Is my dog food for puppies or adults? Can I add human gravy?

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. A pug that is younger than 6 months should eat a puppy diet to help her grow and get the adequate nutrients and vitamins she needs. Puppies and adult dogs have very different requirements in terms of calories, calcium, phosphorous, and other nutrients. As she gets older, ie in the 6-12 month range, it is OK to start mixing in an adult or all-life stages diet in with her food. Just be sure the total amount she is supposed to be eating based on what the bag says is appropriate. Eventually, once she is about 12 months, she should be on an adult dog food, for maintenance. I recommend consulting with Beanie's regular veterinarian to see what specific types of food they recommend for her! Top dog food brands include Purina, Hills Science Diet, and Royal Canin. Beanie should NOT eat a grain-free, vegetarian, or vegan diet, as these are linked with dangerous heart conditions and other growth related diseases. I hope this is helpful!

Hi there! Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There are a few things you can do to make his food more palatable while he gets used to it. For example, you may add low sodium chicken broth, veterinary approved gravy which you can get at your pet store or pieces of boiled chicken to it. Good luck!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! There are many great diets out there that you may find at your local pet store. I personally prefer the Purina Pro Plan shredded blends for puppies as they are generally inexpensive, are of great quality and dogs seems to love it. For the amount to feed her, I advice you follow the guidelines that you will find in the back of the bag. Keep in mind that you should get the puppy blend. Also, keep in mind that as she grows, you will notice in the back of the bag that it will advice you feed her more. When she becomes a year old, she should be switched to an adult diet. Good luck and have a good night!

Hello and welcome to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. The topic of 'what to feed your dog' is complicated and very opinion orientated. This means that you will likely get a different answer from each person you ask. My recommendations are to get the best quality dry dog food you can, and feed that. As long as your dog is happy, eating, having normal poops, is a good weight and has a good hair coat, don't worry about other details. Raw meat of any kind is very dangerous and causes severe infections, and bones of any kind (cooked or raw) are very dangerous as well, so I would avoid those. If you would like to feed some meat or vegetables in addition to the dry food you can. Cook the meat as you would for yourself to eat, but without any spices or seasoning (garlic and onions are toxic to dogs), and vegetables like potatoes, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, pumpkin, are all good as well (cooked or raw). Best of luck with your little one!

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!

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I would avoid human foods if you can. Once you go down that road of adding human food it is almost impossible to go back. If you need to add human food I would still with boiled chicken or hamburger as it is more bland then corned beef. Consider changing dog food brands or adding water or canned dog food to his dry food. Healthy dogs do not choose starvation and if you hold steady and firm that dog food is all he gets then he will learn. Dogs are smart and will hold out when they know something better will come along. A lot of times the dogs train the owner not the other way around. Be careful with what human foods you feed as they can cause an upset stomach or pancreatitis if too high in fat. I wish you the best!

Sure! You can add water to make a gravy with the food. However, if it sits too long it turns pretty mushy and sometimes dogs won’t eat it with such an odd consistency. Thank you for using Pet Coach.