Can I feed my puppy Big Dog?
Yes.
If your puppy was weaned onto a raw food diet, you can generally transition straight to a 100% Big Dog diet.
If your pup was weaned onto cooked or processed food (canned food, dry food or cooked rolls) then we recommend to transition more slowly.
A raw food diet is very different to a processed cooked diet and any sudden change of diet can create stomach upsets and gradually transitioning helps to minimise this.
Please follow these guidelines, whilst monitoring your puppy’s stools. You should begin to notice smaller, less smelly stools as you transition towards a 100% raw food diet. Loose stools are OK during the transitioning period, but do make sure there is no persistent, watery stools.
Day 1-3: 20% New Diet 80% Old Diet
Day 4-6: 40% New Diet 60% Old Diet
Day 7-9: 60% New Diet 40% Old Diet
Day 10-12: 80% New Diet 20% Old Diet
Day 12+: 100% New Diet
Additionally, we recommend the following amounts to be fed based on the weight of your puppy:
Puppy (3 – 12 months or until fully grown): 4-7% dog’s body weight
Adult (12 months or when fully grown): 2% dog’s body weight
Keep in mind that feeding guides are general and optimal feeding amounts may vary with age, size, breed, and activity level. Increase or decrease the calories your pup consumes daily to ensure a healthy weight is maintained.
If your puppy has no known allergies or health conditions, then you can start them on any flavour from our core range (Beef, Chicken, Combo, Tasmanian Salmon, and Lamb.). Most people choose chicken as it is highly palatable, especially when starting off on raw food for the first time.
Alternatively, our Small Dog Combo diet may be most suitable, especially for smaller pups. Our Raw Bites along with our Combo for Small Dogs recipes are minced more finely and is portioned into smaller sizes, which can help reduce wastage in the transition phase or in smaller breeds.
If your puppy does have allergies or skin conditions, we recommend either our Single Protein Allergy Diet – Turkey or our Scientific Diet – Sensitive Skin.
For more information on each product, see our products page for dogs.
A Guide To Raw Feeding Your Puppy
Transitioning puppies to raw food with Chris Essex