Finding The Best Dog Food For Your German Shepherd
The day has long gone when choosing a dog food as simple as picking one available in the pet section of your local supermarket or pet supply store. Today there are a myriad of pet food brands available, and each brand can have multiple formulas. Enough for every dog owner, even the most experienced ones, to get confused.
The good news is pet food producers have done an excellent job of creating products that help a dog thrive. They have created a precise formula for each life stage and every breed of dogs. This actually makes your job easier when you think about it.
In general, you just need to pick a dog food that is breed and age-appropriate. In the case of our German shepherds, we are going to pick a food made for medium to large dogs according to our dogs current life stage.
Of course, youll still need to do a bit of analysis, which I described in detail in my best German shepherd foods review and buying here. As long as you follow my guidelines there, you should be able to choose which food works best for your German shepherd dog.
German Shepherd Homemade Food Tips
Once you pick a recipe for your GSD or GSD puppy, its time to prepare it. Here are a few tips to keep in mind.
- Set a feeding schedule and stick to it
- Feed your dog twice a day, puppies under 5 months, 3 times a day
- Set time aside weekly or monthly to prepare and portion the diet
- keep meals frozen for 2 3 months or refrigerated for about 5 days
- When the supply is getting low, its time to make a new batch
- If you like to feed different recipes, you can make multiple batches and color code by ingredients, rotating out the different meals
- The food can be prepared in bulk and portioned into containers
- Increase portions appropriately as your puppy grows. Monitor weight to make sure you are feeding the proper amount of calories
Raw Dog Food Recipes For German Shepherds
Here is a list of our favorite German Shepherd raw dog food recipes you can cook.
We have also added a recipe for a special treat that is tasty and packed with impressive health benefits. This recipe can do a lot for your GSDs health and wellness. It has our favorite secret ingredient, dog CBD oil.
For even more German Shepherd raw recipes and cooking options, this raw dog food cookbook can come in handy to have at your disposal. Or better yet, you can get the best raw dog food for german shepherds from one of the brands we recommend on our Raw Dog Food Guide.
Note: Please consult with your pets veterinarian & use personal judgment when applying this information to your dogs diet. The recipes below do not include serving size because portion sizes will vary depending on breed, weight, activity level, age, and health of your dog.
CBD Infused Treat | Ground Beef Raw Mix | Raw Boneless Turkey |Organ Patties | Chicken & Greens
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German Shepherd Calorie Requirements
So, how much should I feed my German Shepherd?
The caloric needs of dogs are based on their weight. An adult German Shepherd usually weighs between 50 and 90 pounds, meaning most GSDs need between 1165 and 1808 calories daily.
Make sure you follow the 10% rule when feeding treats to your dog. Food would equal 90% of the total calories and treats the remaining 10%.
- For instance, if a GSD weighs 65 lbs., he would need 1480 calories daily. For those eating treats, thats 1276 calories in food and 142 in treats . Usually, most full-grown dogs eat two meals per day. However, since GSDs are prone to bloating, divide his daily meals into three meals. You need to split 1276 into three meals of 425 calories each.
You can use this calculator to find the exact caloric needs of your dog based on his weight.
Pregnant or lactating GSDs may need up to 2 to 4 times the food they usually need as the mothers energy requirements increase after delivery and during lactation. Be sure to talk to your vet.
How Much To Feed A German Shepherd Puppy
The feeding amount to feed a german shepherd mainly depends on how old age your German shepherd is. Overall, there are four ranges that you need to keep in mind.
- 16 weeks and below: ½ cup of food for each meal
- 16 weeks to 9 months: Approximately 1 and ½ cups of food for each meal
- 9 months to 12 months: Approximately 2 cups of food for each meal
- 12 months and above: Approximately 3 cups of food for each meal
In addition to the age, youll also have to consider how active your dog is. An active dog may require a bit more than the numbers in this list, and an inactive dog will need a slightly less amount.
Dont feel bad if youre having trouble figuring out how much to feed your German Shepherd. Theres a lot to grooming and exercising this breed, but the diet is one of the most important parts. Youll need to know how much food should go into that gorgeous furry body regularly.
Every dog is different so its best to check with your vet for the best feeding schedule depending on your dogs age, activity level, and health. But this guide can act as a solid benchmark.
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How Much Should A 4
The average weight of a 4-month-old female German Shepherd Dog is 30.4 lbs .
The typical weight range of a 4-month-old female German Shepherd Dog is from 25.6 lbs to 35.2 lbs .
The average weight of a 4-month-old male German Shepherd Dog is 37.8 lbs .
The typical weight range of a 4-month-old male German Shepherd Dog is from 33.7 lbs to 41.9 lbs .
