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Biggest Curiosity of how long to feed puppy food is Finally Answered

Having a new furry friend at home is so exciting but it is also a huge responsibility. Your furry needs a lot of attention and care especially in terms of their diet because diet plays a very critical role in their health and long life. Many pet parents these days keep themselves updated with their furry pal’s dietary needs and in that series, FurrMeals is trying to solve one of the biggest question that the pet parents have these days; How Long to Feed Puppy Food before switching to adult Dog Food.

Before we get into the discussion of How Long to Feed Puppy Food, let us try to understand what puppy food is and why is it important to keep your pup on a puppy food diet before shifting to adult dog food. As all pups are different and have different nutritional needs, so it is important to understand the sign on when your pup is ready to shift to adult dog food and also what are your best options of puppy food in Delhi.

What is Puppy Food?

Your small furr ball is growing rapidly, building bones and muscles at a faster pace than any adult dog. Hence, they need proper nutrition for strengthening bones and teeth, gaining muscle, and providing all of the energy required for playing and learning.

But, the question still remains, what should you feed them? What can be considered as a generic puppy food?

  1. A. Tony Buffington, Professor of Veterinary Clinical Sciences at The Ohio State University Veterinary Hospital, says to keep contacting your veterinarian for such suggestions. He says, “In the first six months or so, the nutrient needs are changing very quickly. And, they leave the least margin for error.”

This is an important point to note because these are the formative years of your pup and is building him up for a life. Your puppy diet should have a good quality protein, should be calorie-rich and should have the right amount of calcium. It is important to note that meat consumptions out of canned food should not in your priority list as responsible pet parents.

What is the Best Puppy Food?

According to Jennifer Freeman, DVM, Resident Veterinarian and Pet Care Specialist at PetSmart, looking for the right diet for dogs has significant health benefits. “Premium dog food would contain meat for protein, vitamin-rich vegetables and fruit, and omega fatty acids for a lustrous coat,” Freeman told NBC News, adding that “it is also likely to include less fillers like corn, wheat, and soy.”

As the time has changed, pet parents are more concerned about what to feed their furry friends and since they require nutrition and meals similar to that of the human, we cannot just let them have a random dog food packet found on the shelves of a supermarket. Higher-quality ingredients, improved sourcing, and advanced diet recipes all contribute to your furry’s optimal health. Understanding your puppy’s specific nutritional requirements is just as crucial as knowing what to feed him.

HOW MANY TIMES IN A DAY SHOULD YOU FEED YOUR PUPPY?

How long to feed puppy food to your furry friend?

The first year of your pup’s life is way more important than you might consider it to be. The first year of your pup’s life can be divided in to periods based on their changing nutritional needs and the number of meals per day to feed

The first year can be divided into four different phases:

The first year can be divided into four different phases:

• 6-12 WeeksYour puppy needs the specially designed puppy food at this age. Puppy food is formulated keeping in mind their specific nutritional needs for healthy development of your puppy. Adult dog food is not designed for the rapid puppy growth and would thus deprive your pup of some essential nutrients. Nutritional requirements are normally met with four meals a day at this age.

• 3-6 MonthsReduce the number of feeds from four to thrice a day at some point during this period. By 12 weeks, a puppy’s belly flab should be gone. Continue to feed puppy-size portions before their body type matures if they are still chubby at this age.

• 6-12 MonthsBy this phase, you can start feeding your furry pal twice a day. Switch from nutrient-rich puppy food to adult maintenance food. Small breeds can make the switch at 7 to 9 months, while larger breeds can do so at 12, 13, and even 14 months. It’s better to be on puppy food a little bit long than not long enough.

• After age 1 yearAdult dogs are typically fed two meals a day. You should typically calculate their Recommended Daily Allowance based on the age, weight and breed of the dog and then divide that into 2 meals a day.

The pet parents should always focus on the body structure of their pup to identify when to make the switch to adult dog food. A puppy who has attained 100% of the expected adult weight should be switched to adult dog food or else he will gain excess weight. Your Vet is also a good person to consult on How Long to Feed Puppy Food and when to make the switch to adult dog food.

When to Switch from Puppy Food

Besides keeping a watch on the weight chart of your pup, you can also identify by the way your pup eats puppy food to know when to make the switch. If your dog begins to miss meals or picks at food he would normally gobble up, it might be time to switch from a puppy to an adult diet. Puppy food contains more calories, which can make him feel full and reduce his desire to eat.

If you’ve already moved to an adult formula, your dog can will need a smaller portion size or less food at each meal.

The key to a good food transition is to take it slowly. Mix a small amount of adult food with your furry’s favourite puppy meal and gradually raise the amount over the course of a week, while reducing the puppy food.

You should only be feeding your dog adult food by the end of the week. It’s less likely that he’ll have gastrointestinal problems if he changes his diet gradually.

Best Fresh Puppy Food

Home-made Puppy Food in Town

As the pet parents, you would always want the best for your furry friend. From all the wide range of puppy food in the market ranging from premium packaged puppy food to high quality puppy food, byfar  the best puppy is fresh, balanced, home cooked puppy food made with real ingredients.

