[PyrNet-L] Canine nutriton and puppies

["ARIEGE" <ARIEGE@xtra.co.nz>]

Carol, thankyou.  Yes there was (and still is) much anger in me over the
careless approach being taken with puppies diet recently. Problems happened
which did not need to happen and this was "an experiment" to prove who was
right and who wasn't food wise . Being very aware (on one side of the
pedigree) of the extreme growth rate of the past (at a certain age)  I find
it dangerous to measure out a bit of this and a bit of that, not feeding a
complete natural  diet nor feeding a complete puppy prepared diet and the
outcome could have been avoided by taking note of past problems and working
toward eliminating not compounding with the end result being a puppy(s?)
suffering needlessly.
Don't all the large breed puppy foods say don't add extra calcium? So if you
are feeding some of this and some natural foods do you then still give the
extra calcium?  I asked the Breeder in Aust where my new puppy has come from
to put him onto a large breed puppy food such as I would be feeding him and
please not to give the calcium that she gives because I would not be
carrying that on. His requirements are in his diet and he needs no extra.
You said yourself that Cajun had "predictable growth spurts".  That is
something you have learnt like me over the years and know how to cope with
it.  What about those people who don't know these things and maybe don't
want to know . If you are not 100% sure of what you are doing and know of a
tendency that can cause problems wouldn't you be a bit more careful in the
feeding to start with rather than carry on regardless. There is much
knowledge out there today with puppies diets. Make a choice, feed a
completely natural diet or feed a complete prepared puppy diet. For the sake
of a large breed rapidly growing puppy it's dangerous to do both. It's
interesting also to note "She would get ravenous, eat up a storm, then grow
like mad". Sometimes preceding this is also very hyper behaviour and then
afterward complete lethargy and the inability to move for 24 hours.  The
last time I saw this sort of hyper/lethargy some years ago, the puppy had
HOD with large calcium deposits in the joints. A recovery was made but some
damage was left behind.
Jan
Jan Chaplin Ariege-Roussillon Pyreneans. Visit my sites at
http://www.geocities.com/janellachaplin/ and
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