The Great Dane is often called the world’s largest dog breed. They are a giant breed of dog that can weigh up to 200 pounds. But with that size comes a big appetite! So how much does a Great Dane eat, on average? And what do they eat?
HOW MUCH DOES A GREAT DANE EAT?
The average Great Dane will eat about four to eight cups of food per day. This amount can vary depending on the age, weight, and activity level of your dog.
Puppies and young dogs will generally eat more than adult dogs. And active dogs will usually eat more than less active dogs.
Giant breeds not only eat a lot of food daily, but they require a specific, nutrient dense diet to support their giant breed body.
Pet parents should know how much to feed their Great Danes, and also what type of ingredients are required for a proper diet.
GREAT DANE FEEDING CHART
If you have a Great Dane puppy, it can feel stressful to know if you are giving them enough food or how much to feed them.
Large breeds require a lot of food, but many do not need quite as much as dog owners think they need.
Keeping a Great Dane feeding chart on hand is helpful to know how much to feed in the general ballpark.
We suggest keeping in the general guidelines of the following Great Dane feeding chart:
*Note that these are general guidelines and you should always speak with your veterinarian about specific feeding recommendations for your dog.
You can check out the entire Great Dane Feeding Chart here.
Puppies will eat more frequently than adults. If your Great Dane is full grown, this Great Dane food chart should work as an average of how many cups a day of dry food they might consume. Some might eat more, and some might eat less.
You should always base your Great Danes diet off of how they look.
If your adult Great Dane is less active, you should lower the amount of your dog’s food as you very easily CAN give a Great Dane too much food. If they are an extremely active Great Dane, you might find that they are hungry. Give them a half cup more until you find what works for your dog’s eating habits.
Male Great Danes will typically eat more than a female Great Dane.
It takes time to learn how much to feed your specific Great Dane, but the rule of thumb is to never overfeed your Great Dane. You can always feed a Great Dane more food, but it is much harder to make big dogs lose weight once they have gained it.
Veterinary guidance suggests that many dog food companies are formulating Great Dane puppy formulas exactly correct for your Great Dane to grow slowly into a healthy big dog.
Some large breed adult Great Dane food has too many calories for your Great Dane puppy.
Check out our resources for how much to feed as well as what is the best dog food to give your Great Dane puppy.
If you are following a Great Dane feeding chart, working to get the best dog food you can for your Great Dane puppy and doing your best to make sure to keep your dog healthy, you are probably already on your way to making a Great Dane feeding schedule.
Large breed dogs should be fed small, frequent meals on a consistent feeding schedule.
Not only will this help with their digestion, but will also help you to better monitor their food intake.
A general rule of thumb is to divide the total daily recommended amount of food by the number of meals you plan to feed your dog.
For example, if your adult Great Dane needs six cups of dry food per day and you plan to feed them three times per day, each meal should be two cups of food.
If you are ever unsure about your Great Dane’s eating habits or how much to feed them, please consult with your veterinarian. They will be able to help you create a feeding schedule and offer guidance on how much food is appropriate for your dog.
So many people give their Great Dane WAY too much food.
Your Great Dane should eat dependent on how much exercise they receive.
If you cannot see the ribs of your Great Dane, they are probably overweight.
Dog breeds like the Great Dane are at such a high risk for disease like arthritis, hip dysplasia, and other joint disease that Great Dane owners should keep their Great Dane slim.
Adult Great Danes should have an hour of exercise a day, and puppies should have several shorter sessions of playtime throughout the day.
A good rule of thumb is that a dog’s energy output should exceed their intake.
If you are unsure if your Great Dane is at a healthy weight, check their rib line. You should be able to take your hand and feel the ribs on your Dane pup.
This does not mean that your Great Dane is ‘too thin’.
Your Great Dane puppy has growth plates in the long bones of their legs.
These growth plates are what will eventually turn into the Dane’s adult bones.
You want to be very careful not to put too much stress on these growth plates by overfeeding your Great Dane puppy or over exercising your Great Dane puppy.
The general rule of thumb is to switch your Great Dane pup to an adult food once they reach 100% of their expected full grown weight, which happens at the age of 2.
So, you should let your Great Dane puppy eat puppy food until they are 24 months and then you can switch them to adult Great Dane formula.
WHY WON’T MY GREAT DANE PUPPY EAT?
Sometimes, if your Great Dane puppy will not eat, it is actually your fault.
When we find that our puppy refuses to eat, we usually offer them more food.
This perpetuates the problem. If you constantly give your Great Dane puppy ‘bigger and better’, they will begin to hold out for what they want. In other words, a bowl of regular dog food will begin to look boring to them.
These are just a few examples of healthy fats that you could add into your Great Dane’s diet. Adding these healthy fats will help to fill them up and keep their coat shiny and healthy.
A Great Dane puppy should be given Buffered Esther Vitamin C to prevent Knuckling. Knuckling happens when a puppy’s bones haven’t yet strengthened and they fall over on their ‘pinky’ side.
Start your puppy on 500 mg, and work your way up to 1000 mg. This is one of the most important items you will give your puppy.
Great Dane puppies can also be given fish oil. Fish oil is a great fat for a Great Dane puppy because it helps with brain development and protects their joints.
As your Great Dane enters into adulthood, you might want to consider giving them a glucosamine supplement to help with any joint pain that they may experience. This is especially important if your Great Dane is showing any distress of their joints.
Additionally, it is very important to give your great dane a gut support. Choose a probiotic like this FortiFlora.
RED FLAGS FOR GREAT DANE DOG FOOD
Great Danes eat a lot of food. You want to make sure you are feeding the right food.
‘Popular’ food with buzzwords or marketing schemes (read more here)
Kibble brands that lack research, canine education, studies, or science
Feeding a raw diet to a Great Dane puppy CAN be very challenging and should be done under the consult of a nutritionist. Raw food is very hard to balance and a Great Dane puppy NEEDS a balanced diet.
WHAT IS THE FOOD BILL GOING TO BE FOR MY GREAT DANE?
A Great Dane can cost anywhere from $70- $200 to feed per month.
This, of course, depends on the quality of food you are feeding and if you are supplementing.
The best way to find out is to speak with your veterinarian or a canine nutritionist.
If you are choosing to go with Raw Feeding for Great Dane feeding, it can be an excellent choice for your dog.
Your dog’s stomach might tolerate raw food better than dry. A balanced premade like this one offers the security of having your meal balanced.
We Feed Raw provides complete mixes in a variety of proteins including Beef, Venison and Turkey.
If you are a new raw feeder, you should either choose a balanced raw product or seek the counsel of a certified nutritionist. Raw feeding can be very challenging when you are beginning.
Do not ever begin a Great Dane puppy on raw feeding by yourself. You must feed a Great Dane puppy a complete and balanced diet while they are growing. If your Great Dane eats an unbalanced raw diet, they will experience a tremendous amount of issues.
CHOOSING TO FREE FEED YOUR GREAT DANE
Some people like to ‘free feed’ a Great Dane. If so, make sure they are eating slow and not eating too much. You can use slow feeders, even when ‘free feeding’.
If you want to leave food out all day instead of feeding them two meals or three meals a day, that is fine. However, you should still be intentional about how many cups a day you are giving to your Great Danes.
You should always know how much you feed a Great Dane in a specific day, even if you are choosing to leave the food out all day long.
Monitoring your Great Danes intake can help you keep track of their weight and keep them thin and healthy.
Great Danes are one of the most popular dog breeds in America. But before you bring home your very own, you should be prepared and know how to best feed a Great Dane.
Today, we’ll be providing a comprehensive Gentle Giants dog food review, offering fresh insights to help you make an informed decision when choosing food for your Great Dane or other giant breed dog. We are experts in large and giant breed dogs, and share science-backed information!
This review is part of our ongoing series on dry dog food.
Here are some things I will cover in our Gentle Giants review:
Where Gentle Giants dog food is manufactured
If Gentle Giants food will make your dog live longer
The carbohydrate content of Gentle Giants dog food
Whether or not Gentle Giants can be fed to puppies
Our opinion on the quality of this pet food brand
Science and research behind dog nutrition
Gentle Giant Dog Food Ingredient Analysis
Here is a list of the ingredients in Gentle Giants’ chicken dog food formula. While they have other formulas, they are all comparable. For this review, chicken and rice will be used as an example.
Author’s Note: It’s important to note that we are not Veterinary Nutritionists, so our assessment is limited to a cursory examination, and we cannot provide a definitive judgment on commercial dog food recipes or the specific ingredients in this formula.
The addition of fruits and vegetablesin Gentle Giants is a marketing gimmick; the amounts of each of these would be so low that they essentially amount to fairy dust. Each one is listed after salt in the ingredients, which means they make up less than 1% of the final formula.
Green Lipped Mussel has some promising indications for joint health, but as with fruits and vegetables in this formula, there is very little of this product in the final food. It is unlikely to have any benefit at all.
According to Gentle Giants, this food is classified as a “natural formula” designed to offer balanced nutrition for dogs of all ages and sizes.
Carb Content of Gentle Giants Dog Food
It does appear to be high in starchy ingredients such as barley, brown rice, oatmeal, and peas, especially compared to many other dog foods and dry food recipes.
Brown rice is an excellent example of a typical healthy grain in Gentle Giant Dog food. Brown Rice may contain higher levels of arsenic than white rice, so brown rice must be included thoughtfully and only from companies that do a lot of product lab testing during and after production. It is unclear what their testing processes are.
This puts Gentle Giants dog food at a much higher carb content than Purina One Large Breed Chicken and Rice, which lands at 44% carbs, and higher than Purina Dog Chow Chicken which lands at 51% carbs.
This means that the Gentle Giants formula has LESS meat than other more established and known pet food brands.
It is priced at $44 U.S.D. for 30 pounds.
Author’s note: Purina Puppy/Dog Chow is $28 for 40 lbs. It’s a less expensive food by far, yet, has a lower carbohydrate content than Gentle Giants.
Dog Chow also has an insane amount of research (including lifetime feeding trials) behind the formulation. If you would not feed Purina Dog Chow to your pet, you should begin to recognize how Gentle Giants is unquestionably the lower quality option between the two.
