Feeding Your Puppy

What you feed your puppy and dog provides the basic foundation for their health. It is important to make sure whatever you feed provides all the nutrients your puppy needs for growth the first year, and then provides what your dog needs to promote continued good health. Obesity is a serious concern in dogs, which typically is due to not understanding how to feed a dog optimally. An obese dog is at risk for joint disorders, heart problems, gastro-intestinal problems, just to name a few. It is important for you to remember, if your dog becomes obese, it will void your health contract with me.

To determine if your dog is overweight, you can do the rib test. When you press gently on your dog’s sides, you should be able to feel their ribs. You should also see a slight dip near their back end, which is their waist. It is actually much healthier for a dog to be “slightly” underweight, than to be overweight. Please note, “slightly” means a couple of pounds. An undernourished dog is not at all healthy. Many veterinarians will tell you your dog is underweight when they in fact, are not.

I have been feeding my dogs raw food since 2006. All of my puppies are weaned onto raw goat’s milk and ground meat, usually turkey, beef or lamb followed later by chicken. Around 4-5 weeks I introduce raw meaty bones, usually beef or lamb, which I get from a local butcher. At 6-7 weeks I introduce raw chicken in the form of whole wings, sometimes partially broken up before feeding. By 8 weeks, puppies are given chicken legs, beef rib bones, beef heart, liver, kidneys, tripe, and lamb shanks as well as whole pieces of muscle meat. I believe in raw feeding, and highly encourage it. I am happy to help answer any questions and to provide information and resources for feeding your puppy raw food.

I do realize not everyone will be feeding their dogs raw food. If you decide to look at other options, my recommendation is to feed a grain-inclusive high quality kibble. Some commercial dog foods have been linked to Diet Associate Dilated Cardio Myopathy. You can read here about research being done regarding Diet-Related Dilated Cardiomyopathy . There are several links on the AKC website to read through and keep up to date on what to look for in a balanced dog food.