# Yet another what should I feed my puppy question ... help!



## ilovelandonnrick (Oct 11, 2010)

So reign is eating blue buffallo right now but her fur is kind of dull and scabby, she has not fleas so im assuming its her diet. Whats good food to feed her?


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## CPH (Sep 8, 2010)

We feed Now! grain free puppy and he seems to love it, his coat looks great and he has great energy. Look on Dog Food Analysis - Reviews of kibble I found it really helpful when deciding what to feed.


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## schroedes (Sep 10, 2010)

Wellness, cant go wrong. same price as BB but better ingredients


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## Lucy Dog (Aug 10, 2008)

Is she itching a lot? How are her ears... Any gunk inside? Could be an allergy since BB is a quality product.

If it's not an allergy, there's plenty that help coats. Salmon oil and raw eggs do wonders. Do a little research and I'm sure you'll come up with a couple things to start with.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

Which BB product are you feeding? Chicken, Salmon? Does it have grains? 

How old is your pup? Does she have demodectic mange? Demodectic mange is somewhat common in puppies and wouldn't be food related.

http://www.marvistavet.com/html/body_demodectic_mange.html


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## GSDAlphaMom (Jul 20, 2010)

I would stay away from BB. They have such a tight lid on their maximum cal/pho it is suspect to being too high.

http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/diet-nutrition/145562-blue-buffalo-what-they-hiding.html


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## ilovelandonnrick (Oct 11, 2010)

chicken yes her ears are gunky


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## Stosh (Jun 26, 2010)

I'd switch to a grain free and chicken free. Stosh can't tolerate chicken which surprised me but apparently it's not that uncommon.


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## Kinmartin0789 (Aug 25, 2010)

So im really torn here, my puppy eats Royal Canin GS puppy mix, but i have seen a few posts around the forums where people say its not bad but i could do a lot better, my puppy eats it, and his coat is shiny and soft but i also want the best for my dog long term. so is Ryal canin really that mediocre? the only issue i have seen with it is that their feeding instructions say 6 1/2 cups a day which mmy 6 month old pup only eats four to 5 unless he had a really active day.


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## LaRen616 (Mar 4, 2010)

Kinmartin0789 said:


> So im really torn here, my puppy eats Royal Canin GS puppy mix, but i have seen a few posts around the forums where people say its not bad but i could do a lot better, my puppy eats it, and his coat is shiny and soft but i also want the best for my dog long term. so is Ryal canin really that mediocre? the only issue i have seen with it is that their feeding instructions say 6 1/2 cups a day which mmy 6 month old pup only eats four to 5 unless he had a really active day.


I fed my GSD Solid Gold Wolf Cub when he was a puppy and he did great on it.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

Personally, Royal Canin is too grain heavy for me compared to Wellness Super5Mix LBP.

Here are the ingredients for RC:


> Chicken meal, rice, oatmeal, brown rice, corn gluten meal, wheat gluten meal, chicken fat, natural chicken flavor, dried beet pulp (sugar removed), sodium silico aluminate, anchovy oil (source of EPA/DHA), dried egg product, fructo-oligosaccharides, psyllium seed husk, soya oil, potassium chloride, salt, sodium tripolyphosphate, L-lysine, taurine, dried brewers yeast extract (source of mannan-oligosaccharides), DL-methionine, Vitamins [DL-alpha tocopherol acetate (source of vitamin E), inositol, niacin supplement, L-ascorbyl-2-polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), D-calcium pantothenate, biotin, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), riboflavin supplement (vitamin B2), thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), vitamin A acetate, folic acid, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin D3 supplement], choline chloride, glucosamine hydrochloride, Trace Minerals [zinc proteinate, zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, manganese proteinate, copper proteinate, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, calcium iodate, sodium selenite], marigold extract (Tagetes erecta L.), chondroitin sulfate, rosemary extract, preserved with natural mixed tocopherols (source of vitamin E) and citric acid.


Ingredients for Wellness:


> Deboned Chicken, Deboned Whitefish, Chicken Meal, Oatmeal, Ground Peas, Ground Barley, Ground Brown Rice, Salmon Meal (a natural source of DHA-Docosahexaenoic Acid), Tomato Pomace, Chicken Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols, a natural source of Vitamin E), Tomatoes, Natural Chicken Flavor, Ground Flaxseed, Salmon Oil (a natural source of DHA - Docosahexaenoic Acid), Carrots, Spinach, Sweet Potatoes, Apples, Blueberries, Salt, Minerals [Zinc Sulfate, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Ferrous Sulfate, Copper Proteinate, Copper Sulfate, Manganese Proteinate, Manganese Sulfate, Sodium Selenite], Vitamins [Beta-Carotene, Vitamin E Supplement, Ascorbic Acid (Vitamin C), Vitamin A Supplement, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin, Vitamin D-3 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Mononitrate, Folic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B-12 Supplement], Choline Chloride, Taurine, Chicory Root Extract, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Mixed Tocopherols (a natural preservative), Dried Lactobacillus plantarum, Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus casei, Lactobacillus acidophilus fermentation products.


