Puppy Foods Large Giant Breeds

Do I Need to Use A Puppy Food or Large/Giant Breed Puppy Foods?

Many people are confused about whether or not they should use a puppy food for the large/giant breeds, or use a large/giant breed puppy formula. In order to answer this question, let’s look at what happens in Mother Nature, in regards to a puppy’s diet.

In the wild, the nursing puppies would normally get a high level of nutrition, that means a diet that is high in fat and high in protein because of the nutrient density of mother’s milk. Once a puppy is weaned from the mother (6-8 weeks) the puppy would not consume a high fat/high protein diet. Since they are too young to hunt on their own and they rely on the mother’s resources for food, the puppies would start getting less nutrition, or moderate caloric intake during the major growth stages. It would not be until the puppies are old enough to hunt on their own that they would consume a higher level of nutrition. So in the growth stages between weaning and young adult, a puppy would receive the "leftovers" from mom or the pack. This would involve regurgitated food (meat/bone/predigested vegetation, feces etc.) from the mom and what was left behind from the killed prey, particularly the bones.

With that information in mind, let’s look at how we feed our puppies. We start weaning our puppies around weaning 3 1/2 - 4 weeks of age, and they are generally weaned from the mother by 6 weeks of age, at least for nutritional purposes. At 31/2 - 4 weeks, humans start to manages the feeding process by selecting the diet for the puppies. Due to clever marketing techniques, we are taught that it is critical to feed puppies a high protein and high fat diet, which translate to a high calorie diet.

Then we continue to feed these high calorie commercial puppy foods for several months of the dog’s development, and this is in direct opposition to what would naturally occur in the wild. During the critical growth stages in the wild, mother nature has provided a way for them to consume a moderate level of nutrition for the growth period of development. This allow the puppies go grow slow and evenly, avoiding many of the orthopedic problems that we encounter with our
"calorie dense" commercial diets of today.

After the National Bone Disease Survey in Great Danes 1986-91, it became evident that a very high quality diet, but one of moderate caloric intake, was the best suited for the large and giant breeds. This is when people started using Adult Formulas, instead of Puppy Formula’s to try and avoid any growth diseases. However, not all adult formulas are appropriate for growth, because the dog has to consume far to many calories to obtain the suitable amounts of vitamins, minerals and amino acids necessary for proper wellness.

That is why it is of the utmost importance to use a "super premium" quality food, when using an adult formula for growth. There is one exception which I will address below.

How Do I Select A Food For Growth?

Based on the number of calls/emails I get regarding orthopedic problems in giant breeds, and based in 34 years of raising Great Danes, it is my opinion some of the Large/Giant breed formulas on the market are very problematic when it comes to growth and development.

They are calorie dense and too often there is not enough calcium to support proper bone growth. The design of these foods is based on minimal research, but through careful marketing techniques by dog food companies and a vigorous attempt to influence the veterinary community, for the purpose of promoting sales of these formulas, vets now push these low calcium diets on to their clients with large and giant breeds.

The majority of the emails and phone calls I receive these days are from owners with puppies being fed Large/Giant breed formulas. The problem is many of the foods are "designed" in the laboratory and have never had extensive feed trials done using these formulas on large and giant breeds for a long period of time. Only after extensive testing over a long period of time will they know if these foods work for growth. Most companies are far to eager to get these products out on the market to get their share of the customer base, instead of doing what is best for the dogs. To date (2006) the only large/giant breed formula ever tested on giant breeds, for extended periods of time, and in multiple giant litters is Eagle Natural Formula. It has had a successful 15 year track record successful on the giant breeds.

(Note: The new Eagle Large/Giant Puppy formula is designed after the Eagle Natural Formula with additional joint support products. That is the only difference, and at this point the only large/giant puppy formula I can endorse for my puppy buyers for the large/giant breeds.)

When trying to decide which commercial adult formulas are appropriate for growth, there are very specific things the consumer must consider. Not all the information may be listed on the bag or in words that you are familiar with, so this means you must contact the company directly. These are the 10 most essential items I look for when recommending an adult formula to my puppy buyers, that is suitable for growth for the large and giant breeds.

Ingredients must be listed as human grade, human edible or organic.
A food must be naturally preserved and stated so on the bag.
The food must have a specific protein meal listed as such ie: chicken meal, lamb meal, beef meal, turkey meal, pork meal, duck meal, fish meal etc. Do you use any food that is listed as "meat meal" it can be anything protein including road kill and euthanised pets from animal shelters. Protein meals are better than whole, fresh or deboned, because every thing listed on the bad is in order of weight, so foods listing something like fresh chicken, for example, sounds great but it actually means it is not the first ingredient on the bag because they get to count the water in the whole chicken. So chicken meal, for example would be more actual protein in the food - more bang for your nutritional buck.
Multiple proteins (meats/poultry/fish) are an absolute must for proper amino acids which effect muscle development. Remember, the largest muscle in the body is the heart. Do not use a single source protein food for growth - ie: Lamb/Rice (that is straight lamb no other proteins, and rice). A food with some lamb in it, plus chicken and/or fish is ideal, like Eagle Natural or Eagle large/giant breed puppy because it is a multiple protein based food.
Chelated or sequestered minerals are an absolute must for proper bone development and to avoid growth diseases and heart problems.
Protein range of 22% - 24% maximum = moderate calories range (320 - 350 Kcalories per cup)
Fat range 12% - 14% maximum = moderate calories range (320 - 350 Kcalories per cup)
Probiotics/Digestive enzymes are highly desirable, but could be supplemented
if it is not on the food already.
Balanced Omega 6:3 fatty acids
Vitamin C

A Word About Lamb/Rice Diets

For some reason, owners/breeders seem to think that a "straight" Lamb/Rice diet is the "end-all and be-all" in commercial pet foods. Again, this notion is due to clever marketing and the fact that many of our dogs "appear to have allergies. (see systemic yeast infection article).

The actual occurrence of "food" allergies is very low in our animals. What appears to be an allergic reaction, is often a response to poor nutrition, dietary enzymes missing from the diet and allergies which can be due to a systemic yeast infection or they are the "symptom" of a compromised immune system. When the yeast problem or immune deficiencies are address, the allergies generally go away.

Note: I do not recommend a straight Lamb/Rice diet for growth. Most Lamb/Rice diets do not have enough taurine (amino acid) and l-carnitine in the food to support adequate muscle growth, again remember the heart is the largest muscle in the body. With the number of heart problems in our dogs, remember not all heart problems are genetics. You will be hearing more about this in the future and I suspect several companies will be adjusting their formulas to correct this problem.

I believe straight Lamb/Rice diets are useful, but should only be used as an isolation diet for allergies, not for the prevention of allergies, but for treatment after an allergy has been diagnosed by the veterinarian. Eagle Natural and Eagle Large and Giant Breed Puppy has a lamb component to the formula but they are not considered a straight lamb/rice diet due to the other proteins; chicken, fish, eggs, in the formula making them ideal for growth.

See the Blackwatch Feed Programs for Adults and Blackwatch Puppy Feed Program and Puppy Guidelines at this site.