# Food Suggestions for 10 Month Old Golden (Not PPP Please)



## GoldenDude (Nov 5, 2016)

Eukanuba. Large Breed. Adult or Puppy. Have used both.


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

The PPP is not the issue. You are feeding too much and or giving to many treats. No dog ever starved to death holding out for a different brand or flavor of food. 
It would not be unusual for a 10 month old to have a decrease in appetite at the end of a growth spurt.


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## Hildae (Aug 15, 2012)

I agree with SRW and would add that putting "toppers" on the food will definitely start you down the road of creating a picky eater that will end up driving you nuts over the long run. I would stay with the food you have, stop toppers, and start giving the dog a time limit to eat. The bowl goes down for 20 minutes. After that time, the bowl goes up and no food until lunch/dinner. Same thing at dinner, 20 minutes to eat then the bowl goes up til breakfast. Be mindful of portions too, and keep treats down.


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## pawsnpaca (Nov 11, 2014)

I know others (clearly) won't agree, but I don't personally believe in forcing my dog to eat something he doesn't like, nor of feeding the same food day after day after day after day for his whole life. That doesn't seem healthy, loving or fair, especially given there are tons of great foods out there now. I'd pick two or three (ideally different brands/primary protein/grains) and rotate through them every few months. 









Why You Should Switch Dog Foods Frequently - Whole Dog Journal


Whole Dog Journal‘s mission is to provide dog guardians with in-depth information on dog food, training, behavior, health, and more.




www.whole-dog-journal.com





Here's a guide as to what to look for when assessing a new food: Best Dog Food | What To Look For In Dog Food

The Whole Dog Journal also puts out a "recommended foods" list every year that I have always used to guide my choices (I feed raw, but use kibble for training treats and food dispensing toys). The list is technically available only to subscribers (great publication if you want to subscribe) but you can often find older lists published on line by other sources. Here's one fairly recent one: http://www.somersetcottagepoodlerescue.org/uploads/1/0/9/1/109155247/2019_wdjapproveddrydogfoods.pdf

For now, I'd avoid any grain-free foods due to the currently unknown causes of diet-related DCM, but most manufacturers offer both grain-free and grain inclusive varieties. And remember, in the end, the best food for your dog is the food your dog does best on. If he looks and acts healthy on the current PPP, and looks less so when you switch him to something else, then keep trying until you find a few foods that he will eat and looks great on.


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

It isn't healthy, loving or fair when food is the highlight of a retrievers day.


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

pawsnpaca said:


> I know others (clearly) won't agree, but I don't personally believe in forcing my dog to eat something he doesn't like, nor of feeding the same food day after day after day after day for his whole life.


I agree with you! At around a year my youngest golden also started turning up her nose at her puppy food. I was already in the habit of mixing two different flavours of bags for my older golden, so I switched her over to that food. But, after about a week, she started refusing that food, as well. After some playing around, it turns out that she just dislikes eating the same flavour everyday. So now we have her on a three day rotation of flavours. Interestingly, we just ran a sensitivity panel on her fur, and it turns out that she is sensitive to the first 3/5 ingredients in her puppy food, and also sensitive to some of the ingredients in the first adult food we introduced her too. So, that too may have been another reason for her starting to refuse those kibbles. Not a bad idea to listen to what your dog is telling you! I do agree that disguising the food with toppers is a bad route to go in the long-term.


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## LeilaBailey (Sep 20, 2021)

pawsnpaca said:


> I know others (clearly) won't agree, but I don't personally believe in forcing my dog to eat something he doesn't like, nor of feeding the same food day after day after day after day for his whole life. That doesn't seem healthy, loving or fair, especially given there are tons of great foods out there now. I'd pick two or three (ideally different brands/primary protein/grains) and rotate through them every few months.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I never had to add toppings before only the green beans which she loved. I just tried the pumpkin recently since she liked it when she was small. It is very obvious something is not enjoyable to her about this kibble to her. I tried tossing her a few of the senior dogs kibble and she would eat it. I dont think she is getting too many treats. We only feed her vegetable treats anyway. Thank You for the info I am thinking of trying Fromm kibble.


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## ArkansasGold (Dec 7, 2017)

LeilaBailey said:


> I never had to add toppings before only the green beans which she loved. I just tried the pumpkin recently since she liked it when she was small. It is very obvious something is not enjoyable to her about this kibble to her. I tried tossing her a few of the senior dogs kibble and she would eat it. I dont think she is getting too many treats. We only feed her vegetable treats anyway. Thank You for the info I am thinking of trying Fromm kibble.


