Hello All,
Can anyone give advice on what is the best food to give Malamutes ? Many Thanks .

have you got a mal at the moment?????  can your breeder not offer any advice on what food the puppies or their dogs are on??

any good food should be ok. purina pro plan or royal canin are often the two brands people with sled dogs use. i would reccomend both of these.

Hi Steven!

I would also agree your first logical port of call would be your dog's Breeder for good advice specific to your breed, is this possible? ( your dog may be a rescue? or gone through several owners before you and not come from a breeder?)
    If you cant check back with your dogs breeder, for whatever reason then rest assured there's quite a few Mal owners here and Im sure Mel or the others will be along soon.
    Just so you get near the mark info it'd be useful to tell us:
-How old is your dog?
-and is the dog a pet or do you intend to start 'conditioning' for Rig racing/work etc?
I myself have a Siberian, in my younger, fitter! days I worked out in Canada and Val Thorens France with teams of Sibes, Im not entirely sure about Purina foods....but thats a personal opinion of course.
  Do your reaserch as its up to you but foods with the highest % meat are best, Mine has Nature diet and a dry food called Wafcol salmon and potatoe, and raw foods as treats veg,sardines,chicken wings,liver being his favourites!
Best wishes
:D

Hi Steven

I don't have a Malamute, but I agree with huskygal's suggestions of Nature Diet (wet food) and Wafcol Salmon and Potato (dry) - both are good foods.

I also think Burns and James Wellbeloved (both dry) are good foods.

Have a look: www.naturediet.net

www.burns-pet-nutrition.co.uk

www.wellbeloved.co.uk

www.wafcol.co.uk

Your breeder would be the best person to give advice initially :) I have just reread your earlier posts and it appears that your sister was after a Malamute. The advice given was to get in touch with a reputable breeder and the AMCUK, if the advice was followed then the breeder should be the first person you talk to :)

Malamutes are easy going on food generally ..some owners feed good quality complete, others feed BARF, others feed meat and biscuits .....

'As if by magic!!'

Lol I must get used to typing quicker Mel ;)

Hi there , that's right it is my sister is getting two Mals in June/July this year. She did go and meet a breeder and hopes to have two Mals. I have told her how good this site is and there is always someone more than happy to help . Thankyou to everyone who has taken the time to reply.

Two Mals?? Is she getting puppies of the same age? I'd be wary of any breeder who allowed two pups to go to the same household, let alone with breed like the Malamute which, I understand, are not the easiest to own.

Yes two Mals ! and from the same breeder . She has always wanted to own a Mal . That's why i am grateful for any advice to pass on to her .

The best advice she could be given is not to get two puppies at the same time, and to steer well clear of a breeder who's willing to sell two of such a challenging breed to anyone, let alone a novice.

By all means buy one puppy, then train it to a standard she's happy with before contemplating getting another one.

  :rolleyes: It is VERY difficult to manage 2 pups of any breed, Malamutes are especially difficult. I would question why a breeder would allow an inexperienced person buy 2 Malamute puppies at the same time

I am assuming you followed previous advice given about finding a reputable Mal breeder?

No reputable Malamute breeder would sell two pups to a novice owner :( I would suggest that your sister gets only the one from a reputable breeder and then, when that dog is trained to a sufficient standard, she can look at getting another in possibly 18 months or so.

As for feeding, you should really be advised by your breeder.

Hi Steven
Please heed the advice given by the three previous posters.  Two puppies at the same time should not be undertaken lightly, and certainly not by a first time owner of a breed such as Malamutes.

Hi Steven

I totally agree with everything said here - please please do not let your sister get 2 puppies of the same age. 

Having a new puppy is a lot like having a baby, if I can say that without seeming to be exaggerating.

The puppy will need to be taken out to toilet every hour or two, fed 4 times a day, it will require a lot of training and intensive socialising until 18 wks old at least.  Doing this with one puppy is hard enough - to do it properly with 2 puppies is something which not even experienced breeders would take on usually.  And to do it with a breed which is as challenging as a Malamute is even harder.  AND to be an inexperienced owner and taking this on makes it even more complicated.

If she gets two puppies of a similar age, they will play together and bond together closer than they will with your sister.  That will make it so much more difficult to train them.  Puppies really need to bond with their owner and handler, through intensive training and to learn that fun comes from the handler.  Not from other puppies - if they learn that other puppies are more fun than the handler, they will see no reason to obey the handler.  It will be very difficult to train them.  Please advise her to re-think.