However, a recent research study on dog weight shows that 4-month-old female German Shepherd Dogs can normally weigh as low as 13.3 lbs and as high as 43.6 lbs
Correspondingly, 4-month-old male German Shepherd Dogs can normally weigh as low as 13.7 lbs and as high as 48.1 lbs
German Shepherd Raw Diet
Like homemade diets, formulating a raw diet for German Shepherds requires lots of effort and planning. There is more risk of contamination and nutritional imbalance due to its raw nature.
Raw dog food usually consists of uncooked and unprocessed animal-based products. These include raw meat, bones, vegetables, fruits, eggs with shells , and dairy products such as butter and cheese made from raw milk without pasteurization or homogenizing. A raw dog diet resembles the diet that dogs ate in the wild millions of years ago.
Raw dog food is a growing trend These diets provide canines with more nutrients than cooked foods and help them protect their teeth, coat, and digestive functions, among other health benefits. Read our German Shepherd raw diet guide to learn about raw feeding GSDs and their benefits. We recommend visiting our best raw dog food article to find the best brands to feed your dog.
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Our Puppy And Dog Calorie Calculator
JustFoodForDog’s puppy & dog food calculator is the easiest way to discover how many calories your dog should eat….
Welcome to the JustFoodForDogs puppy & dog food calculator. We know that no two dogs are the same so we made it easier for you to discover how many calories your dog should eat, the specific amount you should be feeding them, and recipes theyll love.
Our team of veterinarians created the calculator to take into account key factors such as your dogs current weight, breed, age, and activity level. It also examines issues such as allergies, digestion, or picky eating, along with your goals to boost wellness or achieve a healthy weight. All of these factors are used to determine the number of calories per day, as well as recommending recipes that help your dog to live a happy and healthy life.
How much should I feed my dog? Our dog calorie calculator can be used for dogs of all ages which makes it the perfect puppy food calculator as well.
Food quantity isnt the only factor to consider. You might be wondering, How many calories should my dog eat? Good news: this is also a dog feeding calculator by weight. Once you know the correct amount of food and calories needed, youre on your way to making sure your dog enjoys the food necessary to feel fit and healthy.
Monitoring Your German Shepherd Dog`s Growth
The answer from the German Shepherd Dog food calculator is a starting point number on how much food you need to feed your German Shepherd Dog.
Start by feeding your German Shepherd Dog the amount of food recommended by the German Shepherd Dog food calculator every day.
While feeding your German Shepherd Dog this daily amount of food, weigh your German Shepherd Dog at least once a week to ensure that your German Shepherd Dog is not on its way to becoming overweight or underweight.
If your German Shepherd Dog is becoming overweight, reduce the amount of food your feed it by 10 to 15 percent, if underweight increase its food by 10 to 15 percent.
You can use our dog weight tracking tool to keep records of your German Shepherd Dog`s weight. This tool will let you know if the feeding plan is making your German Shepherd Dog grow normally or abnormally.
You can also check your German Shepherd Dog body condition score to find out if it is overweight or underweight. Learn how to check your German Shepherd Dog body condition score here.
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How To Convert The Resulting Calories To A Serving Size
After you have entered your dogs ideal weight, their activity level, and hit Calculate above, you are presented with the daily energy requirement in the form of total kilocalories your dog needs per day.
But you dont just feed your dog all that at once, right? You need to break/divide the total down into the amount of feeding sessions in a day. What to do?
The amount of calories in a particular amount of dog food is called its metabolizable energy or ME. To spot it, look for one of the following on your dogs food label:
- Calories per cup
- Calories per kilogram
It should look something like this:
From there, you simply take the total DER kcal from the calculated results above and decide how many cups to give your dog per serving.
Heres a very basic made up example: Using the image above . If your dog required 696 kcal per day, youd simply feed them 2 cups of food a day.
What If My German Shepherd Puppy Wont Eat
You need to understand why your puppy cannot eat because it will help you determine the way to deal with the issue.
There is no need to worry if the puppy lost appetite shortly and goes back to normal eating without any sign of illness.
If the puppy loses appetite and takes a few days without improvement, take your puppy to the vet to find the problem because your dog might be sick.
If the vet finds that the puppy is sick, they may suggest a special diet that will boost their immunity and give them extra nutrients to better their recovery.
The puppy may have stopped eating because of behavioral issues therefore, you may need to feed them same time to get a routine.
Treats and human food that is given to the puppy may need to be reduced and also you can try different kinds of food.
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How Big Is A 6
Puppies undergo massive growth spurts before five months. By the time they reach six months, their growth has slowed down considerably. The average male will weigh about 53 pounds, while females weigh 46 pounds. They have not reached their full adult weight yet, but they are very close. Because their growth has slowed down so much, though, they will continue to grow for a long time to come. It just wont be as fast as it has been.