I would advise against Fromm. Too many cases of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) on that brand, even the grain inclusive formulas.

I can’t feed PPP because my girl is allergic to the current formula. I highly recommend Annamaet and Inukshuk as good alternatives. I love Annamaet, but recently switched off of it because it has too much flax for a breeding animal. I’m trying out Inukshuk right now. The transition went very well and I can’t see any differences in coat/skin, poops, or behavior so far. Both brands are very calorie dense, so you will not need to feed as much.


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## Hildae (Aug 15, 2012)

ArkansasGold said:


> I would advise against Fromm. Too many cases of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) on that brand, even the grain inclusive formulas.


I agree, avoid fromm. But since grain free is not the only cause of nDCM, I would also avoid the other boutique type brands out there as well. We prefer to stay with foods that meet the guidelines set forth by the world small animal veterinary association.


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## 3goldens2keep (Feb 13, 2019)

Both our trainers and we feed our Golden Farmina N&D Ancestral Grain Chicken & Pomegranate Medium & Maxi Adult Dry Dog Food. He loves it, he is training for his MH and is very active training most every day now. This keeps him high energy, still lean, and in top shape.


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## goldielynn (Sep 5, 2020)

We feed together The Honest Kitchen and PPP (50/50 mix) with The Honest Kitchen in one bowl and the PPP in a slow feeder at the same time. It's a human-grade dehydrated formula that you just add warm water to, an easier alternative to raw. We feel that the variety and ingredients of THK provides a good balance with PPP, and we get to change up the protein of the prior to make his meals more interesting.

The combo really makes his coat shine and maintains him at a healthy weight.


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## HopefulGoldenParents (11 mo ago)

Hildae said:


> I agree, avoid fromm. But since grain free is not the only cause of nDCM, I would also avoid the other boutique type brands out there as well. We prefer to stay with foods that meet the guidelines set forth by the world small animal veterinary association.


Thanks - may I follow up re: grain free?

Is it that Goldens need grain in their diet or is it that there are added ingredients in Grain Free foods that are problematic for Goldens?

For example, is there harm in feeding Grain-Free treats while the dog's main diet contains grain?

Thanks!


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## ArkansasGold (Dec 7, 2017)

HopefulGoldenParents said:


> Thanks - may I follow up re: grain free?
> 
> Is it that Goldens need grain in their diet or is it that there are added ingredients in Grain Free foods that are problematic for Goldens?
> 
> ...


They don’t know the answer regarding kibble yet, but the hypothesis is that all of the legumes (peas, lentils, chickpeas, etc.) in grain free kibble prohibits synthesis of taurine in the body, which is a necessary component for heart health. Although there have been some dogs diagnosed with diet-associated DCM that had normal blood taurine levels.

IMO it’s fine to feed a grain inclusive kibble, but use grain free training treats. Most treats have a very high meat protein content anyway.


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## HopefulGoldenParents (11 mo ago)

ArkansasGold said:


> They don’t know the answer regarding kibble yet, but the hypothesis is that all of the legumes (peas, lentils, chickpeas, etc.) in grain free kibble prohibits synthesis of taurine in the body, which is a necessary component for heart health. Although there have been some dogs diagnosed with diet-associated DCM that had normal blood taurine levels.
> 
> IMO it’s fine to feed a grain inclusive kibble, but use grain free training treats. Most treats have a very high meat protein content anyway.


Thanks, Maegan!

That makes a lot of sense.


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## Megora (Jun 7, 2010)

LeilaBailey said:


> Our golden who is 10 months old now has been eating PPP Large Breed Chicken and Rice. She has done fine on it, however she is refusing to eat it now. I have tried mixing things in and she just licks or eats whats mixed in and spits out the kibble. She will eat our older dog's kibble (when we tried just to see if she would), she is eating fine otherwise (her treats are carrots, greens beans, celery etc). She is acting fine. Thinking it is time to try something new. What kind of dog food (not interested in feeding raw unless freeze dried) have your Dog's done well on? Thinking Puppy Food for a bit longer as she is not quite a year old yet. Thank You


I feed Merrick Backcountry (with grains). 

Ages ago we had a dog with kidney problems (genetic) who never wanted to eat. I basically was scarred for life from that whole thing. The dogs since then, the times they refused to eat kibble - it was probably a good reason. 

Generally it was refusing to eat the bottom of the bag which tends to be more stale and crumbly.

