[roy]

I have a gr puppy around 3 months old. Just got him from a breeder, and he recommended to continue my pup with royal canin.

But I have actually read before that rc is not really good. I thought that this is a good time to introduce a new brand of dog food to him, something that is premium quality food that he deserves. Please don't tell me to google the answer because I've already done my research, I want someone with experience that knows gr pretty well to answer me. Already scanned the forums but didn't find an answer. Any help will be appreciated.

 

[solinvictus]

New puppies coming home are in a lot of stress. I would keep the pup on the food the breeder suggests for at least a month before changing over to something else. When transitioning to a new food you should slowly introduce the new food taking about 10 days to complete. I am sure there are many quality foods that will be suggested. My last puppy was on Fromm gold and did well. Congratulations on your new pup.

 

[cath1024]

we are switching our 14 week old from the breeders choice of Royal Cainn as well .... I always thought Royal Cainn was a top brand as the cost is up there but from reading the forums and from what I read on Dog Food Advisor it doesnt seem to be one of the better ones so we are switching to Fromm puppy Gold (pink Bag) .
We started the switch a few days ago and are doing 50/50 of both foods and also adding a 1/2 tablespoon of pure pumpkin on the food .... we were advised to add the pumpkin in case of any upset tummies or diarrhea ... she has been totally fine so far with the switch and seems to really love the Fromm .... she tries to pick around the Royal Cainn but does end up eating everything.

 

[jacob21]

Hey, you could use the forum search button and you'll find what you're looking for.

As for my opinion, RC is decent but there are more good ones. I've seen Nutro, Orijen, TOTW which are pretty popular too and they have products specifically for puppies. One thing you should note is that you can't switch dog foods outright, it has a gradual transition of 3 to 7 days before it is fully switched. Also since we are talking about GR you should consider looking for formulas specifically for large breed puppies, its critical you know that. Go look out why.

I'd like to reference this guide here that might help you Dog Stuff Expert

 

[roy]

New puppies coming home are in a lot of stress. I would keep the pup on the food the breeder suggests for at least a month before changing over to something else. When transitioning to a new food you should slowly introduce the new food taking about 10 days to complete. I am sure there are many quality foods that will be suggested. My last puppy was on Fromm gold and did well. Congratulations on your new pup.

I would agree here that it is really stressful both for my puppy and me! :laugh: Thanks and I'm enjoying every moment I have with my him.

 

[roy]

we are switching our 14 week old from the breeders choice of Royal Cainn as well .... I always thought Royal Cainn was a top brand as the cost is up there but from reading the forums and from what I read on Dog Food Advisor it doesnt seem to be one of the better ones so we are switching to Fromm puppy Gold (pink Bag) .
We started the switch a few days ago and are doing 50/50 of both foods and also adding a 1/2 tablespoon of pure pumpkin on the food .... we were advised to add the pumpkin in case of any upset tummies or diarrhea ... she has been totally fine so far with the switch and seems to really love the Fromm .... she tries to pick around the Royal Cainn but does end up eating everything.

yeah I feel you rc is a bit costly, I would like to take my budget into account also when I change my dog food. I don't want to go bankrupt with the high priced foods I'm seeing at the groceries.

Yeah, I've heard pumpkin is good for transitioning foods. I should always have some ready. :nerd:

 

[Cpc1972]

What about Nutro large breed puppy or purina pro plan large breed puppy. Both are easy to find at petsmart or petco and are reasonably priced. A quality food is one your dog does well on that fits your budget.

 

[Pipersmom]

I have a gr puppy around 3 months old. Just got him from a breeder, and he recommended to continue my pup with royal canin.

But I have actually read before that rc is not really good. I thought that this is a good time to introduce a new brand of dog food to him, something that is premium quality food that he deserves. Please don't tell me to google the answer because I've already done my research, I want someone with experience that knows gr pretty well to answer me. Already scanned the forums but didn't find an answer. Any help will be appreciated.

I've had the best luck with Halo dog food. We have a rescue (not a golden) that was on Halo. She has the best build and most shiny coat of any dog I've ever had. We have a golden puppy now too and we are feeding him Halo as well. (Tried Orijen puppy...but it didn't work for him). He's now on grain free Halo all life stages ( not puppy ) and doing fabulous. I had never heard of Halo before our rescue dog, but will use it for all our dogs in the future - it's GREAT!

 

[roy]

Hey, you could use the forum search button and you'll find what you're looking for.

As for my opinion, RC is decent but there are more good ones. I've seen Nutro, Orijen, TOTW which are pretty popular too and they have products specifically for puppies. One thing you should note is that you can't switch dog foods outright, it has a gradual transition of 3 to 7 days before it is fully switched. Also since we are talking about GR you should consider looking for formulas specifically for large breed puppies, its critical you know that. Go look out why.

