To Feed or Not To Feed....

First off I just had to show this adorable picture of Turbo and Diesel on the couch! We were having a thunderstorm at the time, and Diesel had already curled up on the couch to ride out the storm...Turbo decided to join him! They are already the best of buds!!!

ANYWAYS...back to the topic. The decision what to feed your Great Dane puppy. Some people will feed a large breed puppy food and stick to their guns that it's not bad. However, no Dane puppy should be fed Puppy Food! Here are some of the reasons why...

Giant breed puppies grow way too fast and most puppy foods have way too much calcium and other mineral supplements. A high intake of calcium is associated with many bone diseases in Great Danes, one of those being OCD (osteochodrosis). Growth regions will tend to be overgrown, and cartilage replaced with bone too early. This will cause temporary to permanent lameness in the dog. The least worrisome of the bone diseases, but still very uncomfortable for your Dane. It effects the long bones in the breed and can be very painful. Therefore no mineral or vitamin supplements should be given to your growing Dane either, (they take up to 2 years to grow) other than a Vitamin C supplement.

Puppy foods also contain a higher caloric and protein amount than is appropriate for a growing Great Dane. HOD (Hypertrophid Osteodystrophy) is a disease attributed to a high calorie diet, where more calories are taken in than being expended. This can be seen when the wrist joints become swollen, (more so than normal), they can even be hot to the touch. This will effect the growth of the dog all over. They tend to develop a "funny" gate as the rear end grows abnormally due to compensation in the gate from the tenderness of the front legs. Protein levels in a Dane puppies food should stay between 20-25%. Closer to 20% is my recommendation.

Remember a slow steady growth is best for you Dane, and never feed puppy foods even those formulated for "giant" breeds. Talk to your vet or do your research about foods that are best for your Dane. I was fortunate enough to have a vet that knew the effects of puppy food on Dane puppies and corrected me when I started my first Dane on puppy food at the recommendation of the breeder and another vet. I'm so grateful that I decided to ask another vet who was experienced with large and giant breeds, and did my research!

And one more thing about feeding your Dane. Make sure you are feeding from elevated dishes. This helps prevent bloating in your Dane. The level of the bowls should be high enough so as your Dane is eating his/her neck is paralleled to the ground. I have elevated dishes and every couple of days I have to raise the height of them for my 10 week old puppy. We have also had to custom make platforms to feed our adult Danes as the highest elevated dishes we could find were not high enough. It can be tedious but worth it! Bloat is caused when too much air is ingested and with the combination of that air in the stomach and their deep chests the stomach will flip cutting off the blood flow to your Dane's stomach. This is fatal if not taken care of immediately! Never feed your Dane just before or directly after exercise and ALWAYS feed from elevated dishes! :)

So here's to the health of your puppy and good growth! Here are a couple of good links to visit for more detailed information and suggestions for your Dane puppy!

http://www.heartlandgdr.org/why_we_dont_feed_puppy_food.htm
http://www.daneoutreach.org/Files/Care_of_Your_Dane_Puppy.pdf
http://www.mydog8it.com/puppy_care.htm
http://www.all-about-great-danes.com/feeding-great-danes.html