Puppy Guidance 2023: Food

Dove had a gorgeous litter of seven puppies on December 1, 2022. The puppies were sired by Grayson, who is owned by Rebekah and Robert James. On February 2, 2023, the puppies will be nine weeks old and ready to move to their new homes. This blog is intended to help new puppy families support their puppy by providing nutritional, play and general information.

Puppies began to eat foods at four weeks of age, when their pen was moved from the spare bedroom (nursery) of our house into the great room, which serves as our living and dining rooms, adjacent to our kitchen.

All of my dogs, from puppy to senior, eat a grain inclusive diet. I never jumped on the "grain free" bandwagon, whose foods may not have grains but do have legume proteins that have been linked by Tufts University vet school, among others, to interfere with absorption of essential nutrients in canines. All legume proteins should be avoided in dog food AND treats. Legumes include garbanzos (chickpeas), lentils (all colors), all kinds of beans (navy, kidney, etc.), soy beans, fava beans, and the ubiquitous "peas" and "pea protein." I'm not crazy about corn in dog foods or potatoes of any kind, as I have one Vallhund with multiple food sensitivities (Prins).

The first food offered to Dove's puppies was Royal Canin Starter canned food, which is a gentle balanced food in mousse form, specifically designed for small breed dogs. This food was recommended to me by one of my mentors in Sweden, Lucia Wikmark, when I visited her home in August 2022. The Starter food can be fed at any time to mother dogs while pregnant and nursing, and it is highly appealing with a strong scent that entices even picky puppies to eat. I recommend this food up until your puppy is a year old, or for a treat/special occasion meal afterwards. It can be purchased from Chewy: https://www.chewy.com/royal-canin-starter-mousse-mother/dp/299094

In addition to the Starter mousse, all puppies enjoy the Royal Canin Starter kibble and eat it enthusiastically. That can be purchased from Chewy from this link: https://www.chewy.com/royal-canin-size-health-nutrition/dp/34739

I tried to start puppies on Forza10 Chondro Puppy food with no success. I will send each puppy home with a small bag that new owners can transition them to after the Royal Canin Starter kibble. I recommend that each puppy family signs up for the Forza10 email listserv. Forza10 has a handful of sales per year, usually around a major US holiday, and sends a limited time code via email for 30% off every product on their website, limited to stock at hand. I post the code on my Facebook page when I receive the email. Many Forza10 products are also available on Chewy.com, and they arrive faster when ordered from Chewy than the Forza10 website.

For my adult dogs, there are two Forza10 formulas that are great for non breeding companions. Forza10 Colon Diet is ideal for dogs that have sensitive GI systems, as well as dogs that need extra daily fiber and omega fatty acids. It has a single protein source, with hydrolyzed fish as the first ingredient. Forza10 Colon can be used without any adjustment period. I like to soak the food overnight with water in a Mason jar in the refrigerator, to increase water intake for my dogs. Forza10 Colon can be purchased at: https://forza10usa.com/collections/shop-dog/products/colon

The second adult food that I recommend for Swedish Vallhunds is Forza10 Maintenance Evolution With Fish, which can be purchased at: https://forza10usa.com/collections/shop-dog/products/forza10-nutraceutic-maintenance-evolution-fish-dry-dog-food . There is also a lamb version of this food, which I offer for variety. In general, I try to stick with fish based foods for our Nordic dogs, both Swedish Vallhunds and our one Norwegian Elkhound.

It's highly likely that Dove's puppies will need supplemental dietary fiber. Canned organic pumpkin (nothing added, ingredients should be only pumpkin or squash and water) is an excellent source of fiber and readily consumed by dogs. Signs that your dog needs additional fiber include loose or hard stools, as well as butt scooting (signs that the anal glands are full or even blocked). Dove and her aunt Skadi receive extra fiber every day. When you start your puppy or dog on additional fiber, start very slowly, one small teaspoon per meal, increasing the amount every 5-7 days. We go through so much dietary fiber in our house that I purchase bags of ground pumpkin and ground broccoli powders on Amazon. The brand that I currently prefer is Food to Live, which is both economical and readily available. This is a human food company, with products that are USDA inspected and certified safe for human consumption. When it comes to food supplements, I avoid products specifically targeted for the pet food market. These are often much lower quality products with minimal or no inspection requirements, and prices are often many times higher than human grade supplements. Ground broccoli powder is another excellent supplement to feed your Vallhund regularly. You will also benefit from eating pumpkin and broccoli more often! These powders are extremely easy to reconstitute with a little bit of warm water. The ration I use is one part powder to four or five parts water. This is something that can be mixed in advance and stored in a Mason jar in your refrigerator for up to five days. Both the pumpkin and broccoli powders have no other ingredients in their formula. Be extremely cautious if you administer human supplements of any kinds to your dogs, as many common sweeteners and preservatives are toxic to dogs! Do not try this on your own; only follow the advice of your trusted veterinarian!

