Need suggestions for puppy's RC diet.

[Ida]

I have read the comment that it would be great to start feed her an adult food rather than puppy food. Today I just bought Royal Canin Mini for Adult which I'll feed to Ida who has 3 months of age.

I need suggestions for the amount of food I should feed her by RC mini adult. Could anyone who feeding puppies by this product please suggest. I know about how to changing the food, just need the amount of adult food which should feed to a puppy.

by the way, I also bought RC CKCS and need the suggestion about feeding by this product as well.

Could anyone give me an advise, would be appreciated.
Best regards,

[Phoebe]

Actually I'm interested in the replies that you get. Our adult Cavalier has Royal Canin, Cavalier kibble and our five month old puppy would love to get her little paws on it! I'm wondering how much longer I should keep her on puppy kibble before I give her R. Canin adult. Could anyone tell me please if six months is still too young? (I've still got a big bag full of puppy kibble to get through yet)

[Murphy]

Ida, I would think it is perhaps a little too early to be thinking of feeding an adult food. Your puppy is only halfway grown by 12 weeks, so needs high protein Puppy food for the next 3 months at least.
If I were you I would wait for another 12 weeks. Just my opinion though.

Phoebe,
If the protein is high enough, there would be no harm in using RC Adult, but, like you, I like to use up what I have before starting anything new.
Just be careful that puppy is not getting too fat - some of the puppy foods are very high in fat - but, other than that, I would tend to finish the bag of Puppy.
Elspeth

[Janice]

I hope Im not hijacking the thread but I wanted to ask the same sort of question. Reuben (8 months) is so thin and he doesnt eat much at all. I have continued on puppy food as it has more protein and be more likely to build him up but wondering if I should use adult instead?

[Murphy]

Janice,
Puppy food has the advantage of being high in protein, so is very necessary for good growth. The trouble is, the high protein does enable puppies to produce a great deal of energy which, in turn, can make them run off all the goodness they have just imbibed.
By 8 months, I would see nothing wrong in changing to an adult food. If he is a 'busy' boy then a lower protein food might just help with the weight.
Don't beat yourself up over a dog puppy being thin. Just think of all the skinny teenage boys you have seen...............it will all sort itself out in time.
Elspeth

[Karlin]

Feeding issues are always the most contentious! My own opinion from reading both sides of the discussion over a few years now is that puppy food is not necessary though some like to feed it. Lots of us never feed it at all. I don't and never recommend it.

Many breeders especially in the US do not feed it to their puppies and will not recommend it to their owners -- indeed for many breeders (such as Roycroft's Laura Lang) it actually violates the our terms of contract for adopting a puppy, to feed puppy food. This is because many feel puppy food is far too high in protein and nutrients, accelerates growth, and can contribute to bone and joint problems later in life. It is known that accelerated growth can cause serious problems for large breeds. Whether this holds true for small breeds I do not know, but personally I feel at best puppy food (except for underweight pups in poor health) is just a marketing ploy. So is kitten food, for that matter. Most cat breeders I know of also will not recommend kitten food. So there are strong differences of opinion on this as with many types of feeding issues.

Consider that once canids are weaned, the parents do not feed them a special diet for the next 6 months to year of their life! They simply eat what the pack eats. Likewise children do not need extra high levels of nutrition in their food. They will as they are growing, generally eat more food than adults and just need healthy diets (sadly something fewer and fewer kids seem to get these days...).

I'd feed an adult food in the same amount as a puppy food -- and be aware most puppies will gradually eat less anyway (mine all dropped from about a cup a day to somewhere between 1/3rd to 3/4ths of a cup of food, US measure).

For more info on feeding puppies and adults cavaliers, scroll down this page from cavalier breeder Laura Lang:

http://roycroftcavaliers.com/manualfeeding.htm

For the average home I think the best and most balanced diet for a dog is a primarily dry food based diet (NEVER only soft food -- this is setting the dog up for very poor gum and teeth health which i turn leads directly to higher risk for heart disease) -- supplemented with *real* food such as fresh meat, veg and fruit, occasional tinned or prepared raw, etc. There are lots of suggestions on healthy feeding in the Library section.

[Karlin]

Laura Lang on puppy food, an opinion I know is held by a lot of US show breeders:

I would never, EVER feed a typical grocery store bought dog kibble as their quality is quite inferior to Canidae and some of the other dog kibbles. This includes Iams and Science Diet which I consider very poor quality as compared to the ones I've mentioned (compare the ingredients to see why!).

I will NOT feed a Puppy Food either. My dogs get only a quality Adult Food. At one time dog kibble was so poor in quality that if you did not feed a puppy food, the puppy would not get the nourishment it needed. Today the problem as reversed. Puppy foods are so powerful they actually cause the bones of a puppy to grow more quickly than the surrounding tissues are able to. This causes uneven development and may exaggerate any genetic predisposition to skeletal problems such as hip dysplasia or patellar luxation. Feed a high quality adult kibble ONLY. Note: Feeding a Puppy Food will void my warranty.

I'm sure that only complicates the issue!

[Janice]

Laura Lang on puppy food, an opinion I know is held by a lot of US show breeders:



I'm sure that only complicates the issue!

Well that's Reuben buggered up then as I have fed him puppy food for the last 6 months and he is leggy!!!

[Phoebe]

Janice, your post made me laugh!
Grace is going on for five months and I've kept her on the puppy kibble that the breeder recommended as I thought I was doing the best thing for her. There's no doubt that it suits her tummy and she seems really well, but she is incredibly leggy. Do you think we might be comparing photos of our freakishly tall Cavaliers when they are both adults?
Got to work our way through nearly a full bag of ridiculously expensive puppy kibble as well - think I shall start mixing it with her sister's adult R.C.

[Love my Cavaliers]

My breeder is one of those that steers clear of puppy food. In her take-home instructions she specifically advises NOT to feed puppy food. All three of my dogs from her (Oliver was from a different breeder) have done well on adult kibble from day one with me.