By should humans be the only ones eating a well-balanced, fresh food diet; your pet has the same need to do so. FurrMeals Fresh Pet Food is setting the standard for quality fresh puppy food in Delhi and all over India.

FurrMeals Home Cooked Fresh Pet Food is made using the freshest ingredients that have been hand-picked to ensure that your furry friend gets a nutritious meal. Each meal is weighed to make it suitable for your fur buddy and cooked slowly and lightly to maintain the nutritional value.

Therefore, to conclude, the answer to the question, How Long to Feed Puppy Food doesn’t come up with a simple answer. As pet parents, you need to invest your time, knowledge and expert advice to identify the right time to switch you pup from puppy food to adult food to make sure that your pup gets the optimum health benefits from the food.

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The question all pet parents should be having – How much food should I feed my puppy?

Congrats on your newest addition to your family by getting a four-legged best friend. We understand the excitement and trepidation that comes with bringing home a furry ball of joy. If you’re a new or first-time pet parent, you must be having a lot of questions one of which for sure is “How much food should I feed my puppy?” which is one of the most reasonable questions as you don’t want to overfeed your puppy to make him/her obese and thus hamper him/her growing in a healthy state. You also wouldn’t want to underfeed your pup to ensure he/she doesn’t suffer from malnutrition and thus a slow or negligible growth. So, let’s answer your questions one by one.

How much food should I feed my puppy?

During the first six to eight weeks of life, the puppy should stay with the mother and be allowed to nurse as they must nurse from the mother. The mother’s milk provides the best nutrition and provides antibodies to help protect your puppy from disease yet sometimes it isn’t possible or viable for the puppies to be kept with the mother due to the mother being diagnosed with eclampsia or mastitis and this is exactly when you must select the best puppy food. Now, what is the best puppy food? The best puppy food is which fits your puppy’s caloric and nutritional needs. Puppies should be fed three to four times a day therefore if you are currently feeding ¾ a cup of puppy food twice a day you should consider spacing it out by feeding ½ cup three times a day. Smaller yet well-spaced meals are not only easy to digest for puppies but it also doesn’t peak or let their energy levels fall rapidly. At around six months, it is recommended to feed your puppy two meals a day but then again this varies as per the breed of your puppy. So ‘How much food should I feed my puppy?’ is rather a subjective question.

What is the best fresh puppy food? What are some homemade puppy food options?

At Furrmeals, we offer the best fresh puppy food and it is homemade puppy food as well because we highly believe you should keep your puppy as much away from harmful artificial preservative loaded puppy food as possible. FurrMeals is packed with the freshest ingredients that are carefully hand-picked to provide a balanced meal to your furry friend. Slowly and lightly cooked to retain the nutritional value, each meal is measured to make it perfect for your buddy. Some of the homemade puppy food options that we have in store for your pup are –

1-Herbed Chicken and Rice

2- Juicy Chicken and Pasta

3- Chunky Lamb and Brown Rice

4-Fresh Cottage Cheese and Peas

and the best part? Each of the options mentioned above is not only made naturally but also loaded with the nutrients your pup needs to grow and be at its finest. We at FurrMeals, indeed believe in helping you to get the answer to “How much food should I feed my puppy?” which comes along with nutrients-loaded options.

How much dry food to feed a puppy?

After answering a bit of your “How much food should I feed my puppy?” question which is endless and subject, we would like to another great question that pet parents have on their mind. Weaning your puppy to dry and solid food should not be an overnight trial and error thing but should ideally take place over two to three weeks. First, you must select the brand which ideally is perfect for the health and nutritional requirements of your puppy. Talk to your veterinarian for specific recommendations but generally the best puppy foods will be packed with protein, calcium, and calories. When the puppy is four to six weeks of age begin introducing your puppy to puppy food by making a gruel by blending the puppy food with a milk replacer. Offer the gruel three to four times a day gradually reducing the amount of milk replaced used to make the gruel. This way your puppy gradually learns to adapt to solid food and gastric upset is minimized. By around eight weeks of age, your puppy should be eating solid food.

When to stop feeding puppy food?

Puppy food consists of high nutritional supplements and is high in calories so you might want to switch to adult food once your puppy begins to approach adulthood. There is no appropriate age when the switch should be made because it will vary with the breed, gender, and individual dog’s nutritional needs. Generally, smaller dogs approach their adulthood much faster. Small breeds up to 13 kg mature or reach their adulthood around ten to twelve months of age although some toy breeds reach maturity even faster. Medium dog breeds up to 36 kg will become an adult between twelve to sixteen months and large breed dogs weighing more than 36 kg can take up to two years to reach maturity. When switching to adult food, take it slow over one or two weeks by gradually mixing in increasing amounts of the adult food with decreasing amounts of her puppy food to minimize gastric flare-ups. So the question is when to switch from puppy food? The appropriate time to switch from puppy food to adult food when you notice your dog eating less of the puppy food or if he/she starts to put on too much weight. Feeding your dog puppy food too long can result in obesity and orthopedic problems.

Conclusion

Thus, the answer to “How much food should I feed my puppy?” is a question which mostly has no definite or proper answer as it depends on trial and error, breed and gender of the dog, etc. so the best person to ask these questions to is your vet who’ll be able to guide you properly as they watch your dog closely!