Food to Live pumpkin powder: https://www.amazon.com/Organic-Pumpkin-Fruit-Powder-Pounds/dp/B09S7W9G4V?ref_=ast_sto_dp&th=1

Food to Live broccoli powder: https://www.amazon.com/Organic-Broccoli-Powder-Pound-Vegetables/dp/B081QNVGS7?ref_=ast_sto_dp&th=1&psc=1

I don't purchase "dog treats" and prefer to use nutritionally balanced Ziwi Air Dried products for training and supplemental feeding purposes. Ziwi has their own website, and like Forza10 they have a few great sales per year. Sign up for their emails and stock up when they have a sale! Ziwi Air Dried foods are available on Chewy, though only a limited number of kinds. The two that I always keep in stock at home for our dogs is Lamb & Mackerel and Lamb & Tripe. The Lamb & Mackerel formula is like a soft jerky in texture and the dogs absolutely love it. The puppies began eating Ziwi Lamb & Mackerel at five weeks of age. I dispersed a handful every morning throughout the living room for the puppies to forage while I cleaned out their pen.

Dove does not have any known food sensitivities and during her pregnancy and while nursing the puppies I fed her huge variety of animal protein dog foods to expose the puppies to these foods. Dove enjoyed goat, lamb, mutton, venison, beef, pork, chicken, duck, goose, quail, guinea hen, and at least a half dozen kinds of fish and shellfish. Many of these proteins came from Ziwi and Stella and Chewy brands. Northwest Naturals is another company that I trust for food safety. NW Naturals only sells through pet food companies and pet food stores. I have an autoship purchase set up on the Chuck and Don's website for NW Naturals products. Chuck and Don's is a Minnesota based pet store chain. They have good regular sales but ordering is not as simple or predictable as the Chewy website, in my experience.

Swedish Vallhunds are usually very economical eaters; like most Nordic dog breeds they evolved to survive on small portions. Our nonbreeding adults have daily caloric needs ranging from 600-800 calories per day, depending upon their individual activity levels. Skadi is our least active adult, yet Celine is extremely efficient and does not need more daily calories than Skadi. Dove usually stays a good weight with around 800 calories a day. Our intact boys need 800-1,000 calories a day. Prins is the largest and requires the most calories to stay a good weight. Egon is our most active dog yet his metabolism is efficient so he now is being reduced to 800 calories to prevent obesity.

It is very hard to say "no" to a Vallhund when they are hungry, but you have to be strong because an overweight Vallhund is highly likely to develop early arthritis, back issues (including bulging discs, an extremely painful condition), heart and other health issues. Vallhunds are particularly susceptible to pancreatitis, which can be fatal, and high fat foods should be avoided at all costs. Full fat cheeses, beef, pork, and other "rich" foods can easily cause pancreatitis, even in small amounts. None of our dogs have dealt with this terrible disease, though some of their relatives have, and I know of multiple dogs overseas that were otherwise fit and in good health, but developed pancreatitis after having access to rich foods.

Knowing that you need to keep your Vallhund fit and trim, there are some fun enrichment feeders available to prolong a small meal. Canned dog food can be mixed with a bit of water and pumpkin powder, a little goat milk yogurt, poured into a WASHABLE enrichment feeder, and frozen. Some people serve their dog's meals frozen in a Kong toy every day. I don't have the freezer space to do this every day for all of our dogs, but it is fun to do in summer or on days when the weather is poor and we're stuck indoors. Our dogs do eat every meal meal from a slow feeder, and puppies are all accustomed to eating kibble from a slow feeder. I prefer Le Tauci brand ceramic dog feeders, available on Amazon and from other sources. These are well made feeders that are fully dishwasher safe, made with the same human grade materials and process as all of Le Tauci's human products. They are oven and microwave safe as well, though I have never put them to those tests.

LickiMat and Hyper Pet brands have silicone mats that are nice to spread canned dog food on for a boredom buster. However, these mats are NOT chew resistant and many dogs start to chew the mat when the food is gone. Use silicone mats only under close supervision! I avoid all plastic slow feeder bowls and other pet supplies because they are too easy for a dog to chew on and then swallow pieces of the bowl.

There are hundreds of different dog enrichment feeders available through dozens of brands. Kong and West Paw are two of my favorite brands in terms of safety and durability. The full line of West Paw chew toys (many which have space for food) are available online at Chewy: https://www.chewy.com/brands/west-paw-7741

If you are lucky enough to live near an independently owned and operated pet supply store, then you should definitely plan to visit the store frequently and talk to a knowledgeable staff member about toy recommendations. I avoid going in person to any large national chain pet store as the staff tends to be underpaid and poorly trained, so they may make poor or even dangerous recommendations. Vallhunds are a large dog in a small body, with far more jaw and chewing strength than most similar sized dogs. They are also smart and able to quickly discover weakness in a toy. Dove herself is our most destructive chewer, known for finding seams on toys and then using her canine teeth as a seam ripper, then pulling out stuffing, squeaker and whatever else she can access. These toy parts are NOT safe for consumption. Do not allow your puppy to have unsupervised access to soft/plush toys. When I crate my dogs, they have a blanket and a bed with zero stuffing in their crate. I do not keep any toys in dog crates as I have yet to find one that is 100% safe under all circumstances.