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If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

Raw advice?

16 replies

Somethingintheheavens · 26/08/2026 15:24

Hi!
I have a nearly 14 week old Golden retriever who is fed on 600g of Nutriment Puppy. He currently weighs 10.5kg but the last two weeks he’s only gained 100g.

his poos are fine and he looks great, slender but no ribs showing or anything..

I'm just wondering if I need to increase his food? I’ve spoken to Nutriment who basically said watch his body and go from there - which is fine but my previous GR developed severe joint issues that ended up with her dying at 3 years old so I am utterly neurotic about getting this right.

any advice? It doesn’t seem right that he’s not gaining but that said he’s on a perfect growth chart…

im tempted to go up to 650 a day and then review but that puts him over the feeding guidelines and frankly I’ve never had a pup go above it’s always been below!

OP posts:
Pippatpip · 26/08/2026 16:20

Not sure about Nutriment. Mine is on Bella and Duke and there was a calculator on the website which helped plus they have a customer service line. I didn’t move to raw until our dog (rough collie) was around six months ish.

TheHungryHungryLandsharks · 26/08/2026 16:29

Personally, I am quite uncomfortable with a puppy being fed raw food. I remember when it became 'fashionable' and my vet being very sceptical, and he still is - particularly in regards to puppies are their diets need to be so carefully considered in light of breed/energy levels and health issues.

What did you feed your previous GR girl, if you don't mind me asking?

10.5kg makes your boy quite small for his age. Obviously a lot depends on sire/dam as to the size of the dogs but 100g in a week isn't much at all.

SpanielsGalore · 26/08/2026 18:05

As a rough guide, a puppy that age should be having around 8% of its body weight in raw food. By my calculations that's 840grams a day.

PrizedPickledPopcorn · 26/08/2026 18:07

SpanielsGalore · 26/08/2026 18:05

As a rough guide, a puppy that age should be having around 8% of its body weight in raw food. By my calculations that's 840grams a day.

I thought it was a percentage of his expected adult weight?

PrizedPickledPopcorn · 26/08/2026 18:09

I started my pup on raw when he was that age. I just fed to his appetite. I was doing it myself so bought ingredients in the correct proportions and fed randomly. It evened out over time.

He was as fit as a butcher’s dog, very high energy, and I’ve recently learned if I’d given him carbs he might have been more laid back!

SpanielsGalore · 26/08/2026 18:14

PrizedPickledPopcorn · 26/08/2026 18:07

I thought it was a percentage of his expected adult weight?

Show quote history

I've always fed by puppy weight for raw food. The percentage decreases as they get older.

Raw advice?
PrizedPickledPopcorn · 26/08/2026 18:26

SpanielsGalore · 26/08/2026 18:14

I've always fed by puppy weight for raw food. The percentage decreases as they get older.

Show quote history

That’s the number I remember- I used that final percentage- 2-3% of their expected adult weight. Which is a good size meal for a puppy, and less generous for an adult!

Though I only really used it to help me with planning and an occasional sense check. On a day to day basis I fed to appetite, but kept an eye on the overall proportions and volume. As he was always a perfect weight I didn’t keep a close eye.

Original poster
Somethingintheheavens · 27/08/2026 06:28

TheHungryHungryLandsharks · 26/08/2026 16:29

Personally, I am quite uncomfortable with a puppy being fed raw food. I remember when it became 'fashionable' and my vet being very sceptical, and he still is - particularly in regards to puppies are their diets need to be so carefully considered in light of breed/energy levels and health issues.

What did you feed your previous GR girl, if you don't mind me asking?

10.5kg makes your boy quite small for his age. Obviously a lot depends on sire/dam as to the size of the dogs but 100g in a week isn't much at all.

He came home from the breeder on Raw - previous GR was on Eden and then went to Royal canin satiety because she had to be underweight for her joints (advised by specialist vet)

OP posts:
Original poster
Somethingintheheavens · 27/08/2026 06:29

SpanielsGalore · 26/08/2026 18:05

As a rough guide, a puppy that age should be having around 8% of its body weight in raw food. By my calculations that's 840grams a day.

According to Nutriment (I contacted their helpline) he should be on between 400-630 a day.

