# How much puppy food should I buy?



## Walter (May 31, 2015)

Hi,

We're picking up our first Cockapoo on Friday and I'm currently trawling the internet for puppy food and treats. He'll be 9 weeks old and is the chunkiest in his litter of 11. He's a cross with a standard poodle rather than the usual miniature.

I haven't had dogs since I was a child, and I can't remember how we fed the puppies (Although I imagine that back then, we probably weren't aware of all the options out there).

Currently I'm looking at Markus Muhle, which seems to get good reviews and is from an ethical company, James Wellbeloved and Lukullus. They fall in to my price range and seem to have good ingredients. I'd like to look at feeding natural once we're settled and trained, but for now I would just like to get something reputable and healthy in to get us going.

My main question is whether a 15kg bag is a good investment or will it pass its sell by date before we have the chance to use it?


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## Grove (Oct 17, 2012)

Hello, 

When you first bring him home it might be best to continue to feed the food the breeder has been giving him for a little bit. Pups sometimes have a bit of an upset stomach from the move alone and so it's good to keep the food they've been having as some form of continuity for their tummies. When you do change the food to one you would prefer you can do it gradually by adding in a bit to the bowl and giving slightly less of the old and then increase the ratio of new to old gradually until it's all new. 

I probably wouldn't buy a very large bag of a new kibble at this stage as he may not get on with it and then you will have a lot of wasted food.

At this stage I would get some of the food the breeder has been giving him and then a small bag of the food you want to feed him and see how he gets on with it when you introduce it


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## Marzi (Sep 17, 2012)

Welcome 

The breeder will probably provide you with a bag of food that the pup has been weaned on to - if she/he doesn't then make sure that you find out what the pup has been fed and try and source the same food at least for the first couple of weeks. Your pup has a lot to cope with - change in environment, loss of siblings, different water, different people, different routine - it is much better if food remains a known constant. If you don't like the food the breeder is using then once the pup is more settled with you it is fine to introduce a change of food - very slowly over about a week, gradually introducing and increasing the new food while decreasing the old food.
It is not uncommon for pups in new homes to have tummy problems when they come home, due to all the changes and associated stress - even when they are kept on their normal food. Treats for baby puppies for all the above reasons should not be rich new exciting things, but rather just bits of their own kibble and you. You are the very best thing for your new pup!
Some people say that cockapoos are fussy eaters (not mine - anything from dead things she finds on walks to anything else she is offered!) - so a big bag of food might not be the greatest idea.
Good luck with your new pup - do keep posting and let us know how you get on


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## fairlie (Sep 7, 2013)

I wouldn't go big either. We've had trouble with moth larvae in big bags of pet food, and it will taste stale faster too. Unless you have multiple dogs I'd stick with the smaller bags, even if it is a bit pricier.


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