Why Big Puppies Need to Grow Slowly

Without human intervention into breeding; dogs naturally tend to average out in the weight range of 15 -20 kilograms. Large breeds (>25kg) are forced into an unnaturally fast rate of growth which results in these puppies being more likely to suffer from developmental bone diseases ; such as elbow and hip dysplasias and defects in bone and cartilage development.

As veterinarians, we try and counteract this by preventing overfeeding of large breed puppies. Puppy diets have been specifically developed for large breed puppies that are nutrient and energy restricted (in particular fat and Calcium and phosphorous) in comparison to their small and medium breed puppy food counterparts, in order to slow the growth of the puppy for healthier bone and cartilage development

As an owner of a large breed puppy, such as a Great Dane, Rottweiler or Boerboel, one of the most responsible and worthwhile things you can choose to do for your dog, is to feed him/her a specially designed Large Breed Puppy food. This will save you and your dog a great deal of problems in the future.

At Vets@Haldon we stock various good quality large breed puppy foods, please inquire in store.

Pic reference: http://www.dogwallpapers.net/great-dane/black-and-white-great-dane-dog-wallpaper.html