# When to stop Puppy food?



## LauraEyes2 (Sep 16, 2005)

I think that's a topic that's really up for debate, as there are many schools of thought of how it should be handled. I think the average is usually suggested to continue puppy food for 6mos to a year before putting your pup on adult food. 

Many professionals believe that puppy foods can sometimes cause large/giant breed dogs to grow too quickly, in turn spawning bone/joint issues (panosteitis, hip displasia, etc). Some breeders/vets recommend large and giant breeds actually never go on puppy food and start on adult food from the get-go in order to control their growth. 

I had vinny on Nutro Lg Breed puppy and he encountered Panosteitis around 5 mos of age (essentially puppy growing pains, poor pup was limping like crazy). and consequentially, the vet recommended we switch him off puppy food onto adult food to keep him from growing too fast--- which she said was what caused him to have the problems in the first place. 

I'm interested in seeing what others post on this subject. I did my share of internet research when vinny was a puppy because I, too had heard dramatically different views on how the feeding should be done. Do a few internet searches and see what you find, but I really feel there's no scientfically-proven right or wrong answer. In the past I'd always kept my pups on puppy food for the first 9-12 mos of their life and they had done fine, so i figured that would be the best route with Vinny---however he ended up having problems. So I don't know for sure! Anyone else want to contribute to this?

Laura


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## Lexie's Mom (Dec 14, 2005)

Yes Laura i'm interested as well about the opinions of others on this. My trainer suggests for large breeds that they stay on puppy food for 2 years. A good puppy food. Not one with lots of fillers etc. She suggested for me and my budget Purina Pro Plan. It worked well with Lexie who is now 5 years and Hooch (rottweiler) is now 9mos and is growing like a weed. 

Maybe talk with a professional about your concerns. Hopefully they can answer your question with a professional opinion.

:wavey:

Lisa


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## Rebel Red (Jan 4, 2006)

I thought my dad said a year.....But maybe I'm wrong......

aleesha(rebel red)


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## Lexie's Mom (Dec 14, 2005)

Rebel Red....your dads vet may recommend 1 yr of puppy food. I think it's all a matter of opinion. For larger breeds such as goldens etc it is recommended to use puppy food for a longer period of time I think. I think if someone has a question about foods and what types or how long, they should probably seek their vet or trainers advise.


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## LauraEyes2 (Sep 16, 2005)

Actually Lexie, in most cases I think they recommend to use puppy food for a SHORTER length of time. Puppy food is high in caloric content and nutritional quality. Higher nutritional input in a puppy, rather than make them fat, will just encourage more rapid growth. Hence why often vets/breeders etc suggest taking them off puppy food earlier. I think most recommend somewhere up to a year, but not much longer than that.


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## Lexie's Mom (Dec 14, 2005)

My vet said 1 year at the time. My trainer suggested 2 for larger breeds. I went with the trainer. I figured it couldn't hurt. LOL Like I said it's a matter of opinions and one should ask him/her vets. Wouldn't you agree?


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## LauraEyes2 (Sep 16, 2005)

Absolutely! Like i said in my original post I've heard a million different opinions on puppy feeding regimens and everyone's explanations always seem to make sense after they give their justifications! But I think the fact of hte matter is, there really isn't much scientific explanation backing up one reason to the next. Personally, I would trust my vet's opinion over that of a breeder or other pet care individual. I worked for a vet for several years, and we'd encountered many breeders who were instructing their puppy-owners to manage their pet's health care in various ways. Many times the breeders' beliefs were off-base and not backed by medical knowledge, and clearly contradicted the views of our vets. Surely, many breeders know a lot about dogs, and in many respects are just as educated in some aspects of pet health as veterinarians, however your best bet is to rely on someone who has had formal veterinary training, rather than a breeder, trainer or pet store worker. 

At the animal hospital where i worked we had always recommended to keep dogs on puppy food until 9-12 mos and somewhere in that range, begin to wean them off the puppy food, and introduce adult food. Your vet should have some observations of your puppy's growth and may be able to make a more sound decision as to when you should make the switch....

Best of luck
Laura


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## PoconoPup (Jul 15, 2005)

Thanks for all the feedback! I quess there are many different opinions out there. I feel alittle better that I'm not alone in knowing when is the correct age to start the Adult food. I'm just worried if I keep Dakota on Puppy food too long or if I stop too soon, we'll have problems. I think I will check with my breeder. Once I get her opinion I'll let you guys know.


