Our adult dogs are feed a combination of three parts Iams Proactive Health Adult MiniChunks and one part Purina Puppy Chow. Once a female is pregnant, we move her to a private kennel. She is fed a combination Iams Proactive Health Smart Puppy and Purina Puppy Chow mixed around 50/50.

 

As the puppies grow inside the womb, their bodies become accustomed to this puppy food and they'll begin to eat this same dry food around five to six weeks after birth. The same is true as they nurse from mom.

 

New puppies will nurse from their mother for as-long-as she allows. The puppies have small sharp teeth around three to four weeks of age and mom starts to wean them. Between four and five weeks of age, we start feeding the puppies high quality wet food covered with warm Puppy Milk Replacer. After a week or so, I add warm water soaked dry puppy food into the wet food. By 6 weeks of age, they are eating a combination of Iams Proactive Health Smart Puppy and Purina Puppy Chow. They will be solely on dry food by 6 weeks of age.

 

We've tried every brand of high-quality wet food and the puppies almost always eat the Blue Buffalo brand puppy food the best. Every couple of days we'll feed them a different brand of high-quality wet puppy food to give them something new. Other brands most puppies like are Nutro, Royal Canin, Solid Gold, Eukanuba, and Nulo.

 

You can decide on what brand of dry puppy food you prefer to feed your new puppy. I highly suggest getting a small bag of Iams Proactive Health Smart Puppy and Purina Puppy Chow to mixing with your preferred brand over a period of a couple of months. Start with a high percentage of Iams Proactive Health Smart Puppy and Purina Puppy Chow and a small percentage of your brand. Adjust the percentage over a couple of months until the puppy is only eating your preferred brand.

 

It's a bad idea to pick up the puppy, stop feeding him what he's been eating, and start on a new brand of dry food immediately. He will most likely have an upset stomach and be sick for several days. If you want to feed a different brand, it's important to slowly migrate him to your brand of new food.

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A good schedule is:

• 75% Iams/Purina and 25% of your brand for two-weeks

• 50% of each brand for 2-weeks

• 25% Iams/Purina and 75% of your brand for two-weeks

• 100% of your brand

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We've tried every brand of high-quality dry food and the puppies always eat the Iams Proactive Health Smart and Purina Puppy Chow brands the best.

 

Most Wal-Mart and pet stores carry the Iams Proactive Health Smart Puppy and Purina Puppy Chow. Iams makes three Smart Puppy dog foods. Original (picture below), Small & Toy Breed, and Large Breed. Any of the three will work fine.

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Most veterinarians recommend feeding your cavalier puppy food until 6-months of age or until spade/neutering whichever comes first. If you plan to spade/neuter at 6-months of age, I would stay on the Iams/Purina puppy food until that point. You receive the puppy at 2-months of age and by the time you slowly migrate him to your brand of puppy food, it's almost time for a switch to adult food. I would still use the transition method to move him from Iams/Purina to your preferred brand.

 

Feel free to call or text me if you have any questions before or after you receive your puppy.