During the weekend, I ran out of puppy food but I still had dog food which was for my adult dog. So, I began to wonder if I could give my puppy adult dog food.
I began to do my research and I got a lot of helpful information from vets and vet nurses on Reddit.
The answer is no, you should not feed a puppy adult dog food for a long period, but it’s okay if it’s for a short period if their food isn’t available.
We shall look at why you shouldn’t and what happens if you do.
Why you should not feed adult dog food to puppies for a long period
Puppy food has a special formulation of foods that aids heavily in the proper development of your puppy’s brain and body.
Puppy food is also higher in calcium and phosphorus, and its calorie levels are also higher than adult food.
Puppy food is designed to be tender to your puppy’s digestive system and it is easily digestible.
Puppy food consists of the right proportion of protein that your puppy needs to build tissues.
Adult dog food doesn’t have the right proportion of fats that gives your puppy healthy skin and hair.
Puppies play around a lot, therefore they need a lot of energy which adult dog food would not provide.
Puppies need to build a strong immune system which would help them as they get older, and that is what their food is designed to do.
What happens if a puppy eats adult dog food for a long period?
If a puppy eats adult dog food for a long period, it would grow up to be smaller than usual because the adult dog food didn’t give it the sufficient nutrients required for growth.
Your puppy’s brain may not fully develop because the adult dog food didn’t have the right proportion of nutrients for brain development.
Your puppy may grow up to have weak bones because the calcium in adult dog food is not sufficient for bone development.
Your puppy would experience constant fatigue because the calories in adult dog food are low for puppies.
Your puppy may likely develop a stomach upset from the countinous feeding of adult food.
Your puppy’s injuries may have a hard time healing because adult dog food does not contain sufficient protein for a puppy.
Teeth formation in your puppy may take longer than usual because of insufficient protein.
Skin problems may become frequent in your puppy because adult dog food wouldn’t provide sufficient fat.
Fat is very essential for skin development.
The fur/hair of your puppy might begin to look unhealthy because fat for hair development is not sufficient.
Your puppy would begin to fall sick frequently because the nutrients in adult dog food were not designed to build their immune system.
Illnesses due to nutrient deficiency may be common in your puppy.
How long should a puppy eat puppy food?
While doing my research I came across a vet nurse on Reddit who said that dogs should eat puppy food until they are one year old.
I did more research and I found out that her advice was valid.
Can adult dog food make a puppy sick?
Yes, they can. Giving adult dog food to a puppy for a long period could cause nutrient-deficient illness for the puppy.
Adult dog food may also cause stomach upset for the puppy.
Asides from that, puppy food cant cause serious illness.
Difference between puppy and adult dog food
Puppy food is formulated with the right proportion of nutrients for the growth and development of your puppy and adult dog food is not.
If this post was helpful to you, I urge you to please share it with people of groups (Facebook or Reddit).
A lot of people are feeding their puppies adult dog food and don’t know the harm it may cause, help a puppy today by sharing.
Thank you for reading
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