Alibear Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 Just a quick one. I have a 13 week old German Sheperd dog. I have him on the Science Life diet, as it is what my breeder had him on and my vet also recommends this. They say you don't need supplements with this as in meat etc as the kibble has everything in it. I do give him raw chickn wings on occasion and some other meats as treats. My question is, do you think this is a good diet and also how much should he be eating? I have been giving him what is on the bag - 3.5 cups per day, but he is gobbling this down very quickly and sniffing around for more. I have started to give him more but I am not sure if this is the right thing to do or not! Please help me, I don't want to under or over feed him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holly Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 I would stick with what your breeder has recommended for they know what works for their lines best. The chicken necks are good, you can also give large bones, bigger than your fist for him to chew on. Is it S.D puppy/growth? that you are feeding? If so I would not go over what you are feeding now, and do the 'rib test' you do not want the puppy fat whilst growing. My girl is nearing 9 months and at 4 months was on 3 cups of biscuit, but now she is starting to put weight on, so have dropped her back to 2 cups, with some bone/meat during the week as well and I do feed them table scraps ie; the vegies that we ahve left over. If the diet is working for your pup and they have good stool formation, why change it? the hunting for me is typical of puppies, they will eat anything at that age, even rocks, so don't worry your puppy is not starving, just has not learnt when enough is enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibear Posted April 22, 2005 Author Share Posted April 22, 2005 He is definatly into eating rocks. I was worried about that at first, but have been told not to worry to much, alot of dogs do it. Yes it is the puppy growth Science Life Diet. I think I better cut back on giving extra food to him then and just stick to the bag recommendations. The bag also says that as he gets older the proportions get less, is that correct? He still poo's a lot, it is farily formed but not all the time. I'm sorry, just one more thing. I know you should still be able to feel his ribs, but how do I know how much rib I should be able to feel? Is there an easy way to figure this out. Sorry to be a pain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KitKat Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 One lil question...are you feeding him the normal puppy SD or the large breed puppy version? As to feeling the ribs, i would answer that questions but...i know what to feel for but i don't know how to explain it :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibear Posted April 22, 2005 Author Share Posted April 22, 2005 I am feeding him the large breed puppy SD - is this wrong? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holly Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 (edited) Alibear a pup I bought was raised on Eukanuba only and he ate rocks, rocks can block the bowl, thou it is normal for puppies, it is not necessarily healthy. I added meat in the form of brisket bone/chicken mince etc and the rock eating ceased. You need to make sure you do not exceed 1/4 meat to 3/4 biscuit. Puppy biscuit is high in fat and protein, so just be careful how much you feed. The rib test? The best way to explain it, is make a fist with one hand, open the palm of the other and move your fisted knuckles over the palm of your hand, that is what your puppy should feel like too, a light covering of fat over the ribs, if you have to dig to find ribs, than he is too tubby Edited April 22, 2005 by holly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KitKat Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 The large breed puppy food is the way to go Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibear Posted April 22, 2005 Author Share Posted April 22, 2005 Thanks Holly. My breeder did tell me the 1/4 - 3/4 rule. I am going to give him a bit of a "Rib Check" when I get home and see. The vet only told me a couple of weeks ago he was a good size, so hopefully I haven't "Chunked" him up to much in the past few weeks. I just feel bad if he keeps looking for food, but I guess that is something I need to get over - not him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holly Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 (edited) If he keeps looking for food, low calorie snacks, like 4 x 4 biscuits are great, they have about 9% protein, so wont upset his diet too much as a snack Edited April 22, 2005 by holly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibear Posted April 22, 2005 Author Share Posted April 22, 2005 KitKat - I was very worried for a second then. I thought "What am I doing to him" Thanks for putting my mind to rest. Holly - I will look out for this treats. Thank you both for your help! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KitKat Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 Sorry about that :D I was at the pet expo on the weekend with my GSD boy, and one of the deals going was a two for one with SD so i thought about it for a smidge. I asked the lady if she had any of the large breed puppy available, was told there was none left but the normal puppy would be fine...my 40kg (not pudgy) pup was sitting next to me...lol, i'd rather go the food that's made for larger breeds then not...just in case and all that. So i decided against the SD on the day, i'll decide again at another sale But because of that i thought i'd just ask you which type you were feeding your boy before saying anything about it all :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibear Posted April 22, 2005 Author Share Posted April 22, 2005 KitKat - a 40kg pup? How old is he? I didn't realise you had a GSD also. Where was the expo? How do I find out about shows and expo's etc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KitKat Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 (edited) My GSD boy is a week over 8 months old now :D As to pup...i have to be careful with that term as i often call my 9yr old rotti x 'pup' The expo i was talking about as the Pet & Animal Expo in Brissie...they are held in a couple of states each year...i know one was held in Melbourne as well but i can't remember where else. this isn't the clearest pic..lol, but it's one of the latest i have of him I lied...this one is the latest one i have...lol, him playing with the 3month old BC pup Kara :D Edited April 22, 2005 by KitKat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holly Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 Bronx, Kitkat, beats my 8.5 month old girl by 10kg, Cute pics Holly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kavik Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 Bronx beats Diesel at 15 months by 12 kg! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KitKat Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 (edited) Cripes...i have a lardy GSD! Well the latest vet that i have decided not to go back to said that he was expecting Bronx to be hugely obese when he saw the age and weight come up on his pc before i went in to the 'office' with him. He said that a GSD Bronx's age should not weigh more then 20-25 kg's :D And i'm sorta going...but he's healthy, parents were big-ish, longcoated and big boned, not overweight, ...and even the vet couldn't disagree with me there...but he did a rib check to be sure..lol EFS Edited April 22, 2005 by KitKat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holly Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 That's ok Kitkat. Most of our puppy buyers that gave me big weights were fat pups/dogs, but there was one where he was not fat, medium size, yet weighed over the normal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rachiie Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 (edited) KitKit your boy is gorgeous!!! Is he a longhair? Axle is just over 30kg at 7 months. It's nice to see other owner's weights just to make sure i'm going okay. Do they do much height growing after 7 months or is it more filling in? NM about the long haired question. Just saw your post there saying 'long hair'. lol Edited April 22, 2005 by rachiie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KitKat Posted April 22, 2005 Share Posted April 22, 2005 Yup...he's a long coat, not a really hairy long coat tho it seems...but he does seem to be growing it in at the moment to I've been of the idea that GSD's (and most other large breed dogs) grow upwards till they are about 12 months, then grow outwards (fill out/broaden) till they are about 2yrs...and that they may not completely finish till they are around three yrs old..as in the skull might broaden a smidge more etc etc. Holly...am i even close to correct? :D (it's handy having those in the know about :D ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibear Posted April 22, 2005 Author Share Posted April 22, 2005 He is just gorgeous. And he certainly doesn't look over weight, he actually looks quite slim in the pictures. IS he really 40kg? What do they expect he will get to when he is fully grown, or is this it now? I thought my boy at nearly 10kg was big at 13weeks, and then I got to puppy school and he is one of the smallest around his age! How do I get pictures small enough to upload. I would love to show you some pics but I can't seem to work out how to upload pictures? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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