Can I feed my puppy a vegan diet?

In this article you will learn:

• What mistakes are made when feeding puppies
• How to feed your puppy properly
• Whether there is vegan puppy food from VEGDOG
• How long you have to feed your little furry friend with puppy food

We are often asked whether a plant-based diet is possible for puppies, what needs to be taken into account and why our foods, such as our GREEN CRUNCH , are not suitable as a complete food for puppies that meets their needs.

A purely plant-based diet is basically possible for puppies, as long as their nutrient and energy needs are met. And that brings us to the "problem" of puppy nutrition. Since puppies' nutrient and energy needs are constantly changing in the first few months of life, no dog food alone can guarantee that they will meet their needs throughout the entire puppy phase. This applies to both vegan and non-vegan puppy feeding.

An under- or oversupply of nutrients has a negative effect on the further development of young dogs. This is difficult to detect. If the energy intake is too high, for example, puppies grow unnaturally quickly but do not get fatter, so they become too big and too heavy for their age.

Since puppies usually appear very slim, even if they are already too heavy, dog owners tend to increase the amount of food so that the dog gains weight. However, a very slim figure and visible rib arches are usually completely normal in puppies. Puppies put all the energy they absorb through food into growth, which would only worsen the described effect by increasing the amount of food. The young dog will therefore only grow faster, which in turn has a negative effect on bones and joints. It is therefore important to know not only the right food, but also the right amount! Therefore, a nutrition plan for puppies individually created by specialist veterinarians is necessary in order to be able to optimally satisfy hunger and the need for nutrients and energy.

There are also foods that are suitable for a certain phase of puppy life. However, these are currently rare on the vegan food market, and there is hardly any scientific data on purely plant-based commercial puppy food.

This is also the reason why we do not have one in our range yet, but recommend a professional ration calculation until the puppy is fully grown and can be switched to a vegan adult food.

As with adult furry friends, you should make sure that your puppy drinks enough when it is fed dry food. In addition, puppies have to use a certain amount of biting force to be able to eat dry food until the 8th/9th week because of their milk teeth. It often happens that the wet food simply tastes better to the puppy. Regardless of whether it is dry or wet food, you should definitely make sure that your food only contains natural ingredients and does not contain any artificial colors or preservatives.

The following example should illustrate how different the nutritional requirements can be between puppies and adult dogs: An adult dog with a body weight of 10 kg has an average energy requirement of 470 kcal and a calcium requirement of around 800 mg per day. A puppy in its 4th month of life with the same body weight, on the other hand, needs 1410 kcal and 3850 mg of calcium per day. Up to the 11th/12th month of life, the energy, protein and mineral requirements of growing dogs are significantly higher than those of adult dogs. Puppies that are switched to adult food before they have finished growing do not consume enough calcium, in addition to other important nutrients, because the nutrient density in puppy food is much higher than in complete food for adult dogs. The lack of minerals, vitamins and protein can lead to massive growth disorders that have long-term consequences - including for the health of the adult dog.

The distinction between puppy food, dog food for adult dogs or dog food for seniors is not a clever marketing trick. The distinction is necessary in order to be able to provide the dog with the nutrients it needs in every phase of its life!

Our GREEN CRUNCH is not suitable as a complete food for puppies, but can of course be fed as a small snack between meals without any problems! Our snacks are also very popular with dogs of all ages. Our DENTALS in particular are ideal for chewing fun for young dogs due to their small size.

Enjoy your meal 🙂