You’re inundated with choices to make for your puppy right now, and choosing the best food for them is on that lengthy list. Your VCA care team is here to help you with this tough decision! Assuming your puppy is weaned, it’s time to get them on a healthy commercial diet.
Every dog food should have what’s called an AAFCO Statement on the packaging. AAFCO is the acronym for the Association of American Feed Control Officials, an organization which has guided feed regulations in the United States for over a century.
The AAFCO Statement will indicate the life stages for which the specific food is appropriate and should state whether the food underwent animal feeding trials or was formulated to meet nutritional standards.
You specifically want to see that the food provides complete and balanced nutrition either for growing puppies or for all life stages. This statement is usually found near the Guaranteed Analysis or Pet Nutrition Facts on the packaging.
If there is no AAFCO Statement on the package, you should not use the food as your puppy’s main diet.
So, what’s the difference between puppy food and adult food? Generally, puppy foods will have:
- More calories in a smaller amount of food to support the higher energy needs of puppies
- More protein than adult foods, which is important for growth
- More fat than adult foods, which is important for growth
- More calcium and phosphorus than adult foods, which is important for bone development
- Higher levels of several other minerals, such as iron and zinc
- Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), an omega-3 fatty acid which is important for brain and eye development
One caveat is that large and giant breed puppies (dogs who will be over 70 pounds at full size) have unique nutritional needs compared with other young pups. If large breed puppies grow too quickly, they’re more likely to develop bone or joint abnormalities. To address this, foods for large or giant breed dogs have a narrower range of calcium that is allowed in the food. For puppies who will grow into large or giant adults, you’ll want to pick a food that mentions being appropriate for growing large or giant breed dogs in their AAFCO statement.
Most puppies will eat their puppy food for around a year, but your veterinarian’s recommendations may change based on your dog’s size. For example, some small breed dogs may be able to switch to adult food earlier while larger breed dogs may eat their puppy food until they’re over a year and a half old!
Another important note. We don’t recommend home-cooked diets for puppies, as puppies have very specific nutritional needs. An unbalanced diet could be detrimental to their growth and development. If you’ll be feeding a home-cooked diet, it’s absolutely essential that you work with a veterinary nutritionist to ensure the diet is complete and balanced.
With shopmyvca.com, you can easily select a food for your puppy and have it delivered to your home. Plus, if you subscribe to automatic deliveries, you won’t have to worry about running out of puppy food! All non-prescription puppy foods that are available meet AAFCO standards for growing puppies.
Watch “What should I feed my new puppy?” to learn more about feeding your new puppy.