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## sam (May 21, 2005)

*and here is a totally different take...*

My breeder began my latest pup (now 8 1/2 months old) on Canidae kibble from the get-go. This is an ALL life stages food. I was a little skeptical, as with my other three dogs, I had done the puppy food, transition to adult food between 9-12 months. I am soooo glad that I followed her lead! Other than a bit of loose stool from time to time, the first couple of months with me, Canidae has been a godsend!!! Also, I have converted my Boston Terrier and 6 yr old Golden to this food, and (oh gosh..I hate to even say it out loud) NO HOT SPOTS or ear infections since the switch!!! So, that is my food anecdote. Hope it helps!


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## Rebel Red (Jan 4, 2006)

yeah lexie that might be it...im not sure though...so you are right


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## jim n (Nov 12, 2005)

It depends on who you talk to. Some breeders don't believe in puppy food at all. Some like the large breed puppy food, some like the all stages food.
Goldens have to grow slowly to help prevent joint problems later in life. It has been my understanding to take them off of puppy food at approximately 5 months. 
If you want to read an interesting article do a search under Rhonda Hovan Slow Growth Diet. Mrs. Hovan has been breeding champion 
goldens for about 30 years. I would trust her knowledge on the breed before I would trust a Vet.


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## timberwolfe (Apr 15, 2005)

My belief is you should feed a good quality Large Breed puppy Food until 10 - 12 months of age. The Large Breed food is designed to slow the growth of large breed daogs, unlike regular puppy food. 

I think an adult food would be better than regular puppy food.


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## Goldndust (Jul 30, 2005)

Is your vet trained in nutrition? Many are not, so when it comes to nutrition they are the last ones I turn too unless they have more then but a few hours in which is all that is called for in there training.

I wouldn't go as far as to say keep them puppy food for 2 years, but I would go as far as saying keeping them on a LBP formula would be fine depending on the brand and what it says on the back of the bag. I have read where adult kibbles Phosphorus/Calcium is not made for a puppy. I myself began the switch-over from LBP Eagle Pack to and adult kibble at 11 months of age.


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## PoconoPup (Jul 15, 2005)

Heard from my breeder- She makes the switch from Large Breed puppy food to Adult food somewhere between 10-12 months. Now another question, is there Large Breed Adult food, or do all size dogs eat the same Adult food?


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## LauraEyes2 (Sep 16, 2005)

Yep Pocono Pup, most of the major brands of dog foods make Large Breed Adult (as well as senior) formulas. I know there are Lg Breed formulas made by Eukanuba, Science Diet, Nutro, Innova, among many others. I keep Vinny on Nutro's Natural Choice Lg Breed formula, he loves it, keeps a healthy coat and weight, and in terms of many of the premium formulas, it's relatively inexpensive.

Laura


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## Katiesmommy (Sep 10, 2006)

Just reading the feeding chart on our puppy food bag a few days ago and it says for large breed puppies feed puppy food from 1 to 2 years of age


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## RickGibbs (Dec 16, 2005)

Katiesmommy said:


> Just reading the feeding chart on our puppy food bag a few days ago and it says for large breed puppies feed puppy food from 1 to 2 years of age


We switched from Puppy food to adult food somewhere around 8-9 months....


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## Princess Bella (Oct 17, 2006)

LauraEyes, I'm feeding Bella the NUTRO puppy lamb and rice not the "large breed" do you think this is better ?


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## DelmarvaGold (Mar 7, 2006)

I switch all puppies that I keep (from my litters or that I purchase from another breeder) from puppy food to adult food at 12 weeks old. I suggest that my clients purchase a 20lb bag of the food that their puppy has been weaned on and once gone switch to a GOOD quality adult food. This has worked for me and my clients who chose to take my advice.


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Don't ever start... in my opinion. I believe dogs should be fed only organic super premium foods, where puppy food is a non issue... and ideally, dogs should not eat kibble at all. Only my thoughts


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## njb (Oct 5, 2006)

ACC--could you be more specific? I have a friend who buys pre frozen blocks from the butcher for her GSD dog--


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Sure. I just never want to step on toes or start a debate about food. I personally feed my dogs some kibble bc money is tight, but the bulk of their diet whenever possible is organic chicken- raw, meaty bones. If learning to feed a raw diet is too costly, not practical, or just plain gross to you (as it is too some, and that's okay), give this diet a look Nature’s Variety as it offers raw, canned, and kibble foods of incredible quality, designed to rotate  Some people just pick one of their kibbles and stick to it, too.