Where is Gentle Giants Dog Food Manufactured
As of this update (2024), it is believed that Gentle Giants Pet foods are manufactured by Consumers Supply Distribution in Sioux City, Iowa. It is made in the U.S.A.
While marketing would like to lead consumers to believe otherwise, Gentle Giant pet food is a classic example of a mass-manufactured brand coming from a co-packing factory that is responsible for hundreds of other labels, formulas, and products.
Because it is unclear where Gentle Giants Dog food is made, I did a deep dive for this blog post!
Gentle Giants has a video on their website showing how their food is manufactured.
It starts with sweeping views of a factory, where a computer-generated version of their logo appears on the signage and distribution trucks. This would be believable to the untrained eye, but once you realize what is happening, it is clear that they are attempting to white-label the factory.
The video takes us inside the facility where this dog food is made, and we can see employees wearing “Consumers Supply” polo shirts.
Gentle Giants do NOT manufacture their food; they contract it out. While this is an acceptable albeit sub-standard practice (it’s better to choose pet foods coming from owned manufacturing facilities with strict quality control and dedication to the safety and bioavailability of the final product), it’s so much worse that they attempt to lie about it!
Consumers Supply manufactures and distributes several products that service the pet, wildlife, and livestock industries including food, minerals, salts, bird seed, and even rope and twine. They are commissioned by companies to make and distribute products and have no affiliation otherwise with the mission or branding of the product being sold.
Is Gentle Giants dog food made in China?
No, it is made in the U.S. However, most, if not all dog food companies (even ‘natural’ ones) source vitamins and minerals from other countries (including China).
Many people believe that their dog has grain allergies, however, this condition is exceedingly rare. Grains provide important nutrients and energy that dogs need to thrive.
Unfortunately, many grain-free dry dog foods have been associated with a preventable and deadly form of heart disease. We do not recommend feeding grain-free dry diets to dogs.
Is Gentle Giants dog food holistic?
The term ‘holistic’ is a marketing term that is not regulated. It’s made up!
Anybody can claim that the food they make and sell is “holistic”. It’s a catchy term that encourages well-meaning pet parents to make a purchase.
Holistic should imply that a food is formulated to treat the “whole body”.
Any good science-backed food would thus, actually be holistic. Comprehensive veterinary care including prevention is thus, holistic.
Gentle Giants dog food does claim to be “holistic”. Take that with a grain of salt. It doesn’t mean anything.
Gentle Giants is an “All Life Stages” food, meaning that it’s formulated for puppies and adults.
All Life Stages foods are essentially puppy foods. This can be okay in some cases, but in others, it’s simply a way for companies to minimize the need for different formulations, bags, and feeding trials.
When evaluating whether a food is appropriate for a large or giant breed puppy, it is critical to assess the calcium and phosphorus levels.
An appropriate food for a big puppy will have 1.2% or less calcium, a CA/PH ratio of as close to 1:1 as possible, and 3.5g or less calcium per 1000 kCal. It will also have the AAFCO large breed growth statement.
Ideally, the food will have also undergone feeding trials, extensive lab testing, and research, proving the availability of other important bone-growth nutrients such as Vitamin D, zinc, and phosphorus. From what we can tell, Gentle Giant’s food has not been subjected to rigorous and thorough testing.
Gentle Giants Chicken and Rice does have the AAFCO Large Breed Growth statement, indicating that the calcium level is expected to be 1.8% or less.
However, it is impossible to find calcium and phosphorus levels for this food. Without this information published and easy to find, we cannot verify that the food is 1.2% or less (the value recommended for giant breed puppies in particular). Additionally, we can not calculate how much calcium is in 1000 kCal of Gentle Giants puppy food.
As above, the food is co-packed in a massive manufacturing facility that makes many other brands and labels. This facility is probably responsible for the nutritional formulation as well, yet there is no indication of the qualifications of the individuals overseeing this process.
Tread cautiously when choosing to feed this food to a large or giant breed dog under the age of 2.
Incorrect nutritional values in puppyhood can increase the risk of dysplasia, bone damage, painful growth disorders, and even osteosarcoma bone cancer or wobblers disease!
Behind the Gentle Giants Food Brand
Our Gentle Giants dog food review would be incomplete without some information about what goes on behind the brand.
Not only does this food come with bold, in-your-face marketing geared toward pet owners with gentle giants, but it also has some interesting stories behind it. Read on, friends.
The Gentle Giants Rescue
Burt Ward (the owner of this brand) has been rescuing dogs with his wife in California for decades.
This unusual rescue makes wild claims about the longevity of the dogs (20+ years in some cases) living on their “all-natural dog food“, and says they have rescued over 14,000 pets.
Meanwhile, as of this writing, they have no animals available for adoption.
Many of the ‘available’ breeds they offer via this rescue are unusual and rare, including Staghounds, Xolo, “woodles”, and Saluki. They have had many, many litters of puppies, too.
Many people, including us, believe that this ‘rescue’ operation is nothing more than a glorified puppy mill.
They claim that 30-40 dogs live with them in “peace and harmony” on their property and that all are seniors exceeding their normal lifespan because of their “world-classfood and training program”.
There are many verifiable reports of neglect, poor living conditions, and uncontrolled dogs breeding at will in the unsupervised ‘Gentle Giants’ pack.
People seem to associate ‘celebrity’ with ‘trustworthy’.
Burt Ward played Robin in the 1960s Batman TV series.
That doesn’t make him a nutrition expert, last we checked…
Is Gentle Giants Dog Food Good?
We don’t stand behind any dry dog food that doesn’t stand with science. It’s that simple. The people behind Gentle Giants dog food do not participate in research, studies, or food trials.
The only “proof” they have of the efficacy and safety of their food is the claims made that their pack of “rescue” dogs are all over the age of 10.
A cursory glance at dog food reviews of this product indicates that some people have had no trouble feeding this food and swear by it while others experienced blood in the urine, inflammation, loose stools, and itching.
Has Gentle Giants Food Ever Been Recalled?
As of this writing, it appears that Gentle Giants food has never been recalled.
We see this as a red flag. Why?
A company that will recall its food is a company that wants to control the quality and the consistency, even if the problem that led to the recall is minor.
When a company has never issued a recall, voluntary or otherwise, you can pretty much bet that they are casually overlooking some things so that they can continue to say ‘no recalls’ in their marketing.
Boutique Dog Foods vs. Science
Boutique ‘feel good’ dog foods, including Gentle Giants, rely on careful marketing to sell the brand.
They tend to use buzzwords such as “human grade”, “all-natural”, “no recalls”, “super-premium”, or “holistic”. This can lead consumers to feel that they are purchasing something healthier for their pet (even if no actual health benefits have been proven by any legitimate science).
Even the word “farm-raised chicken” is meant to evoke a certain feeling or emotion about the food. All chickens are raised on farms!
Common ’boutique’ companies that you may have heard of or seen include Fromm, Orijen, 4Health, Halo, Solid Gold, Nulo, Nutro, Zignature, The Farmer’s Dog, Muenster, and Life’s Abundance.
What’s interesting about boutique dog food is that, despite the health claims they make, there is very little science going into the food itself.
Many people are shocked to learn that very few (if any) boutique food companies have a legitimate nutritionist formulating their foods. In many cases, the person making the recipe is even less qualified than a veterinarian.
For example, Fromm (who relies on the ‘ family-owned’ mantra to sell food) is formulated by a chemical engineer.
Victor Foods are formulated by somebody with a master in science and an online certificate in dairy cattle nutrition.
Diamond brand foods (including Taste of the Wild, Costco/Kirkland, Diamond, and Nutra Nuggets) are formulated by a computer and packaged in different bags to appeal to different markets.
Boutique brands also don’t participate in nutrition research and science. In many cases, the pet foods they make are only “formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by AAFCO”, on paper.
This sounds great, but all that means is that on paper they’ve added enough nutrients to satisfy a minimum legal guideline. It doesn’t mean that they’ve tested and proven the formulation itself.
So when a brand is telling you they are “super-premium” and “holistic”, ask yourself if you are being sold to, or if that food has legitimate science backing its claims of being “healthier”.
Want to see how YOUR current dog food stacks up? Visit the Pet Nutrition Alliance and look your brand up.
Each food company was asked to provide information about just a few key things, including who formulates their food.
You’ll notice that many boutique dog food brands refused to share the requested information because it is damning to their brand.
We smell something fishy here, folks, and it’s not the fish meal in your bag of kibble.
The Great Grain-Free Debate
So what is inherently wrong with a “super-premium”, “natural” dog food from a boutique company, anyways? Let’s talk for a moment about the great grain-free pet food debate.
Many otherwise ‘healthy’ shiny dogs ‘with good poop’ who randomly die while playing or after going for a walk have been diagnosed with, or even passed from DCM, and the owners never knew something was wrong.
No official pre-death diagnosis means that very little data is collected on the dogs who die this way. The devastated owners move on with their lives, assuming that their dog had a genetic problem. Veterinarians around the country are seeing it happen over and over again.
While genetics do play a role in primary DCM, secondary DCM is believed to be caused by unbalanced nutrition. These dogs are essentially starved for certain amino acids and micro-nutrients: the heart enlarges and eventually gives out.
This brings us back to the fact that a sound majority of boutique dog food brands do not employ a board-certified veterinary nutritionist to formulate their food. This includes Gentle Giants.
As a Great Dane owner, you could not PAY me to feed Gentle Giants dog food.
Nutritional levels established by AAFCO
AAFCO is a non-profit agency that works in tandem with government regulatory agencies. Regulatory agencies moderate and enforce nutrition and food safety, and AAFCO was established to help with definitions and requirements.
The AAFCO label on every dog food bag is there to help you establish if the formula is correct for your dog.
All of this canine nutrition information can be frustrating and alarming to Great Dane owners who want to choose the best foods for their giant dogs!
We recommend picking a highly-researched, truly science-backed brand that employs highly qualified professionals (Veterinary Nutritionists) to formulate their food.
Find out if the formulations from those brands are substantiated in actual food tests, or if they just look correct on paper.
Ask if the brand has made any contributions to widely accepted canine nutrition science (the very science that has also now made it possible to feed Great Danes puppy food instead of adult food, YAY!).
