What dog food is right for my panting 14-month-old Labradoodle?

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It would be best to feed him a complete balanced diet. There are plenty of good diets out there. I prefer the Science Diet products but others like Purina Pro Plan and Royal canin are also great. Good luck and have a great day!

I wouldn't attribute panting at night and being unable to settle as a food issue. It sounds more like either pain or anxiety. It is very difficult to adequately meet the nutritional needs of most dogs with a home cooked diet. If you plan to do a home made diet, I strongly recommend working with a veterinary nutritionist or company such as Balance-it to formulate a diet that will meet her needs. Especially as a growing, large breed dog, she has specific calcium and phosphorus needs for bone growth. I would first consider a breed specific diet such as Royal Canin large breed growth or GSD puppy formula.

At 75days of age, she is old enough to just be on a high quality kibble puppy food. There are many great foods available out there. Avoid grain free unless its verified that she has an allergy to grain. If she seems "not as healthy," though, get her in to the vet for an exam. It would be wise to take a stool sample with you to the vet as well. Thank you for asking Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Congratulations on your new puppy Diggy! In general I like the brand Royal Canin. The dogs that I see (including my own) that eat that diet tend to have nice hair coats and good stool quality. They make a variety of breed specific and size specific diets. The breeds for the small dogs also have enzymes that make harder for bacteria to cling to teeth (which helps reduce tartar build up). I also like Purina ProPlan and Iams. Please post again if you have any further questions!

Every bag of dog food has different feeding instructions because it is based on the individual calories of the food. She will need to eat a puppy food and if she is expected to be over 55 pounds as an adult, she needs to eat a large breed puppy food. Feed the amount recommended on the bag based upon her bodyweight. As she grows, you will need to increase the food. Your veterinarian can help you to determine if she has a good body condition score. I hope this helps and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! This is likely behavioral and may be a food preference problem. I would recommend experimenting with different dog food formulas, texture, kibble size, dry vs. canned, etc. and see if this helps. Many times it is just a matter of finding the right formulation and texture that the dog prefers. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please take the time to mark this question as helpful or not as it helps us to improve on the quality of our answers to other pet owners. Thank you kindly!

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach! The food I mostly recommend is Science Diet. I have used their food for over 20 years in my own pets and have never had a problem with their food. My own dog was on their food for 20 years and did very well. He maintained an excellent body condition, hair coat was amazing and he loved very long. I contribute his longevity to a good diet and good care as well. If you are opposed to Science Diet, I also recommend Royal Canin, Natural Balance and Purina One. There are so many foods out there and it is easy to get caught up in the marketing game of "natural", "organic" and "grain free". As long as your dog is on a well balanced and complete diet is what matters the most. I typically recommend feeding a puppy food for the first 12 months and then switching to an adult food from 12 months to 7 years of age. Beyond 7 years I recommend a senior formula. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.