Feeding a Great Dane Puppy a controlled growth diet is an effective defense from spiking growth patterns between 8 weeks and 8 months. For those of you who enjoy more is better, you are wiser to feed more 21-23% kibble pieces, than a food with protein in the 30 - 38 % range common with other breeds. Let me put it another way, this is a critical period in bone development for a Great Dane, 30-38% protein dog food is like rolling the dice for turbulent growth spikes in your Great Danes bone development. So the balancing act begins, Should you mix the higher protein puppy food with lower protein adult food? Sure you can if your dog can stomach the mix you put out. Sometimes the bowel movements require you to abandon the mix and pick one or the other...
The art of mixing a can of dog food like Tripet into a bowl of kibble with some warm water may give you the consistancy your looking for in the bowel movement. It will also help your Great Dane Puppy to stay hydrated and the electrolytes balance in check. Loose stools dehydrate your puppy. Dehydration sends the elecrtolytes south, and this compromise in healthy nutrition sends organs into response mode to cope, so stay of this slippery slope, and pay attention to bowel movements when working out your controlled growth through the critical period of 8 weeks to 8 months. Clean fresh cold water in copious amounts is also key to feeding your Great Dane puppy. Feeding can be on sets of three, and evolve into 2 sets on 12 hour rotations consistant with your lifestyle. The look of your puppy can be pudgy on a 23% protein kibble, or it can have a thin padding of 1/4 inch of something to hang on to over the chest/abdomen. Its OK for the dog to be sleek, but avoid the rib contours by softening the lines with a little padding. Sometimes its a chore to get them to eat more than a bird at the food bowl and its in these cases you can stimulate them to eat more at 23% with the flavour of the Tripet canned wet food, which comes in duck and fish and a garlic beef flavour. Include your vet in your Great Dane puppies nutrition and discuss the weight and development of your Great Dane puppy and review the diet and nutrition every 4-8 weeks if your not 100% sure your right on track. Your vet is trained to see things you would not so heres the Science again, buy it for the fee of showing up, a fraction of the cost of the doctoral degree to see these things yourself.
Its useful to know that white rice is very gentle on the digestive system of a Great Dane and it can help restore normal bowel movement. Cheese and eggs are also good for helping a Great Dane harden up the movements. It is also said that a small piece of banana twice a day is good for curbing feces eating by your puppy.
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