Contrary to what small boutique brands want you to believe, the blueberries and spinach they have added in minuscule amounts to make you ‘feel good’ are doing nothing but lining their pockets.
If you want your dog to have blueberries, toss a few whole ones into their food, instead! Serving a balanced meal is important, however, so no matter what, make sure that toppers make up less than 10% of your dog’s overall dry dog food diet.
We recommend Large Breed Purina Pro Plan (puppy or adult, salmon recipe) or Royal Canin Giant Breed foods as the gold standard in healthy, highly researched dog foods for your gentle giant. However, Eukanuba and Iams have solid choices for you as well, at all price points!
Picky dogs hate their food after a short time. If you have a picky gentle giant, we recommend sticking with the same food, avoiding bribery, and making food FUN by offering it in puzzles or for training.
Senior dogs may eat less, too. Don’t mistake this natural behavior for ‘pickiness’.
The Dog Food Advisor Blog
Many people turn to the Dog Food Advisor blog for information about choosing pet food. It’s one of the top blogs to show up on a Google search when looking for dog food reviews!
The Dog Food Advisor rates the Gentle Giants brand as 4/5 stars and considers it an ‘above average dry product’ with a ‘moderate amount of meat’.
Here is the thing about the Dog Food Advisor. That blog was created by a human dentist with absolutely no credentials at all in veterinary nutrition. The rating system is made up.
Of course, we aren’t veterinary nutritionists either. But unlike the Dog Food Advisor, we aren’t making up a ratings system. Our evaluation of food is based purely on nutrition science and company manufacturing practices and ethics.
We align ourselves with veterinarians and veterinary nutritionists, for a reason. Our recommendations may not “look pretty” and “feel good” like the ones on the Dog Food Advisor, but we can confidently state that our information is based on science, NOT what results in more clicks and traffic.
That said, the Dog Food Advisor does rate Pro Plan as a top pick on its ‘recommended foods list’, and states that it is one of the only brands highly tested and formulated by a team of veterinary nutritionists. They are correct about that.
Our Rating of Gentle Giants Dog Food
This is one food we think you should skip.
No science.
Wild and questionable marketing claims about longevity (“Your dog can live longer!”).
Affiliated with a sketchy ‘giant breed rescue’ (very likely a puppy mill, but at the least nothing more than a wild pack of dogs that are fed out of trash cans and left to their own devices).
Unclear calcium/phosphorus levels.
Co-packed in a random factory.
Higher carb content than “low quality” Purina Dog Chow.
Is your Great Dane not eating enough? This can be concerning and it’s a popular topic in the Great Dane community! There are various reasons why a Great Dane might become picky or stop eating, ranging from temporary issues like stress, changes in the environment, or minor digestive upsets, to more serious health conditions such as dental problems, gastrointestinal disorders, or metabolic issues.
Before we dig more into this, I have to remind readers that if a dog is truly not eating and is losing weight, this is considered a medical emergency. Always see your veterinarian if you are worried about your Great Dane not eating enough, or not eating at all.
Great Dane Not Eating Enough…or At All!
Buckle up, this is a big one! If your Great Dane is picky, acting strange, or just not eating much, the answers are here for you. There are times when a loss of appetite can absolutely be a concern.
Here is a list of reasons why a dog won’t eat, that require veterinary care ASAP. If any of these could be true for your dog, do not read the rest of this article, call your veterinarian or if life-threatening, GO!
Anxiety (if it results in withholding food for more than 24 hours)
Bloat or other gastro-based emergency
Cancer
Here are some less serious reasons why your Great Dane isn’t eating enough:
Tummy upset
They are eating enough, you just think they need more (common!)
They just finished a growth spurt
It’s hot out and their appetite is down
Anxiety & stress
They are not receiving as much exercise as usual
The feeding area is dirty, noisy, or scary
The food is bad (read about the recent Victor recall, they had been selling contaminated food for months and many dogs had refused to eat it before the recall was finally issued)
They are receiving too many toppers, treats, and chews
Notice I didn’t mention picky eating! We’ll get more into that later.
What to do if a new Great Dane puppy won’t eat
It can be alarming if your new Great Dane puppy won’t eat! We all know that Dane pups NEED a lot of food to grow, so it can be scary when they aren’t ravenous for their food.
Great Dane puppies grow fast and a loss of appetite can be alarming, but keep this in mind: for growing large breed dogs, overnutrition is just as dangerous as undernutrition! Overfeeding Great Dane puppies leads to orthopedic growth disorders, too fast growth, and problems such as carpal laxity that are hard on the joints.
Always go by your veterinarian’s advice regarding overall body condition; Dane puppies should be lean, not round.
What if my Great Dane Puppy is a picky eater?
You’ll notice that ‘picky’ is not listed here as one of the reasons why a puppy dog won’t eat! Many people believe that they have a picky dog on their hands, but it’s actually very rare.
Picky eaters are most often a symptom of the environment, and the harsh, honest truth here is that your picky pooch has likely trained YOU!
Every time you add a topper, canned food, boiled chicken, table scraps, or dog treats to encourage eating, your Great Dane puppy learns that if they ignore their food better things will come.
Most dogs are very smart this way, and the only way to solve this problem is to be strong. Our Stop Picky Eating post is super helpful for picky pups!
Stop bribing your puppy
To put this simply, stop bribing your dog to eat unless your veterinarian has encouraged you to do so following an illness! Your puppy will not allow itself to starve to death, and will eventually eat the dog food that was presented to them as-is.
Every time you switch foods to try and appease your ‘picky pup’, you also risk upsetting the stomach more. Many people start to believe that the resulting chronic loose stools are ‘allergies’, change foods again, and thus will begin a never-ending cycle of gut issues.
These problems can be brought on by constant changes to food and nutrition while the puppies’ digestive system was still maturing.
When you switch foods, the balance of nutrition and gut flora is thrown off again; it can take up to 12 weeks for a dog to acclimate to a new food. Every time you find your dog not eating the way that you think he should, we encourage you to look at health first before making changes.
We cannot state this enough: if you are feeding an appropriate, science-based large breed kibble and your puppy is not knuckling or experiencing growth disorders, STICK WITH IT!
Stop switching foods. It’s really not healthy.
What to feed a Great Dane puppy so that they eat
The best dog foods for a Great Dane puppy will be science-backed, highly researched, formulated for the growth of large and/or giant breed dogs, and from a company that employs a veterinary nutritionist (or team of them) to formulate, oversee, research and test the diet.
Many boutique food brands that sound ‘healthy and holistic’ are often the creation of great marketing, not necessarily of great research and excellent nutrition.
We recommend checking the credentials of any food brand you are considering as your pup’s main diet. The wrong food can cause heart problems, kidney problems, issues with vitamin and mineral levels and more.
Thankfully, the Pet Nutrition Alliance did the work for us and compiled the important information on each brand on a spreadsheet. This makes dog food brand decisions super easy!
We recommend a Large Breed Puppy formula from Purina Pro Plan or Eukanuba, and as above, STICK WITH IT! For more information on how to feed a Great Dane and the best dog dry food and amounts for growing Dane pups, read our famous Ultimate Great Dane feeding chart post here!
Here are our favorite science-backed foods for Great Dane Puppies. Click to shop on Chewy. Pro tip: autoship saves you money and time!
Check out THE GIANT DOG FOOD PROJECT to compare brands and values.
Your puppy is overwhelmed, fearful, or scared
It’s not uncommon for Great Dane puppies to feel a little overwhelmed during the first days in a new home. An overwhelmed, overtired, and overexcited dog won’t eat reliably, and that’s ok.
Not only have there been several changes to their life and routine, but they’ve likely had vaccines and possibly even ear cropping. Veterinary care like this can make them feel a little icky for a few days, so you may just need to be patient.
Your puppy has parasites
As above, worming medication can cause tummy upset, and so can parasites!
Your veterinarian will likely do a stool sample and worm your puppy with an oral medication. If your puppy has worms, this medication can make your puppy feel not-so-great while the worms die.
Common worms and parasites include tapeworms and roundworms, which you may see in their stool! There is another very tiny parasite called giardia that is a very common cause of loose stools in Great Danes.
If you are struggling with your puppy’s stomach upset, ask your veterinarian to test for Giardia, which requires antibiotics to treat.
Parasites are very common in puppies and treatable. As long as you have gotten your puppy from a reputable Great Dane breeder and had your first vet visit, this should be no big deal.
Your puppy has a stomach upset
Another common cause of stomach upset in Great Dane puppies is switching foods! Many pet parents are excited to switch foods and may immediately jump to a food brand that the puppy had never had before.
We ONLY recommend that puppies be fed a science-based and highly researched large breed puppy kibble diet formulated for large and giant breed growth (our favorites are below).
If your breeder was feeding something else, switch slowly to avoid further stomach upset.
Note: If your puppy is knuckling or experiencing HOD, Panosteitis or other orthopedic growth problems, your puppy must switch to an appropriate, science-backed large breed puppy kibble immediately.
Too many treats can make a dog eat less
Training treats can also cause a puppy to become full or overloaded with the wrong nutrition! Too much of a good thing can result in a decreased appetite, which can be alarming AND lead to loose stools, growth disorders, and more.
Take it easy with dog treats. Keep bites teeny tiny and consider doing as much training as you can with your puppy’s kibble, instead!
(No, your dog will not bloat if you feed them kibble for training! Contrary to popular belief, ‘resting’ before and after eating is not reliable for preventing bloat in Great Danes).
Too many training treats can also throw off the important balance of nutrition needed for proper growth. Too much food, fat, nutrition, and unbalanced amino acids and calcium and phosphorus levels are dangerous for growing puppies.
Here are some of our favorite holistic whole-food training treats for Great Danes. Use in moderation!
Your puppy is sick
Unfortunately, illness can be devastating for young Great Dane puppies. If your Dane pup has any of the following symptoms, seek veterinary care immediately:
Excessive amounts of diarrhea
Blood in stool
Pale gums
Vomiting
Low or high body temperature (use this thermometer to check)
Lethargy (no energy, even while awake)
Weakness, stumbling, unable to stand, walk or play
Cloudy or watery eyes
Discharge from the nose or mouth
Foul smell
Large, distended abdomen
Crooked paws
Showing pain signals including limping, whining, crying, chewing paws, aggression, etc.
