Transition to adult food

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mlese92
Rank: Junior Hunter
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Transition to adult food

Post by mlese92 » Sat Dec 18, 2021 7:36 pm

Hi everyone,

Had a question that I thought I knew the answer to, but wanted to ask people that are familiar with the GSP breed. My pup is now a year old and has been on Purina pro plan puppy since I got him. He’s roughly 50-52 lbs and I’m curious if I should have switched to adult food sooner. He seems on the smaller side just by looking at him and seeing other pointers but I know 55-60ish is about the size full grown. I’ve been feeding about 4 cups a day as he’s super active and high energy non stop. He’s super lean, doesn’t seem too skinny as I can’t see his ribs unless I’m close. Wondering if I potentially stunted any growth by feeding that amount at a young age and if I should scale it back when switching to adult food. I’m sure it’s fine as long as he’s active and has no problem eating but wanted to ask. Lastly i don’t know if I should switch to the sport 30/20 formula because they don’t have lamb which is what I’ve been giving or if the 27/17 active is fine for him. (He does not hunt and currently not in sport). We just run him daily a good bit. Thanks in advance, I know this is a long read.

slistoe
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by slistoe » Sat Dec 18, 2021 8:30 pm

Feed the 30/20. Lamb is a poor substitute for chicken meal in the food for an active dog.

Mosby
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by Mosby » Sat Dec 18, 2021 11:35 pm

I am feeding my GSP the PPP Salmon and Rice 30/20. It has a bit more kcal than the other versions of the 30/20. My GSP is a female and also on the thin and small side and I started her on the salmon and rice to try to fill her out a bit. She has done well on it this season and I have kept her on it, but the Chicken and Rice 30/20 comes in a bigger bag, is cheaper and a better deal.

mlese92
Rank: Junior Hunter
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by mlese92 » Sun Dec 19, 2021 10:39 am

slistoe wrote:
Sat Dec 18, 2021 8:30 pm
Feed the 30/20. Lamb is a poor substitute for chicken meal in the food for an active dog.
Thanks for the info. Just debating the salmon vs chicken then. I like the idea of more calories to help him fill out but don’t know if it’s worth the price gap.

slistoe
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by slistoe » Sun Dec 19, 2021 8:34 pm

mlese92 wrote:
slistoe wrote:
Sat Dec 18, 2021 8:30 pm
Feed the 30/20. Lamb is a poor substitute for chicken meal in the food for an active dog.
Thanks for the info. Just debating the salmon vs chicken then. I like the idea of more calories to help him fill out but don’t know if it’s worth the price gap.
IMO definitely not worth it


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mlese92
Rank: Junior Hunter
Posts: 36
Joined: Thu Jan 14, 2021 12:53 pm

Re: Transition to adult food

Post by mlese92 » Tue Dec 21, 2021 10:49 am

slistoe wrote:
Sun Dec 19, 2021 8:34 pm
mlese92 wrote:
slistoe wrote:
Sat Dec 18, 2021 8:30 pm
Feed the 30/20. Lamb is a poor substitute for chicken meal in the food for an active dog.
Thanks for the info. Just debating the salmon vs chicken then. I like the idea of more calories to help him fill out but don’t know if it’s worth the price gap.
IMO definitely not worth it


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Appreciate the feedback. Any advice on helping him fill out? I assume over time he will. As I mentioned, he is a year old, roughly 50ish lbs. You can see his ribs a tiny bit but he seems more lean than skinny based on muscle appearance. We feed 4 cups/day of PPP puppy which is about 447 kcal/cup. It seems like a lot but he is just very active throughout the day and we run him a good bit everyday.

slistoe
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by slistoe » Tue Dec 21, 2021 12:04 pm

It is not at all unusual to see the hint of ribs on a short coated dog like a GSP. The vast majority of folks think an overweight dog is a healthy dog.

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Garrison
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by Garrison » Tue Dec 21, 2021 12:19 pm

Your pup is exactly where he needs to be for his age. Over the next year his metabolism will slow down and you will need to cut back the calories as he fills in a bit more, with hopefully more lean muscle mass and zero fat. A fit bird dog has both muscles and a couple ribs showing as an adult as well. You want your pup on the thin side now for slow even growth and thin as an adult to be able to do what is asked of him in the field. This is the purpose of large breed dog foods, for dogs of 70lbs or more, slow even growth of the skeletal structure, so the muscle and size can come later.

I would of personally used PPP 30/20 from start to finish to save a few bucks, but the pup is no worse for it and you haven’t stunted any growth. He will meet his genetic potential in good time, with bones that have been given all the nutrients and time they need to properly form. Now it’s time to make the switch to PPP and focus your worry on getting him on as many wild birds as possible. You’re doing fine, keep dropping the tailgate and getting in the field and you will have a bird dog.

Garrison
“Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.”
- Mark Twain-

mlese92
Rank: Junior Hunter
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by mlese92 » Tue Dec 21, 2021 12:51 pm

Garrison wrote:
Tue Dec 21, 2021 12:19 pm
Your pup is exactly where he needs to be for his age. Over the next year his metabolism will slow down and you will need to cut back the calories as he fills in a bit more, with hopefully more lean muscle mass and zero fat.

Garrison
Appreciate the response Garrison. Good to know he's right around where he should be. Attached a little reference of where he's at now.
image.jpg
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Garrison
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Re: Transition to adult food

Post by Garrison » Tue Dec 21, 2021 12:56 pm

Nothing wrong with that pup, good job!

Also, larger size doesn’t necessarily equate to hunting ability. For the hunting I do (chukar/valley and mountain quail) smaller dogs seem to hold up much better, especially after multiple days in rough terrain. Among other things, a 50-55lb male dog in hunting shape who is light on his feet, is on my list of desirable traits. I have seen a 38lb female GSP flat smoke some big strong males on many occasions and do it all over again the next couple days while they were retired to their box to lick their wounds.

Garrison
“Heaven goes by favor. If it went by merit, you would stay out and your dog would go in.”
- Mark Twain-

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