twotogo ~

What kind of puppy food have you been using? Is it dry kibble or canned or a mix of the two? Please be sure and read and note the ingredients as they are very important. If the first 1-3 ingredients begin with "corn ......" anything then put that back on the shelf. Do take the time to research on here, and other places, what a food is made of.

That said, if you are feeding a super premium high quality food that states it is good for all life stages then I feel comfortable with you doing that. There isn't necessarily a big difference in percentages of ingredients between the puppy and adult food. Less fat again with food made for dogs over 7 years old.

I am all ears about what you use and how you feel about it.
What is your Lab's name and is she an only dog or does she have animal siblings?

Thanks for posting here as we are all wanting the best for your sweetie.

Robyn

If this is what your vet said, go with it. Just make sure you switch foods very gradually. Ideally, over the course of at least a week, perhaps two depending on how sensitive your dogs stomach is.

SG

Actually most if not all vet food is really low quality, most vets are trained in by massive super giants like Iams, Science diet,ect-they themselves love animals but the food reps and giants care about profit.

www.Iamscruelty.com -its a PETA website and I'm no fan of them, as they are horrible, but the bottom line is they did uncover some nasty stuff about Iams, nasty uncover videos and everything.

Innova EVO, Orijen, Ziwi Peak, Instincts, barking at the moon, ect. are good foods. The really good ones like EVO don't really have Puppy an adult stages, Orijen does though and its about as good as EVO.

I would visit www.Naturapet.com and www.EVO.com

I've kept all my dogs on large breed puppy food for a year. Labs *especially* need the glucosamine as they are prone to dysplasia and torn ligaments.

I used to add a spoon of cottage cheese and fish oil.

Our lab pup is 7 mos. old now and our vet recommended Purina Large Breed Puppy Chow for at least 18 mos. and it would be fine for the full two years it takes for a Labrador to reach adult size.

On other forums, this brand is highly recommended also.

Innova EVO, Orijen, Ziwi Peak, Instincts, barking at the moon, ect. are good foods. The really good ones like EVO don't really have Puppy an adult stages, Orijen does though and its about as good as EVO.

Actually this is not correct info. If you are feeding a premium grain-free brand of dog food like EVO, you should not give it to your dog until they are about 2 years old.

From the Natura website - http://www.evopet.com/tools/faqs.asp?view=right

No. We would not recommend feeding EVO premium dog food to a large/giant breed puppy. There are specific Natura products which are intentionally designed for the proper nutritional support of growing puppies with projected mature weights in excess of 60 lbs. EVO was not designed for this purpose.

For the large breed puppy, the growth rate must be optimized, not maximized, and the mineral balance must be tightly controlled to support skeletal growth. The most effective way in which to control these factors is through the judicious use of high-quality carbohydrates. As a grain-free, protein-rich pet food, EVO does not provide the sufficient amount of carbohydrates a growing puppy requires. While EVO is an ideal food for large breed dogs over the age of two, we suggest offering your puppy our Innova Large Breed Puppy formula at this time.

I used Purina Large Breed Puppy Chow also highly recommended by all my vets.

I have been told by 2 trainers and have read in dog books that you should continue feeding puppy food until your dog is no longer a puppy, which is about 18months. My Smooth Collie Taff is 9 months old and I feed him James Wellbeloved complete dry food and he seems to be doing fine. Its all natural and he seems to love it.

Thanks all for the advice :) In answer to your question; our pups' name is Ruby. We call her 'roo-roo' sometimes. She has a very comical personality. Dh and I are empty nesters so she gets ALOT of one on one attention; she is like our "kid" I guess you could say. I would rather not say what we feed her as I have seen this forum get pretty 'excited' over what the best food is and that was not my question. She is a Lab but seems small but her 'parents' are not huge so I guess she takes after both of them :) Have a wonderful, dog lovin'
holiday!!!

Wow, I didn't know that, I DO know that EVO is quite rich I bet that has something to do with it. I thought richness was good for a rapidly growing young dog.

Keep in mind however that just like with people the effects of a lower quality diet take awhile to set in.

OK, just keep using the large breed puppy food for at least 18 mos.