Which Is Better For Large Breed Puppy?

[kelpiecuddles]

dotdashdot I work in a pet store as well and actually asked the rep from one of the large premium brands whether he could get me a sample of a certain food(which I know they have samples of) because I wanted to trial my very fussy cat on it. He first refused to believe that I have had to use four other bags of branded premium food as dog treats because she would starve herself for six days rather than eat them. Then he tried to force me to use wet food which I refuse to do because she's a snacker and I don't want wet food sitting out all day. In the end I gave up and i won't be buying his brand at all. She's healthy and looks fabulous on Optimum so i guess that's where she'll stay for now!

[dotdashdot]

dotdashdot I work in a pet store as well and actually asked the rep from one of the large premium brands whether he could get me a sample of a certain food(which I know they have samples of) because I wanted to trial my very fussy cat on it. He first refused to believe that I have had to use four other bags of branded premium food as dog treats because she would starve herself for six days rather than eat them. Then he tried to force me to use wet food which I refuse to do because she's a snacker and I don't want wet food sitting out all day. In the end I gave up and i won't be buying his brand at all. She's healthy and looks fabulous on Optimum so i guess that's where she'll stay for now!

wow what a rep! I have one that we all detest. She acts like she's much much better than all of us, why don't we stock the whole range of her brand blah blah blah (we literally have NO more room and it's not the best seller in our store.)

She has turned me off her brand, whereas the reps of the brand of food I feed my dog gives us big bags of food every visit! 6kg's at a time, but only to us that use it (i.e not my boss who is a die hard Hill's man). Even if I weren't getting this food for free, I would be buying it.

When I'm having a full on food conversation with customers, I usually end up using the line I learnt here: the best food for your dog is the food your dog does best on! Just like I can eat dairy and gluten and feel fine and my sister feels better if she doesn't.

[Clyde]

1368178771[/url]' post='6198250']

, but that said I did feed my pup on holistic brands (Holistic Select and BH) from 3 months of age and she's beautifully built and proportioned. I think Advance Lg Breed and Royal Canin are 2 that are up to 24months

The use of the word holistic in commercial kibble is really just a marketing gimmick. I'm not knocking the food, I feed HS to two of my dogs, but I'm under no illusions that the food is truly holistic.It sounds good though and makes me feel as though I'm feeding them one of the best

[dotdashdot]

1368178771[/url]' post='6198250']

, but that said I did feed my pup on holistic brands (Holistic Select and BH) from 3 months of age and she's beautifully built and proportioned. I think Advance Lg Breed and Royal Canin are 2 that are up to 24months

The use of the word holistic in commercial kibble is really just a marketing gimmick. I'm not knocking the food, I feed HS to two of my dogs, but I'm under no illusions that the food is truly holistic.It sounds good though and makes me feel as though I'm feeding them one of the best

I know :) I mainly use the word to differeniate it from the rest which use wheat and soy and other stuff I try avoid.

[Steph M]

Question to add, what should you be looking for, what would be the ideal protein level (ie; above 20, above 30? is there a 'too high'?) and what would be the ideal things that should prick your ears up as a positive. I know it's been done to death and it does come down to who does well on what, but you gotta start somewhere eh?

I've done heaps of reading up, just checking I am on the right page. ;)

[Dame Aussie]

Thanks for all the feedback guys!

The vet sells Royal Canin and um, Advance. I know I will stick to BH as they are fine on it. I just cringed because he came across all heavy and not that pleased. They are a good vet otherwise. I had to giggle though as I say that, as the vet nurse asked if my Mal and Akita are related. Lol!

What age should I stop feeding the pups puppy food? I will change the 13 month old to BH adult now.

Jill

Haha what a surprise he sells the stuff.

Personally I'd tell him to stick it and find another vet, it's one thing to recommend a certain food but he sounds pushy and rude.

[Nevafollo]

Feed what your dogs do best on & Black Hawk is a high quality food, so I wouldn't be changing it just because your vet wants to sell you something else. Really, he probably knows absolutely nothing about Black Hawk. :laugh: I raised my Border Collie pup on the Black Hawk Adult formula on recommendation from breeders. According to the polls conducted every now & then on DOL, Black Hawk is the second most popular food fed by DOL's. My dogs have been on it most of their lives & they are very happy & so am I. Before the critics jump up & down...I do have a vested interest in BH, as my daughter distributes it in our area, & she has a lot of regular customers with large breed dogs.

ETA...also, I wouldn't be feeding any dog, let alone a large breed, puppy food @13 months.

Quite a few Whippet folk keep their adult dogs on RC Junior due to its high fat content. I'm one of them. It still has far less protein than grain free products like Artemis.

Also have this with the pointers, a few people have advised me to always use either puppy or working foods.

As for the OP, id feed advance not black hawk, tired black hawk, was really un happy with it and Ive heard similar things from others.

[Malakita]

Yes, he was pushy. The pup doesn't have his annual until next year, so I don't have the Spanish inquisition until then.

I am happy with Black Hawk as in both the dogs seem fine. So BH it is.

:)

[seld]

Hey everyone,

We're soon to be adding an English Mastiff to the family and were planning on changing her to Eukanuba large breed puppy; however, no one has mentioned it as a good option here and now I have my doubts! Is it not good? Ive never heard of the BlackHawk one!

[Rosetta]

Hey everyone,

We're soon to be adding an English Mastiff to the family and were planning on changing her to Eukanuba large breed puppy; however, no one has mentioned it as a good option here and now I have my doubts! Is it not good? Ive never heard of the BlackHawk one!

Hi Seld

It is probably as good as many of the "premium" brands. I found with Eukanuba - as with many others - that there was too much corn etc. It is best to look for meat or meat meal as the first two ingredients. The higher up the list the ingredient the more it contains. A good breeder should be able to advise you on what suits that particular breed. There are numerous threads here discussing dry food if you do a search :) Good luck with your new pup.

