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We are bringing home our new puppy in about 10 days or so. The breeder feeds the BARF diet. After talking to our vet and doing some research etc. we do not want to continue with the BARF feeding.

That said, how do you suggest we get her from eating that way to kibble?

I think we are going to use Fromm (not sure which specifc formula) or Prairie puppy formula--still gathering info, but either way, how do I get her to eat it?

Thanks so much for any advice you can offer!

 

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Replies to This Discussion

How old will the puppy be when you bring her home? I remember reading that it is not recommended to switch the puppys food until they are adjusted to their new enviornment...good luck with the new puppy though!
9 weeks old...I know I have to do it gradual, but since it is a completly different diet, I do not know what exactly to do. My vet suggested, doing whatever breeder did for about 3-5 days then doing half and half for 3-4 days then all kibble by week 2....does that sound good?

Don't change her food for at least two weeks. I know that's a pain, but there are several reasons for it. You need to give her time to adjust to the huge change in her environment and her life, and you need to get a good idea of what "normal" is for her in terms of poop frequency and consistency. It is very common for doodle puppies to come home with giardia or other intestinal parasites, and if you change food, you won't know if any diarrhea or other digestive upsets are due to food or to something else. Also, if the dog does have a health issue, the breeder will blame it on the food change.

Stick with the BARF diet for at least two weeks and then follow your vet's suggestions for transitioning.

Also, since she has been on a grain-free diet, I would choose a kibble that is grain-free. She will probably have the most trouble with grains during the transition. Fromm is an excellent food, but only two of their formulas are grain-free.

You can check our Recommended Brands list for grain-free formulas.

Why is it common for Doodles to have parasites and Giardia? Thank you so much for your info. I am going to check out the food lists too, for sure. I find selecting a food is sooo hard.

It's hard to answer this question without seeming to criticize doodle breeders. I will start by saying I have personally had three puppies of my own, and three others when I was growing up, and most of my friends and relatives had dogs, too, yet I never heard of giardia until I started participating in doodle forums. With my puppies, either they came from a home where the people had one dog who had puppies, and no other dogs used the yard, or they were from show breeders who had one litter at a time and kept the mother and puppies isolated from all other dogs. My last dog was 9 weeks old when she came home, and her feet had never touched the ground outdoors. No possibility to pick up any parasites or come into contact with feces from other dogs or rabbits, squirrels, raccons, deer, cows, horses, etc.

But when you have dogs being bred purely to sell puppies, which by definition would include most people who breed mixed breed dogs, you usually have a large number of dogs on the property. Often the breeders are in rural settings, and all the dogs, puppies and adults alike, are outdoors together using the same areas for potty purposes. You also have wild animals of various kinds on the property, and often farm animals, too. Under those circumstances, it is very difficult to keep the puppies from coming into contact with areas where other dogs and/or animals have defecated. You also may have puddles, ponds, streams, and other types of standing water accessible to the pups. All of these things contribute to the puppies becoming infected with giardia and other parasites.

All I know for sure is that it seems that half the puppies here on DK have had giardia, coccidia, or other types of parasites as young pups.

Thank you so much for replying....do the parasites and giardia etc. not come out until you bring them home or are they sick at the breeders and they just don't tell you? I am admitedly a bit freaked right now....My breeder does have 5 adult dogs and the litter of puppies. They do all go outside together....

Do you have any advice about anything I can address with the breeder before I bring her home?

Giardia has a 10-14 day incubation period. I believe that some dogs don't develop symptoms until after they're home, and others do, but the breeders don't tell you. Some breeders give them a cheap version of metronidazole before they go home and keep their fingers crossed, lol.

Again, I don't want to sound like I'm disparaging doodle breeders, but you have to realize that many of these people pay their mortgages and feed their children from the sale of puppies, so they are not going to say or do anything that might jeopardize a sale. Talking to your breeder is not going to help. He or she is going to tell you that his/her dogs don't have any parasites.

And your puppy very well may not have any. A breeder who's feeding BARF sounds like one who tried hard to raise healthy puppies, and maybe he/she is extra vigilant about parasite issues. But I would still want to wait 2 weeks to be absolutely sure before I switched foods.

I have another question, I don't want to start another thread as it is related to switching to a kibble. For a doodle that is predicted to be 40ish pounds full grown would I do regular puppy or large breed puppy? I am pretty sure I am going with Fromm puppy gold.

For a dog expected to be 40 pounds as an adult, the regular puppy formula should be sufficient. The large-breed puppy formulas are intended for the really large or giant breeds.

Also, I want to encourage you to pay heed to Karen's last paragraph--that your puppy may well not have any parasites. Everything Karen says about the risk of parasites is all too true (and there are enough cases documented here on DK to persuade anyone of that), but Cosmo came from a professional breeder who raises the dogs and puppies at her rural home--and he had no parasite problems. It sounds like your puppy's breeder is as careful and professional as Cosmo's.

So be observant and careful, but don't worry!

You do not need a Large Breed formula, even if your puppy ends up at 60 lbs. as an adult. Large Breed formulas are really designed for giant breeds who do not reach full skeletal growth until their 2nd year of life.

I would keep her in the BARF diet .Our girl is almost five now and sh e was gfed BARF and grain free( ORIJEN) from day one

We have never had any tummy problemsof any kind.Now she eats one Origen meal and one raw meal daily.

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