OP posts:
HappiestSleeping · 27/08/2026 06:40

The whole raw thing is Internet trend. There is no scientific evidence behind it, in fact the opposite is true as dogs have evolved to require grain in their diet. The raw thing seems to be driven by the mistaken belief that dogs evolved from wolves which they didn't (they both descend from a common ancestor further back). The only scientific evidence is that transmission of nasties like e coli to humans is more prevalent with raw feed dogs.

Any decent quality food will be fine, so it's a matter of finding one that suits your individual dog.

The pet food manufacturers association and all about dog food websites are good resources.

Original poster
Somethingintheheavens · 27/08/2026 06:44

HappiestSleeping · 27/08/2026 06:40

The whole raw thing is Internet trend. There is no scientific evidence behind it, in fact the opposite is true as dogs have evolved to require grain in their diet. The raw thing seems to be driven by the mistaken belief that dogs evolved from wolves which they didn't (they both descend from a common ancestor further back). The only scientific evidence is that transmission of nasties like e coli to humans is more prevalent with raw feed dogs.

Any decent quality food will be fine, so it's a matter of finding one that suits your individual dog.

The pet food manufacturers association and all about dog food websites are good resources.

Thank you for your input :) I would challenge your opinion on all about dogs however seeing as it turns out they have been recommending a food that has potentially left several dogs blind (Years)

OP posts:
HappiestSleeping · 27/08/2026 08:09

Somethingintheheavens · 27/08/2026 06:44

Thank you for your input :) I would challenge your opinion on all about dogs however seeing as it turns out they have been recommending a food that has potentially left several dogs blind (Years)

Show quote history

To be fair, the all about dogs website is only really useful for looking at the contents. Regarding 'Years', they are not members of the UK Pet Food Manufacturers association, so would have been eliminated from any research I did anyway. It is unbelievably difficult to get data on the contents of dog food, so unfortunately, we have to use what little is available under advisement.

For example, contains 100% chicken could easily be just beaks and feet. Ew.

TheHungryHungryLandsharks · 27/08/2026 08:37

@Somethingintheheavens as a golden breeder myself (20+ years, plus a mother who bred for 30+ years) who’s dogs have never had any joint issues…I wouldn’t touch raw for puppies with a ten foot pole.

Raw food is well known for not being good for joint development - there’s entire papers on it.

Either way, your dog is incredibly small for his age and I wouldn’t be happy if a dog I bred was that small and their growth likewise. 100g is really bad. And the only reasons growth would be that small is poor (negligent) breeding or poor quality food. Assuming you did your due diligence over the breeder you chose, then it has to be the food.

SpanielsGalore · 27/08/2026 08:52

Somethingintheheavens · 27/08/2026 06:29

According to Nutriment (I contacted their helpline) he should be on between 400-630 a day.

Show quote history

Since your puppy has only gained 50gms a week, Nutriment are clearly wrong. My cocker spaniel puppy gained more than that and she only reached 9kg as an adult.

As a comparison, Bella and Duke website says a 4 month old puppy weighing 10.5kg should be having 850 gms a day.

Original poster
Somethingintheheavens · 27/08/2026 08:55

I’ve upped his food this morning and he had a vets appointment today anyway.. he was there last week and they said he’s in perfect condition so I suspect I’m just being paranoid

OP posts:
TheHungryHungryLandsharks · 27/08/2026 10:17

@Somethingintheheavens I've just realised it was 100g over two weeks, not one week. That's really worrying. I would expect, at a minimum, a GR puppy to be putting on 0.5kg a week but closer to 1kg. So even being cautious...your puppy is only putting on about 10% of the weight gain it should be.

I had a look at AllAboutDogFood and the Nutriment Website as I had a bit of time this morning... The fat ratio in the food you are feeding you boy is really bad, I'm quite surprised they can get away with it. Too much fat can seriously damage joint growth in larger breeds.

  • Protein: 13.9%
  • Fat: 13.5%
  • Ash (inorganic matter): 2.6%
  • Fibre: 0.80%

Their 'puppy chicken' food has almost as much fat as it does protein. That's a problem. Their calcium:phosphorus ratio is also too high (shouldn't be above 1.4:1 and theirs is 1.5:1). So, basically, in every single category...their food is failing to give your boy the nutriments it needs.

He might look fine by weight and size, but 100grams in two weeks is really worrying. It means he's not developing at the speed he should be. I'm pretty horrified a vet wouldn't spot the serious issue that is building here...

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