My senior Whippet looks like he's two! He eats organic chicken purchased at Publix supermarkets in their Greenwise section. He gets two drum sticks per day, raw (he's a 35 pound dog) plus a blend of organs and organic Greenwise brown eggs and other goodies. He is free fed Newman's Own Organics Premium Pet Food in addition. I have also fed EVO, and in fact my other two dogs are on EVO right now. I go back and forth. But the Newman's Own is handy. I buy it where I get my own food (Newman's Own makes organic food products for people, too). I am a veggie going Vegan who eats organic only whenever possible. However, I know my dogs need meat to be their healthiest, so I stick to that with them!


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

Here's a great food for cats, too, for anyone interested... kibble is terrible for cats, who in nature get all their water from their food intake, and who are even more meat based than dogs in their diet.

Brothers Blend Cat Food - HOME

No I don't sell anything LOL I just love these foods for my pets.


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## njb (Oct 5, 2006)

Thanks for the info--it makes sense because in 'nature' dogs eat a raw diet, or whatever they can find to eat, of course they don't live as long but I am sure there are other confounding variables which cause that...


I do make sure that when I give Julie a bone it is raw, read somewhere about how cooked bones splinter. 

Thanks for the info, sadly Vets are often not helpful on this topic.


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## AquaClaraCanines (Mar 5, 2006)

MANY vets are against natural feeding, but not all. 

Unfortunately lots of vets are encouraged to sell Science Diet (deplorable IMO unless you need one of their special Rx diets for some reason) or other brands. Lately, though, I stumbled across a vet who is selling Nature's Variety- yay!


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## Lynds0517 (Sep 15, 2006)

We are just switching Dura to puppy food. She is 8 months old, but we are mainly doing it becuase our other dog a shih tzu who is 1.5 years old has gained 3 lbs being on puppy food. When you are only 16.5 lbs, that is a lot!


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## FlyingQuizini (Oct 24, 2006)

Katiesmommy said:


> Just reading the feeding chart on our puppy food bag a few days ago and it says for large breed puppies feed puppy food from 1 to 2 years of age


Wow. I find that amazing! Many vets and most breeders that I know of recommend getting off puppy food pretty quick. My own Golden was never even on puppy food. He started on a good quality life formula kibble (Canidae). My clients that start on puppy food, I suggest they switch by 6 months -- a little longer for toy breed dogs and wwwaaaaaay earlier for giant breeds like Danes, Wolfhounds, etc. In fact, I prefer that giant breeds never see a bag of true "puppy food".

That's part of why I don't like to read the back of dog food bags other than to check ingredients. I feel they just want to sell dog food. I think that's bad advice to feed puppy food that long and the quantities that the bags tend to suggest are insane! I find it to typically be at least double of what a dog should really eat.

JMO.

Stephanie


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## iluv3js (Dec 30, 2006)

Laura, since you mentioned it, my golden has hugh paws, but isn't growing as fast as other puppies 7 months old..he's still on puppy food, but I'm afraid that his growth has stunted. He hasn't been fixed yet, b/c once again I get conflicting advise on that issue, too. Any suggestions?
Tracy


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## monomer (Apr 21, 2005)

I know I'm not Laura but...

At 7 months your little pup is still growing and in some conformation lines (show dogs) Goldens are being breed for huge paws while still having to be within the breed standard's height requirement... I have recently seen some of these winning 'show dogs' and they have huge paws, like tree stumps, and thick frames to match but the height on these dogs give the appearance of a shorter dog by comparison. These show dogs make our Sidney look towering and positively svelte, like a sleek racing machine... I think this is where the 'show type' Goldens are going in form. So, is your pup from one of these show lines? Also measure his height to the whithers, if he's at least 18" you really shouldn't be too concerned.