With Pro Plan, I had a dog who would sniff the kibble and walk away. I sniffed it as well and the only thing I came up with was the fact the kibble smelled like it had car oil in it. 

Have been feeding Nutro Ultra and then Merrick Backcountry since then. 

No DCM problems with my dogs. 

No skin, coat, etc. problems.

I do not need to supplement my dogs either to help their coats or get them to eat. 

That first dog taught me one thing - never get in the habit of begging your dogs to eat.


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## JulieCAinMA (Jun 19, 2020)

Maybe I missed it but can you feed him what your other dog eats?


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## xRoan (Jul 7, 2021)

My pup also began refusing PPP and then later got pretty ill. I can't say for sure that the food was the cause but we noticed a decrease in appetite very suddenly with an increase in activity.

We switched him to NutriSource Element series. I'm sure you wouldn't need that high of protein for your pup but their regular line is just as good.


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## LeilaBailey (Sep 20, 2021)

JulieCAinMA said:


> Maybe I missed it but can you feed him what your other dog eats?


I dont really want to as it isnt formulated for Large Breed dogs. However, I ran to the pet store today and bought PPP Large Breed Puppy Beef and Rice for a different flavor. She was very happy to eat it. She definately didnt want anything to do with the other food. So maybe she was tired of same flavor Or the bag of food was just not good for some reason. It was kinda crumbly so I dont know.


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## LeilaBailey (Sep 20, 2021)

goldielynn said:


> We feed together The Honest Kitchen and PPP (50/50 mix) with The Honest Kitchen in one bowl and the PPP in a slow feeder at the same time. It's a human-grade dehydrated formula that you just add warm water to, an easier alternative to raw. We feel that the variety and ingredients of THK provides a good balance with PPP, and we get to change up the protein of the prior to make his meals more interesting.
> 
> The combo really makes his coat shine and maintains him at a healthy weight.


Interesting, that may be a good idea for us as well. However I did buy a new bag today same brand but beef and rice this time. She was happy to eat it. I'm not sure if the other bag was bad (it was kinda crumbly) or she was just tired of the chicken flavor.


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## sevans (Jul 18, 2021)

We use Royal Canin (RC) Golden Retreiver kibble. Our 10 month old is still on the puppy formula (vet’s advice as he is still very growthy) but we plan to tranistion him to the RC GR adult. Our senior Golden - is on the RC Hyrdolized Protein prescription formula- he had teh start of allergies when he was about five and we switched him then- all good.


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## DevWind (Nov 7, 2016)

I feed a formula of 4Health Strive from Tractor Supply. It doesn't have any of the suspect ingredients and I am finally able to keep my girl at her ideal weight. She was always too skinny.

I agree with never begging a dog to eat. If they refuse to eat it after 10 minutes, pick it up and offer it again during the next meal time. I was feeding PPP Sport before. I've noticed how much Purina smells like the Cargill plant. Lots of corn.


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

Maybe someday Purina will get their act together and produce a quality dog food🙄


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## GrandmaToGoldens (Jul 2, 2019)

SRW said:


> No dog ever starved to death holding out for a different brand or flavor of food.


That’s dangerous advice. I lost a 14 week old puppy to kidney failure yesterday. In the three weeks from when I got her until her condition suddenly worsened, her most noticeable symptom was a selective appetite.
To the OP: illness is not the most likely cause of your dog‘s lack of appetite, but if you have concerns or she is showing other symptoms or changes in energy levels, please consult your veterinarian.


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

GrandmaToGoldens said:


> That’s dangerous advice. I lost a 14 week old puppy to kidney failure yesterday.


Very sorry to hear of your loss but my advice is factual ,not dangerous.


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## Hildae (Aug 15, 2012)

DevWind said:


> I feed a formula of 4Health Strive from Tractor Supply. It doesn't have any of the suspect ingredients and I am finally able to keep my girl at her ideal weight. She was always too skinny.
> 
> I agree with never begging a dog to eat. If they refuse to eat it after 10 minutes, pick it up and offer it again during the next meal time. I was feeding PPP Sport before. I've noticed how much Purina smells like the Cargill plant. Lots of corn.


4 health had a lot of DCM cases


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## DevWind (Nov 7, 2016)

Hildae said:


> 4 health had a lot of DCM cases


I heard that before and couldn’t find much on it. Like I said, the formula I feed doesn’t contain any of the suspect ingredients. And my dogs are doing better on it than PPP.

Just like many other brands, you need to read labels for each variety.


