New Puppy?

Puppies are so much fun but are a lot of work!

If you are thinking of adding a new fun four legged family member, check out our latest blog about feeding your new puppy below from Reviews.com:

5 Do’s and Don’ts for feeding your new puppy:

1. Don’t: Buy too much food at once. Most expiration dates on dry dog food bags will tell you that the food will stay good for up to a year in the future. This is a little deceiving: It refers to how long the food will last if the bag stays unopened. Once you break that seal, it will only stay fresh for about 4–6 weeks. To avoid having puppy food going bad, only buy as much food as you think your puppy will go through in a month, and seal the bag shut when it’s not feeding time.
2. Don’t: Give your puppy human food. As tempting as it might be, it’s never a good idea to give your puppy people food. For one, normalizing human food increases the likelihood that they’ll get their paws on something toxic at some point in their lives. It also teaches them to that they might get a treat when the human plates come out, so they’ll learn to beg any time someone in the house is eating.
3. Do: Set a regular schedule. Puppies love a good routine. Knowing what to expect will help them transition to their new home, and nothing is more important to this than reliable meals. Try to feed them at the same time every day in the same amounts, and don’t leave food out for more than 10–20 minutes. This will set up good eating habits that will last their whole lives — and help immensely with potty training.
4. Do: Transition foods gradually.
5. Because puppies eat the same diet day after day, it can be a real shock to their systems when their diet is changed without warning. If you want to switch over to a new flavor (or if your pup’s ready to make the jump to adult dog food), do it as gradually as possible. Start by mixing the new food in with the old over the course of a week. If your dog shows adverse reactions like loss of appetite or diarrhea, decrease the ratio of new to old food until they adapt to it.
6. Do: Switch to adult food around one year. When your puppy reaches 90% of their expected adult weight, it’s time to switch to an adult diet. For most breeds, this happens right around their first birthday, although small breeds can hit this mark around 9 months, while it can take as much as two years for “giant” breeds like Saint Bernard’s.

Check out their blog for more new puppy feeding tips!