What natural food helps my 6-month-old lab build muscle for strength?

Labs have a tendency to grow too fast, and as they get older to get fat. Therefore I like to use Nutro large breed puppy dry, then switch to adult large breed, and weight management later in life if needed. I like Nutro because it’s a complete diet and lower in calorie than most of the other dog foods. Dogs like it and there are several different Nutro varieties for you to choose from. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Arjun.

You should feed a good quality brandname puppy food for medium sized dogs. This will have enough protein to make appropriate muscle in your puppy. If you get too much muscle at his age his bones may not be strong enough for it. So it is better to let him grow slowly. Give him lots of exercise appropriate for his age. If you think he still does not have enough muscle at the age of 1 1/2 years you should take him to a vet for a general exam and assessment. If all is well then you can feed the adult version of the food you are feeding or go to a veterinary nutritionist and have a healthy ration calculated for what you want. Do not overfeed protein at this age as it will be detrimental to his bone development and may compromise kidney function. His muscle mass will vary while he is growing, he will have more one day and less another until the body is fully grown.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I would be sure he is on a good quality large breed puppy food. I like Purina Proplan or the Royal Canin or Hill's Science diet puppy foods. Feed him more than the recommended amount on the bag. At 11 weeks old he should be seeing your Vet for vaccinations. Be sure he has had his stool tested for intestinal parasites and has been dewormed a few times. Parasites are a huge issues in all puppies. Good luck!

Because Rosy is a puppy, she should be eating a puppy formulated food. Puppies need higher amounts of protein, calcium, and calories than adult dogs, and a puppy formulate food will give that to her. I recommend feeding her a high quality food such as Royal Canin, Hill's Science diet, Iams, or Purina ProPlan.

A Labrador puppy should be on a large breed puppy food until 15months. A starter food can be used from 2-8weeks as it can be easier to soften and can be fed slightly warm. Be sure to keep up to date with deworming medication and offer additional meals of scrambled egg, canned puppy food or boiled chicken to increase energy intake until stronger

Labradors are large breed dogs and thus they should eat a large breed puppy food to help correct growth and development. The large breed puppy formula will make sure growth is slow and consistent which is best for development. Large breed dogs are prone to a variety of growth abnormalities and the appropriate diet helps to prevent them. Additionally, most veterinarians do not recommend grain free diets. The research is not fully complete but there appears to be a link between grain free diets and heart disease. Not every pet who eats a grain free diet will develop heart disease but more dogs do on these diets than dogs who eat grains. There is likely a genetic predisposition that the diet affects. I recommend to change your food to a commercial diet that is formulated for large breed puppies. I recommend the brand Royal Canin. They even have a formula for Labrador puppies. This diet is easy to digest and is formulated for appropriate growth. This diet is complete and balanced and you do not supplement protein or vitamins/minerals. It is also important to make sure that Pom is dewormed appropriately as parasites will cause dogs to be thin. He will gain the weight once he is on an appropriate diet and eating the correct amounts. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

At 75days of age, she is old enough to just be on a high quality kibble puppy food. There are many great foods available out there. Avoid grain free unless its verified that she has an allergy to grain. If she seems "not as healthy," though, get her in to the vet for an exam. It would be wise to take a stool sample with you to the vet as well. Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!