Notice how Wellness has a lot more meat in the first line of ingredients. There are certainly better food than Wellness but if it's equally available to you for around the same price as RC but better quality then why not make the switch?

Of course the best food for your puppy is the one he does the best on. Only you can make that decision but the best way to make it is by being as informed as possible about what is biologically appropriate for a growing GSD.


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## Kinmartin0789 (Aug 25, 2010)

Yes i can get quite a few different brands at pretty decent price, my gf works at Petsmart so we get a discount for our pup, he seems to do really well with RC but i see alot more meat/veggies/fruit as you say. i think a switch is not a bad idea i still have a big 50 lbs bag of rc to go through then lol


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## Denali Girl (Nov 20, 2010)

I was feeding Solid Gold wolf cub but after she just went on hungerstrike for some reason I looked up all the brands on dogfoodanalysis.com and I found out that Solid Gold isn't really that good...a bit grainy so I changed to Orijen. But even with that she doesn't eat as much as I wanted her to eat, sometimes she will eat like she's going to the chair and sometimes she eats 1 to 2 cups a day. I was stressing this but she is healthy and is gaining weight so I'm starting not to worry about it as much. I do sometimes mix or top the food with a canned food just to change the taste around a bit or if she didn't eat in a day or so.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

Denali Girl said:


> I was feeding Solid Gold wolf cub but after she just went on hungerstrike for some reason I looked up all the brands on dogfoodanalysis.com and I found out that Solid Gold isn't really that good...a bit grainy so I changed to Orijen. But even with that she doesn't eat as much as I wanted her to eat, sometimes she will eat like she's going to the chair and sometimes she eats 1 to 2 cups a day. I was stressing this but she is healthy and is gaining weight so I'm starting not to worry about it as much. I do sometimes mix or top the food with a canned food just to change the taste around a bit or if she didn't eat in a day or so.


How old is your girl? Raven barely ate until a little after a year old. I would feed her a cup in the morning and it would sit there until 10pm before she finally ate it. Even now that she eats better, she still only gets 2 cups of food a day.


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## Denali Girl (Nov 20, 2010)

gsdraven said:


> How old is your girl? Raven barely ate until a little after a year old. I would feed her a cup in the morning and it would sit there until 10pm before she finally ate it. Even now that she eats better, she still only gets 2 cups of food a day.


 
Really? Raven that makes me feel so much better. She came down with worms at 5 months old and she started loosing weight, when we got her cleared of the worms she wouldn't eat at all so that's when I changed foods and she ate. Now she is 7 months old and is getting a bit picky for some reason? Anyway, I was just trying to go by the recomendations on the back of the bag and for her age it says she is supposed to have up to 4 cups a day? Too much you think? I don't want her to grow too fast but she was 12 lbs underweight because of the worms but since then she has gained 10 or so lbs. So she is 7 months old and 48 lbs....am I ok? Raven I do have to say I always read your posts and I feel you are very knowledgeable so your oppinion is welcome. I have had boxers in the past and have done almost every kind of training you can think of, I have worked with Shepherds in the past but this is my first time owning a Shepherd and I can say they are a lot different than a Boxer lol.


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

Denali Girl said:


> Really? Raven that makes me feel so much better. She came down with worms at 5 months old and she started loosing weight, when we got her cleared of the worms she wouldn't eat at all so that's when I changed foods and she ate. Now she is 7 months old and is getting a bit picky for some reason? Anyway, I was just trying to go by the recomendations on the back of the bag and for her age it says she is supposed to have up to 4 cups a day? Too much you think? I don't want her to grow too fast but she was 12 lbs underweight because of the worms but since then she has gained 10 or so lbs. So she is 7 months old and 48 lbs....am I ok? Raven I do have to say I always read your posts and I feel you are very knowledgeable so your oppinion is welcome. I have had boxers in the past and have done almost every kind of training you can think of, I have worked with Shepherds in the past but this is my first time owning a Shepherd and I can say they are a lot different than a Boxer lol.


How much they eat and what they weigh really depends on the dog. For some, 4 cups is too much for others it's not. 

Can you post some pictures of her? Maybe start your own thread if you are concerned about her weight. Best way to tell is to get a picture of her standing taken from the side and taken from above.

Some things you can do to encourage her to eat are mixing in some chicken, cheese, hot dog etc. But then you run the risk of her becoming dependant on that in her food to eat. 

Have you ever heard of the 15 min rule? Put the food bowl down for 15 min, if she doesn't eat or hasn't finished take it up and put it away until next meal time. No treats in between. They won't starve themselves and it will only take 1-2 missed meals for her to understand that she needs to eat when it's offered.


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## Denali Girl (Nov 20, 2010)

Yes I tried that and I now mix a little canned to her meals. This may sound weird but I can tell she's fuller just after 3 or 4 meals? I just don't like when her stomach gets sucked in, I took this dog to the vet so many times and they laugh at me  and say relax she is fine. I will post some pics......do I do it from photobucket?


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## gsdraven (Jul 8, 2009)

Denali Girl said:


> I will post some pics......do I do it from photobucket?


Yes, you can. Here's the thread on how to post pics: http://www.germanshepherds.com/forum/pictures-pictures-pictures/135328-how-post-pictures-site.html


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