My adult dog eats puppy food. Is it safe or will he gain weight?

I would not recommend pupy food for adult dogs unless absolutely no alternative is available. Puppy formulas tend to be higher in minerals and proteins for growth and are richer than recommended for regular maintenance diets

The young puppy should be on puppy food in order to provide the balanced nutrition she requires for healthy growth and development, a large breed puppy food is recommended for optimal joint health. It is not ideal for adult dogs to be on puppy food as they may continue to 'grow' and become overwieght so you will have to monitor very closely if he has access to puppy food that he does not become obese

Growing puppies have specific nutritional requirements that differ from adult dogs, particularly with respect to their calcium and phosphorus balance, and an overall increased calorie demand. Vitamin and mineral deficiencies for a growing puppy can result in a variety of problems, so as a result, a puppy should not eat adult dog food on a regular basis. An occasional bite from their older housemate’s bowl should not pose any problems, but stick with puppy food as their dietary staple.

Puppy food certainly won't hurt Iggy if he only eats it for a week. The differences between puppy food and adult food are mainly in the calcium/phosphorus balance to help promote proper bone growth, as well as being a bit more calorically dense. As Jessica explained so well, it's important to mix the old and new foods together for about a week whenever possible to minimize the chance of developing stomach upset. I would also look at the caloric density (kcal per can) listed to see if you need to adjust the amount of canned puppy food that he's getting relative to the number of calories he was getting from adult food. I hope that everything goes well!

Eating puppy food may predispose Remy to becoming obese. The adult diet may not provide Jaxx with the nutrition requirement of a growing puppy. A good compromise may be an "all life stages" diet you could feed to both dogs.

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Junior dog food has a different calcium to phosphorus ratio, as well as having higher energy/fat amounts in the food. This is designed for growing animals. Adult dogs should have adult food as the majority of their diet so that they don't gain weight, and the higher fiber is good for their gut. If you give Sharon junior food once and a while, that is not a problem, but in general feed him adult food. Best of luck with Sharon!

Yes that is perfectly ok. They are both balanced dog foods. Just check the bag to see how many calories per cup so you can adjust as needed (meaning if more calories in the puppy food you will have to feed a little more adult food or vice versa). I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!