Feeding
Your new puppy will require 3 cups of food per day broken up into 3 meals, you can also mix dry with water and a half can of wet food with each feeding, then 4 cups would be fine as an adult, dogs can be fed twice a day 2 cups at a time if you prefer or 3 meals a day.
All of our dogs eat wellness core. It has higher protein and calcium, plus gluclosimine for bones and joints.
If your adult dog is very active and has plenty of exercise and runs more then an hour a day he will eat more and not be as picky, dogs who do not like to eat are not getting enough exercise.
I would give puppy food until the dog is at least one years old. Breeding females should always get puppy food in my opinion.
The problem called Bloat?
Bloat is a stomach problem that needs immediate care. your dog will drool attempt to vomit and his or her stomach will feel swelled and hard, sometimes symptoms are not seen but can be always felt by feeling the stomach.
What causes bloat?
Bloat is caused by vigorous exercise after a meal or before a meal. Always feed a dog an hour after or an hour before rough exercise, its best to feed smaller meals instead of larger ones.
Foods I recommend only for this breed are
Evangers, some are only to be used as a mixer and are very good!
Blue buffalo dry Large breed.
Innova and innova red meat
Chicken soup
wellness and wellness core
Premium edge
Timerwolf organic
Lifes abundance
Royal cannin: German shepherd large breed.
The raw diet.
Some people feed raw meats with bones as as a whole diest insted of dry and canned.
Here is a list of what we have tried and our dogs love it. I don't recomend raw meat bones until the dog is at least 7 months old. Necks legs and wings are best. Do not give small rough bones that your dog will swallow whole. NEVER GIVE BONES WITH NO MEAT ON THEM, test the bones and make sure you can crunch them with your fingers if you cant then they may be too hard for your dog to crunch. Do not give bones everyday only as a treat or digestive upsets can occur.
Stay clear of corn gluten and wheat and by-products.
If you are switching your dog off canned and dry food to the all raw diet you must do it slowley or dogs can get severe intestinal upsets and diareah. Try mixing a little in there current food.
Most pups can be raised on raw with no problems at all just after weaning.
Raw meat and worms?
This is not a common problem since dogs have very hearty digestive tracts and are not highly prone to this and worms in dogs come from eating dead or sick worm infested mice and other wild animals and picking up from dirt. We do not feed raw foods but we have fed rare cooked meat it is very nutritional, especiality for nursing moms.
Do not add anything like onions or spice to the dogs food, this can cause severe intestine upsets onions can kill a dog, only use small amounts of garlic also never more then 1 teaspoon to add flavor, garlic is good for banishing fleas when given in a dogs diet but to much can cause gas.
Here is a list of harmful foods.
Chocolate
onions
hot spices
fried or salty foods
Grapes
Raisens
Nuts
hotdogs
Alcoholic drinks
sugary foods
Salty Ham
Salt is dangerous if given in large amounts and can cause bloat. Garlic can be given in small amouts, powdered kind only
People food that is good for your dog
small amouts of real cheese
Milk
Eggs
Yogurt
meat or chicken with no salt and spice
small amouts of lunch meat
Veggies in small amounts like peas and carrots and asparagus, too many will not digest if given because of the natural shape of your dogs stomach has less abilty to digest vegtables.
Bathing
Bathing can be done once a week or once monthly with a mild shampoo or a mild antibacterial one, this helps a great deal in keeping your dogs coat clean and free of skin problems.
However over bathing though can cause dry coat and wash away natural oils.
Worming
Interceptor and Iverheart is a good choice, it worms many types of worms and heart worm. You can give all year round monthly or from April until November.
