Change Foods?

[mhenkes]

Hello again :) I have a question about a 4 month old Lab puppy I got about 3weeks ago. We are over half way done with 25lbs TOTW Pacific, which he has been 100% on for 2 weeks. His coat seems so so and he has some dander. His #2 leads strong and firm but ends soft...:/ Should I keep rolling with the TOTW for a bit longer to see if his coast gets softer and #2's firm up? Or maybe switch to Wellness LBP or Fromm LBP. The people I got him from had him on Ped puppy and he seemed to have a better coat, but his #2's where just terrible so I made the switch.

PS: I know the PH/Cal argument. I just got caught up at he feed store with prices/choices and the sales girls just kept talking up TOTW.

[cast71]

Hi, if your going to feed TOTW, only the sierra mountain formula has the correct phosphorous and calcium levels. I feed TOTW and it's a decent food. My sisters lab does horrible on the pacific formula. I think there's to much taters in that and the sierra formula. Is it possible your overfeeding him? How much does he weigh, and how much are you feeding? Don't go buy the chart on any dog food bag. It's overkill Here's a list of some grain frees that are good for LBP's Grain-free Formulas for a LBP I like acana alot. If your on a tight budget, nutrisca chicken looks good and there's no taters;0) Enjoy your new pup

[mhenkes]

Thank you for the reply. I feed him about 3.5 cups per day. He is 37lbs and is mildly active.

[cast71]

That's how much TOTW I would feed, if I fedd 100% kibble and my dog weighs 85 lbs. I think your overfeeding. You probably want to start at around 2 cups a day, and adjust from there. You want his body slim, especially while growing. You should easily be able to feel ribs and even see the outline of his first rib. You should also be able to see a fit waist from looking above. Keep an eye on his poop. If it's wet or huge your probably overfeeding. How does his body look?

[mhenkes]

I think he looks on the thin side. The vet said he looked great at our visit on Thursday. The bag calls for 4cups per day. I will slowly switch it over to the other flavor... I am concerned with the Ph/Ca levels

[baggie]

You're not going to see any difference in coat within 2 weeks in my opinion. I don't have any advice for amount of feeding as I've never had a puppy. Just adult rescues. I've had my current pup for 5 years (8 years old) and she is on EVO and she's 20 lbs. To maintain her ideal weight we feed 1/2 cup a day.

From what I've gathered, large breed puppies always seem to look thin.

ETA: I generally start at about half of what the bag suggests to feed.

[cast71]

It sux that you waisted money on the wrong formula, but maybe you can donate it to a shelter. I would feed a food with the right calcium/phosphorous levels, until he's finished growing. About 1 years old. Than swith to whatever you like, or he likes Rotation is best. You could even rotate the LBP formulas as well. It is better for your pup to be on the skinny side. I have my dog for 7.5 years and he still looks skinny. He's also very healthy for a 9 year old dog. People think he's a puppy still When you keep your dog slim and feed the right calcium/phosphorous levels, it is a slow steady controlled growth. This is better than growth spurts for large breed dogs. Why not experiment a little. You can do no harm! Start feeding 1 cup 2 times a day. Don't go buy if he acts starving, they like to play yogi bear. Go buy his body weight. If he really starts losing weight than make small increases. If he maintains, that's perfect. You want to feed the least amount of food, while maintaining perfect body weight. Whish I could do that for myself, but I'm working on it Good luck and if you have any questions, there's plenty of kool people here that will help you out.

[Khan]

If you are going to switch "Flavors" within the same brand, you should not have to switch as "slowly" as you would if you were moving from brand to brand.
I also agree that it might be a little early to tell if his coat is going to get better or worse on what you are feeding. It may be that he is detoxing from the old food, which is making his coat "blow out" and a new better looking coat will soon be emerging...? I do think he is getting a little too much food. Which is why his poop is starting out good and ending on the soft side. Remember, the higher quality foods have more "good stuff" so a little goes a long way in the nutrient department!