Ellie's mum Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 Hi all Just seeking opinions on this product or an equivelant. I have a 6 week old mastiff x great dane puppy....pics in M & M thread and after some very welcome advise from more knowledgable DOL members I am looking at supplementing her diet with some puppy kibble I am open to all suggestions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 (edited) definately, for your dog I would be going Royal Canin Giant or Eagle Pack giant. Unless you have experience I would not be keeping a dog of that size on a raw diet especially during growing stage (which will be the next 2 years ) if you feed mince as well please make sure it is minced carcasses or has some calcium source in there to balance the mineral ratios. Also 3 meals a day at this stage. Oh and start socialising ASAP, if there are other puppies you can access let them spend as much time together in the next few weeks as possible. This is a very critical period for a puppy to learn and will shape how it will become for the rest of its life. Edited March 27, 2010 by Nekhbet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danois Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 LOL Nekhbet - just posted the same comment re raw in another thread! I used RC Giant for a while and had no issues with it. Many dane owners feed ProPlan, Eukanuba or Eagle Pack. I feed Eagle Pack. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie's mum Posted March 27, 2010 Author Share Posted March 27, 2010 LOL Nekhbet - just posted the same comment re raw in another thread!I used RC Giant for a while and had no issues with it. Many dane owners feed ProPlan, Eukanuba or Eagle Pack. I feed Eagle Pack. Thank you very much for the advise if I pick your brains a little more, do I wet down the kibble and can I keep giving her the meaty bones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 I fed Eagle Pack to my Bordeaux, I swapped to RC as EP was having supply issues and my boys coat wasnt as nice on it Raw bones are fine, feed them separately to the kibble but definately include into the diet That is how I feed mine, a base of good dry food and then meaty bones, off cuts, scraps etc on top I wouldnt bother wetting down the kibble, the babydog is quite small and it encourages them to chew. If your dog bolts down the food then mix it with some water and let her pick out the floating kibble Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danois Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 If Ellie is not eating it then you could try adding a little warm water to make it softer for her and then phase that out in a week or so. Only use warm water otherwise you can destroy the nutrients in the food. I went through a patch when Boo would not really eat so used a little bit of water mixed with some vegemite in his dry food to encourage eating. You can also mix a couple of tablespoons of mince with water to make a gravy and mixing this through. Keep to 3 meals a day for another few weeks at least. Beef bones might be too tough on her teeth - try chicken wings. There is some thought that soaking kibble can contribute to bloat. As the owner of a giant deep chested breed you will want to read up on this. There are generally a couple of general rules that people with breeds predisposed to bloat follow - not exercising/ keeping quiet an hour either side of food, not allowing excessive drinking after exercise and feeding from a raised bowl (although this is more for comfort). You should learn what the signs of bloat are and always have the number of an emergency vet on hand. Many dane owners also have De-Gas Tablets in the house. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cassie Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 I raised my Saint on RC Giant and was very pleased with the results :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie's mum Posted March 27, 2010 Author Share Posted March 27, 2010 Thank you all for the good advise, she is getting 4 small meals a day atm is this too much? She isn't really fussed on chicken for some reason that is why she has been getting the beef tail. Are there any advantages from one product over the other except price....what i mean is say kibble size and digestability. She also hiccups a lot after her meals is this a problem? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danois Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 4 times a day is ok if she is eating everything at each meal. If she's not then maybe drop down to 3 meals. Most people work on a 15 min rule - the dog gets 15 mins to eat and then the bowl gets put away until the next meal. RC has larger sized kibble and it gets bigger as you move up through the food - this encourages them to crunch it rather than swallow. EP has smaller kibble. I prefer the EP food and now feed the EP holistic fish one. I have found there is less poo on EP than RC. If you feed something like Bonnie or Supercoat (which has cereals as first ingredients) then you get a whole lot of poo! In my view, EP is a better quality food. The Great Dane Lady (sas referred you to her website in the M&M thread) used to use the EP food as part of her feeding programs but recently changed for commercial reasons (it seems). Hiccups are normal (and cute!) in young pups. They grow out of it. Once she gets a bit older you can feed whole chicken frames instead of chicken wings. I would not feed a giant breed puppy chicken necks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulldust Posted March 27, 2010 Share Posted March 27, 2010 I cant sing praises loudly enough for Royal Canin Cant fault it!