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## GOAussies (Dec 3, 2021)

LeilaBailey said:


> Our golden who is 10 months old now has been eating PPP Large Breed Chicken and Rice. She has done fine on it, however she is refusing to eat it now. I have tried mixing things in and she just licks or eats whats mixed in and spits out the kibble. She will eat our older dog's kibble (when we tried just to see if she would), she is eating fine otherwise (her treats are carrots, greens beans, celery etc). She is acting fine. Thinking it is time to try something new. What kind of dog food (not interested in feeding raw unless freeze dried) have your Dog's done well on? Thinking Puppy Food for a bit longer as she is not quite a year old yet. Thank You


Kibble causes a plethora of health issues in dogs later in life. I suggest human-grade canned or raw food. I recommend Nature's Logic and Raw Dog Food Co.


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## SRW (Dec 21, 2018)

GOAussies said:


> Kibble causes a plethora of health issues in dogs later in life.


Such as.............?


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## Carolyn A (Jan 22, 2021)

Eukanuba. Large Breed. Adult or Puppy. Have used both.
I second this. Been feeding Eukanuba for years.


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## bsacchetti (Mar 2, 2019)

3Pebs3 said:


> I agree with you! At around a year my youngest golden also started turning up her nose at her puppy food. I was already in the habit of mixing two different flavours of bags for my older golden, so I switched her over to that food. But, after about a week, she started refusing that food, as well. After some playing around, it turns out that she just dislikes eating the same flavour everyday. So now we have her on a three day rotation of flavours. Interestingly, we just ran a sensitivity panel on her fur, and it turns out that she is sensitive to the first 3/5 ingredients in her puppy food, and also sensitive to some of the ingredients in the first adult food we introduced her too. So, that too may have been another reason for her starting to refuse those kibbles. Not a bad idea to listen to what your dog is telling you! I do agree that disguising the food with toppers is a bad route to go in the long-term.


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## bsacchetti (Mar 2, 2019)

I suspect my guy may have a food allergy. Did the vet perform the fur sensitivity panel ?


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## Hildae (Aug 15, 2012)

bsacchetti said:


> I suspect my guy may have a food allergy. Did the vet perform the fur sensitivity panel ?


Hopefully not as those are notoriously inaccurate.


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

bsacchetti said:


> I suspect my guy may have a food allergy. Did the vet perform the fur sensitivity panel ?


I used this company: Home | CA Pet Food Intolerance

I found the results to be very helpful for us. Hildae and I tend to disagree on a lot of things


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## Hildae (Aug 15, 2012)

Considering those fur tests returned reports of allergies when they were sent faux fur, I don't see the value.









Hair and Saliva Tests Fail to Identify Allergies in Dogs


Regarding hair and saliva allergy tests, the message is clear. Don’t believe the hype! Don’t waste your money.




leicesterskinvet.co.uk













Hair and saliva test fails to identify allergies in dogs - PubMed


Hair and saliva testing should not be used to diagnose allergies and is not a substitute for veterinary-directed allergy evaluation and diagnostics.




pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov


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## Rundlemtn (Jan 16, 2015)

Hildae said:


> Considering those fur tests returned reports of allergies when they were sent faux fur, I don't see the value.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Small sample size, low-impact journal, and the single company they tested with went out of business by the time the paper was published. This begs the question as why they didn't target one of the big companies that have been doing this type of testing for years. Did they perhaps purposely target a less than reputable company with the purpose of discrediting this type of testing? Plenty of other research articles to discuss the benefit of this type of testing.

Is the science perfect? Absolutely not. Can valuable information be gained? Consumer feedback (including my own personal experience) would suggest, possibly, yes. It is certainly a less expensive, and less invasive route to pursue before endeavouring next steps to help your dog (if the case is not extreme and does not warrant immediate veterinary attention).


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## Hildae (Aug 15, 2012)

In the case of suspected food allergy, the only truly reliable method currently, and the scientific gold standard, is an elimination/challenge diet. 









Testing for food-specific antibodies in saliva and blood of food allergic and healthy dogs - PubMed


An elimination diet (ED) followed by re-challenge has been the reference standard to diagnose adverse food reactions (AFR) in dogs, but can be challenging to conduct. This study investigated the accuracy of a saliva-based test for food-specific IgA and IgM and an ELISA serum test for...




pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov





At this time, in my opinion <---, there is little to no value in fur/saliva tests, but I do think in the future there will be reliable, useful testing of some type, whether it be fur, saliva etc. It's a field worth watching, to be sure, but it isn't there yet as it often just returns a bunch of false positives with no real answer for a concerned pet owner.


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