Food question - Page 1

Since i was advised to start feeding my puppy adult food, i went to buy the food and the store does not have the royal canin german shepherd 24 but they have the regular adult food. They said that they will only get the german shepherd 24 in dec. Should i feed my puppy the regular rc adult food.26% protein, 1% calcium and 0.7% phosphorus. By the way in my country this is the only place i can get royal canin. The other available foods are pedigree and arden grange. What should i do? The rc maxi junior has a very high protein content, so i been advised to stop giving that

I would keep any dry food 21% protein or lower thats just my advice. To this you can supplement with meat and vegetables.

Vom B, with all due respect to you I hope that was a Typo on your part. 21% and LOWER, are you serious ? or was that a typo ? Dogs do need Protein people, I feed 29% and Higher only !!!! I don't beleive in stripping essential protein from the dogs diet and neighther does my VET and I have never had any digestive issues, bloat, runny stools, hurking up, or anything like that. I even supplement my protein levels with egg, and burger. Come on why are we trying to starve these dogs of what they NEED TO BUILD LEAN MUSCLE ? You start feeding lower than 21% and your gonna have all kinds of Muscle Damage, if they don't get what they need, things like muscle suffer cause the Organs make sure they get what they need to keep functioning, Keep that in mind please. and Vom B I like you, I respect you, so am saying this with respect to you and in friendship. And only sharing with you what Many VETS here agree on.

Echo, My dogs are supplemented with much more to their dry dog food. But fundamentally I have always stayed at 21% for dry food. I add rice, meat,tomatoes,vegetables onions garlic. My feeding only going to adult dogs not to puppies. Echo I surely appreciate your post and respect your info but I have not had any problems feeding this way. Thanks

I use garlic, rice, bonemeal, flax seed, eggs, Red Cell, Stablized Rice bran, and lean burger, But ONIONS ??? they are somewhat Toxin for dogs, I know I remember reading somwhere about the toxicity to dogs from onions, might have to look that up for you and send over. again not trying to pick at you, If your feeding program works hey great I should explain that I free Feed my dry kibble and add ingredients to small kibble in am and in pm. Dogs stay lean and look great, nice coats, nice form on stools, excellent energy levels. For dogs in training I supp. with Super K-9 as well. Look up the onion thing, seriously I don't want to be bossy, but seriously look up the onion thing I remember that onions do something to dogs blood causing serious dammage.

Will do, when I cook gound meat I add onion celery and garlic. Thanks again Echo

Wasn't there something about protein in too high amounts causing some form of cataract in dogs? I was told that years ago by a vet who said I should be very careful about letting the dogs have the cat's food (34%). Oddly enough I would have thought that the higher protein the better, they are carnivores... perhaps it is because it is a different form than fresh killed prey? Lorri

Lorri, well oddly enough the difference between 34% and 29% should seem mineute, However it is a great difference when it comes to protein. I have seen dogs react with things like... Hot spots, dry skin, softened stool, hurking up, and all kinds of things from getting into the cat food, including serious allergic type reactions. However at the shelter because alot of our dog food is donated and it's low in quality and in protein, we actually Mix that low quality dog food with cat food that is about 31% we mix it at 2 to 1 2parts dog 1part cat, This mixture allows us to supplement the protein levels without getting serious side effects. The dogs in our shelter look great, high energy levels, nice coats, and nice stools, until we have a food change again. I don't know about the cataract thing, never heard that one before, but it could be I just need to look into that one, The big argument over protein levels was not an issue until about 8 years ago when someone in dog food company decided to tell breeders high protein (which protein = $$$ ) was not a good thing for the large breed dogs (large breed = eat alot more) and convinced breeders that protein was directly responsible for dogs growing "Too Fast" I have consulted with my vet and he and I agree to not 'DEPRIVE' my dogs of protein which is ABSOLUTELY NEEDED for proper muscle/skeletal development. Hope this helps.

Feeding a protein content to pups of 21% would be not a good idea, unless it was, indeed, supplemented by other protein. Premium kibbles, and there are many good quality foods now available, have good protein levels. But there are many brands that have poor quality contents and levels of important nutrients. Higher protein content is NOT a problem for most dogs, unless they have some type of kidney issue. Also, yes, onions uncooked are TOXIC to dogs and should not be fed. It is also more complicated than just the protein level. The kCal, or energy available to the dog, is also important as well as all the micronutrients available and required for good health. I have fed hundreds of dogs. Puppies are fed high quality kibble with protein around 30% or perhaps 32%. No issues. Adult GSDs are fed with a food that has 24% protein. No need for additional supplements etc., unless one simply wants to do it. Unless a given dog has some problem digesting food, this works well. Soft or loose stools, light colored stools are indicative of some sort of GI issue and that takes some different feeding regimen to clear it up. Fat content can also be an issue with dogs receiving too little or, in some cases, too much. Dogs do not get cataracts unless their is another issue going on and then the food may make a difference. Research has shown that it is more improper balance of other nutrients in food, rather than protein content, that may contribute to growth issues.

Ditto on the onions, whether fresh or cooked. The saying around my house is "well those plates aren't clean enough for the dishwasher unless they've been first cleaned by a dog" is still a kitchen motto. And for many years all of the dogs ate small pieces of leftover onions with no ill effects. However, during research for common toxic plants, chemicals, etc. (other than the well-known items) I did find several documented cases where onions, especially raw onions were determined to the chief culprit in the poisoning/illness of a dog. Once I read all of the documents available, I decided that I should not take the chance, so there is sometimes an additional step before the dog sees the plate. Again, no bad personal experiences, but I try to err on the side of caution. Bob-O