Parvo in Great Dane Puppies
Parvo, for example, could be one reason that your puppy is not eating. While there are vaccines for Parvo, puppies are at risk until they are fully vaccinated.
This particular disease is extremely difficult to treat and also deadly. Early diagnosis is key; if you see any signs your puppy needs to see a veterinarian immediately.
A thorough physical examination is warranted anytime you feel something is ‘off’ with your puppy, including crooked paws (which could be a sign of knuckling).
Other symptoms of poor health can include whining while going potty, weight loss, and limping. A urinary tract infection is a common problem for Dane pups and one that can result in a reduced appetite in dogs.
Not only that, but a Dane pup can become dangerously dehydrated very quickly, so if your puppy is having trouble with loose stools and throwing up, get to the vet immediately.
Even if he or she’s drinking water, it may not be enough.
Your Great Dane Puppy is Full
Many times, a puppy that has no appetite is actually full!
Too much nutrition can lead to knuckling and loose stools, so keep that in mind if your dog loves to scarf food and eat too much.
Great Dane puppies grow fast and need a lot of nutrition, and your dog’s eating habits will change often throughout the first several months. As a matter of fact, you may find that your puppy is at the food bowl asking for food at odd times, and turning its nose up at other times!
Your pup will need more dog food before and during a growth spurt as well.
We say feed them and let them guide you! The goal with puppies is not to stuff them with an exact number of cups of food, but rather to give them the nutrition they need to grow slowly and with excellent body condition.
Our Great Dane puppy feeding chart can give you a rough idea of how much you might expect to feed, but only your puppy really knows what he needs.
Do not let your puppy (or adult Great Dane) gain excess weight. If your dog scarves food down and eats without stopping, it’s time to step in and strictly monitor intake.
Is it normal for puppies to not eat all of their food
Assuming that your healthy puppy has a quality, age-appropriate science-backed dog food and is otherwise vibrant, robust, and active it can be perfectly normal for your pup to leave food in the bowl.
As above, this is not a sign that your Great Dane is one of the reported ‘picky eaters’. A dog that is self-regulating its intake is very different than a dog that has had an actual loss of appetite.
It’s important to monitor your puppy and keep tabs on growth, overall health, and energy levels; this matters more than actual food intake!
As a pet parent, it’s normal to worry, but unless your dog recently suffered illness, is losing weight, or is showing other sights of stress or health problems, try not to stress. Keep your puppy on the same dry dog food and stick it out!
Having interest change from meal to meal and day to day is totally normal and to be expected. This chart below is just a guide; the food you choose and your puppies appetite will change these amounts.
When should I worry about my puppy not eating?
Of course, there does come a time when you should worry about your puppy not eating!
You definitely want to see medical attention for your dog if it is losing weight, acting lethargic, distressed, or having difficulty chewing.
Sometimes a stick or bone has become lodged inside of the jaw and it can make it difficult for a puppy to eat and drink water normally.
If your dog’s stool has blood in it, you will need to see your vet immediately as this can be a sign of foreign bodies or Parvo. Pale gums, coughing, and dehydration are also indicators of physical distress that will require immediate veterinary care.
If your puppy ate something they shouldn’t have such as socks, jewelry, or toxic foods such as grapes or Xylitol you will likely notice a reduction in appetite.
These things are a medical emergency and cause for concern.
At times, excessive treats, table scraps, or stolen food from the counter can lead to a condition called Pancreatitis. This can make your puppy stop eating and show signs of nausea, tummy upset, and weakness.
However, if your puppy is bright, vibrant, and playful while awake with nice tight feet and a great nap schedule (remember, Great Dane puppies need a LOT of sleep!), chances are everything is fine. Let your puppy sleep, they will eat when they are hungry!
A healthy Great Dane pup should be curious, friendly, active, and ready to go when awake!
Bonus Tip: Monitor water intake when your dog won’t eat
We do not recommend limiting water intake or withholding water for ‘potty training’.
This dated practice can lead to dehydration and may actually teach your puppy to gulp, hoard, and guard water as a valuable resource.
Of course, a pup doesn’t need to be drinking water overnight. But if you are taking up the bowl at dinner time so you don’t have to let your puppy out to pee at 2 in the morning, stop.
Let your puppy drink water as needed and desired until you all go to bed for the night.
Take your puppy out for one last late-night pee (use LOTS of treats and yes, kibble to reward this behavior!) and then quietly, calmly go out as needed through the night.
They will outgrow the need to go out and pee overnight once their bladder is mature, and you’ll be getting restful sleep again!
What to do when your puppy isn’t eating?
Many people start adding wet dog food, boiled chicken, treats, canned food, or other tasty toppers to entice their puppy to eat.
Others will attempt hand feeding or hydrating the food in warm water. It’s important to remember that appetite in dogs can and will fluctuate!
Note: some studies show that food moistened in warm water, that has citric acid in the formulation may increase bloat risk.
As we mentioned before, bribery is a dangerous path that will lead to a lot of frustration.
We believe in offering up to 5-10% of the diet as healthy toppers because, for Great Danes, it may reduce bloat risk.
However, there is a big difference between adding healthy foods to increase the intake of fibers and omegas and adding unbalanced junk food to make the dry kibble somehow more appealing.
We recommend rehydrated Olewo carrots for loose stools.
Balanced raw, fish oil, the occasional raw egg, or a few scoops of Dr. Harvey’s are also welcome additions to the Great Dane food bowl!
As above, these items should be added for health reasons, not as bribery.
Best Foods for Great Danes & The Appropriate Diet
Once your puppy learns that skipping meals means you bring out the good stuff, all bets are off. We promise, that if you are feeding an appropriate dry food diet, you do NOT need to switch to a new food so that your dog will eat!
If you are feeding a science-backed, highly respected solid food that is formulated for the growth of large breed dogs, stick with the same food. We recommend choosing brands that invest heavily in research, professional veterinary nutritionist formulation, development, ingredient sourcing, and formula testing. These brands include Purina, Eukanuba, and Iams.
Scheduled Feedings to Reduce Pickiness
If your dog won’t eat and there are clearly no health issues, wait it out. Put the bowl down, offer the meal, and walk away. Don’t make a fuss.
Pick it up again if your dog refuses it after 15-30 minutes. Offer it again later for a mid-day meal, and repeat this process until your dog gives in and eats their solid food.
Another trick you can try when your dog won’t eat is to make eating FUN. Use your dog’s normal food as training treats, and reward your dog throughout the day with a few pieces for awesome behavior.
The KONG WOBBLER can also be very engaging for dogs that need their food to ‘run’ so they can hunt for and chase it! We always love seeing food used as enrichment. If your dog won’t eat, this is a great trick to try!
Reasons for the loss of appetite in dogs
Like puppies, there are many reasons why an adult Great Dane will have a loss of appetite.
Here are just a few things to look for if you have a dog not eating:
A foreign body such as a sock in the digestive tract
Stomach upset from eating something toxic or irritating, including chocolate, grapes, certain house plants, and xylitol
Stomach upset from counter surfing things such as butter, roasts, cookies, or treats that are unbalanced, fatty, sugary, and sit heavy in the stomach (watch for signs of pancreatitis! See below).
Toxicity from exposure to essential oils such as eucalyptus oil, tea tree oil, cinnamon, citrus, peppermint, pine, wintergreen, and ylang-ylang that are not safe for dogs
Boredom. Like humans, bored dogs can become depressed, suppressed, and may turn their noses up at food. Make eating fun by using a puzzle feeder and food as training treats!
Congenital problems such as heart or digestive system defects that haven’t been diagnosed
Liver disease or kidney disease
New food (switching too quickly can cause stomach upset, OR the new dog food has more nutrition and your dog won’t have to eat as much as they did with the previous food.
A senior dog will have a reduced appetite and will require a different dry dog food formulation than a puppy or adult.Dental disease in senior dogs can also cause decreased appetite; your veterinarian can address this with you.
Some dogs with advanced dental disease may need canned food or a liquid diet.
Signs of pancreatitis in Great Danes
Here are some signs of pancreatitis, which is a life-threatening illness that can happen when dogs ingest too many things that are fatty such as too many rich treats, roasts, butter or bacon.
Scavenging for food is one of the leading predictors of a dog experiencing pancreatitis; however other things may cause it.
Diarrhea
Abdominal Pain
Distress, including laying with the rear end high in the air
Fever
Lethargy
Vomiting
Decreased appetite
Nausea
Pancreatitis in dogs has other factors and causes as well, and the prognosis is based on severity and treatment. If your dog is showing these or other symptoms that are alarming to you, it’s important to seek veterinary care as soon as possible.
Counter surfing and trash surfing is a real problem for Great Danes! Learn how to solve this dangerous and annoying behavior.
Your pet’s health is at risk if you don’t implement training and management.
Balanced training is the most humane choice for dogs because it teaches and rewards them while also giving them all of the information they need to make mature decisions. This includes NO, a simple thing that can save your dog’s life.
A picky Great Dane dog with a decreased appetite is often caused by, get this, poor handling!
Biologically, dogs don’t want to starve. Let your dog’s eating habits be your guide here: many dogs are incredibly good at self-regulating intake, just by nature! Appetite in dogs is fluid and will change day-to-day, too.
If they don’t eat, it’s because they don’t need the food, have a medical problem, the food is bad, OR we’ve trained them to hold out for the good stuff. A dog not eating because they’ve learned this is a dog that is making the rules.
That last part…read it again.
We’ve trained them to hold out for the good stuff, and they’ve trained us to give it to them!
Every time you add toppers or change foods to encourage your Dane to eat, you teach them that if they turn their nose up at the food bowl better things will come. A dog not eating may actually be a dog that figured out a neat trick to eat treats with every meal.
If you’ve ruled out medical problems and you are feeding a fresh (not stale) high-quality, science-backed kibble that is correctly formulated for your Great Dane, chances are your Dane is either full or totally playing you.
Now of course it stands to reason that your Great Dane may get tired and bored of a certain food. We recommend changing proteins on occasion but stick with the food that is working for you.
When you change proteins, stick with the same formula
Example for an adult dog:
Purina Pro Plan Large Breed Chicken and Rice, switch to Purina Pro Plan Large Breed Beef and Ric
Are Great Danes picky eaters?
