# New food suggestion?



## oliver30 (Feb 10, 2012)

My 2 yr old boy has been on Fromm's Gold, but after taking him to the vet today for his annual exam, she suggested maybe switching his food to something without so much protein because he's eating 2 cups/2x per day and only weighs 63 lbs.

With that being said, she said he is very healthy, has a great coat and is definitely not too thin, but she thinks it's unusual that he's eating that much, but still so thin and thought it might be a good idea to try something different.

I shop for his food at a pet specialty store, so I'm sure they'll be able to make some suggestions about new food, but I thought I'd ask all of you experts here first. 

Thanks so much!


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## Tayla's Mom (Apr 20, 2012)

Check the calories on that and multiply. What do you come up with? Tayla is supposed to have around 1300 cal. a day for her size and weight and she is 65 lb. Check out Fromm 4Star or other similar foods or add in some moist.


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## Max's Dad (Apr 23, 2012)

We have been feeding Max Acana Wild Prairie for over 2 years. It is grain free. He has done very well on it. Max is much bigger than your boy, and gets 3 to 3.5 cups per day, which is about 1300 calories. We buy it at a specialty pet store.

4 cups per day of the Fromm is about 1600 calories. Seems like a lot for a 60 pound dog, but your boy may have the type of metabolism that he needs that amount of calories.


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## Melfice (Aug 4, 2012)

oliver30 said:


> My 2 yr old boy has been on Fromm's Gold, but after taking him to the vet today for his annual exam, she suggested maybe switching his food to something without so much protein because he's eating 2 cups/2x per day and only weighs 63 lbs.
> 
> With that being said, she said he is very healthy, has a great coat and is definitely not too thin, but she thinks it's unusual that he's eating that much, but still so thin and thought it might be a good idea to try something different.
> 
> ...


Like Max's Dad said...4 cups of Fromm is a lot of calories. Is your dog very active? Seems to be the case by the amount of food you are giving him


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## oliver30 (Feb 10, 2012)

Thanks, everyone!

No, he's really not that active. I walk him every day and he does get out in the yard to chase the ball, but nothing excessive. 

The specialty pet store suggested trying the Fromm's 4-Star line because it's richer and more calories. They gave me a sample of the Pork & Applesauce for him to try and he gobbled it up immediately. 

He's not neutered yet, so I'm wondering if that could have anything to do with it? Maybe his metabolism is still high? Like I said, he's lean, but not dangerously skinny or anything.


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## tennessee_rose (Apr 7, 2014)

I've got my guy on Purina Pro Plan Large Breed formula and he's doing great on it. Within a week and a half of switching him onto it his coat got so soft and shiny and has stayed that way ever since. Our vet recommended it and so I went home and read up on it and it got lots of great reviews on here so I thought I'd give it a shot. I'm not sure about the protein issue, I've always just gone by the chart on the back of the bag. My dog is 8 months old, weighs about 67 pounds and I feed him 2 cups, twice a day, same as you. He's got lots of energy and he's filling out really nicely. Mine's not neutered yet either, gonna wait til he's about a year old and done most of his growing. He's fairly active, he usually gets one walk a day plus bounding around the yard.
Keep in mind dogs come in all shapes and sizes, just like humans. Mine wasn't the biggest or the smallest puppy out of his litter, he was right in the middle out of the 3. 
Good luck!


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## Sammy's Mum (Sep 13, 2014)

All my male goldens have been slow to fill out, they look so lean for the first three years or so. However, that is a lot of food. I feed Orijen, 2 cups per day, voted best dog food for the past five years or so I think. Never had a recall and all natural. Petflow.com delivers free! I supplement with my homemade wet food. I swear by this food ..and the dogs go crazy when it's delivered!


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## CarolinaCasey (Jun 1, 2007)

Is he underweight? If not, why change? 

If he is under a year, you want him lean. Overweight or rolly-Polly puppies aren't good and isn't good for growing joints and hips. If he is less than a year, keep doing what you're doing or switch varieties with more kcal. 

Do you want to just add a little weight? Add something like Frozen BilJac. I'm not sure how old your dog is but if he is an adolescent, this is prime time for filling out and needing more calories. I have found the BilJac does the trick and they LOVE it. 

