What Food for Large/Giant Puppy?

[Steve #1]

My 8 month old Dogue de Bordeaux isn't putting on weight like she should be. There doesn't seem to be anything wrong, she's just not a big eater..... So I started looking for a new (better) food for her (she's on Iams large puppy). The more I research the more confused I get. I finally decided to put her on Eagle Pack Large/Giant puppy. After finding that nobody local sold it i determined that it wasn't sold in Texas. I spoke with somebody at Eagle Pack customer service and was informed that it could not be sold retail in Texas because of the amount of Glucosamine it contains. According to them the Natural formula is the exact same as the large/giant puppy with the exception of the amount of Glucosomine.

What's the scoop on Glucosomine? Is to much bad? I know Texas has some odd laws but there has to be some logic behind this one.

So... what should I do? Go with the natural? another brand? pay $10 to get the Eagle Pack puppy shipped to me?

[Mom2Many]

Do you have Innova or Canidae available to you down there? Both are very high quality foods and are designed for all life stages, including a large breed puppy. These are the two foods that I feed my german shepherd puppy (he just turned 8 months today!). I add in a supplement of Vitamin C 1,000mg daily for joint helath and maintance and will add glucosamine in the near future. I will go do some research on it to see why it would be an issue in large amounts.
I also wanted to point out that slow growth on a large breed puppy is desirable...my vet told me that people will say Gunnar is too skinny and that is what I want. It is much healthier on the joints if they put the weight on slowly and evenly..filling out weight wise after optimal height has been achieved.

[jesse]

I have a great dane at 14 months and it is very important to not feed these dogs too much because they will have bad growth problems. I feed my dog Eagle Natural Pack for Large and Giant Breed Dogs, reccomended by the breeder.

[Pippinislove]

I've heard Canidae is NOT a good food for large breed puppies because of the large amount of protein. It causes them to grow too quickly, which can add stress to joints and bones.

Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul is a good food, but not sure if they sell large breed puppy. Innova is a good food as well.

[Mellie]

Chicken Soup does sell a giant breed puppy formula. This is what we fed our Saint Bernard during her puppy stage. She still eats Chicken Soup, but the adult formula.

Here are a few links that address your issue:
http://www.newmanveterinary.com/large.html
http://www.caninehealthnutrition.com/growth.html
http://www.petngarden.com/dogs/dogs56.php

[kerriebeth21]

Canidae has LESS protein than Science Diet Large Breed Puppy! It has the SAME amount of protein as Innova Large Breed Puppy! So if Canidae is bad for puppies than Innova is bad too...which means that Science Diet is even worse. Innova and Canidae are two of the best foods out there.

Chicken Soup also has 24% protein...the same as Canidae and Innova.

[Steve #1]

Thanks for the replies. I'm leaning toward either the Eagle Pack natural or Chicken Soup (I hear picky dogs like the flavor).

[Mom2Many]

I just want to say that although CSFTDLS is better than Pedigree, Purina, etc. it is not as good as the higher end products like Eagle Pack, Canidae, and Innova, among a few others. It looks really good on paper but for the price you could do better.

[Crossfire Bulldogs]

Just my opinion here and going from what I've learned of the breed but I don't believe that putting a Dogue de Bordeaux on puppy food is a wise choice anyway. Too much protein for a large breed that grows that fast and it doesn't put on the weight as it should.

I know of several well known Bordeaux breeders that swear by Canidae and Royal Canin for their DDBs.

[YK Shepherd]

Just for reference sakes, Yukon is 6 months old, a german shepherd and he was put on an adult food, for all lifestages at 4 months. He has been growing fine and doing very well. I feed Kirkland Signatures, chicken and rice, it is made by the same people who make Chicken Soup, I believe. Yukon is very big boned and he weighs 62 pounds, and is 23 inches at the shoulders.

[Fran27]

I suggest a good adult brand designed for all lifestages. There will be less proteins than puppy food, even large breed, so they will grow more slowly. Just make sure the food is designed for all lifestages - Canidae and Innova do that.

For the proteins, they're really about the same as most brands.. Chicken soup has more. Chicken soup doesn't seem to do the large breed anymore though, so I would avoid it. Also, it's a decent food, but clearly overpriced in my opinion, you can get better for the same price.

For the glucosamine, I'm going to ask the food expert I know, I'll come back to you about it.

[YK Shepherd]

Kirkland signatures is not a large breed food either but I know several quality responsible breeders who feed it and it is not over priced. You do have to get it at cosco though and they require a membership. So not overly convinent. Also Cosco tends to change ingredients and recipes so everytime you buy a bag read the ingredients to make sure it is still the same food. I buy 3-4 bags at a time to try and make sure I have a ,arge supply of it.

[dollface]

Originally Posted by Crossfire Bulldogs

Just my opinion here and going from what I've learned of the breed but I don't believe that putting a Dogue de Bordeaux on puppy food is a wise choice anyway. Too much protein for a large breed that grows that fast and it doesn't put on the weight as it should.

I know of several well known Bordeaux breeders that swear by Canidae and Royal Canin for their DDBs.

I read that too someplace, you should switch them to adult at around 6 months, too much protien that causes their bones to grow faster then they should and you want to minimize the stress on their joints... Less stress and stuff on their joints will hopefully less chance of HD ect.. Just like you don't want to let your dog climb stairs, jump, ect if you can help it till she's fully mature, I know you can only carry them so long. Even in agility I was not allowed to sign Junior up till he was matured. I read that they should get 5 minutes for everymonth they are, so at 8 months no more then 40 minutes the less stress on their joints while they are growing the better.

[Fran27]

You still need to be careful in what brand of adult food you get. Most of them are for maintenance, and it won't have the necessary nutrition for a growing pup - make sure you get an all lifestages food.

[Crossfire Bulldogs]

I agree, an all life stage food is best for a large breed dog and actually I've had my DDB on one since day one. I do supplement some but refuse to feed puppy food.....their joints and such just can't take all that extra.