It sounds as if most people don't really understand what the differences are between an adult dog food, a puppy food, and a Large-Breed puppy food. Adult dog foods, if not labeled Senior or Performance or Diet etc, are generally termed a maintenance food. Its supposed to simply supply enough nutrients and calories to replace those lost by everyday body processes (breathing, warmth, digestion, hair and nail grow, etc) and functions (excretions, saliva, etc) and exercise (rebuilding what gets broken down during exercise). With an adult maintenance food taken as the basis for a comparison then a puppy food has to contain everything a young, fast growing puppy with a high metabolism needs. Pretty much more of almost everything... more calorie dense (higher fat content), more proteins and vitamins, more electrolytes... however the minerals must remain balanced and kept within check. The main concern with a large breed dog is skeletal structure and the prevention of bone deformities, this is done by slowing the puppy's grow and weight gains so the new cartilage has time to calcify into bone before more weight (stress) is added... and this also gives more time for the leg muscles to develop which will help to stabilize the joints of the longbones (leg bones) as they grow... so... a Large-Breed puppy food must scale back the calories contained in a 'regular' puppy food formula... this is done by lowering the fat content (some kibbles also lower the protein content as well) and calcium is reduced to slow the bone growth (so of course phosphorus must be reduced in proportion as well as several other minerals that compete with calcium absorbtion)... and it seems that lately most of the newer formulations include glucosamine/condroitin (collagen) and elevated Vitamin C levels... I believe this is more for consumer marketing/ acceptance than for anything else due to the lack of any scientific studies conducted with any demonstrated results.

And don't worry about 'stunted' growth... if your puppy is fed a properly formulated dog food with a proper calcium/phosphorus ratio and balance of several other minerals then by 18-months your puppy will attain the full height his genes have programmed him for... no more, no less. If you 'rush' it by supplying excesses in calories and minerals (especially calcium supplements) your puppy will attain his full height fairly rapidly and then stop growing in the later portion of his puppihood... this rapid grow could possibly lead to bone deformities and if he has the genetics for CHD, this early rapid bone growth will almost surely cause its expression as well as increase its severity... this has been proven through several dietary studies done on dogs. So just be patient and let your puppy grow up more slowly, he will just keep growing a bit longer... which is really a good thing.


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## goldenstaples (Apr 3, 2006)

LauraEyes2 said:


> Yep Pocono Pup, most of the major brands of dog foods make Large Breed Adult (as well as senior) formulas. I know there are Lg Breed formulas made by Eukanuba, Science Diet, Nutro, Innova, among many others. I keep Vinny on Nutro's Natural Choice Lg Breed formula, he loves it, keeps a healthy coat and weight, and in terms of many of the premium formulas, it's relatively inexpensive.
> 
> Laura


I am also feeding this to my Female, my male is still just 6 mths. old so he is eating the nutro large breed puppy. I have also had good luck , their coats are great and it is good food that does not cost you a fortune.


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## njb (Oct 5, 2006)

I have been following this tread--lol--and am just as confused now as when it started. Soooo--I did what I do best when I don't know what to do--I bought a good adult food--and a good puppy food and mixed them, half and half. 

I finally broke down and read the labels of just about every food bag in the store and settled for ones whose first listed ingredient was actually meat and not corn.


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## Tahnee GR (Aug 26, 2006)

I wean my litters right onto adult food-Canidae. They may grow a bit more slowly (my lines are slow maturing anyway) but they will end up right where they are supposed to be. The latest Golden Retriever News has an excellent article by Rhonda Hovan (Faera Goldens) on cancer and slow growth and I was surprised to see that even my slow maturing puppies, fed an adult food, are bigger than her recommendations for slow growth.

Most of the breeders I know wean directly onto a super premium adult food, or, at most, use puppy food for less than 6 months.

As far as what the dog food bags say, well, their purpose is to sell dog food, after all 

Linda
Tahnee Golden Retrievers


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## njb (Oct 5, 2006)

It is really frustrating that the vets do not know more--of all people they should be the best informed.


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## monomer (Apr 21, 2005)

njb said:


> ...I finally broke down and read the labels of just about every food bag in the store and settled for ones whose first listed ingredient was actually meat and not corn.


Reading the bag is a good practice to follow... however do be aware tricks can and are played with the ingredient list order. For one thing, the order is purely determined by weight... with 'fresh' meat being weighed with its full water content before being dried (this water weight is quite substantial), whereas meat meal is the dry weight of the meal ready for mixing at the extruder. Also there is a common practice used called 'splitting' where a grain is listed by its components... such as rice hulls, rice bran, rice gluten, etc. which then results in each rice component being rank further down on the ingredients list instead of rice being listed as the number one ingredient (in this example I use rice... but it could just as well have been corn, or wheat, etc) so you really need to see how many corn 'parts' are being listed total to get a better representation of just how much of that grain is really in the food. 

