For Those Feeding High Protein Kibble

[Lemonlime]

Hello,

I have been reading all of the discussions going around about Orijen and Artemis kibble and the high protein (42% from memory) concerns.

I havent really come to a conclusion after searching the threads, some people believe that if the protein is coming from high quality meats, there is no problem feeding a high protein food to young dogs, and others are undecided or confussed.

For those of you who have chosen to feed some of these new high protein kibbles as a MAIN diet (not just training treats or a handful here and there), do you feel confident feeding it to puppies as young as 8 weeks? Have you discovered anything new in your research on high protein and growth rates? How are you finding the results on these foods?

[centitout]

Hello,

I have been reading all of the discussions going around about Orijen and Artemis kibble and the high protein (42% from memory) concerns.

I havent really come to a conclusion after searching the threads, some people believe that if the protein is coming from high quality meats, there is no problem feeding a high protein food to young dogs, and others are undecided or confussed.

For those of you who have chosen to feed some of these new high protein kibbles as a MAIN diet (not just training treats or a handful here and there), do you feel confident feeding it to puppies as young as 8 weeks? Have you discovered anything new in your research on high protein and growth rates? How are you finding the results on these foods?

will not feed high protein kibble to my pups,as they get raw chicken mince,i feed a lower protein kibble like bonnies,and from 12 weeks start changing them over to adult,as the protein level is lower still.not one of the pups i had here for a while had leg problems,but 3 of the ones who left at 8 weeks and where fed the premium high protein kibble,went down in the pasterns,turned out etc.after going back to a low protein kibble,all became ok within 6 weeks.have also seen large breed pups with things like OCD as a result of getting to heavy to quickly.

so no,i definately will not feed a high protein kibble.

[Danois]

I would suggest doing some more reading.

High protein in conjunction with high fat creates the issues - not high protein alone.

[schnauzer_luv]

I only have a small test sample to comment on, but I have one dog who was fed on eukanuba/royal canin as a puppy so relatively low protein compared to Orijen. At just over a year old he is larger than breed standard but was large as a pup and gained his weight very gradually and hasn't grown since he was about 11 months old.

I have another pup of the same breed who has been on orijen since she was 10 weeks, she is now 15 weeks and is gaining weight/size on par with the other pups from her litter that are fed supercoat. I do have small breed dogs so maybe that is an important factor, but there is no notable difference in growth rates at this point. I suppose I won't know until she is fully grown if it has made any difference, but I can't see it doing so at the moment.

[Sagittarian]

Having a giant breed, should I ever have another 8 week old I would not hesitate to feed Orijen.

When I worked for one petfood company, the propaganda passed off to the group of trainees was unbelievable. Well, believable actually, as some trainees not only ran with it, but became little robots in their rhetoric about the food. Information about the need for certain grains, protein levels and so on that in reality have little to do with real nutritional needs of dogs.

Everyone must investigate for themselves. If someone is so committed to a food that their judgement is clouded, then ask why. Are they sponsored by, or work for, that company? Have they properly studied nutrition from independent sources, or merely absorbed clever marketing?

At one point, I did believe that high protein caused growth issues. Having raised many puppies who have been sound adults, with various diets and different bloodlines, the one thing that was clear was that calorie intake mattered. Protein made no impact on growth. This is my experience, not something that has been told to me second hand.

By the way, Artemis only has one grain free food - Maximal. The remainder of this holistic range does contain grains, but also high meat content.

As far as my own oldies go, they are thriving on a more biologically correct ratio of meat to botanicals, fruits and veges than when on some other foods.

Just my opinion!

Sags

Edited August 17, 2008 by Sagittarian

[KitKat]

High protein in conjunction with high fat creates the issues - not high protein alone.

Agree

[Annedal]

I have a 8mth old Dalmatian who i have fed Advance since i got him. He would scratch sometimes but it was thought

it was due to it being summer time,etc. Advance Growth Large Breed which has 28% protein and 16% fat.

Recently it has gotten very bad and his scratching has become constant. There has been plenty of advice for changing

the dog food to a food with a lower protein level.

Any advice on what i should do would be greatly appreciated.

[ILuvAmstaffs]

I would suggest doing some more reading.

High protein in conjunction with high fat creates the issues - not high protein alone.

I agree with this. My boys orthopaedic surgeon told us it's the overall calorie intake that speeds up growth, not the protein. She wasn't a big fan of most puppy kibbles and believed pups should be off this asap.

[Sagittarian]

I have a 8mth old Dalmatian who i have fed Advance since i got him. He would scratch sometimes but it was thought

it was due to it being summer time,etc. Advance Growth Large Breed which has 28% protein and 16% fat.

Recently it has gotten very bad and his scratching has become constant. There has been plenty of advice for changing

the dog food to a food with a lower protein level.

Any advice on what i should do would be greatly appreciated.

Rather than just looking for lower protein, what about changing to a completely different brand for a bag and see if that makes a difference? Instead of a brand with wheat in, something that is rice based - a holistic or organic variety will generally provide less grain and more quality meat product. Ones that comes to mind include Artemis Medium/Lge Breed puppy, EP Holistic Chicken, DVP Natural Balance - although only the first one is specifically made for puppies.

If those are not readily available for you to try, have a really good look at ingredients and select for no wheat, no corn, no unidentified meat products, no artificial inclusions. As Dali's can have protein related issues (not scratching though usually), if you consider any grain free then go very gently.

Oh - some brands that claim to be sensitive suitable actually spray the outside of the kibble with animal digest, which can irritate, so try to find out with whatever you end up selecting. Of course, there is always BARF.

Sags