By nature, Great Danes are not picky eaters!
However, the myriad of health problems that plague this breed resulting from bad genetics and incorrect foods can make them seem picky or intolerant of certain foods.
Great Danes are unfortunately prone to a number of health issues that can result in a dog’s loss of interest in food.
When a dog won’t eat or flat out refuses, it might be helpful to rule out these common health issues:
Allergies. While dietary allergies are actually extremely rare, environmental allergies can make a dog uncomfortable.
Thyroid disorders.
Diabetes
Painful orthopedic problems including wobblers, HOD, Dysplasia or arthritis
Poor structural conformation that leads to painful joints and movement
Chances are, your Great Dane is not actually picky and other things are going on.
If you think it’s just general pickiness, wait it out! You might be surprised to find that your dog starts eating again after a day. If not, seek medical advice just in case.
When should I be concerned that my dog is not eating?
Anytime your dog’s appetite seems to have decreased drastically, you will want to watch for other signs and symptoms. A loss of appetite in dogs can be alarming, and it’s good that you are paying attention!
A dog that normally loves its dry dog food and that is suddenly refusing food of any kind may have medical problems that go far beyond a simple loss of appetite.
If your dog stops eating altogether and you aren’t sure why we recommend seeking professional help from your veterinarian before switching foods again.
Older dogs that stop eating
Older dogs that are not eating and that have other health problems may be towards the end of life; just like humans, a dog in hospice will often experience a loss of appetite and stop eating before passing away.
It is important to keep senior dogs in hospice staying hydrated, drinking water, and being as comfortable as possible!
A dog’s loss of appetite in the latest days of life is normal and may be an indication that it’s time to say goodbye.
Did you know that there are now canine hospice options? Chat with your veterinarian for referrals and advice. They can help guide you towards making sure that your elderly dog is drinking water and staying hydrated before you have to make any other end-of-life decisions.
How do I make my Great Dane eat more?
In most cases, you don’t actually need your Great Dane to eat more!
Many people are alarmed to see how ‘thin’ their Great Dane is. The truth here is that a little rib showing is normal and desired. Very few dogs are actually underweight, and very few dogs actually need to eat more.
The written breed standard for Great Danes in all Countries, including Europe and the U.S. defines them as being an athletic breed, never stocky.
For truly underweight dogs that need more nutrition, medical attention is needed first to rule out underlying causes such as disease, parasites, cancer, or congenital deformities such as megaesophagus.
Great Dane puppies in particular can be very lean and lanky as they grow. They will fill out once they are more mature, usually between 2 and 3 years of age.
Here is an image of three Great Dane dogs. One is underweight and malnourished. One is at a perfectly healthy weight. The third is overweight.
An Underweight Great Dane
A Healthy Weight Great Dane
An Overweight Great Dane
A malnourished, underweight dog will lack vibrancy and won’t have much energy. Many ‘thin’ dogs that are labeled as ‘underweight’ have shiny coats, muscle tone and lots of energy! Those dogs need to be left as-is.
Adding weight to a Great Dane is hard on the joints and can shorten the life span by 2 years, on average. For giant breed dogs that tend to have short lifespans in the first place, that is devastating.
If you think your dog is underweight and needs to eat more, talk to your vet first! Most people are so used to seeing ‘fat’ dogs that they don’t know what an appropriate waistline is on a dog.
A lot of ‘thin’ dogs can actually use some muscle building as well. Muscle and activity will nearly always come with an increased appetite, as the added nutrients are needed to build muscle.
We highly recommend that all Great Danes are off-leash trained and have the opportunity to move, explore, run and play freely without physical restraints such as harnesses, head collars, prong collars, or long leashes.
These natural activities help them build muscle and can improve balance, strength, and motor coordination. For off-leash training, modern E-Collars cannot be beat. We have tons of resources on this topic here.
When should I worry about my dog not eating?
If your dog is acting lethargic, it’s time to worry.
A dog that has no energy, dull eyes or that is weak needs medical assistance.
Muscle wasting is a problem for dogs that have begun to lose weight due to a too-low intake of food. Without the nutrition or fat reserves needed for survival, muscle tone will diminish.
Some dogs may be coming from rescue situations where severe neglect led them down this path.
A veterinarian can advise on the best course of action for food intake, water intake, and nutrition in dogs that are severely underweight. A new food will typically be advised, as there are certain dry dog food formulas that have more of the kind of nutrition a dog like this will need to rebuild their strength.
Some healthy dogs may eat less and begin to lose weight. This can be concerning to dog owners, especially when it’s clear that the dog’s appetite has changed or been reduced.
Many dogs are actually overweight, and a heavy dog not eating as much of their normal food may actually be a good thing. For those dogs, they may appear to look ‘too thin’ because their new body condition looks different, but it doesn’t mean that you need to be alarmed.
Always chat with your veterinarian to rule out health problems, including cancer, diabetes, thyroid issues, and heart problems if your dog’s appetite seems unusually different.
Is it normal for a dog to not finish their food?
It is very normal for a dog to not finish its food! If your dog won’t eat the entire bowl, consider that it could just be a matter of ‘too much’.
Think about how this applies in the wild. A dog is naturally inclined to not overeat because instinctually dogs know how much nutrition their body actually needs.
In most cases, we recommend trusting your dog here. If your Great Dane is eating but doesn’t finish their food, they are probably full and don’t need anymore!
Many people worry about food because they are concerned about bloat. They want their dog to eat on a schedule so that they can strictly monitor meal and rest times.
There are definitely much bigger things to be concerned about when it comes to bloat risk and minimizing the chance that your dog experiences it.
Genetics, gut health, and poor temperaments are key factors. For more information on bloat in Great Danes and how it relates to nutrition, read our Great Dane Bloat articles below.
If your dog has no aggression, food-scarfing, hoarding, training, or temperament issues it’s actually fine to allow your dog to graze on the food they leave in the bowl. As a matter of fact, frequent, smaller meals are correlated with a DECREASE in bloat risk!
If your dog is overweight, obese, frantic, aggressive, frustrated, or needs a lot of training, however, this is not recommended. For those dogs, 2-3 scheduled meals per day, served in a low-stress environment for just 15-20 minutes is ideal.
Monitoring your dog’s body condition is extremely important, and avoiding food scarfing, fights over food, and frustrating behaviors at the bowl is part of being an educated, dedicated Great Dane owner.
You know your dog best!
The case of too many treats
Many dogs are full and uninterested in food because they are getting too many treats!
Treats may be coming from cute puppy eyes at the treat jar, table scraps, bones, chews, table surfing, and yes, even your treat bag during training.
If you are working on training your Great Dane, try mixing some of your dog’s dry food ration for the day into your treat bag.
Use food as a reward so your dog receives correct, balanced nutrition and gains confidence doing a job well done.
Not only will this make their food more enticing because they have to ‘work for it’, but the variation of treats between high value (such as Ziwi Peak) and their kibble will work to make your dog that much more interested in working for the good stuff.
Every time they get a higher-value treat, it’s like hitting the jackpot!
Freeze-dried meats and organs (small amounts, don’t overdo it)
Cheerios
A trail mix made up of hotdogs, dry food, Ziwi peak, blueberries, and freeze-dried chicken
When your dog is eating dry food as a reward during training, you will find that your dog starts to really enjoy their meals! By nature, dogs want to ‘work’ and that includes hunting, searching, sniffing, sitting, and doing tricks.
As a matter of fact, a lot of behavior problems in Great Danes including destruction, chewing, separation anxiety, anxiety, lunging, barking, and pulling like a freight train are directly related to, get this, frustration and BOREDOM!
When we ask our dogs to work for their dry food, we are providing them with enrichment and mental games that will help them thrive.
Does your dog turn its nose up at kibble when used as a training treat? Make it a little more ‘enticing’ by spraying it with bone broth or warm water and as above, mixing it up with higher value treats.
PRO TIP: If you use hot dogs, the kibble will naturally become more appealing because the hot dogs will ‘scent’ the kibble in the treat bag!
If your dog likes to eat treats but not their normal food, you can also ‘trick’ them into thinking their dry food is a treat by using it as a filler for fun puzzle toys such as the West Paw Topple.
We believe Great Danes should have fun with their food, and that a dog’s appetite is often linked to how hard it was for them to get that food.
Sometimes it really is a matter of making a dog eat through the use of brain games and puzzles.
If your dog is not ok when you leave the house, you can actually use their meals, canned food, and dry food to your advantage!
We recommend creating a mixture of kibble, wet food, rehydrated Olewo carrots and a few high-value tidbits such as Dr. Harvey’s freeze-dried treats or Ziwi Peak.
Take this mush and stuff it into a Dane-sized West Paw Wobbler and stick it in the freezer!
Offer this frozen treat to your dog while they are in another room and confined away from you. Practice this daily, so your dog learns that you being in a different room and out of sight is ok!
They will enjoy the wet food as they work to get it out of the stuffed toy, and with practice, they will begin to have positive associations when you are away. You can make this puzzle even more enticing with the addition of canned food, something that many dogs love.
Separation anxiety is unhealthy for Great Danes and can increase their risk of experiencing bloat. Anxiety and stress have strong ties to bloat occurring!
It’s important to take steps to work on it, but it does take time and patience. If your dog won’t eat or work on the puzzle toy during these short practice sessions, lower the criteria. Leave for only 10 seconds, then 45, and so on.
The more time your dog can spend having a positive, no-stress experience with you out of site, the better.
What to give my dog if she is not eating?
The last thing you want to do is to bribe your Great Dane into eating.
A healthy, normal dog will not allow itself to starve to death! Decreased appetite in dogs happens for many reasons and many times the reason is both simple and benign.
It’s important to rule out medical reasons for reduced appetite in dogs such as parasites, pain, foreign objects or cancer, however!
If your Great Dane is not eating because of illness, your veterinarian may be able to offer an appetite stimulant in addition to treatment that will get your pup well again.
Canned food is highly palatable and many dogs experiencing a loss of appetite associated with illness will benefit from it.
Sick dogs need extra support: in this case, your veterinarian will advise you on an appropriate diet for your dog while healing. Dehydration is one of the biggest dangers for dogs that are not eating or drinking water.