Fromm Gold is on the lower side, protein wise. There are others with more protein that I would actually recommend before the gold. If you truly wanted to change things up, put him on a different variety of Fromm. Maybe try one with more kcal/cup so you don't have to actually feed more kibble per meal. Don't reinvent the wheel by trying to choose a new brand. My guys do better on Fromm grain inclusive varieties, they seem to maintain their weight better. I didn't like the Gold for them- our one got a stinky/yeast-like ear, never an infection but a stinky ear. We switched bags and it never happened again.


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## Sam Hill (Jan 20, 2012)

Sammy's Mum said:


> All my male goldens have been slow to fill out, they look so lean for the first three years or so. However, that is a lot of food. I feed Orijen, 2 cups per day, voted best dog food for the past five years or so I think. Never had a recall and all natural. Petflow.com delivers free! I supplement with my homemade wet food. I swear by this food ..and the dogs go crazy when it's delivered!



And what is your home made wet food and how much ?


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## mylissyk (Feb 25, 2007)

oliver30 said:


> My 2 yr old boy has been on Fromm's Gold, but after taking him to the vet today for his annual exam, she suggested maybe switching his food to something without so much protein because he's eating 2 cups/2x per day and only weighs 63 lbs.
> 
> With that being said, she said he is very healthy, has a great coat and is definitely not too thin, but she thinks it's unusual that he's eating that much, but still so thin and thought it might be a good idea to try something different.
> 
> ...


I'm missing what the problem is. 63 lbs is a good average weight for a Golden Retriever. Does the vet want him to gain weight? If so, I would be concerned that she is not well educated on proper weight for a Golden.

I'm a big proponent of if it's not broken don't fix it. His weight is good, he's not too thin, I wouldn't change his food at this point. Actually, at 4 cups per day I would worry he will at some point start gaining an unhealthy amount of weight, and at that point you will need to cut back how much he eats.


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## Sweet Girl (Jun 10, 2010)

I'm not sure I understand what your vet's concern is. Does he think your dog is too thin? I'm with the others who say if he's doing well on the food, has good energy, nice coat, and isn't too thin, why change?


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## Sammy's Mum (Sep 13, 2014)

In my large canning pot I put one whole cabbage head, chopped. Then I add various fresh veggies- sometimes green beans, broccoli (always) chopped, about two or three heads, sometimes a few carrots and chopped up tomatoes. Ground flax seed, and about 8 eggs or so. I start the veggies off by themselves in water and when they are tender add the meat. I use boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Can get the huge pack on sale for $1.99 lb. So I start with about 16 of those and cut them up into smallish pieces removing most of the big fat pieces. Throw that into the pot and cook until it turns white. The cellulose in the veggies can cause loose stools and dogs have trouble breaking it down, so I always freeze before I feed it. Freezing helps to break down that cellulose. I place the food in gladware containers, usually getting about 15-20 containers from a full canning pot of food. If the food is TOO chunky, I use my hand blender in the pot to break it down a little more but the dogs love the big chewy bits. (I use slow feeder bowls to stop the gulping) My boys love this and I use about..ohh maybe 1/4 to 1/2 cup on their food (Orijen kibble) morning and evening. Before serving I warm it in the micro with a bit more water added and finish with a dash of olive or fish oil.


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## xoerika620xo (May 25, 2012)

Chester weighs 65-66lbs and my vet says he's perfect. We feed him wellness simple 1 cup and a half day and night. He also gets one biscuit before bed and throughout the day carrots. I would say your dog is fine at that weight.


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## Rob S. (Feb 2, 2014)

Sammy's Mum said:


> All my male goldens have been slow to fill out, they look so lean for the first three years or so. However, that is a lot of food. I feed Orijen, 2 cups per day, voted best dog food for the past five years or so I think. Never had a recall and all natural. Petflow.com delivers free! I supplement with my homemade wet food. I swear by this food ..and the dogs go crazy when it's delivered!


Orijen has had 5 recalls and left hundreds of cats dead in Australia, just so you know.


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## Rob S. (Feb 2, 2014)

oliver30 said:


> My 2 yr old boy has been on Fromm's Gold, but after taking him to the vet today for his annual exam, she suggested maybe switching his food to something without so much protein because he's eating 2 cups/2x per day and only weighs 63 lbs.
> 
> With that being said, she said he is very healthy, has a great coat and is definitely not too thin, but she thinks it's unusual that he's eating that much, but still so thin and thought it might be a good idea to try something different.
> 
> ...


Fromm Gold is only 24% protein and a lot of that protein is from vegetable sources. It is also at least 45% carbohydrate which is just a filler. Calories yes but useless calories.

Look for a food with at least 35% protein and 18% - 20% fat.


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