Puppy Nutrition

The growth period is the most important stage in a dog's life.  For a puppy to develop healthily he requires a diet that provides optimal levels of the nutrients required for growth, and sufficient calories to maintain his energy requirements.  Puppies have greater structural and functional demands upon their bodies, a faster metabolic rate, and a subsequently higher need for calories than an adult dog of the same weight.  This is why diets formulated for the early growth period have a higher energy density. 

Nutrition is not only a vital contributing factor to the dog’s outward appearance, but also can affect general demeanour and temperament.  A hungry dog or one suffering pain from developmental growth defects as a result of inadequate nutrition is likely to be far less easy to handle and train.  Over-nutrition can be equally detrimental, with problems most frequently arising from the supplementation of an already complete diet with mineral and/or calorie-rich foods, and free-feeding or over-feeding. 

Too much food can manifest in bone disease, loose stools and over-exuberance as a result of too much fuel for energy.  Feeding a super-premium quality complete food such as Arden Grange reduces the risk of over or under-nutrition as every recipe contains not only the essential nutrients for controlled and healthy growth, but many safe and natural healthcare supplements that may optimise your puppy’s overall general health and well-being. 

A puppy requires a balanced diet that provides optimal levels of protein, fat, carbohydrate, fibre, vitamins, minerals and water.  Whilst each nutrient can be evaluated as a single entity, it is also important to remember that the calorie content of the food will affect the true amount of each that is ingested in milligrams or grams per day.  The quality and digestibility of every ingredient are also important, as is the proportion of each in relation to the other nutrients in the food.  The Arden Grange Weaning Puppy and Puppy Junior (for small and medium breeds) are energy-dense to ensure that the immature digestive system is not over-worked with large quantities of food.  During early growth, the digestive system is at its most sensitive.  It is important to choose a very highly digestible food that will ensure balanced intestinal flora and a regular intestinal transit resulting in firm stools.  Arden Grange Weaning Puppy, Puppy Junior and Puppy Junior Large Breed contain fresh chicken, chicken meal and egg - providing protein of a high biological value that is extremely palatable, easily digested and efficiently metabolised.  The balanced minerals and micro-minerals ensure efficient function of all the metabolic processes, whilst the inclusion of prebiotics, nucleotides and powerful natural antioxidants may provide further benefit to the digestive and immune systems. 

The Puppy Junior Large Breed is lower in calories to help to reduce the risk of developmental bone disease associated with over-nutrition in large and giant breeds, and to help promote a slow and steady rate of growth over a longer period of time. 

Every recipe in the Arden Grange Growth Range has been specially formulated to meet the increased nutritional demands of the developing dog.  The weight of large breed puppies such as the German Shepherd increases 70 to 90-fold from birth during a growth period lasting up to 12 months.  This long period means the puppy needs a controlled energy intake food with a moderate fat content to guarantee ossification of the skeleton without excessive weight gain.  The unique Arden Grange ‘Bone Plus’ icon guarantees a balanced calcium : phosphorous ratio and an optimal level of Vitamin D to aid bone development and growth.  The correct calcium : phosphorous ratio is essential for healthy structure and strength of teeth and bones, whilst calcium is also necessary for the normal clotting of blood and for nerve and muscle function.  Skeletal health is further promoted by the addition of Glucosamine, Chondroitin and MSM. 

Many owners are unsure as to when to change their puppy from a growth diet to an adult recipe.  Arden Grange advise that as with any dietary adjustment, changes should always be made gradually.  This enables the digestive system to adapt to the new nutrient balance, ingredients and volume of food.  As a guideline, it is recommended that when a puppy reaches his optimal skeletal height (i.e.  he is as tall as he will be as an adult), then an adult food will be suitable.  There is naturally a huge variation between breeds, with larger breeds maturing much more slowly than miniature, toy and small breeds.  There is also a difference in developmental rates between every dog as an individual which will be dependent upon genetic build, metabolism and digestion. 

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