You can encourage your Great Dane to drink water by adding a little bone broth or Nulo hydrator to make it more palatable. (Have you ever had a cold where water just didn’t taste good but you could chug orange juice? This happens in dogs, too!).
Cottage cheese, boiled bland chicken and rice, bone-broth, commercially available re-hydrators (such as NULO), hand-feeding, canned food, or a prescription liquid diet may be advised.
However, if you’ve determined that your dog is healthy, there are things you can do to encourage eating that will also benefit overall health!
We recommend the following options as toppers for kibble:
Rehydrated Olewo Carrots
This is the best remedy for loose stools and tummy upset! Not only that, but the added fiber may help reduce bloat risk.
For an adult Dane, measure 2 TBSP of dehydrated pellets and rehydrate in warm water before serving. You can use this mixture as stuffing for food puzzles or toys or as a mix-in or topper for kibble.
Dr. Harvey’s
Dr. Harvey’s food mixes contain dehydrated whole food ingredients such as oats, carrots, spinach, and blueberries. There are several options to choose from and dogs LOVE them!
Rehydrate a scoop with water and serve on top of your dog’s kibble as a way to encourage and entice eating. Remember to keep toppers, especially unbalanced ones to less than 10% of the diet.
Egg – any style!
It’s ok to occasionally offer eggs to your Great Dane. Raw is fine! Most dogs also love receiving a whole shell-on hardboiled egg that they have to open themselves. Scrambled eggs, poached eggs or sunny side up are fine as well, just make sure they are cool before serving.
We recommend offering no more than 1-2 eggs per week to Great Danes, unless part of a fully balanced and appropriately formulated raw diet.
Canned Food
Dogs love canned food. We recommend introducing canned food toppers slowly and using the same brand and formula as your kibble.
For example, an excellent pairing is Purina Pro Plan Large Breed paired with Purina Pro Plan Large Breed canned wet food.
(Note, most wet dog food is not recommended for growing Great Dane puppies, as it may not be formulated correctly for growth, only maintenance.
Always check the label! If you offer canned food to your Great Dane puppy, do so in moderation or look for an appropriate, science-backed formula that is appropriate for the growth of large breed dogs).
What if my dog won’t eat and is acting strange?
If your dog is acting strange, has had a loss of appetite, and seems unwilling to eat, it may be experiencing a medical emergency.
A Great Dane that is acting strange may be stumbling, pacing, foaming, crying, whining, shaking, hiding or unable or unwilling to get up. A dog won’t eat if they are in distress.
BLOAT in Great Danes is life-threatening and unfortunately common. If you see any of the following symptoms, it is imperative that you seek emergency care. This is true EVEN IF your Great Dane has had its stomach tacked!
Attempting to vomit
Pacing, whining, crying, and acting distressed
Distended abdomen
Foaming at the mouth
Excessive drool
Looking at the stomach area
Collapse
A dog may also act strange if they have ingested toxins or poisons, gotten into a fight with other dogs (internal injuries), or if they are in pain and have other symptoms such as shaking, coughing, excessive panting, or seizures.
It’s always worth getting checked out and not ever assuming that your dog’s decreased appetite is related simply to food.
Liver disease, kidney disease, dental disease, and even heart disease can be ‘silent’ before they are deadly.
Some dog owners find it helpful to keep a journal or notebook that documents health from week to week and year to year. This practice will be insanely helpful to your veterinarian, too!
If you notice a decreased appetite in your dog who is otherwise acting normal, start documenting their daily intake of food, treats and water.
You can also take note of body condition, activity levels, and any unusual gain or loss of appetite.
Are you having a problem with a dog not eating, but still unsure if you are doing the right thing or not? We always recommend seeking veterinary care when you aren’t sure about what is going on with your dog.
There is a big debate going on in the world of big dogs. People are very confused about whether they should feed their Great Dane puppy food or adult food! Large breed dogs such as Great Danes need specific nutrition that is designed for their explosive growth, size, and needs. I’m going to clear this up today with a research-backed discussion, so you know what to feed YOUR big puppy!
In the world of Great Danes, there is a lot of misinformation about nutrition. Everybody has an opinion.
It used to be said that you should always feed a Great Dane puppy an ‘adult’ kibble.
The truth? A dog’s diet should change depending on its life stage!
Spoiler alert: Science has allowed dog food manufacturers to change and update their formulations. This means that finally, large-breed puppy formulas are now ideal for Great Dane puppies!
So today we are talking about the importance of large-breed puppy food for Great Dane puppies.
We are going to discuss the difference between puppy formula and adult dog food. We will also talk about what type of diet is best for large-breed adult dogs and Great Dane puppies!
BEST DOG FOOD PUPPY LARGE BREED FOR GREAT DANES
Large breed puppies such as Great Danes are prone to a number of growth disorders that can be caused or worsened by an incorrect diet.
Knuckling is a common developmental orthopedic disease that causes the puppy’s legs to ‘bow out. Other growth disorders include panosteitis, HOD, and hip or elbow dysplasia.
Choosing the right large breed dog food for a Great Dane puppy is extremely important. Smaller breeds don’t have the same requirements, so if you are new to Great Danes it’s time to research!
We believe that puppy foods are ideal for growing Great Dane puppies! Many large breed puppy foods are formulated with the growth of large dogs in mind and are appropriate for their brain, eye, joint, bone, and muscle development.
Important note: Dog food manufacturers consider Great Danes to be ‘large breed’ dogs. We know they are ‘gentle giants’, but for the purposes of science, let’s stick with ‘large’!
The most important factor to consider when choosing pet food for a large breed (such as a Great Dane) is the calcium and phosphorus ratios.
Calcium should be at or below 1.4%
Phosphorus should be slightly below calcium.
An example of an ideal calcium-phosphorus ratio to see on a bag of large breed dog foods is:
Calcium (Ca) (Min) 1.1%
Phosphorus (P) (Min) 0.9%
A properly balanced diet for large breed dogs will have a high-quality protein source (including meat and meat meals), omega fatty acids, probiotics, and balanced fat and carbohydrates to keep your puppy at a healthy weight.
NOTE:
Food with perfect calcium/phosphorus ratios can still cause growth problems!
The correct balance of amino acids, protein, carbs, fat, and vitamins is extremely important, too.
The special nutritional needs of Great Dane puppies have been addressed by dog food companies that have dedicated a lot of time, money, and effort to testing, research, and formulations.
In other words, the advice of ‘no puppy food ever’ for Great Dane puppies is now considered dated and inaccurate, especially when you are considering science-backed kibbles such as Purina Pro Plan that are heavily researched and tested.
Pet owners are not necessarily experts in nutrition, so it’s helpful to know that the dog food company you choose is extremely thoughtful, thorough, researched, up-to-date and diligent with your dog’s health.
We recommend choosing a large breed puppy dog food that is formulated by a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist, from a company that has invested heavily in canine nutrition and health research.
Ideally, the kibble you choose is also clean with quality ingredients from known sources.
The dog food you choose for your Great Dane puppy should have one of the following AAFCO nutritional adequacy statements on the label.
These statements will help you make a more educated choice about the actual balance and nutrition behind the large breed formulas being compared.
Some minor variations in these statements are normal. Click any button on the left to see the AAFCO statement associated with each option for your Great Dane puppy.
IDEAL: Animal feeding tests using AAFCO procedures substantiate that [THIS FORMULA] provides complete and balanced nutrition for all life stages, including growth of large sized dogs (70 lb. or more as an adult).
MODERATELY ACCEPTABLE: [THIS FORMULA] is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for growth of puppies and maintenance of adult dogs, including growth of large sized dogs (70 lb or more as an adult).
NOT ACCEPTABLE: [THIS FORMULA] is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for maintenance of adult dogs.
QUESTIONABLE: [THIS FORMULA] is formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles for all life stages.
The following foods meet our guidelines for growing Great Dane puppies:
IS YOUR GREAT DANE PUPPY KNUCKLING?
Check out our science-based and constantly growing knuckling resource page.
BENEFITS OF LARGE BREED PUPPY DOG FOOD FOR GREAT DANE PUPPIES
Large breed dogs require specific nutrition that they will not get from small breed dog food.
A good quality diet for a Great Dane puppy will have been specifically formulated with large breeds in mind.
Healthy bones, healthy joints, healthy skin, and reducing the risk of growth disorders such as hip dysplasia and knuckling are just some of the considerations put into puppy kibble formulation.
Nutrition + research for large breed dog food
Puppy formulas from companies that are actively researching big dog nutrition and growth are most likely to have the correct balance of nutrients, proteins, fats, carbs, calcium, phosphorus, and amino acids for Great Dane puppies.
What do veterinarians say about large breeds + nutrition?
The veterinary community agrees! Large breed puppy dog foods are the best choice for growing giant breeds.
Food formulated for Great Dane puppies has a slightly higher protein level and a more appropriate balance of fat and carbs than adult dog food. Not to mention the correct ratios of vitamin d, fatty acids, amino acids and probiotics.
WHEN SHOULD A PUPPY TRANSITION TO AN ADULT FORMULA?
When deciding what age to transition your big dogs’ diet from a puppy to adult formula, keep in mind that large breeds don’t reach maturity until they are around 18-24 months of age.
While small breed dogs become adults much faster, large breeds are slow to mature and require a lot of time, excellent nutrition, and slow growth to reach peak health as an adult.
Large breed dog food for puppies is formulated to promote slow and healthy growth in big dogs.
Age ranges + food formulas
A scientifically formulated canine diet will actually indicate the recommended age range for their foods. If the food company you have chosen understands their product, they can also tell you (through customer service).
For example, Purina Pro Plan Large Breed food for puppies is food formulated to be fed to large breeds for the first 2 years of life! Other formulas are different and the nutrition is based on breed size and age.
Fish oils, probiotics and the correct balance of nutrition slow down the growth rate and contribute to energy levels, bone development and healthy skin.
These things matter a lot to a big dog, especially before large breeds fully mature! If you are surprised by all of this, keep in mind that small breed dogs mature so much faster, and that’s ok!
Do not rush or force the growth of your puppy. Having the ‘biggest dog’ can mean having the unhealthiest dog!
