Puppy Care
Are you excitedly planning and marking down the days until you get to take your new puppy home? If you are, you’ve probably spent some time planning and preparing for your little bundle of fur. An important thing to plan for and learn about before you bring the puppy home is feeding.
I’ve put together a little guide for our puppy buyers (and anyone else who needs it) to help understand some basics about feeding your puppy.
I wanted to start of with saying these are only recommendations and you don’t have to stress out about following everything perfectly. Keep an eye on your puppy’s weight, energy level, and appearance. That will let you know if you are on the best path for proper nutrition.
If you notice something about your puppy such as chubbiness, lack of energy, or a boney appearance, you may need to consult your vet and adjust their diet. That’s ok!
Puppy Needs
Puppies have different nutritional needs from adult dogs. Because they are growing so rapidly, they need a lot more calories, fat, and minerals from their food. That is why we shouldn’t give a puppy adult food for their regular diet.
Quality of Food
The quality of the food you feed matters as well. Poor quality foods tend to have a lot of “fillers” and not a lot of nutrition which your puppy desperately needs. Consequentially, your puppy will probably end up eating more of the poor quality food to make up for the lack and you won’t be saving any money in the long run.
We use Purina Pro Plan Puppy Food and have had great results! There are a lot of different kinds of PPP Puppy food. We use the Chicken and Rice blend, but be sure to check our recommended products page to make sure.
Free Feeding vs. Feeding on a Schedule
Free feeding might sound convenient, but we recommend starting your puppy on a scheduled feeding routine for a few reasons:
First, it’s a good idea to monitor your puppy’s food intake and weight especially as they are transitioning into life in your home. You can also prevent obesity by feeding on a schedule because a lot of puppies will gobble down any food that’s available whether they are hungry or not.
Second, feeding on a schedule helps potty training! Puppies almost always need to relieve themselves shortly after eating and drinking. It’s like clockwork! That predictability gives you a wonderful opportunity to take your puppy outside for some successful potty trips!
Supplements - Don’t Skip This!
Dog food alone isn’t enough!
Let’s talk about supplements. If you’re like most people, you probably figured all your puppy’s nutritional needs will be met by their dog food. Picking a quality dog food (like Purina Pro Plan) is definitely important, but even the best food can leave nutritional gaps at different stages of your puppy’s development. This is because all dry dog foods are cooked, and the heat from cooking kills many important nutrients. Many dog foods are made with hormones, preservatives, meat by-products, and could contain residue from pesticides. Several brands contain corn and grain which may cause food sensitivities, and some pet treats are packed with sugar.
I’m going to dedicate another lesson on this important topic, but I wanted to touch base on it here because it’s part of feeding.
Order NuVet now
How often should I feed my puppy?
Until your puppy is about 6 months old you should feed them 3-4 times a day.
Puppies use a lot of energy growing and their digestive systems do much better with smaller, more frequent feedings, rather than one or two big meals.
Small, frequent meals also help balance their energy levels so they aren’t skyrocketing and crashing too dramatically.
After your puppy is 6 months old you can move toward 2 meals a day which is what you’ll probably stick with for the rest of his life.
How much food should I give my Puppy?
I’ve created a handy dandy little chart to help answer this question:
Print this feeding chart out by clicking here.
The weight as adults is the estimated size of your puppy will be when they grow up. It’s a pretty wide range, so don’t worry if you aren’t sure.
The amount in cups is for each feeding (not for the entire day).
Once again, I want to remind you that these are just guidelines. If your puppy acts like he is starving after every meal and isn’t packing the pounds (but growing normally), then it’s ok to increase the amount.
Changing Foods
Most people know this, but it’s something I feel we should cover anyway. If you want to change the type of food you are giving your puppy (either to a different brand or different blend within the same brand family), always do so gradually.
Gradually changing your puppy’s food will help prevent digestive issues like diarrhea (which is awful when you are potty training!
We recommend changing the food gradually over 7 days. Start by giving a little of the new food and a lot of the old food. The next day gives a little more of the new food and a little less of the old food. Continue until you’ve reached day 7 where your puppy is going to get most new food and only a little old food.
When do we switch to adult food?
The short answer is between 12 and 18 months old or when they reach 90% of their expected adult weight.
Smaller dogs tend to reach their mature size closer to 12 months old, whereas larger breed dogs take longer.
As outlined above, make sure to switch gradually.
Cost and Ways to Save on Dog Food
Our dogs will eat 2-3 cups of this food per day, and you’ll get about 7 weeks of feed out of a 50 lb. bag. The typical cost for Purina Pro Plan is $80-90 per bag.
Puppies will eat slightly less, but should be offered this, it will be the amount to feed for their lifetime. It costs somewhere between $60-70 for a 34 lbs bag.
Ways to Save:
The cost of everything has risen lately, so we’ve worked on finding some ways to save on dog food.
Subscriptions - several companies will offer a discount for dog food if you subscribe to receive it on a regular basis. We love doing this because, not only are you saving money, but you don’t have to haul heavy bags of dog food from the store. Subscription services can be found at Chewy.com, Amazon, and Tractor Supply.
Purina Perks - This is an app that allows you to create a profile for your pet and earn points by uploading receipts.
Purina Pro Club - if you have 5 or more cats and dogs, you can join the Purina Pro Club and earn points with every purchase you make. Points can be redeemed for gift cards or products.
Foods that are dangerous for puppies
We all know chocolate isn’t good for dogs, but did you know that grapes, macadamia nuts, and raisins also aren’t good for them? Here are some more things to keep away from your puppy:
Onions
Garlic
Chives
Milk and large amounts of dairy products such as cheese
Alcohol
Coffee and caffeine
Salty food, such as potato chips
Food sweetened with xylitol, such as gum, baked goods, and candy.
The rewards of good nutrition for your puppy
Your puppy is going to be awesome. You’ll probably become great friends and will experience some amazing things in your life together. You are already investing a lot of time and money into your puppy and you haven’t even brought him home! So it’s totally worth it to do the right thing when it comes to your puppy’s diet.
A great diet with proper nutrition will keep your puppy healthy and happy, which is absolutely invaluable, don’t you think?