# Adult food at 5 months?



## FlyboyZR1 (Sep 19, 2007)

My breeder suggested transitioning from puppy food to adult food around 5 months of age to prevent him from growing too fast. Would this be a wise time to make the switch in foods? Also I'm currently feeding 1.5 cups in the AM and 1.5 cups in the PM. Should I keep the amounts the same, or change as the pup grows in size?


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## ausdland (Oct 21, 2015)

Depends on your puppy and the food you are feeding. If it's regular puppy food then yes transition to LBP or all life stages food. As for the amount, since it's a GSD, yes you'll be feeding more as it grows.


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## FlyboyZR1 (Sep 19, 2007)

Currently feeding Nutrisource Large Breed Puppy food and will probably transition to their Large Breed Adult food. Just curious on the best time to make the change. It seems like the amount of cups people feed is all across the board with around 3 per day being average.


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## BigOzzy2018 (Jan 27, 2018)

I don’t feed puppy food but an All Life Stage excellent quality food. Never had an issue with growth or anything really.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

(OP, I am not stealing your thread) How long do you keep a GSD pup on LBP?


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## Ken Clean-Air System (Feb 27, 2012)

FlyboyZR1 said:


> My breeder suggested transitioning from puppy food to adult food around 5 months of age to prevent him from growing too fast. Would this be a wise time to make the switch in foods? Also I'm currently feeding 1.5 cups in the AM and 1.5 cups in the PM. Should I keep the amounts the same, or change as the pup grows in size?


Depending on the adult food you choose, you could actually be doing the opposite of what you're trying to do. Not all adult foods have appropriate levels of Calcium and Phosphorus for a large breed puppy. If you do transition now, make sure you are transitioning to an All Life Stages approved formula with appropriate Calcium & Phosphorus levels for your puppy.

I don't feed puppy food ... though I will feed it long enough to transition slowly to the ALS formula that I prefer if that is what the breeder was feeding when the pup comes home. Feeding a LBP formula (theoretically) ensures that the food is nutritionally sufficient for a large breed puppy, but if you find a good All Life Stages food with the correct Calcium and Phosphorus levels, you can skip the puppy food altogether.



wolfy dog said:


> (OP, I am not stealing your thread) How long do you keep a GSD pup on LBP?


I don't think there is a correct answer to this question. As far as growth is concerned, by 10-12 months growth has slowed considerably. By around 18 months bone growth and development is complete. So if you want to feed puppy food until growth is complete, then around 18 months is probably the best time ... though as I said above, as long as you feed an ALS food with good Calcium and Phosphorus levels, puppy food isn't really necessary.


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