I'd like to reference this guide here that might help you Dog Stuff Expert

I did search Thanks for the tip regarding food for large breeds. I was not aware that calcium intake on large breed puppies is very critical and may cause problems if in excess. >

 

[roy]

What about Nutro large breed puppy or purina pro plan large breed puppy. Both are easy to find at petsmart or petco and are reasonably priced. A quality food is one your dog does well on that fits your budget.

Yes I've read about Nutro puppy on the homepage of this forum, it looks promising. Yes there should be quality foods at minimum cost only. Still can't decide so many options.

 

[danoon58]

Our boy Seamus was on Fromm large breed puppy food but had soft stool. We transitioned him to Orijen Large Breed Puppy and then after a year ld to Orijen 6 fish. It's not the least expensive food out there but our boys love it!

 

[jacob21]

Our boy Seamus was on Fromm large breed puppy food but had soft stool. We transitioned him to Orijen Large Breed Puppy and then after a year ld to Orijen 6 fish. It's not the least expensive food out there but our boys love it!

Yes that's not really cheap, considering you have a large breed it is really costly. :grin2: But anyway Orijen is a really good food if the OP is still searching for answers.

 

[Breiwynn]

My GSD use to eat RC since it was recommended by our vet at the time. I did some research and wasn't happy with all the fillers, not to mention the quality of his coat wasn't as nice. He's been eating Acana by Champion Pet Foods (they also make Orijen, Canadian brand) for the past three years now but it's very pricey. We also liked Fromm and Pulsar by Horizon (also Canadian).

 

[rosie1703]

its hard to tell which is the best and people are going to tell you different brands depending on what have worked for them. I think it depends on your dog.... I am not a fan of Royal Canine i don't like their ingredients i feel like you are just paying for the brand.
the top 4 foods i like from our experience is NUTRISOURCE Grain free chicken and peas. I fed my dogs this food and they did great! my yorkie loved it, my lab ate it for a while then got tired of it (he is a picky eater) the downside is that is not sold by stores likes petsmarts petco or walmart and moving to Hawaii made it hard to find and get shipped. Next one is WELLNESS is good i love the ingredients but i can afford it for 3 dogs but is highly recommended. FORMM is good too but its kind of too rich so my first golden didn't do too good with it but great ingredients. NUTRO ULTRA Senior formula is what i feed my yorkie i love this food!! its pricey tho but cheaper than wellness. Ingreients are very similar to WELLNESS. I feed my golden and my lab PURINA PROPLAN. it is not the most premium high quality food but its the food that my picky eater lab likes and my Golden eats anything. Eventually when they are adults we are going to switch them to NUTRO ULTRA.

 

[murphy1]

One thing to point out regarding the higher quality food is that you feed less! The bag may be expensive but it lasts alot longer.

 

[ceegee]

I know people who work for Royal Canin, and there's a lot of research behind their foods. It's not the "done thing" today to feed RC and similar brands, but I've had my pup on it for a while now and he's doing well. We tried Acana and TOTW, and both were too rich for him: soft stools, lots of stools, night-time diarrhea, etc. I switched to RC on my vet's advice, and it completely cured the problems. He's in much better condition that he was on the other foods. His coat is beautiful. We'll probably switch again when he's a bit older, but for now I'm happy with the results I'm getting with RC.

 

[Hootie821]

When we brought home our new puppy back in August, we transitioned her from what the breeder was feeding to Fromm Large Breed Puppy dry. Our pup likes it really well and has good stools with no tummy upset. She is always eager to eat and we also use the dry kibble for her training treats as well.

I chose that food primarily due to research I did that showed it was one of the only foods in which all the ingredients are from the USA. Some foods may say they are "made in the USA" but they are still importing some of the ingredients from Asia (mainly vitamins/minerals). I did not want to feed her a food that did this.

The only place I can purchase it is Chewy.com however....but I love how quick they ship! :smile2:

 

[thelady]

Every time I've tried to switch my 7 month old Bella gets diarreha.
She's on Royal Canin High Energy and I don't like the ingredients.
I will try to switch again after she is spayed.

My 12.5 year old Golden is on Solid Gold Vegetarian.
She just had a physical and the vet said I don't think I can charge
you for the full physical. She's in great health.

 

[hotel4dogs]

*ding*ding*ding*
We have a winner!!

A quality food is one your dog does well on that fits your budget.

 

[thelady]

Our older Golden can't have chicken or corn. No grains. So that's why Solid Gold works for her.
She used to eat Eukanuba and scratch her whiskers off. I thought what the heck.
Switched food and no itching, no ear infections, no hot spots and no belly rashes.
Feeding Bella less is not an option. She's a pig.