Yes... More dog food questions. :)

[seeknoxrun]

In my area, there is a group of Danes and Mastiffs that meet for weekly play dates. We were talking about the appropriate nutrition for a growing giant breed puppy, and there was some controversy on some of the topics. Just hoping for some more perspectives, I guess.

I know it's important to be careful about calcium and phosphorous levels for a *growing* giant breed puppy, but what about for adult giant breeds? Is it the same range? Is it as strict?

If there is a difference in growing puppy and adult needs, how long do the puppies stay on a more strict calcium phosphorus ratio - for the first year? First three years, until they're completely done growing?

And if the kibble doesn't already have glucosamine/chondroitin added in, should supplements be given? Starting at what age?

And lastly, has anyone heard of the Victor dog food (specifically the grain free formulas)? I poked around on their website, but didn't see anything that listed calcium and phosphorus levels.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Smart_Family]

The first 2 years the calcium matters. After that the growth plate are closed or close to closed and excess calcium won't really affect them anymore. As far as supplements, I tend to go with the school of thought that no extra supplementation is needed unless a real issue comes up. I've never heard of victor foods.

 

[seeknoxrun]

Thank you, I was hoping you would answer. You're such a wealth of information!

A friend uses it for his Danes and swears by it. He says its less expensive, but comparable to Taste Of The Wild in quality. Here is the site: http://www.victordogfood.com/ On DogFoodAdvisor, it's listed as a five star food. I was hoping other people had experience with or knowledge of it. My husband really wasn't into the Prey Model (tried it for about two weeks: Knox kept throwing up his meals, and Roux had horrible diarrhea for the entire two weeks - not sure if I was doing something wrong?) and was very insistent on sticking with kibble.

They were on TOTW before trying Prey Model, and we transitioned them back onto since we had some extra on hand. But they both have horrible gas on it (and did even before trying Prey Model), so I've been considering a switch. Most likely going to go with Earthborn, but was curious about the Victor foods.

 

[Smart_Family]

Are you looking at the grain free all life stages formula? Ingredient wise, besides having chicken in it, it looks okay. I can try to find the calcium and phosphorus levels later and get back to you. I'm just about to run out the door

 

[seeknoxrun]

Yes, the Grain Free ALS formula. I'm also curious about the Grain Free Joint Health formula.

No rush! And thanks a million.

 

[Smart_Family]

So I called them and the person I spoke with was unable to answer what the calcium and phosphorus levels but said I could call back Monday. I'm going to try and send an email as well.

 

[Jeri]

If it's any help, I feed my Neo Natural Balance Sweet Potatoe & Venison formula. Before this he had horrible gas & loose stools. Now all is good & the gas is minimal. Natural Balance is an all life stages food. I stay away from chicken formulas.

 

[seeknoxrun]

I decided to go with Earthborn - but I'd have to drive over an hour to find a store that sells it, so I ordered it online. Thanks for looking into Victor for me, though. I tried calling and sent two emails myself... Never got an answer. So they lost my business before they ever had it.

 

[Smart_Family]

I decided to go with Earthborn - but I'd have to drive over an hour to find a store that sells it, so I ordered it online. Thanks for looking into Victor for me, though. I tried calling and sent two emails myself... Never got an answer. So they lost my business before they ever had it.

Yea I didn't get a chance to call again but I did send an email and it went unanswered. I was kind of thrown off that the person who answered the phone the other day had no clue about the calcium and phosphorus levels. It seems like something that she should've known or at least had in front of her while answering phones.

 

[seeknoxrun]

Another question for y'all.

We JUST started transitioning my two onto Earthborn Holostics Meadow Feast (from TOTW) for a variety of reasons, but mostly because of the recent recalls. Several weeks ago my youngest (Roux, now 16 weeks) started itching like crazy, and her itchiness peaked over the weekend. Her belly, armpits, and groin area broke out in a rash that irritated her to no end. On Monday, my husband took her to the vet (a rare occasion that he had a day off and I didn't) to have her checked for parasites/mites and to discuss other possibilities.

After a skin scraping, vet determined no mites or parasites. He then explored the idea of a food allergy, and my husband explained that we were just starting the transition over to Earthborn. Vet asked about the ingredients for both TOTW and Earthborn, but I handle all the dog stuff and Dan has no clue about ingredients and such. Dan recalls the vet instructing us to steer clear of "by products" and "meals." Well, the main animal protein source in the Meadow Feast is lamb meal, and Dan wasn't sure if those words of caution also included lamb (or chicken, turkey, fish, etc) meal or just pertained to things like corn meal, gluten meal, etc.

So, should I be concerned about *lamb meal* being in the ingredients if we're worried about a possible food allergy/sensitivity? Or is it strictly grain meal that causes problems?

 

[Smart_Family]

No lamb meal is actually a better quality ingredient than regular lamb due to how it's processed. He probably meant corn meal, grain meal, etc.

---------- Post added at 11:42 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:34 AM ----------

If he did mean meat meal, which I don't think he did but I'm thinking outloud here, I'd be curious to know what food he wants you to feed since I'm pretty sure it's next to impossible to find a dog kibble that doesn't have any meat meal in it.

 

[Smart_Family]

If he did mean meat meal, which I don't think he did but I'm thinking outloud here, I'd be curious to know what food he wants you to feed since I'm pretty sure it's next to impossible to find a dog kibble that doesn't have any meat meal in it.

 

[seeknoxrun]

That's what I was thinking, too. I always thought that meat meal was superior to "de-boned, blah blah" meat protein sources because it included more of the nutritional elements of the animal, so I was a little confused. And it's entirely possible that Dan just misunderstood.

Might still call and ask, just to be sure. I'll let you know what he says if I do end up calling.

 

[Smart_Family]

Okay sounds good!

 

[jersey girl]

I just started my 6 month old Corso on Earthborn Meadow also. She was on TOTW until the recall too. She seems to really like it and is tolerating it well. I'm also thinking about adding Honest Kitchen to her rotation.

 

[Smart_Family]

I just started my 6 month old Corso on Earthborn Meadow also. She was on TOTW until the recall too. She seems to really like it and is tolerating it well. I'm also thinking about adding Honest Kitchen to her rotation.

Glad she's doing well on it! Just make sure to give her some time to fully transition onto Earthborn before adding the honest kitchen too

 

[jersey girl]

Glad she's doing well on it! Just make sure to give her some time to fully transition onto Earthborn before adding the honest kitchen too

Thanks Smart Family...I planned on waiting until she has fully transitioned. Question though...she's been on Earthborn for 6 days and today she started eating her own poop. She has never done this before today. As I mentioned, she was on TOTW Lamb for about a month before the recall, before that she was on Natural Balance All life Stages Lamb and Brown Rice.

Thanks for any advice

 

[Smart_Family]

It can happen from time to time, especially with curious pups. Just keep an eye on her to try and make sure she doesn't eat it. Her body may still be adjusting as well. How is she besides that? Eating okay? Hows her stool?

 

[jersey girl]

It can happen from time to time, especially with curious pups. Just keep an eye on her to try and make sure she doesn't eat it. Her body may still be adjusting as well. How is she besides that? Eating okay? Hows her stool?

She's eating great, seems to like the food. Her stool is firm for the most part. I was just concerned that perhaps it was the change in food. I read when dogs eat their stool it may be a sign they arent getting the nutrition they need. We typically clean up each time she goes....this one snuck by us Hopefully it's just her being curious like you said. Thank you for the response!