My 9-week puppy's food has bad reviews. What food do you recommend?

Congratulations on your new puppy Diggy! In general I like the brand Royal Canin. The dogs that I see (including my own) that eat that diet tend to have nice hair coats and good stool quality. They make a variety of breed specific and size specific diets. The breeds for the small dogs also have enzymes that make harder for bacteria to cling to teeth (which helps reduce tartar build up). I also like Purina ProPlan and Iams. Please post again if you have any further questions!

Congratulations on your new addition! As a general rule of thumb, I typically recommend feeding Science Diet, Royal Canin or Purina ProPlan foods. These companies do extensive clinical testing to assure that their foods are nutritionally appropriate and source ingredients appropriately. Odin should eat a puppy food until he is 1 year old. Anytime you change his diet, be sure to do so by gradually mixing old and new foods together over a 5-7 day period. Sudden diet changes have a greater chance of causing vomiting and diarrhea.

Good question! I recommend either Royal Canin Puppy food or Hill's Science Diet puppy food. Both of these companies do a lot of research and quality control and they utilize the expertise of veterinary nutritionists in formulating their diets. If you do transition Jax from one diet to another please make sure to do it gradually (over 4-5 days) to ensure he doesn't get an upset stomach. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach and best regards to you and Jax!

There are so many high quality foods available for dogs that it can be confusing, and marketing becomes the biggest tool that food companies have to try to give their food the "edge." Be aware that this has led to A LOT of general misinformation. I give you this information openly and honestly as a professional who has devoted the last 10+ years to the health and care of pets. Dogs (and wolves for that matter) are omnivores, meaning they have evolved to seek to eat and digest meat AND plant material. In comparison, cats (and big cats such as lions, etc) are obligate carnivores, meaning they absolutely require meat as their primary food source. While some dogs may have sensitivities to diets with grain, many dogs do not. Just like people. And for those who do NOT have a problem with grains, they are a healthy contribution to the diet. That is just a fact. The trend to favoring "grain -free" diets has been pushed by marketing and the trend of fad diets for people that favor a "paleo" or "keto" diet. Many dog food brands and companies, and many specialty boutique brands have worked to push this idea that grains are bad for all dogs, when the science is just not there. And there has been information linking grain free diets to an increase in heart disease. See this article: http://vetnutrition.tufts.edu/2018/06/a-broken-heart-risk-of-heart-disease-in-boutique-or-grain-free-diets-and-exotic-ingredients/ Here is another great article summarizing how assuming "grain free" is better may be a mistake: http://vetnutrition.tufts.edu/2016/06/grain-free-diets-big-on-marketing-small-on-truth/ Here are some good resources to help you make decisions for Mini''s food. http://dels.nas.edu/resources/static-assets/banr/miscellaneous/dog_nutrition_final_fix.pdf http://www.acvn.org/frequently-asked-questions/ Thanks for asking PetCoach !

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I would love to help you. Orijen is indeed part of that list. For that reason, I would recommend you consider another diet. I really like Science Diet, Royal Canin and Purina as these are all good companies that conduct research on their diets. Any of those would work well for Milo as they are of high quality. Best of luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am sure that you have probably noticed that there are several different foods available in the market which does not make it any easier sometimes. I prefer any of the Purina pro Plan diets as they are highly nutritious and also very palatable. Also, I highly recommend the hill's Science Diet foods which are also great. Both of these brands have puppy specific diets that would be perfect for Snoopy. Good luck and have a great day!

Hello and congratulations on your puppy! There are many great puppy food brands out there. I recommend that you go with a well-known brand that has a good track record of high-quality food that is well-tested. The brand you choose will depend on how you'd prefer to acquire it and how much money you'd like to spend. You can find quality food at all price points. On the lower price side, you've got brands that you can find at the grocery store, like Purina One. Middle-of-the-road brands can be found at big-box pet stores (e.g. Petco), and include Iams, Eukanuba, Science Diet, Wellness and Royal Canin. Higher end foods can also be found at the big-box stores, but smaller company brands may be easier to find at small, private pet stores, like Innova and Merrick. Whichever you choose, be sure to change Joey's diet slowly over a week's time to prevent stomach upset. Start by mixing 1 part of the old food with 3 parts of the new food, and increase the amount of the new food over the course of about 5-7 days. Good luck, and I hope Joey grows and thrives!