when to switch to an adult food?

Very handsome pup you have~ And welcome to sheltie forums to.

We never used a puppy kibble here,always were on a all life stage food. We feed TOTW.
 
Gorgeous pup!

I have also been wondering when to transition to adult food. Our breeder had the puppies on adult food, and so that is what we fed him to begin with. Unfortunately, he had an infection that really set him back growth-wise, so our vet told us to switch to puppy food, and to feed him about twice what we were giving him, for the extra calories. She said normally she cautions people not to feed as much as the recommended servings, but in Lerwick's case he needed those extra empty calories.

It's funny you mention the diarrhea, because Lerwick suffers from that too from time to time... and the worst, stinkiest gas EVER on a regular basis... and I have often wondered if it might not be the extra fat in the food causing it. Interestingly, when we temporarily put him back on the adult food for a few days (we were running low on puppy kibble and still had the adult kibble, so we mixed them), the stinky farts went away. He also didn't struggle with diarrhea in that time, but he was only on the puppy/adult mix for a few days until we made it to the store, so it's hard to say whether or not he might have had a random bout of diarrhea later if given more time.

The vet told us to keep Lerwick on the puppy food, with the bigger portion, until we bring him in for his neutering (which she wants us to do at about 8-10 months), but I think we'll probably be seeing her soon since he's having some trouble with his new teeth (new ones coming in before baby teeth have come out), so I'm going to ask her then if we can consider switching him over sooner. He seems to have slowed right down to a normal pace with growing, and has filled in nicely, and I do not want him to start going too far the other direction. And, really, if we can save our noses from his flatulence, that in itself would be reason enough for me!
 
We even are feeding the new member of the family TOTW feline formula.Nickel is transitioning nicely now all week. And he is just 8 weeks.

I vowed,if I ever had another cat,that if possible they would not eat grocery store yuck for food. Our Bumper would not even sniff any kind of better quality food,and we tried so many.
 
mcemily said:
Gorgeous pup!

I have also been wondering when to transition to adult food. Our breeder had the puppies on adult food, and so that is what we fed him to begin with. Unfortunately, he had an infection that really set him back growth-wise, so our vet told us to switch to puppy food, and to feed him about twice what we were giving him, for the extra calories. She said normally she cautions people not to feed as much as the recommended servings, but in Lerwick's case he needed those extra empty calories.

It's funny you mention the diarrhea, because Lerwick suffers from that too from time to time... and the worst, stinkiest gas EVER on a regular basis... and I have often wondered if it might not be the extra fat in the food causing it. Interestingly, when we temporarily put him back on the adult food for a few days (we were running low on puppy kibble and still had the adult kibble, so we mixed them), the stinky farts went away. He also didn't struggle with diarrhea in that time, but he was only on the puppy/adult mix for a few days until we made it to the store, so it's hard to say whether or not he might have had a random bout of diarrhea later if given more time.

The vet told us to keep Lerwick on the puppy food, with the bigger portion, until we bring him in for his neutering (which she wants us to do at about 8-10 months), but I think we'll probably be seeing her soon since he's having some trouble with his new teeth (new ones coming in before baby teeth have come out), so I'm going to ask her then if we can consider switching him over sooner. He seems to have slowed right down to a normal pace with growing, and has filled in nicely, and I do not want him to start going too far the other direction. And, really, if we can save our noses from his flatulence, that in itself would be reason enough for me!
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Other than added calories,I don't understand why your vet said to keep him on puppy kibble till his neuter.

I personally do not have food conversations with my vet.They know what I feed here,and they love the ingrediants (or lack of) grain & such. I personally feel if something works,then why be messing with it.

If it were me,and my dog he would be on the food that agrees with him more. And by the sounds of it,he was doing very well on the adult formula. Have you ever tried a bit of pumpkin for the loose poops?
 
he's 8 month today and i think we're going to start making the switch. got the adult food ready to go.

thanks for all the responses. I totally forgot that I posted here and came back to such lovely responses and comments. thanks!!

another thing our vet mentioned was that once he starts putting on the pounds he's ready to switch. he's not chubby but i think he's filled out pretty nicely....i'll make the switch before he puts on too much beef haha. My last sheltie Benny put on quite a bit when he was a young adult.

thanks again everyone!
 
Welcome to the forum.

Sheldon is a great name for a sheltie!!! He is very handsome.

We change Mally from puppy to adult food at 12months. I figured he was full grown by then. I have known others to have theirs on adult food earlier, though.
 
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