Can I start feeding the adult formula at nine months old?

[Camilla and Darwin]

Darwin is turning nine months old soon, and we have made the switch over from Eagle Pack, to Eagle Pack Holistic Select. We picked up the adult formula chicken and rice... but now I am wondering if it might have been too soon. He is doing great on it, and hasn't had any problems with the transition. But is nine months too young to feed adult formulas, or does it not really matter?

[Susan Crespo]

I was told by my breeder that you can start at 6 months.

[Lori]

My vet just advised me to feed Casper adult food at 4 months! I haven't switched his food because I want to ask the other vet in the practice to make sure she feels the same way. Her reasoning is that large breeds may grow too fast on puppy food & risk damage to their bones/joints and since they may also be prone to hip dysplasia, she feels that the adult food will slow down their growth. Anyone else ever hear something like this?

[Camilla and Darwin]

I have heard this, specifically from Great Dane breeders I have talked to. I don't know if it would affect a med/large dog as drastically, but it is true that many puppy formulas contain a high protein content that can cause large dogs to grow too fast. I also believe that the high end premium foods usually account for that in the puppy food they make, so it's not really an issue. Take Eagle Pack Large Breed Puppy for example, it is specifically formulated to NOT cause growing problems for large breed puppies.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

There is a huge difference (no pun intended) between the growth issues in normal larger breed dogs like retrievers and giant breeds like Great Danes. No comparison is applicable in regard to nutrition. The average life-span of a Great Dane is 7 years.

[Betsy D.]

Our vet told us the same thing, though Cimmy was 7 months old. She was slowing down in her growth and the doctor didn't want her gaining more weight. Though now that you mention not doing it yet until you speak with the other vet,our normal vet did not tell us to switch, it was one we were seeing because of a problem. Our vet was in surgery and Cimmy had a lot of blood in her stool. I didn't want to wait. Hum... we haven't been back since. I wander if our normal vet would have agreed. Anyway, it has been just about two months and though Cimmy's weight gain has slowed, her growth in height has not. She is doing fine.

[Tammy & Gracie]

My vet has said that in relation to a friend's German Shepherds. Adult food all along to slow bone growth and keep it more steady.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The best age to start adult formulas depends on the adult size of the dog. Small dogs reach full skeletal growth much earlier than large breeds, and can start adult formulas sooner. For large breeds, 9-10 months is usually old enough. Many people use ALS formulas and don't ever have to switch.
The only real difference between "large breed" and regular adult formulas is a tiny bit of tweaking of the macronutrient proportions...but the large breed formulas sometimes have significantly higher fat levels, which is NOT a good thing. I haven't compared the puppy formulas, but I suspect the same is true. It's perhaps worth notice that few of the really top-quality companies, like Orijen and Fromm, even make different formulas for different size dogs. Orijen has one puppy formula, and although there are different flavors in the adult line, there is no "large breed' formula. I need the specific brand and formula name to do an analysis so we can see the differences.

[Sally, Echo and Emmi]

Orijen does have a large breed puppy formula, I believe.

[Camilla and Darwin]

It's Holistic Select Chicken and Rice formula. Made by Eagle Pack. I knew growth patterns were different in giant and large breed dogs. Great Danes grow at an astounding rate. I wasn't sure if it was a similar problem with both sizes.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Oh, I meant compare the large breed and the regular version of the same food, Camilla. There's going to be a much bigger difference in formulas between puppy and adult, I think, and in your case, the regular Eagle Pack formulas are very different from the Holistic Select. The latter is a much better food in general.
This is an area where I would trust my vet to tll me if a dog is old enough or large enough to start on adult foods. Don't let them tell you what food, lol...just if it can be adult!

[Camilla and Darwin]

I would gladly ask my vet... unfortunately they don't answer any questions unless you come in and pay for a visit. I took him in for a vet visit only last month, so I don't really want to pay 60 dollars to find out if I can switch foods... And you are right that I shouldn't talk to them about what kind of food. They are really big into trying to get you to buy their crappy food they endorse. (the food they "advertise" has wheat, corn, and soy in the first five ingredients, wheat being the first ingredient.)

The Holistic Select is much different than the Eagle pack, I agree. As far as the difference between the adult formulas, I did compare the labels and I am not really sure what it means. The adult food has 2% less fat and 4% less protein than the puppy food... but they have very similar ingredients. I am not sure what this means unfortunately. The feeding guidelines are different, the adult food has a lower food recommendation. I am a little lost with all of this... I am no expert!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The macronutrient percentage differences are to account for the faster growth rate of the puppy; that's why you wait until the dog is close to full skeletal growth before switching; the puppy food with it's higher fat & protein contents is denser nutritionally. I'll bet the k/cals per cup are higher. And then you're feeding more, so that's even nore k/cals...it's all to support growth and development. Human teenagers need way more calories and nutrients than adults do, too.
I am astonished that the vet won't answer a simple question over the phone that is not related to anything medical. I do it all the time. You should try. I would call the office and say "You know, when I brought Darwin in last month, I forgot to ask Dr. Tightwad when he should be switched from puppy food to adult food. Could you please ask him and let me know?" Try it, what's the worst that can happen? Maybe they'll check his record and call you back with an answer.