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We've decided to try giving Blue Buffalo a go instead of the Kirkland Doc has been eating. What's the consensus on large breed vs regular puppy chow for what looks to be a purebred lab? He's 11 weeks old (ish) and at one point was abandoned, which I hope won't affect his long-term health since he was picked up starving to death.
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Sep 8, 2013 03:31
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| # ¿ May 2, 2024 18:15 |
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Doc is a year old Black Lab mix maybe. He was a stray when he was only about 5 weeks old and when he was taken to the shelter he was pretty thin. We adopted him when he was about 9 weeks or so, but I think that may be off because he's quite small. Like 48 pounds small and hasn't grown taller after he reached about 7 months old. As he appears to be predominantly lab (with possibly some pointer in there) he has to be kept on a strict diet. The shelter told us they free-fed him, and that may have been fine when he was skin and bones, but his first meal here caused him to balloon up and we've been strict ever since. He currently gets exactly 3 cups of Blue Buffalo Large Breed Puppy split into morning and afternoon meals, most days he gets about a tablespoon of peanut butter (Adams Natural) in one of his toys/bones, and every once in a while some baby carrots or the 95% salmon Yummie Chummies (cut into 6ths for portion control). We got the large breed food thinking he'd be bigger, but I think a combination of the pointer mix and starving while young have kept him to be an adorable 'will always look like a lab puppy' size. When we realized he'd stay small we kept him on it because our vet said it wouldn't hurt anything and I figured change for change's sake wasn't worth it. For the past couple months, since the weather has been warmer, we've been noticing a good amount of dandruff. It's especially terrible the day after he gets a bath, which can be anywhere from once every couple of weeks to several times a week depending upon how much he's swimming. We've decided to at least start with changing his shampoo, but it can't be solely due to that since he still has the dandruff even days after bathing. Since he's a full year now, it's probably time to switch off the puppy chow, right? We're also thinking he doesn't need the large breed mixes anymore. Would switching to a grain free food possible help with the dandruff? What about possibly switching from Chicken to Fish-based proein? He also seems like some days he could use a little more fiber in his stools; I noticed that the BB Freedom has more fiber than the regular he's been getting. Aside from the dandruff he seems to thrive on this diet. Smooth coat, great energy, bright eyes.
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Jun 16, 2014 01:47
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