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liebhunde Posted March 28, 2010 Share Posted March 28, 2010 If Ellie is not eating it then you could try adding a little warm water to make it softer for her and then phase that out in a week or so. Only use warm water otherwise you can destroy the nutrients in the food.I went through a patch when Boo would not really eat so used a little bit of water mixed with some vegemite in his dry food to encourage eating. You can also mix a couple of tablespoons of mince with water to make a gravy and mixing this through. Keep to 3 meals a day for another few weeks at least. Beef bones might be too tough on her teeth - try chicken wings. There is some thought that soaking kibble can contribute to bloat. As the owner of a giant deep chested breed you will want to read up on this. There are generally a couple of general rules that people with breeds predisposed to bloat follow - not exercising/ keeping quiet an hour either side of food, not allowing excessive drinking after exercise and feeding from a raised bowl (although this is more for comfort). You should learn what the signs of bloat are and always have the number of an emergency vet on hand. Many dane owners also have De-Gas Tablets in the house. 4 times a day is ok if she is eating everything at each meal. If she's not then maybe drop down to 3 meals.Most people work on a 15 min rule - the dog gets 15 mins to eat and then the bowl gets put away until the next meal. RC has larger sized kibble and it gets bigger as you move up through the food - this encourages them to crunch it rather than swallow. EP has smaller kibble. I prefer the EP food and now feed the EP holistic fish one. I have found there is less poo on EP than RC. If you feed something like Bonnie or Supercoat (which has cereals as first ingredients) then you get a whole lot of poo! In my view, EP is a better quality food. The Great Dane Lady (sas referred you to her website in the M&M thread) used to use the EP food as part of her feeding programs but recently changed for commercial reasons (it seems). Hiccups are normal (and cute!) in young pups. They grow out of it. Once she gets a bit older you can feed whole chicken frames instead of chicken wings. I would not feed a giant breed puppy chicken necks. I seem to recall being on the same track. when this was first asked about in another thread.....adding some raw..eg mince... to a prem grade kibble and also giving chicken thighs or legs which are bigger and meatier and safer than necks.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaymatt Posted March 28, 2010 Share Posted March 28, 2010 Lieb, I do recall you suggesting exactly that..... seems a very good diet to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie's mum Posted March 28, 2010 Author Share Posted March 28, 2010 Going shopping to day for kibble will see what is readily available at our local pet barn in regards to giant breed puppy kibble. Plus she is in need of some new toys I think as she finds my hubby's socks much more interesting than any of her toys.....and she likes them even better if his feet are still in them Really appreciate all the advise regarding Ellies diet, learnt many new things which is exactly why I joined Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sas Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 (edited) Be careful not to add very hot water to Kibble as it destroys protein and the pro-biotics on the outter part of the kibble. I soaked Dante's food when he was a baby as that is what my Breeder had suggested although I don't see a problem with not soaking if they're eating fine. Any of the premium kibble ranges for Giant Breeds would be suitable i.e. Royal Canin, Eagle Pack & Eukanuba. I'm pretty sure you got a fair bit of advice originally in the M&M thread. Edited March 29, 2010 by sas Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liebhunde Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 Ellie youll find a huge range at Petbarn..including all the premium grade kibbles for growing babies. plus everything Ellie Maes heart could desire re toys and bedding. have fun stoc king up!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danois Posted March 29, 2010 Share Posted March 29, 2010 I seem to recall being on the same track. when this was first asked about in another thread.....adding some raw..eg mince... to a prem grade kibble and also giving chicken thighs or legs which are bigger and meatier and safer than necks.. Go back and read my post Lieb - I said add a couple of tablespoons of mince to make a gravy - not the same as what you had advised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grace1979 Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 Hi my pup is on this and she has been doing really well on it but i have noticed she used to wolf it down but she seems to leave abit then go back for it abit later so i hope she isent going off it as ive just bought a 15kg bag! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
all that glitters Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 My girl was on Eagle Pack Holistic for the first half of her time with me (6mths) then I switched to Royal Canin. She was definitely less itchy and nicer-coated on the Eagle Pack, I'm switching back soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arrow Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 I've been really impressed with RC Babydog when our puppy was having a lot of difficulty with the breeder-recommended puppy kibble. For what it's worth, the Babycat was also excellent when we adopted a starving orphan kitten. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nekhbet Posted March 30, 2010 Share Posted March 30, 2010 grace its a fairly rich food, your pup may not need as much as you think (the bag is always hideously over feeding wise) just cut the meal size down a little Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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