When should I switch my German Shepherd puppy to adult dog food?
She is 60 lbs, 6 months old and very healthy, skinny and active. But, she wants to eat my adult German Shepherd's dinner? Although getting better, dinner time can be a bit of a circus. She eats 2 cups Nutro Large Breed Chicken & Rice dry with 1/2 small can of Pediree Puppy food, twice a day.
You don’t have a GSD bit.ch puppy – you have a GIANT! See
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/The_GSD_Source/links/Size___Weight_001198649681/ for average weights at various ages. Averages are only averages, but the further from average something is the less typical it is. If you’ve given your girl’s correct weight she is already where a 9 months bit.ch should be – yet YOU say she is skinny! – so she is possibly one of the cross-breds called Shilohs.
Nothing you mention is what I would call food – dogs are carnivorous mammals, which means that their diet should start with enriched milk and gradually reduce the milk-mix and increase the raw meat (preferably mammal meat on the bone), maybe with an occasional raw egg. Mine are chewing real meat by 6 weeks old. Domestic dogs have adapted well to that being supplemented by cooked table scraps. And until both ears are firmly erect (preferably throughout its life) a pup should have a gnaw bone every night.
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/The_GSD_Source/links/Feeding__Nutrition__GDV_Bloat_001198556443/ will give you a range of information about different ways to feed dogs, including a way to compare the suitability of different kibbles, if you INSIST on using kibbles. Dogs are very adaptable and most can survive on whatever is supplied.
All kibble-fanciers should read through everything there about GDV-Bloat and note that the 35 year period in which bloat escalated some 18,000% beautifully matches the 35 year period in which kibbles went from virtually unheard of to virtually universal.
Wanna bet that that is mere coincidence?
Les P, owner of GSD_Friendly: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/GSD_Friendly
"In GSDs" as of 1967
Make sure the food your feeding has no corn,wheat,soy,gluten,or meat by products first of all. You can switch him to adult food when she’s a year old.
Well a big dog turns into a adult at 2 years
so 2 years.
You should be a feeding ALL Puppy food KIBBLE
I’d also suggest changing that food. It’s crap and a puppy needs good nutrition
Change to Canidae All Life Stages
It’s for all ages and good quality unlike Nutro and Pedigree..
I actually never feed puppy food to my puppies. I give them high quality adult dog food from the start. However, if you do feed puppy food, then switch at a year.
ABOUT 9MONTHS TO A YEAR.
you need to keep feeding her puppy food until she is a year old. even thought she may be quite large inside she is still a growing puppy and adult dog food will not give her the proper nutrients she needs to continue growing up healthy and strong, but dont give your adult dog puppy food theres to much fat content in puppy food and your adult dog could become overweight. just try to manage dinner time and keep their foods separate. royal canin has a great puppy food for large breed puppies. check out this website they may even have a food specifically for german shepherds.
http://www.royalcanin.us
Now is a great time to switch her over to adult food. You don’t want her growing to quickly since our breed is already predisposed to joint problem, it could possibly make them worse.
Check out our website and forums over at http://www.germanshepherdworld.net/ for more information on GSD joint issues and nutrition. Plus much more!
With most dog foods you wait until the dog has reached 1yr of age to switch to adult dog food. However there are some like Royal Canin and I believe Evo that you can stick with puppy food for up to 2yrs.
You should correct the puppy’s behavior though, if that doesn’t work then you should feed them separately.
As far as when to switch foods I would look at Nutro’s website or the bag of food you have.
A GSD, like many other similar breed of dogs, grows for a longer period of time, up to 18 months to two years of age. It is important to choose a diet (both type and amount) that regulates this growth naturally.
All commercial dog food products allegedly cause rapid and unnatural growth, leading to many problems particularly as the dog grows older. The natural physical growth pattern of a GSD is that it grows in height first and then in girth. A big and fat GSD puppy ((and yours does not appear to be ‘skinny’ by GSD standards) is NOT a healthy GSD!
I put my 9 month old GSD on a raw diet (chicken and oily fish – thus providing her with both Omega-6 and Omega-3 fatty acids) since she was about 10 weeks old with some eggs, liver, garlic, and carrots (all raw) added from time to time. I feed her the equivqlent of about 2.5 to 3 percent of her body weight daily. She is alert, active (very), healthy, happy, supple, and slim with ears so pointedly erect one could slice a melon with them! When I take her to the dog park, she jumps over (literally) all the other dogs as she plays, runs faster and longer than all of them and is not aggressive in any way. In contrast, I see puppies of similar age and breed that walk lethargically, like very old dogs, and act as if they suffer from acute migraine! This is no doubt because they are saturated with wheat or other cereals and chemicals from their commercially produced "healthy" kibbles diet.
This categorisation of puppy versus adult dog food is nothing but marketing rubbish by pet food manufacturers (who probably manufacture the soap powder and disinfectant you use as well). Think about how and what your puppy would eat in the wild and follow the same general pattern. She will live long and prosper.