We had unending runny poos for 3 weeks, ending in antibiotics & chicken & rice diet. We decided to try her on JWB puppy incase food allergy was a problem, & introduced slowly... poo's were less (4/5) a day, first one was always good, but by 10am and for rest of the day got more & more runny... kept going for 4 weeks, but ended up back on Chicken & rice.  Next Tried Autarky - Same except not even a hard one in the morning! Back on the Chicken & rice..... Now have tried Chappie (tins) as everyone we have spoken to recomended it for sensitive stomachs - and have Hard Poos & a happy (slightly thin)  puppy!! My main problem is not knowing how much to give as it is an adult food.

At the moment she is having 300g mixed with 150g rice 3 x a day (we are still weaning off the chicken & rice) 

Is there anyone in a similar situation who can give some advice? As an adult it recomends approx 3 cans a day, but as she is only 5 months how much more than this will she need & when is she concidered "an adult"?  I have noticed that alot of you put your puppies on to adult food by 6 months - so am I doing ok?

Oh - & before some of you commeny..... BARF is not an option!

Thanks & look forward to hearing from you.

Hi there,

When you got her at 10 weeks  she was on Bakers puppy ,  so I am guessing she was doing well on this till she came to you.  I would have been inclined not to have changed her food right over as it could have been a few things such as slightly over feeding , changes etc , maybe eating things outside..I agree I would have been concerned after 3 weeks but vets are often too quick and changing puppies diets right away. ( BTW was it chicken and rice as it chicken meat and grain rice?)

I personally think that growing lab needs more than canned food regardless how much you give her  maybe a puppy quality food for sensitive tummies.  If you don't want to do barf etc what about Nature diet? I just think the tins are not enough.

I may be wrong but in the 10 weeks you have had her there has been a lot of chopping and changing  ofthe diet.

I do feel for your situation

Oh - I forgot to say... She couldn't handle 'dry ' food dry! I was having to soak it or it would come back up 2 hours later exactly as it went down (no matter how much water she drank). So it was not helping her teeth anyway!

was she any better after the antibiotics?

The breeder said all was fine when we got her - and all 4 puppies still at home looked very healthy. We did not wait to check her poo before bringing her home though - maybe we should have!  We put the first week of runs down to new home etc.... but it gradually got worse and by week 3 we were having about 20 lots in 24 hours! The vet gave us antibiotics & we starved for 24 hours, then put her on Chicken & rice and poos were better within 48 hours. But was it the antibiotics or the diet change?  Who knows!!
This is our second day of trying Chappie & today I have had 3 lovely medium size, firm, non stinky, brown poos & no wind either! (sorry for so much detail!) If this is working for her then I am inclined to stick with it for a while as she has had a rough ride - as has our grass! 
I just spent an hour in the pet shop comparing puppy tins with chappie & main nutritional difference that I can see is slightly less protien and less oil in the chappie.  I could up the protien by adding some chicken (I know this suits her stomach - shes had enough of it!)

If this is only her second day on Chappie why not wait and see if she puts a bit of weight on its obviously suiting her and it sounds like she just has a bit of lost ground to make up.  I have had dogs do well on Chappie.

If it was me I personally woudl continue with the chicken and rice. I am asuming it is real cooked chicken.

I know it may seem more expensive but you will find it isn't.

You can buy cheap trays of chicken wings out of tescos etc boil them up in no time. I would say that a whole tray of wings boiled up with give you the same volume of food as 2 cans of tinned meat , she would get more from the chicken and rice.

Just my thoughts. A lab is such an impotant breed I think to get the diet ring.

Good luck with her sounds like you have had your work cut out.

PS if the puppy has been very loose before you picked her up I would have been suprised if she looked healthy as they tend to look a bit dehydrated in just a few days with the runs.

BFN

Just chicken and rice would not be a complete diet, alright, in fact good, as a diet to 'rest' the digestion but not sufficient to rear a puppy on.

Isabel,

I 100% agree it isn't :-)) , but I don't think tins of food are either to be honest.  Until the dogs trouble 100% under control that would be my choice out of the two. I would add very small quantities of veggies etc

Without seeing the dog and the situation it is hard to really give real help but I think a balanced home cooked dinner may be the best option.

As I say I have had dogs do well on Chappie :) one of them was badly affected by colitis as a pup but thrived on it.  I don't think it is like a lot of tinned foods and is often recommended for dodgy digestions. Plus Megsmummy does say she is already improving on it.

Have you tried Natural Yoghurt and Tree bark powder on the chicken and rice this has always worked for runny tummies with any pups I have had. The tree bark powder is from Dorwest Herbs.

Here is a very kind and simple reply.

You seem determined to stick with the Chappie and as it seems to suit her, fine.   Your original question was 'How Much' to give.     Give her as much as she will eat to keep her not too thin and not too fat.  The guides on the tins are guides only and often are far too much.   If a puppy is on adult food it will need more of it than the same weight adult, and as you have a labrador the puppy will probably lie to you about how much he needs!  So you will just have to guess but if she/he starts to get fat [loses her waist] then cut the food down.  Also remember, puppies have growth spurts so she may well need more one week than another.   If she seems really starving give more, bearing in mind the breed of course.

Feeding is not an exact science [whatever the manufacturers say].    You really have to use your own judgement a bit.    Children's diets are not dictated by a set amount of food per day and there are no packets or tins to tell mothers how much to feed their children!

Wendy

Wendy

Thanks Wendy,
Your reply was great - Just what I was hoping for (& simple suits me just fine!)
I am not determined to keep her on Chappie forever - but as its the first thing thats worked for her I want to stick with it for a while to give her a chance to settle. 
Once I know she is ok & put back on the little bit of weight she is missing I will happilly try other things (slowly and one at a time!)& would be happier to have her on dry complete eventually
Anne
<><

"Here is a very kind and simple reply."

What was everyone else's not ?? :-((

"Your original question was 'How Much' to give" .Not all questions can be giving by a straight simple answer.  If that was the case half the answers to posts would be YES or NO.. :-)

The chicken & rice settles her tummy fine - just don't feel I can keep her on it long term.

I consider chappie and butchers to be the better tinned foods on the market and Chappie has been recommended for sensitive tummies for a long time.When I was a child our family dog was raised on chappie and mixer and he lived to be 20..so it can't be all bad.
It might be worth trying nature diet when things have settled if you want to change...
Archer

I agree with archer i would give naturediet(wet food) a try when your'e ready,you can maybe try adding a little ND with the chappy and see how he tolerates it.

Will try adding some ND in a week or so as long as she is still doing ok, even if I can get her on half Chappie / half ND I will feel a bit better!
Shes now on full chappie, 1 can x 3 a day, poo's are still good & shes looking better already.
Apart from the poo's shes 100% great in every way - well apart from chewing shoes, rolling on fox poo and digging holes in the lawn - But hey, shes a Lab!! Oh - and she's proving much easier to train than the husband or the kids!!
Thanks for all your replies.
Anne
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>"Here is a very kind and simple reply."

What was everyone else's not ?? (<

It was not meant to mean everone elses was not, just that Anne had particularly asked for a kind and simple reply, that is all.

Wendy

Our vet told me that chappie is a very good food to feed a dog, but they dont do a puppy food. Annie my  8 month old lab is fed on tins and mixer specialy for puppies up to 12 months, also brown bread,1 egg a week,any meat         greens left over from our meals. 1 tin am- 1 tin pm. Sheila.