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Questions
Bringing home a puppy comes with plenty of questions, and food is usually near the top of the list.
If you’re considering raw feeding your puppy, the most important thing to understand is that growing puppies have different nutritional needs from adult dogs.
They need enough energy and high-quality protein to support growth, but they also need the right balance of minerals and nutrients as their bones, joints, muscles and organs develop.
Raw feeding a puppy doesn’t need to be complicated, but it does need to be appropriate for growth.
Yes, puppies can eat raw food.
The key is making sure the overall diet is nutritionally suitable for a growing dog, rather than simply feeding raw meat.
A puppy diet needs to provide appropriate amounts of:
Growing puppies are less forgiving of nutritional imbalance than healthy adult dogs, particularly during periods of rapid growth.
For that reason, a carefully planned feeding programme is especially important.
Puppies generally need more food relative to their body weight than adult dogs because they are growing and have higher energy requirements.
However, there isn’t one percentage or feeding amount that suits every puppy.
Their needs vary according to:
The best approach is to start with an appropriate amount, monitor your puppy’s weight and body condition regularly, and adjust as they grow.
A puppy’s food requirement can change quickly, particularly during growth spurts.
For more general guidance on feeding amounts and body condition, see our Raw Dog Feeding Guide.
Young puppies usually do better with their daily food divided into several smaller meals.
As a general guide:
Under 12 weeks: around 3 meals per day
3–6 months: usually 2–3 meals per day
6–12 months: often 2 meals per day
Every puppy is different, so meal frequency can be adjusted according to their age, size, appetite and daily routine.
A raw puppy diet should be about balance, not simply meat.
Depending on the feeding approach, a well-planned raw diet may include:
The exact composition depends on whether you are using a commercially formulated food, a structured homemade diet, or a combination of suitable raw products.
For puppy owners who are unsure where to begin, keeping things simple is usually better than introducing lots of different ingredients at once.
Calcium and phosphorus are particularly important during puppy development because they play a major role in bone and skeletal growth.
This is one reason feeding puppies only boneless meat is not appropriate.
At the same time, simply adding extra calcium without understanding the balance of the overall diet isn’t the answer either.
The goal is not “more calcium” — it is appropriate mineral balance throughout growth.
This deserves particular attention in large and giant-breed puppies.
Large and giant-breed puppies require a little more care because rapid growth and excessive energy intake can place additional strain on developing bones and joints.
The aim should be steady, controlled growth rather than encouraging a puppy to grow as quickly as possible.
Important considerations include:
If you are creating a complete diet yourself for a large or giant-breed puppy, seeking professional nutritional guidance is a sensible option.
If your puppy is already eating another food when they arrive home, you don’t need to introduce ten different raw ingredients on day one.
A simple transition makes it easier to see how your puppy responds.
Begin with a straightforward feeding routine and introduce additional foods gradually.
Once your puppy is settled, you can introduce different proteins over time to build variety.
You should generally be able to feel your puppy’s ribs without pressing hard while still seeing appropriate muscle coverage and a defined waist for their age and breed.
What your puppy needs at four months may be quite different from what they need at eight months.
Keep reassessing rather than assuming the same quantity will suit them throughout puppyhood.
Suitable raw meaty bones can form part of some raw feeding programmes, but they need to be appropriate for the puppy’s size, age and chewing ability.
Always supervise puppies when feeding bones.
Avoid very hard weight-bearing bones that may increase the risk of tooth damage, and never feed cooked bones.
If you’re unsure which bones are appropriate, seek guidance rather than guessing.
Raw food should be handled carefully, just as you would handle raw meat for the rest of your household.
Good habits include:
Extra care is particularly important in households with young children, elderly people or anyone with reduced immunity.
Our Youthful PowerMix Raw Puppy Food combines duck, beef heart, lamb and beef liver in an easy-to-portion frozen blend.
It provides a variety of quality animal proteins and organs and has been created with growing dogs in mind.
As with any puppy food, it should form part of an appropriately balanced overall feeding programme suited to your puppy’s age, size and stage of development.
Shop Youthful PowerMix Raw Puppy Food
Every puppy is different.
Speak with your veterinarian or a suitably qualified canine nutrition professional if your puppy:
The goal should always be to support healthy, controlled growth rather than following a feeding rule simply because it works for another dog.
Yes. Puppies can eat raw food from a young age, provided the overall diet is nutritionally appropriate for growth.
There isn’t one amount that suits every puppy. Age, weight, expected adult size, growth rate, activity level, body condition and the energy content of the food all influence how much they need.
Monitor your puppy regularly and adjust their food as they develop.
Young puppies are generally fed more frequently than adult dogs. Three meals a day is common for younger puppies, gradually reducing as they mature.
Suitable raw meaty bones may form part of some puppy diets, but the bone needs to be appropriate for the puppy’s size and chewing ability and should always be fed under supervision.
No. Raw meat alone does not provide all the nutrients required for healthy puppy growth.
Growing puppies need an appropriately balanced diet that provides the minerals, vitamins, fats and other nutrients required for development.
Yes, but maintaining nutritional balance and controlled growth is particularly important for large and giant breeds.
If you are formulating the diet yourself, professional nutritional guidance can be worthwhile.
Raw feeding a puppy should be simple, balanced and flexible enough to change as they grow.
Start with quality ingredients, monitor your puppy’s body condition and development, and adjust their food as their needs change.
Shop Youthful PowerMix Raw Puppy Food