At this point, your dogs body is mostly focusing on the looming sexual maturity, which can hit anywhere between 6 months to 16 months. Because they arent growing quite as quickly, you may find that they put on more muscle and fat in the coming months. This is normal. It is also normal if your dog retains their somewhat skinny appearance for a few more months to come.
Taste Of The Wild Southwest Canyon
Rating:
Southwest Canyon is one of 9 dry recipes included in our review of the Taste of the Wild product line.
- First 5 ingredients: Beef, peas, garbanzo beans, lamb meal, canola oil
- Type: Grain-free
- Profile: All life stages
- Best for:German shepherd puppy or adult
Taste of the Wild Southwest Canyon derives the majority of its animal protein from fresh beef and lamb meal. Dry matter label analysis reveals the recipe contains 32% protein, 17% fat and 43% estimated carbs yielding a fat-to-protein ratio of about 52%.
Its nice to find a recipe containing natural source preservatives which means Southwest Canyon contains no BHA, BHT or other toxic additives. A super-popular, grain-free brand and a healthy, all life stages option for any German shepherd. Easily recommended.
Sample buyer reviewMy dog loves this food! He eats it enthusiastically and it has really helped him thrive! He is energetic, has a gorgeous coat, and devours his meals!
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Orijen Puppy Large derives most of its animal protein from fresh chicken. Our dry matter label analysis reveals the recipe contains 43% protein, 18% fat and 31% estimated carbs yielding a fat-to-protein ratio of about 42%.
Highly recommended.
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What You Should Never Overfeed A Dog
Carbohydrates. You should never ever overfeed your dogs too much carbs as they get stored as fat in the body if they are not used.
Unfortunately, carbohydrates are much cheaper an ingredient as compared to the other nutrients like protein. Hence, they are often used by major large dog food manufacturers to make up the weight of dog food whilst keeping the prices of the dog food low.
This is the main reason why pets all over the United States are getting obese. And, ironically, this became the driving forces behind the rise of these healthy pet food startups, as their founders seek to provide their own proper and much healthier alternatives.
One other way to get your dog feeling full and not run the risk of overeating it is to get them high fiber dog foods.
The high fiber content will make your dogs feel content faster and thus eat less. And since fiber does not get stored in the body like carbs do, it can be promising measure to keep your pooch’s weight under control.
Supplements For German Shepherds
The vast majority of commercially available dry kibble is complete and balanced for your dog, assuming its a high-quality food.
That means there is almost never a reason to supplement your dogs diet with additives, vitamins, or herbal supplements. In fact, adding these things to a healthy dogs diet can cause a lot of harm.
Never supplement your dogs diet unless directed by a veterinarian. In those cases, they will prescribe or suggest canine-safe products to cover your GSDs special needs.
Human supplements are often unregulated, minimally effective, and often contain substances harmful to animals. Never use a human supplement for your German Shepherd.
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Pay Attention To Your Puppy’s Poop
If you do notice a change in the quality of the stool , it’s likely due to variable amounts of fiber or different nutrient levels. Slow up the transition and most dogs will adapt just fine. “The bacteria in the large intestine have to get used to any new food, as they also contribute to the breakdown of food,” says Shmalberg.
How Much Should A 1
The average weight of a 1-year-old female German Shepherd Dog is 58.5 lbs .
The typical weight range of a 1-year-old female German Shepherd Dog is from 47.8 lbs to 69.2 lbs .
The average weight of a 1-year-old male German Shepherd Dog is 75.1 lbs .
The typical weight range of a 1-year-old male German Shepherd Dog is from 65.1 lbs to 85.0 lbs .
However, a recent research study on dog weight shows that 1-year-old female German Shepherd Dogs can normally weigh as low as 37.2 lbs and as high as 84.5 lbs
Correspondingly, 1-year-old male German Shepherd Dogs can normally weigh as low as 43.7 lbs and as high as 98.3 lbs
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How Much To Feed A German Shepherd Puppy Per Day
Once you have decided what dog food to feed your GSD, the next step is to determine how much you should feed your German shepherd puppy. To figure this out, let your German shepherd puppy eat as much as he wants in a thirty-minute period. Pick up the bowl after your puppy is full and measure how much kibble is left in the dog bowl. Do this for several days to get the right amount of food.
As your puppy enters growth spurts, youll find that his appetite increases drastically. At this point, observe your pup carefully. If he always seems hungry and looks thin, you may need to put more food into his bowl. If he appears to be chubby or has diarrhea, you should slightly cut back on the amount of food he eats.