WHAT IS THE BEST FOOD FOR GIANT BREED DOGS?
When looking for a large breed food, make sure that meat or meat meals are listed in the first ingredients. Probiotics and omega fatty acids are also important.
You may notice ‘vitamin d’, riboflavin, biotin, and other important nutrients added as well. These necessary vitamins and minerals contribute to a balanced diet, although they may make the ingredient list look long!
A dog food (puppy large breed) that is ideal for your growing Great Dane will typically say ‘Large Breed Puppy Food’ on the label.
In some brands, a comparable large breed food for adult dogs may be acceptable (in lieu of a puppy formula). Talk to your veterinarian and read the AAFCO statement on the label before making a purchase.
A senior dog may benefit from a transition to senior dog foods, which will be labeled accordingly and may offer additional support for the kidneys, heart, joints, energy levels, and weight.
If you have a small breed dog in your house, we recommend feeding a comparable small breed dog food if possible.
Small breeds, like giants, have unique nutritional needs, and taking advantage of modern advances in science and nutrition is better for everybody!
DO LARGE BREED DOGS HAVE TO EAT LARGE BREED FOOD?
Large breed adult dogs can technically be fed any ‘all-life stages’ food however they greatly benefit from large breed food that is formulated specifically for them.
A pet’s health is often tied to their nutrition, so choosing the right pet food formula matters. A large breed dog needs more joint support than a small breed dog, and large breed dog food offers the correct balance of nutrients and supplements for their orthopedic needs.
Adult Great Dane health problems
A dog’s risk of developing arthritis increases as they age. Many Great Danes also gain weight once they have been spayed or neutered. Keeping your Great Dane at a healthy weight is a key element in increasing their lifespan and reducing their risk of painful joint problems!
These are just some of the reasons why choosing a large breed dog formula for the correct life stage (puppy vs. adult) is so important: the correct formulation for each life stage will help maintain appropriate growth, overall weight and joint health.
Unfortunately, not all dog food brands are created equal, and it can be difficult to know which one is best for your pet.
The nutritional needs of a Great Dane puppy are different than the needs of an adult. It is so important to choose an appropriate, large breed, science-backed food formulated by credentialed professionals!
Here are some great adult options for your Great Dane, once maturity is reached:
WHAT FOOD DO GREAT DANE BREEDERS USE?
The American Kennel Club supports breeders and recommends that dog owners speak with their veterinarian when choosing a food for their large and giant breed dogs.
Some breeders will recommend ‘Life’s Abundance’. You can read our blog post here on why we don’t consider this an appropriate, safe, ethical, or quality food.
The majority of breeders with the top show dogs in the world feed and recommend Purina Pro Plan formulas. Contrary to popular belief, Purina is not a low-quality food. It’s highly tested, extensively researched, and formulated by veterinary nutritionists.
While ‘sweet potatoes’ and ‘whole grain brown rice’ may sound healthy, the truth is that they are both carbs which may throw the nutrition and balance off!
Kidney disease, heart disease, allergies, weight gain or weight loss are just some of the problems with feeding a poorly balanced or incorrectly formulated food. This is especially true for senior dogs who need as much support as possible to maintain robust health.
We believe that this is why it is so important to not make purchase decisions just on the ingredients list of the food.
Dog food labels can be exceptionally confusing to dog owners. When you are in the pet stores searching for adult food or a puppy formula for your Great Dane, it’s helpful to have a basic understanding of dog food ingredients and analysis.
However, it’s also important to recognize that as a dog owner, you likely aren’t a nutritionist with a veterinary degree and advanced certifications (and probably don’t know anybody who is, either). Sales reps and staff at dog food stores generally lack reputable knowledge and education about nutrition as well.
Reading the ingredients and analysis label can only give you a tiny picture of the information needed to make a decision about which large breed food to choose for your Great Dane!
Look at science, then look at marketing
Look beyond the marketing of the brand. The claims of ‘robust health’, ‘human grade ingredients’, ‘no recalls’ and ‘all natural’ are all there to make you buy the food.
This list below from the WSAVA is a helpful guideline for choosing dog food!
You’d be surprised how many pet food brands do NOT meet these guidelines, despite being marketed as ‘high quality’, ‘natural’, and ‘family owned’.
(This information is helpful for owners of small breeds, too!)
Treat training pouches for training your Great Dane!
THE BEST LARGE BREED DOG FOOD FOR ADULT GREAT DANES
Unlike large breed puppies, an adult large breed dog is not growing and has different nutritional and support needs.
Adult formulas in general tend to be a lower calorie food with different vitamins, minerals and slightly different protein-fat-carb-fatty acids balance.
We recommend choosing large breed kibbles that, as above, are scientifically formulated and backed.
Your dog’s diet should be complete and fully balanced for their life stage. Keep toppers to a minimum (10% of less of the overall intake) to avoid creating picky dogs or causing your dog foods to become unbalanced.
Natural dog food for Great Danes
If you are looking for a more ‘natural’ option for your large breed puppies or adult dogs, Just Food For Dogs makes an excellent topper. Fiber and fresh foods can also help reduce the risk that your large breed dog will develop bloat!
A well balanced raw meat diet may also be appropriate for large breed dogs.
This option is worth looking into for dog owners that are willing to do diligent research and have the time and freezer space for it.
Large breed dogs that suffer from allergies and intolerances may thrive on a balanced raw diet; talk to your veterinarian!
IMPORTANT FDA ALERT ABOUT GRAIN-FREE KIBBLE AND HEART DISEASE IN GREAT DANES
FDA officials are investigating possible links to diets for dog heart diseases. DCM is a devastating and often silent disease that many large breed dogs, including Great Danes are prone too.
It is believed that poorly formulated and untested foods may be a contributing factor in dogs developing this heart condition, which often presents as sudden death before any symptoms are seen.
Suspect dog food ingredients
Some suspect ingredients in lower quality, untested large and giant breed kibbles include peas, lentils, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and garbanzo beans. When choosing your dog’s food, these ingredients are worth noting and asking a veterinarian about.
Dog nutrition can be complicated, especially when manufacturers must put as much nutrition as possible into a user-friendly baked and extruded kibble product!
DACVN & The Credentialed Veterinary Nutritionist
For information about veterinary nutritionists and the advanced degrees and certifications available to veterinarians to advance their knowledge of food and formulations, check out these links below:
American College of Veterinary Nutrition: www.acvn.org
Companies that do not have a board-certified veterinary nutritionist employed to formulate their large breed dog food kibbles are treading in dangerous water. Regardless of your stance on the grain-free vs. DCM debate, that’s an important take-away for anybody trying to choose a healthy kibble diet for their big dog or smaller dogs, too!
Please visit this link if you want more information and to find out if your pet’s food is putting them at risk.
Looking for more information on how much to feed a Great Dane puppy? Is free feeding or scheduled feeding a better choice?
Read our famous ‘Ultimate Great Dane Feeding Chart’ post and learn more about choosing a kibble, how much to feed, raw meat diets, home-cooked diets, and more.
Age
Timing
Amount
Puppies under 12 weeks
3x/day
2-4 cups/day
Puppies 12-24 weeks old
3x/day
3-6 cups/day
Puppies 24 + weeks (6 months) or older
2x/day
5-10 cups/day
Puppies 12-18 months
2x/day
6-12 cups/day
Adults 18+ Months
2x/day
4-8 cups/day
These values are averages. Your pet may need more or less. Always talk to your veterinarian and use the manufacturer’s feeding chart as a guideline.
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Looking for a Great Dane feeding chart with some awesome food information? Curious about the best foods for Great Danes, and what dog food to raise your Dane puppy on?
This is the ULTIMATE everything you need to know about feeding Great Danes blog post. We’re going to cover the following topics:
The best food for Great Dane Puppies
Whether adult food or puppy food is best for Great Dane puppies
How to choose food for Great Danes
How to prevent knuckling and other orthopedic disorders
Why nutrition is SO important for Great Danes, especially those under the age of 2!
PRO TIP: This post is huge. Use the table of contents to navigate.
Let’s dig in!
Why is Nutrition SO Important for Great Danes?
Great Danes are a giant breed dog that has sensitive needs when it comes to their bone, joint, muscle, brain, and heart health.
These are not dogs who can survive well on unbalanced or poorly formulated dog foods. As puppies, rapid growth demands exact amounts of calcium, phosphorus, vitamin D and zinc.
Many orthopedic growth disorders in Great Danes are a result of feeding too much calcium, or feeding too much food overall. The results are devastating and may not be apparent until the dog is older and suffering with their mobility and health.
Researchers have theorized that too much or too little calcium fed to large & giant breed puppies may contribute to increasing their risk for diseases such as brittle bones, Wobblers and Osteosarcoma (Bone Cancer) as adults.
Choosing food for a Great Dane puppy is important, but it’s also very simple when you learn what to look for and how to look past common dog food marketing tactics.
Great Dane Puppy Food & Nutrition
Great Dane Puppies are massive dogs that need a specific diet to ensure they grow at a healthy rate. As mentioned above, Giant breeds are not like other dogs, it’s important to know how to choose the right food.
Before we dig in, it’s important to understand that excess calcium and overfeeding are #1 culprits behind a range of orthopedic growth problems seen in Great Dane puppies.
Because giant breed puppies grow so quickly, the wrong nutrition can be devastating and cause a lifetime of orthopedic problems.
We aren’t trying to scare you here, but this is important. Don’t worry, we’re going to share information with you below on what food to choose!
Here are some of the (often lifetime) health complications associated with feeding the wrong food to Great Dane Puppies:
When choosing food for a Great Dane puppy, we recommend the following guidelines:
Grain-inclusive
1.2% or less calcium
Phosphorus close behind
1.1 to 1 or 1.2 to 1 CA/PH ratio, no more than 1.3 : 1 if necessary
3.5g or less calcium per 1000kCal
Large or giant breed PUPPY formula OR an appropriately formulated All Life Stages type
AAFCO statement “Including the growth of large 70+ lb as adult dogs”
A healthy, correctly balanced diet can help prevent devastating orthopedic growth disorders (such as knuckling, panosteitis, HOD, or Dysplasia) and will help make sure that your Great Dane puppy is receiving the nutrition it needs to thrive.
