| WHY FEED LARGE - BREED |
Many dog food companies such as Purina and Iams are now marketing large breed
puppy food.. The reasoning behind this is to provide a diet that is designed to help
manage the rate of growth of large puppies to support healthy bone and joint
development.
puppy food.. The reasoning behind this is to provide a diet that is designed to help
manage the rate of growth of large puppies to support healthy bone and joint
development.
Most important, the diets account for the fact that large-breed puppies mature at a
slower rate than smaller-breed puppies and may take up to 2 years to reach
adult size. Research indicates that a reduced calorie diet for large-breed
puppies is beneficial in 2 ways: by helping maintain an ideal body condition and
promoting a rate of growth that is neither too fast nor too slow. People tend to
think that the more you feed a puppy the bigger he or she will get. They do grow
bigger faster, but they end up the same size as dogs that are not fed more
While developmental skeletal abnormalities in large-breed dogs have a genetic
component, the frequency and severity of these conditions have been shown to
be influenced by high caloric intake during growth. In fact restricting food or
caloric intake during growth slows the rate of growth and the frequency and
severity of developmental skeletal abnormalities in large-breeds.
slower rate than smaller-breed puppies and may take up to 2 years to reach
adult size. Research indicates that a reduced calorie diet for large-breed
puppies is beneficial in 2 ways: by helping maintain an ideal body condition and
promoting a rate of growth that is neither too fast nor too slow. People tend to
think that the more you feed a puppy the bigger he or she will get. They do grow
bigger faster, but they end up the same size as dogs that are not fed more
While developmental skeletal abnormalities in large-breed dogs have a genetic
component, the frequency and severity of these conditions have been shown to
be influenced by high caloric intake during growth. In fact restricting food or
caloric intake during growth slows the rate of growth and the frequency and
severity of developmental skeletal abnormalities in large-breeds.