Are the parents KC registered? Ask to see the certificates
Are the puppies to be KC registered?
Is the dam over two years of age and the sire over 18 months?
Has the dam had fewer than four litters and were those litters at least one year apart?
Have the sire and dam both been hip scored below 13 and eye tested clear? Ask to see the certificates.
Have the breeders asked you to visit before allowing you onto their puppy list?
Did you see the dam at home? Was she happy and healthy? Have you been given the chance to meet the sire? Is his temperament sound?
Are the puppies pedigrees to be endorsed to stop indiscriminate breeding?
Does the breeder ask you to sign a contract and offer lifetime support including taking the pup back at any time should you be unable to keep it?

If any of the above answers are no..... walk away ;)

The offer of help still stands from any of us :)

Hi again,
I will make sure all this sound advice is passed on . She has always owned a couple of cross breeds at any one time but a Malamute will be quite a challenge . I'm not sure if she has asked all of those questions but i will write them down for her .
Many thanks, will keep you all posted.

Steven,may god be with your sister if she takes on 2 of these dogs.I reckon i would be in the loony bin after 6mths.,one pup is hard enough,the thought of 2 high energy breeds which means double the training,double the walks,double the poops and wee's inside,double the houstraining time,OY! I couldnt do it with any breed lettalone a Mal.

Anyways getting back to food,check out a brand called eaglepack-Holistic,not the normal one,the holistic range.I know this food was fed by an iditirod team and is supported by Mal breeders and racers,if i remember correctly :o

http://www.postalpetproducts.co.uk

My sister is going to come on this site sometime today and read everyone's advice . She will certainly take all the advice on board .. Again a big thankyou ..I will be on here later today to give you all an update.

That's great :) I hope she does take all the advice on board. For a novice owner - one Mal will probably be a challenge, if she were to get two then it is likely they will find themselves in Rescue at 12 months of age :(

If your sister has any questions then she is more than welcome to ask any of the Malamute owners for any advice then can give. Everyone will be willing to help and advise her :)

I totally agree with everything said. I have a Mal pup (5 months) and have to say 2 puppies at the same time would be extremely difficult. They are a fantastic breed but do have huge energy levels, not to mention the training involved. I would wait until the dog is at least 18 months until having another.

OoOOooh ...another Malamute owner :D :D

Hi all,
My sister has read all your advice and is now going to get in touch with her breeder to ask more questions .
I am glad about that as i'm sure eveyone who has replied is too !! Will keep you all informed. Many thanks.

Hi all , as promised i have come back on to give an update on my sisters mals.
After reading all of your replies she has decided to get just one pup for now . As you have all said she is better getting the first pup well trained before getting another one about 18 months later. I can't thank you all enough for your help .Thankyou .

Brilliant news :)

Yes it is !! As she said to me she would be silly to ignore all the advice on this site .
I am frequently reading topics on here myself and think it is BRILLIANT !

Hello everyone have joined champdogs to reply to this thread.

I am the breeder of Stevens sisters future mal puppy and would like to set the record straight. I know Mel and Malakai and a few others BUT what they might not have known is that it is me  to whom everyone is refering to as i have not advertised the fact that i will be breeding. I am a member of the AMCUK and abide by their code of ethics. The future owners know that there will be endorsements , contract and that i will have the puppy back at any time during its life and will be on hand every step of the way with them. The feeding i will discuss with them when they collect the puppy and they will go home with a puppy pack.

Both my dogs are shown and do exceedingly well in the ring and their tempermanents are superb. This breeding has not been entered into lightly and research on both lines has been extensive.  It is not for money either but because i would like a male puppy and also i hope to improve on the breed.

The facts are that they originally  contacted me after seeing my dogs at a show. They came to see me and the dogs and wanted 1 bitch puppy and then rang a few days later to say that they would like 2. I told them that the puppies would bond together and would not be easy to train etc but also told them that i knew several people who did have litter brothers and sisters and that it had worked fine for them and they were novice mal owners as well. After putting the phone down i felt uneasy and decided that i would tell them that i thought they'd be better having 1 first. This has now been done and all is well.
I understand that you were basing your replies on the information given but please do not jump to conclusions and classify me as an "unreputable" breeder as not all facts were given by the poster.

Thank you

Hi Jane  :) *waves*  (Jane has Delly's sister)

It is usual to try and dissuade novice owners from buying two Malamute puppies as they can be very difficult as you know :)

Hi Jane , I would also like to respond to your reply .. I know all is well . At no stage did i come on this site intending to classify you as an " unreputable " breeder. I'm sorry if you felt otherwise.

Group hugs all round :D :D :D {{{}}}}}}

Margot

Thanks !!! I still think this is a GREAT site . Just not the sort of poster to upset anyone . Nevermind ...Worse things happen at sea .

Hi Mel " waves back"

Steven i agree this is a great site. Just wanted to put it from my perspective before people who i know and trust in the breed got the wrong impression thats all :-)

I consider the matter all cleared up now.

Hi Jane,
Likewise , case closed !!! Have a lovely weekend .

Hi Jane :)

LOL at the thought of you being a future disreputable breeder!!!!