What's the best large breed puppy food for a picky Great Dane?

What a gorgeous pup! Great Dane puppies have a massive requirement for nutrients so I recommend investing in feeding a really good quality food for giant breed puppies. Royal canin does a really good puppy food which I trust for my own dogs. Don't listen to things like not feeding puppy food, there is no evidence for that. It is actually really important to feed puppy food because a puppy has different needs to an adult. Energy level has more to do with the carbohydrate in the feed rather than protein.

I would recommend using a large breed puppy food. This type of diet will have the specific balance of minerals and vitamins needed for young, growing puppies. Since Danes are a giant breed, their nutrional needs are different than your typical puppy. Some of the brands I usually recommend include Hills, Purina, Royal Canin, Eukanuba, and Iams. Good luck with your pups!

I'm not very familiar with Drools food, but Purina is probably a better food since it meets WSAVA guidelines (see link below for more information). For a Great Dane puppy choosing a food that is intended for large breed puppies would be best - these foods have an adjusted calcium and phosphorus content to help with bone and joint development. https://www.wsava.org/WSAVA/media/Arpita-and-Emma-editorial/Selecting-the-Best-Food-for-your-Pet.pdf

I actually prefer commercial dog food as it includes the proper balance of nutrition that they need. A lot of raw food diets don’t have the proper studies to back it up and they don’t have the proper nutrients in them. Also, dogs who eat raw food diet are st higher risk for bacterial infections like salmonella. I think as long a syou are giving a high quality large breed or giant breed puppy food like science diet, Iams, or royal canin then he should grown normally. I hope this helps!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Congrats on your future puppy! I think dry food is a great choice. Because Alpha is a giant breed puppy be sure to get a large breed formulated puppy food and feed it to him for 12-18 months. I hope this helps!

I personally do not recommend Blue Buffalo for any dog for a number of reasons. This is a food that has no quality control, which the company had admitted. They don't own their own factories, so they pay someone else to make their food and therefore do not have any control as to what does and doesn't go into their food. Many of my colleagues have reported dogs on BB having the worse gas they have ever experienced. I recommend feeding a brand such as Royal Canin, Hill's Science diet, Purina ProPlan, or Iams. Purina ProPlan and Dams would be the cheaper options of these four brands. I hope this helps :-)

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Karen. It is not typically not a problem to offer to different brands of food especially if you are using small amounts of canned food to entice her appetite. If you cannot find a large breed puppy formula canned food, then I would use an adult version. Being a giant breed dog, you what her to grow very slowly. As with any diet change, monitor for any vomiting and diarrhea. Problems are usually seen when abruptly switching from one dry brand to another without mixing the food or going from dry kibble to strictly wet food again without a gradual transition. I hope this information helps!