Feeding Your Puppy

Your puppy has been raised on Purina ONE - Puppy Formula dry kibble. At eight weeks of age, the puppy will be eating two cups of dry kibble spread over three feedings. This amount can be adjusted as he grows older and the middle feeding can be discontinued when he is about 4 months old.

Puppies should be fed in their crate with fresh water available. They should be kept crated and quiet for at least one hour after eating to give the food time to digest. You can allow them to go outside to potty, but heavy exercise right after eating is highly undesirable and can cause severe digestive problems in some breeds.

Always feed the kibble dry and do not moisten it or mix it with canned dog food. If you find it necessary to switch to another brand of dog food, choose one manufactured by a reputable name-brand company. Never use "cost-cutter" or budget brand dog foods. On the other hand, it is not necessary to buy one of the expensive "designer" brands sold at Veterinarians and Specialty Pet Stores. At Bowmaker Puli Kennel, we fed Pedigree and IAMS brand dog foods for almost twenty years with excellent results, but switched to Purina ONE in 1999, after researching the ingredients in these brands. We like the fact that the first ingredient in the Purina ONE line is real meat (lamb, chicken or beef) and not by-products. When the puppies are between ten and twelve months old, they may be switched over to an adult formula food. Purina ONE Lamb dry kibble is our usual choice and is available from most grocery store chains. We have also fed IAMS Mini-Chunks, Eukanuba Puppy and Original Formulas, Purina Pro-Plan for Puppies and for Adults and Science Diet. All of these brands have excellent reputations, but are difficult to find in a small town, so we finally settled on Purina ONE which is readily available locally. All our adult dogs are currently on Purina ONE Chicken and Rice or Lamb and Rice.

If you want to give your puppy treats and chewies, we recommend the type that are designed to aid in tartar control. Nylabones are excellent for puppies who are cutting teeth and also aid in the dental care of adult dogs. If you wish to give the puppy rawhide treats, be sure to select ones that are manufactured in the US. Some of the imported rawhide has been found to have traces of chemicals that can be harmful to canines. Never leave the puppy unattended with a rawhide. After being chewed on, they can become very soggy and dogs have been known to choke on them. In general, we discourage the feeding of rawhides altogether. Another factor to consider is that the moisture and saliva created while chewing a rawhide leaves a sticky substance on the dogs whiskers and paws.

Milkbone Dog Treats are good for tartar control.

Pulis usually love to play with toys, especially the fuzzy ones. They seem to like toys made of "sheepskin" as well as the plush toys and knotted ropes that are easily found in most pet supply stores. Beware of toys with small parts, such as button eyes, that could be pulled off and swallowed and make sure any ball is too large to get lodged in the throat.