Something to know: Almost all kibble is made through the steam extrusion process and the cooled, dried finished kibble could not possibly be held together without a 'glue' of some sort, it will just simply crumble during bagging and shipment if it doesn't have enough gluten holding it together... THAT is the true purpose of using grains in all kibble formulations. All grains provide gluten, some more than others. I've read it is necessary to have over 50% of any kibble formula composed of grains in order for the kibble to survive the extrusion and bagging processes and then shipment and stocking without most of it turning into powder at the bottom of the bag. So this much should tell you that any truly 'HONEST' ingredient list will NEVER contain meat as the first ingredient... it's simply just not possible.


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## iluv3js (Dec 30, 2006)

*thanks so much*

You've certainly educated me on the puppy/dog food dilemma, thank you so much


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## monomer (Apr 21, 2005)

Tahnee GR said:


> ...The latest Golden Retriever News...


Hey, where do you get this Golden Retriever News from? First I've heard of it. Is it a web-based thing or an actual newsletter or a magazine? do I have to join a club or something to get a subscription? and how often is it published? Just whatever you (or anyone else for that matter) can tell me would be appreciated?
EDIT: Never mind Tahnee, I just googled and found out its the GRCA's official magazine. Thanks for the 'head's up' though.

And... iluv3js... you are most welcome, I've received much of my own doggie nutrition education from other knowledgeable people/sources who've made their knowledge available through websites, books, etc... I've been researching topics on both human and animal nutrition for probably 20-years now and in that time I have had some experiences of my own to add to the mix. Whenever I sense someone is confused by seemingly contradicting information, and if I have a fairly solid understanding of the subject matter, I will usually try to put things into perspective and fill-in the missing pieces with a posting.


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## Charlie06 (Feb 10, 2007)

I have heard so many different stories about this too. When we first got my puppy I was giving him Puppy Chow(and my vet said it was fine) Didn't know how many fillers was actually in the crap. So I ended up throwing away a 37lb bag of it away....no one would take it cause it was already opened. The I swtched to Nutro Natural Choice LB puppy but I was told that glucosomine wasn't that great for puppies. Anyway, with all this conflicting information, I decided at 5 months to switch to Natural Balance. It's an all life stage food. He loves it and there's a lot less to clean up in the yard..LOL


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## njb (Oct 5, 2006)

That is the food I finally settled on also and the dogs love it. It is not cheap--but does not cost an arm and a leg--and you don't have to separate dogs of differing ages to feed them....


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## Katiesmommy (Sep 10, 2006)

FlyingQuizini said:


> Wow. I find that amazing! Many vets and most breeders that I know of recommend getting off puppy food pretty quick. My own Golden was never even on puppy food. He started on a good quality life formula kibble (Canidae). My clients that start on puppy food, I suggest they switch by 6 months -- a little longer for toy breed dogs and wwwaaaaaay earlier for giant breeds like Danes, Wolfhounds, etc. In fact, I prefer that giant breeds never see a bag of true "puppy food".
> 
> That's part of why I don't like to read the back of dog food bags other than to check ingredients. I feel they just want to sell dog food. I think that's bad advice to feed puppy food that long and the quantities that the bags tend to suggest are insane! I find it to typically be at least double of what a dog should really eat.
> 
> ...


Hey no problem. we see our vet at the end of April when we take Katie to get fixied. I will def mention feeding again and see what he says.


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## Rocky (Dec 28, 2006)

I took Rocky to the vet yesterday and asked the vet when to stop the puppy food. He said now and Rocky is only 4 months old. He said there was a study done and the dogs that were fed puppy food longer had more arthritis and didn't live as long as those dogs that were taken off the puppy food earlier. He said especially the big dogs because you do not want them to grow too fast for joint growth, etc....


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## Carsonsdaddy (Nov 1, 2006)

Rocky said:


> I took Rocky to the vet yesterday and asked the vet when to stop the puppy food. He said now and Rocky is only 4 months old. He said there was a study done and the dogs that were fed puppy food longer had more arthritis and didn't live as long as those dogs that were taken off the puppy food earlier. He said especially the big dogs because you do not want them to grow too fast for joint growth, etc....


That's what I've heard. We took Carson off puppy food when he was 4 months old. Plus it's easier to have other doggies over...i don't worry about them eating his food as much.


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

My vet recommended 18 months for my golden when he was a puppy and 1 yr. for my yorkie. I have always feed my dogs Pro-plan if that makes a difference.


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