Puppy eating adult food, sensitive stomach. How to switch to puppy food?

Poor Murphy, he sounds very sensitive! Limiting change to the adult, chicken version may help if available and a probiotic paste can be very helpful for any diet transition. In sensitive pets, a 10% change every 3-5days can help reduce upsets. In large breed dogs, puppy food is ok up to 15months so there is no immediate hurry

I would start by giving Kenzie 75% chicken and rice, and 25% new food. Feed that for a couple of days, then go to a 50/50 mixture. Again, feed that for a couple of days, and go to a 25/75 mixture. Feed for a couple of days, then go to 100% new food. I hope this helps.

If you can, go back to the other dog food. Dogs with very sensitive stomachs should be transitioned to new foods (even new flavors of the same food!) over 4 weeks. If the upset stomach continues for longer than 24-48 hours, Captain Hook should get checked out by the vet for medications to help with his symptoms.

I recommend giving 3/4 of the old food and 1/4 of the new food for three days, then give 1/2 of the old food and 1/2 of the new food for three days, and then give 1/4 of the old food and 3/4 of the new food for three days. After this you should be able to fully transition onto the new food.

If Snowball is having normal bowel movements and is not vomiting on the Hill's diet then it is likely fine for her. However, Hill's Sensitive Stomach and Skin is not labeled for use in puppies. I'd suspect Snowball is no longer growing at a puppy rate by 10 months old, but it would still be wise to check in with your veterinarian regarding if she can be placed in this adult food at this time. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

The problem with changing foods too quickly is that dogs can get GI upset (especially diarrhea) with a sudden diet change. If a dog is not eating the old food anymore, sometimes we will use a bland diet (1/2 cooked white rice and 1/2 cooked white meat chicken without any skin or bones) as the other food to mix with the new food to allow for a gradual diet change to the new food to (hopefully) prevent any GI upset, so you might consider that option. Good luck! I hope that was helpful. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

As you've experienced, diet changes can certainly cause some changes in stool volume, and for some dogs, can cause a bit of vomiting and diarrhea. When it comes to the countless brands of dog food on the market today, it's overwhelming to pick one for your pup. I recommend brands that have been formulated by a board-certified veterinary nutritionist, are manufactured in their own facility (less cross-contamination that facilities that manufacture numerous formulations), conduct AAFCO feeding trials, and meet WSAVA guidelines. When it comes down to it, the brands that meet those criteria include Hill's Science Diet, Purina, Royal Canin, Eukanuba, and Iams. As a result, I would recommend switching Lilly over to the Science Diet puppy food. Just remember that anytime you switch foods, be sure to do so by gradually mixing the old and new foods together over a 5-7 day period. I hope that everything goes well!