10 month old golden doodle food question

[debbie stevenson]

Hello I am new to doodles I have had daisy since she was 10 weeks old. I have her on Nutro limited ingredient lamb and rice. I had no idea that was no a decent food. I want to change her. I think she has an issue with chicken as when I had her originally on the chicken large breed puppy she never had good stools. her stools are normal now. I am concerned with the calcium/phos levels and her growth.  I found a good food from what seems to be a great company it was recommended by dog food advisor Nulo puppy. it is grain free and my question was is grain free ok for doodles? I got the salmon and pea as it does not have chicken. it does have turkey. I think she has a bit of a sensitive stomach. doesn't take much to give her soft stools. 

any advice I welcome. also how long to they stay on puppy? of course the dog food bags say 18 months I am thinking til they are fully grown??

thank you in advance.

[Joan Bollaert]

I've always fed my doodles Orijen and never had any bowel, stool or stomach problems. It's also grain free as its better for dogs. Mine were on puppy formula for one year

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Doodles are no different from any other dog when it comes to food. There's nothing any different about their digestive systems than a Lab, a Golden, A Poodle, or any other breed or mix. Grain free foods are appropriate for most dogs, including doodles, lol. 

It's very unlikely that a 10 week old puppy would have any type of food sensitivity, to chicken or anything else. She probably had stool issues because of the macronutrient percentages, or the fiber content, or too many fillers in the original chicken based food, not because of the chicken itself. 

Nulo is a brand I've just heard of recently, and I haven't had a chance to look into it in depth. What I have seen so far looked fine, but I am a little worried about the fact that it's only sold at Petsmart, at least here in my area. The privately owned pet boutiques that sell the better quality foods here are not carrying it. 

The reviews on Dog Food Advisor do not reflect the sourcing of the ingredients, so we tend not to put much stock in them here in this group. The criteria they use for rating foods is strictly based on protein and carbohydrate percentages. Our recommendations go into more depth. 

You also do not need a "large breed" formula unless your pup is expected to top 80 or 90 lbs as an adult. 

My first choice would be Orijen Puppy, but it sounds like you've already purchased the Nulo? 

[debbie stevenson]

here in my area the big chain stores do not carry it. only the small boutique store that has the ones you have listed.

their customer service is really good. I called with a question and they called right back. they are out of austin texas. I did purchase a small bag but have not opened it yet. my puppy is 10 months right now. I did  not go with orijen because of the change in them recently many on chewy said the new bags of food they got were different and had weird coloring. I know they recently changed manufacturing or something? 

as far as sourcing what should I ask about that?

[debbie stevenson]

and also not that it makes a difference but it is in the price range of origin 62.99 24 lb bag on chewy so its not cheap food

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

The store will not know about sourcing, you can only get that information directly from the manufacturer. 

Many of the foods on our recommended list are carried at Petsmart and Petco. Both carry Wellness, and several others. Almost all of them are carried at Pet Supplies Plus, too. 

The better the ingredients, the higher the price. That's true of human food, too. Meat costs more than cereal. Orijen's prices reflect the quality of the ingredients and the lack of fillers. As Anita, mentioned, you also feed less, so in the long run, it can cost less to feed than the "cheaper" brands. :) 
Wellness Core is also a very good food. 

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Oh, and you can stop feeding puppy formulas when your dog's skeletal growth is complete, which for most standard doodles is about 9 or 10 months of age. 

[Anita Lee]

Lots of great info from Karen as always! Grain-free is fantastic. Many people find they feed less on grain-free as the food is more nutrient dense. Puppies often have soft stools as a result of being over-excited or eating very rich food high in either protein and fat or both. Zoe's had soft stool only on Orijen, but she's pretty delicate so.. 

We have her on Acana or Wellness Core most of the time and both are 5-star rated and grain free. Keep in mind Wellness also has non grain-free but the Core line is completely grain-free.

[Sandy Aicher and Bailey]

Check out Honest Kitchen dehydrated grain-free formulas.  I wish I would've found it sooner.  My goldendoodle loves it and is thriving on it.  It is made with human grade ingredients that are all natural, no preservatives, no fillers, and no by-products. Dry kibble can be dehydrating to some because of the low moisture content.  Having more moisture in their diet is better for their internal organs. Good luck with your new pup!

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

Honest Kitchen is a great product. But it's a lot more expensive than any kind of kibble, even Orijen. :)

None of the brands on our recommended list contains by-products or chemical preservatives.