[seld]

Hey everyone,

We're soon to be adding an English Mastiff to the family and were planning on changing her to Eukanuba large breed puppy; however, no one has mentioned it as a good option here and now I have my doubts! Is it not good? Ive never heard of the BlackHawk one!

Hi Seld

It is probably as good as many of the "premium" brands. I found with Eukanuba - as with many others - that there was too much corn etc. It is best to look for meat or meat meal as the first two ingredients. The higher up the list the ingredient the more it contains. A good breeder should be able to advise you on what suits that particular breed. There are numerous threads here discussing dry food if you do a search :) Good luck with your new pup.

Thanks Rosetta,

Its been a while since we had a puppy and things have changed in the last ten years!

[Mrs Rusty Bucket]

I started my puppy on Advance - cos that's what AWL and my vet were selling. But she was getting the runs every couple of weeks which wasn't fun for either of us.

So I swapped to Nutro Natural Choice - which owned by the same food company - Mars - (yes the same people that make mars bars and m&ms) - but nutro is supposed to have better quality ingredients ie more flesh and less floor scrapings. All I know is my dog stopped getting the runs so often when she was eating that.

She loves supercoat - like teenagers like Maccas. Supercoat (and Purina 1) are made by that other food company - Nestles - and I've got ethical reasons for avoiding them.

I'm currently feeding Black Hawk Holistic and home made casserole (mince and vegies and stuff), and she does fine on that.

The vet I go to that sells advance - says to feed 1/3 less than the packet says - for a desexed dog and often says things about overfeeding = more money for the dog food sellers. He's perfectly open about the profit motive. The other vet nurse I had an argument about was trying to get me to feed tinned optimum chicken and rice - arguing it was better than home cooked chicken fillet and rice for a dog with the runs. Well she argued that until I made her read the tin and she learned what else is in it besides rice and (not much) chicken. Same with anyone who suggests Science Diet is a good idea - after you read the ingredients then tell me that.

Not saying black hawk or nutro are perfect but they're better than many.

[MouseR]

I guess it depends on each individual dog. I fed advance to my lab girl and she was healthy and shiny and never had the really doggy smell. Changed her over to a different brand for a short time but her coat dulled and her skin turned flakey so I changed her back and never had a problem ever again. Another thing to consider is just like people can be allergic to some foods so can dogs and this can affect them with skin issues and the like. You can get you dog allergy tested and then only feed what agrees with your dogs body. I know I will definitely be doing this for my next pup so that I don't have to do so much guessing!

[Malakita]

She loves supercoat - like teenagers like Maccas. Supercoat (and Purina 1) are made by that other food company - Nestles - and I've got ethical reasons for avoiding them.

Same with anyone who suggests Science Diet is a good idea - after you read the ingredients then tell me that.

The vet also mentioned Science Diet is a premium food. Forgot about that one. I love the comment about Supercoat! Lol! Mars and Nestles make a lot of fog food.

Can' t wait to try them with the new available soon BH fish and potato.

[cnsunshine]

I have a 7 month old Akita and I've been feeding her Vets All Natural Complete Mix Puppy, and I add in Kangaroo meat, so far I think its been working well with her. Each day I give her a tablespoon of yoghurt and a can of sardines a week.

Just be careful with changing their diets because they get upset tummys really easily. I've previously had her on Eukanuba large puppy breed (like someone said, too much corn) and Canidae (didn't agree with her, smelly farts and poop). Maybe consider buying smaller bags of food to see which one agrees with your puppy. I've done a lot of research and I monitor her (poops, fur condition etc - i know, its weird) to make sure she is as healthy as possible.

[Pockets]

Supercoat is considered a premium food, same as optimum and purina one, Advance, Royal Canin etc are Super a premium foods

We are an Advance Active household here, my dogs do vet well on it and never turn their nose up.

I hate food debates, feed the dogs what they like and do well on :) everyone will have differing opinions, but at the end of the day you and the dogs need to be happy with what your feeding, not the vet that sees you once a year :)

[LisaCC]

Supercoat is considered a premium food, same as optimum and purina one, Advance, Royal Canin etc are Super a premium foods

We are an Advance Active household here, my dogs do vet well on it and never turn their nose up.

I hate food debates, feed the dogs what they like and do well on :) everyone will have differing opinions, but at the end of the day you and the dogs need to be happy with what your feeding, not the vet that sees you once a year :)

I thought Purina One was the Premium food, and Supercoat was what ever you call below that, as they are both Purina? Then Pro Plan being the Super Premium.

I've been spending too much time looking at dog food, I'm getting confused!

Oh and I completely agree with the best food is whatever your dog does best on. As people already know my old boy did best on Pedigree!!

Edited May 27, 2013 by LisaCC

[dotdashdot]

Supercoat is considered a premium food, same as optimum and purina one, Advance, Royal Canin etc are Super a premium foods

We are an Advance Active household here, my dogs do vet well on it and never turn their nose up.

I hate food debates, feed the dogs what they like and do well on :) everyone will have differing opinions, but at the end of the day you and the dogs need to be happy with what your feeding, not the vet that sees you once a year :)

I thought Purina One was the Premium food, and Supercoat was what ever you call below that, as they are both Purina? Then Pro Plan being the Super Premium.

I've been spending too much time looking at dog food, I'm getting confused!

Oh and I completely agree with the best food is whatever your dog does best on. As people already know my old boy did best on Pedigree!!

Supercoat calls itself "premium quality". I guess, compared to some out there it could be considered such (I'm thinking those $1 per kg brands).

One and Supercoat seem very similar to me, maybe just appealing to different markets.