When do I switch from puppy to adult food?
Written by Zoe Russell, BSc (Hons), ANutr
Nutrition Officer, Naturediet
As your puppy grows and develops, it’s important to provide them with the right food. A puppy food should be formulated to support a puppy’s skeletal development, growth, cognitive development, heart health, immune health and more. It should also be complete and balanced, which means it provides all the nutrients a healthy dog needs, without needing additional supplementation. Both the Naturediet puppy foods are specifically designed for puppies and are balanced and complete recipes.
When do I move onto adult food?
We usually recommend keeping a young dog on puppy food until they have done the majority of their growth, maturing and development. For most breeds, this is usually around 12 months of age, or for smaller breeds this can be nearer 9 months of age. After this, they can typically move onto an adult diet, over a period of 7-10 days. However the exception to this would be perhaps if they need to gain a little weight and condition, therefore they may need to stay on the puppy food for slightly longer.
Making the change
When moving your dog onto a new diet, we recommend that the transition is done gradually over 7-10 days. This allows the digestive system to adapt to the new food and perhaps new ingredients and can help to minimise digestive upset. It is however normal during that time, for your dog to experience some flatulence and loose stools as the digestive system adapts. Our suggested transition over ten days;
| Day of transition period | Amount of new food (%) | Amount of existing food (%) |
| 1 | 10 | 90 |
| 2 | 20 | 80 |
| 3 | 30 | 70 |
| 4 | 40 | 60 |
| 5 | 50 | 50 |
| 6 | 60 | 40 |
| 7 | 70 | 30 |
| 8 | 80 | 20 |
| 9 | 90 | 10 |
| 10 | 100 | 0 |
Which adult food should I choose?
If your puppy has been bought up on the Feel Good Puppy, then a popular follow-on would be the Feel Good Chicken, as it is also a chicken and rice-based diet. Or if you wanted an alternative flavour, we have flavours such as Feel Good Salmon, Turkey & Chicken or Lamb. Alternatively, if your puppy has been raised on the Feel Good Grain Free Puppy and requires a diet formulated without grain, you could consider the Feel Good Grain Free Chicken. This also comes in a range of flavours such as Salmon or Lamb. They are all complete and balanced recipes, so provide all the nutrients a healthy dog needs.
Contact us
If you need any more nutritional advice or information, please don’t hesitate to give our nutrition team a call on 01362 822 320 or email us at nutrition@naturediet.co.uk.
