22/11/2014
PUPPY FEEDING GUIDELINES (cont'd)
Weaning your puppy to solid food
Weaning your puppy to solid food should not be an overnight endeavor but should ideally take place over the course of two to three weeks. First select the brand of puppy food you intend to feed. Puppies have high caloric and nutritional needs and so the food selected should be a high quality brand of puppy food. Talk to your veterinarian for specific recommendations but generally the best puppy foods be a good source of protein, calcium and calories.
Starting around four to six weeks of age begin introducing your puppy to puppy food by making a gruel by blending the puppy food with milk replacer. Offer the gruel three to four times a day gradually reducing the amount of milk replacee used to make the gruel. This way your puppy gradually learns to adapt to solid food and gastric upset is minimized. By around eight weeks of age your puppy should be eating solid food.
How often to feed your pup
Puppies should be fed three to four times a day therefore if you are currently feeding ¾ a cup of puppy food twice a day you should consider spacing it out by feeding ½ cup three times a day.
Smaller meals are easier to digest for the puppy and energy levels don’t peak and fall so much with frequent meals. At around six months you may start feeding twice a day for convenience but because your dog is a mixed large breed dog I would recommend sticking with a 3-4 times a day feeding schedule if possible to minimize the risk of gastric dilatation volvulus.
Move on from puppy food
Puppy food is very high in calories and nutritional supplements so you want to switch to adult food once your puppy begins to approach maturity. There is no set age when the switch should be made because it will vary with the breed and individual dog.
In general, the smaller the dog the faster they reach maturity. Small breeds up to 30 pounds mature around ten to twelve months of age although some toy breeds reach maturity even sooner. Medium breed dogs up to 80 pounds will reach maturity between twelve to sixteen months and I believe your puppy may fall into this category. It really depends how much Great Pyrenees she has in her. Large breed dogs weighing more than 80 pounds can take up to two years to reach maturity.
When making the switch to adult food, do it slowly over the course of one to two weeks by gradually mixing in increasing amounts of the adult food with decreasing amounts of her puppy food to minimize gastric upset.
Foods to avoid
Try to avoid foods that list corn or meat by-products as the first ingredient because meat should be the first ingredient.
Avoid feeding your dog puppy food longer than you have to. Feeding puppy food too long can result in obesity and orthopedic problems. You will know when it is time to make the switch when you notice your dog eating less of the puppy food or if she starts to put on too much weight.
Don't let your dog get chubby
It is important to be able to judge your dog’s body condition score in order to determine how much food you should give.The recommendations on the labels are guidelines only and will not apply to every dog. You may need to feed a little more or less depending on your dog’s condition score.
Ideally you should be able to feel but not see the ribs and by looking straight down at your dog while she is standing there should be a recognizable waist. Ask your veterinarian if your dog is at a healthy weight during your next visit and ask for examples of body condition scores.
How’s your puppy’s diet like? Tell us all about it in the comments.
