Orijen Senior for a young dog.

[Linda, Webber and Seda]

Karen, this question is directed to you.  I switched my 11 month old doodle from Orijen puppy to Orijen Senior too get her weight down a bit and maintain her.  Webber, her 3 year old brother is on it a well.  Today the Vet said she did not want Seda on the senior formula because the calcium and phosphorous are not properly balanced for a puppy and asked me to put her on Orijen Adult.  Do you have any information about proper calcium and phosphorous?  Seda weighs 36# and is 20".

The designer pet store told me that the formula was the same for Senior as Adult, that here were just fewer calories but the dog would get enough bulk to keep them from being hungry all the time like they get if I cut back on the amount of food.  The goal is to keep them on the lean side.   Thanks 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The calcium and phosphorus is identical in both the Orijen Adult formula, and the Orijen senior formula. So once again, we see that vets know nothing about dog food and don't have the time to simply look at the website, which is where I got the above info.

The phosphorus in all of the formulas- Puppy, Large Puppy, Adult, and Senior- is exactly the same. No difference from one to another. The difference in the calcium between both Puppy formulas as opposed to the Adult and Senior formulas is so minute as to be inconsequential: It ranges from 1.5-1.7% in the puppy formulas and 1.4-1.6% in the Adult and Senior formula. This difference is not even worth thinking about.

Where there is a difference is in the calories. One cup of Senior formula has only 395 k/cal, as opposed to 480 for Puppy, 410 for Large Puppy, and 460 for Adult. The Large Puppy formula is closest to the Senior food.  

The senior has less fat and more fiber than the other formulas, in varying amounts- fiber is at 5% VS 3% for all the other formulas, and fat at 15% VS 20% for Puppy, 16% for Large Puppy, and 17% for Adult. Again, very little difference, and the Large Puppy formula is the closest.

I don't see any problem with using the Senior formula, except that you can't offer them the variety you could with the Adult formulas, Another way to help your pup lose weight and stay at a healthy weight would be to go with the Adult formula, which has slightly less calories than the puppy food, cut back the amount you feed slightly, and add a half cup of green beans to each meal.

[Linda, Webber and Seda]

Thank you so much, Karen.  I knew that you would know the answer. As long as I see Royal Canin in the office I am going to ask an expert before I fiddle with what is working!!  The Vet is very well trained and experienced in Vet. medicine but it sounds like she doesn't know what is in the premium foods.  I hope she will take the time to look it up!  I will however, educate her when I take Webber in next month for his annual visit.