To save you some time, here is our popular list of appropriate veterinary recommended Great Dane puppy foods.
Check out THE GIANT DOG FOOD PROJECT to compare brands and values.
Should Great Dane Puppies Have Adult or Puppy Food?
You may have heard that Great Dane puppies should ONLY have adult food. This information is outdated and potentially dangerous (it’s 2023).
Great Dane puppies should be fed a well-formulated large or giant breed PUPPY or All Life Stages food that was designed specifically to support the slow, even growth of large and giant breed dogs.
That advice to feed adult foods is based on anecdotal evidence and is NOT supported by science.
Most top Great Dane breeders, Board-certified Veterinary Nutritionists, researchers from Cornell, Tufts, and CSU, and the solid majority of practicing veterinarians recommend feeding large or giant breed puppy food to giant breed puppies.
There are a handful of people who are still telling giant breed owners to feed low-protein adult foods. These people include dog owners, a few practicing veterinarians who have not done any continuing education on the topic, and some breeders (many of whom are actually unethical in their other practices, having skipped full OFA health testing or breeding dogs out of standard).
A few old school highly ethical preservation breeders still feed adult food, and this is understandable. They remember the days when we did NOT have safe options in puppy food, and trusting the new standard of practice is a huge leap of faith.
Why Should Great Dane Puppies Have Puppy Food?
Many adult dog foods lack the nutrition that Great Dane puppies need for muscle development, brain health, tendons, and bones.
Lacking this nutrition, puppies may actually eat too many calories and receive too much calcium, two things that are major risk factors for developmental skeletal disorders in giant breed dogs.
We believe that this is a major reason why we see so many teenaged Great Danes who are hopelessly lanky and boney, and many adult Danes who fall apart well before their time.
They are starved for nutrition to support their growth!
Dane puppies will overeat to compensate and then also suffer from chronic loose stools, which are a direct result of overeating. People blame the loose stools on chicken or grain allergies, not realizing that the solution is literally right in front of them.
Science and nutrition in dog food have changed drastically. “Adult food only” is tragically dated advice.
Keep in mind, however, that some puppy foods are DANGEROUS for Great Dane puppies to eat. A traditional high-calorie, high-fat puppy food for smaller dogs is not appropriate.
What are the Top Foods for a Great Dane Puppy?
The brand of food you choose matters here, though.
Many brands do NOT have qualified people formulating their foods. They do not participate in research, feeding trials, or truly comprehensive quality control testing. As a result, their puppy formulas may not be reliably correct to support slow growth.
A lot of brands are manufactured in facilities that the company doesn’t even own, spit out from machines that made a different brand the day before.
This is why you will not find brands such as Victor, Taste of the Wild, Blue Buffalo, Diamond, Fromm, Orijen, Earthborn, Whole Hearted, Health Extension, Annamaet, or 4Health on our list. None of them can check every single box when it comes to ethics and dedication to formulation, research, and manufacturing.
The food MUST be correctly balanced as follows:
Formulated by an on-staff veterinary nutritionist or somebody with a PhD in Animal Nutrition
Has meat meals or meat by-product meals within the first ingredients (will result in a higher meat content than ‘fresh deboned meat’
Amino acids correctly balanced and bioavailable, ideally from meat based sources
Balanced calcium and phosphorus ratios (IMPORTANT!)
Balanced protein, fat, and carbohydrate levels
Correct amount of vitamin D, Zinc, and other important nutrients
Includes grains such as wheat, oats, rice, or corn
Ideally manufactured in owned facilities
Formula should have ideally undergone feeding trials and lab testing
To best fit those needs, we recommend a large or giant breed PUPPY food from Pro Plan, Eukanuba, Hill’s, or Royal Canin (the only brands that spend millions of dollars each year investing in feeding trials, board-certified veterinary nutritionists, and peer-reviewed research).
You can use the search tool at the Giant Dog Food Projectas well, to compare brands head to head.
If you have any questions about what kind of dog food is best for your Great Dane Puppy to eat, read our blog post HERE or continue below (we’ve included recommendations for our favorites):
Most Dane pups will need to eat between 3 and 12 cups of large breed puppy food each day. The actual amount depends on their activity level and the food you choose! We outline more of this below.
The World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) is a non-profit organization that provides common-sense recommendations. WSAVA does not endorse or recommend any specific brand of food, and their scientific efforts go far beyond nutrition into every aspect of small animal health.
Any food brand can donate to and support the WSAVA, however, only a few do.
Surprisingly, many kibble manufacturers do not meet thefollowing common-sense guidelines:
The company employs a DACVN/board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist or PhD in Animal Nutrition, and that person is there to formulate and test the diets.
They utilize AAFCO feeding trials to prove their formulation, especially the one you want to feed, in real life (not just on paper).
The company participates in scientific research and contributes to common peer-reviewed studies.
They own and operate their own facilities (no co-packing) and have strict supply chain protocols, sourcing ethics, sourcing protocols and quality control.
The food has a nutrition adequacy statement from AAFCO, ideally indicating that the food was substantiated in feeding trails.
Call your food company and ask these questions. Look past their marketing department and get real answers from them about their practices.
Tread cautiously with the places you receive nutrition information from. Many dog owners, influencers and “pet nutritionists” are spreading dangerous misinformation.
For more helpful information about canine nutrition and manufacturer practices, search for your brand at the Pet Nutrition Alliance! They’ve established a database that answers important and relevant questions for each company that you might choose from.
You can also visit the Tufts University Petfoodology Blog for information about corn, by-products, DCM, and other nutrition-related topics.
Pet Vet Corner on Facebook has a fantastic nutrition file (search for the group and join).
When your Great Dane is 18-24 months old, it’s time to transition to an adult formula. Ideally, the transition should happen no sooner than 24 months but can happen after 18 months if early spay/neuter was elected.
Remember, puppy foods are higher in calories, fat, and protein and may be too rich for mature adult dogs or those that have been spayed/neutered. Great Danes are not fully mature until age 2.5-3 years.
Click below to see our favorite adult foods for Great Danes:
Most quality Great Dane food will indicate a rough estimate based on age or weight, which is a good baseline for determining how much food daily will be required.
Your Great Dane puppy is going to eat a lot of food! New Great Dane owners may be alarmed at the intake but shouldn’t be.
It’s important to note, however, that orthopedic growth disorders can be triggered by overfeeding, even if the food is correctly balanced! Monitor your dog’s intake and don’t let them gorge on food.
Lean is best! It is normal to see some ribs on Great Dane puppies.
While it’s true that too much kibble can actually cause a Great Dane puppy to experience gastrointestinal distress (and loose stools), too little kibble can hamper energy as well as good muscle and bone development.
Healthy Body Condition in Great Dane Puppies
It is normal for Great Dane puppies to have a little rib showing!
As long as they are bright, active, curious, and energetic, they are doing great.A Great Dane Puppy should never be overfed to encourage fast and explosive growth!
Too much nutrition, overfeeding, and too many calories can lead to knuckling, HOD, Panosteitis, and poor overall structure, no matter what formula or food brand you choose.
When looking at a Great Dane feeding chart to determine roughly how much to offer your 12-week-old Great Dane puppy, it’s important to remember that the information is simply a guideline. Good feeding practices involve intuition and close monitoring!
If you have any questions about how much food to feed your Great Dane puppy, please consult your veterinarian, read the feeding chart on your kibble bag, and reference our Great Dane feeding chart below.
These values are averages. Your pet may need more or less. Always talk to your veterinarian and use the manufacturer’s feeding chart as a guideline.
How to Feed a Great Dane Puppy
When it comes to Great Dane puppies, how you feed them is just as important as what you feed them.
Puppies have small stomachs and need to eat several small meals throughout the day, rather than one large meal. They will also need frequent potty breaks as their digestive systems are still very immature.
We recommend that your Great Dane eats from a using stainless steel bowl. These are easy to sanitize and can help prevent puppy acne!
Frequent smaller meals can help prevent bloat, a potentially deadly condition that can occur in large and giant breeds.
To avoid creating a ‘picky eater’, do not start adding toppers as a form of bribery!
For puppies under 3-5 months of age, we recommend a loose free feeding schedule where you put food down 3x/day but leave in the bowl what they don’t finish, so they can graze. Don’t overfeed.
After 5 months of age, offer food 3x/day and pick the bowl up. Pup will learn to finish what is offered.
Around 7-10 months of age, many Danes need less food. People sometimes believe this means their dog has become picky. That’s not true! Just feed less.
Using Kibble for Training
Another way to feed your Great Dane is to offer their pre-rationed kibble and healthy balanced toppers as training treats!
Keep them in a treat pouch (this is our favorite one) and use them throughout the day to reward your dog for doing things that you like.
Engaging with you, sitting, laying down, and coming when called are great ways to encourage positive behaviors!
Resting before & after meals has never been shown to prevent bloat. As a matter of fact, most dogs who experience bloat do so while resting and on an empty stomach. It’s ok for your puppy to have training rewards while playing with you!
Science in Dog Food
After years of diligent research, I’ve personally come to realize that the answer to dog food had been in front of me all along.
The unfortunate truth is that many dog food brands are spending more money on marketing than they are on formulating their foods, researching how nutrition affects the body, and contributing to peer-reviewed science that addresses giant breed growth, cancer, wobblers, heart disease, and more.
That marketing is designed to mislead us. For example, ingredient splitting is a common practice of certain brands. Ingredient splitting is completely legal and can make dog food look like an organic meat feast when the truth is that it’s nothing more than meat-flavored peas.
Fresh deboned meats, for example, are roughly 70% water. Pair that with ingredient splitting and a formulation that came from a computer (not a veterinary nutritionist), and well…you’re often paying a premium price for fancy marketing.
You may be inclined to think that the ‘holistic’, ‘super premium’, ‘human grade’ choice at the pet store is the healthier option. Keep in mind that those are unregulated marketing terms with no legal definition.
You may be ‘grossed out’ by things such as ‘by-product meal’ or ‘meat meal’, but those ingredients are actually more nutritious and more species appropriate than deboned meat!
Many Great Dane owners rely on kibble brands from companies such as Fromm, Zignature, Nutro, Victor, Nulo, 4Health, Farmina, Solid Gold, Taste of the Wild, Life’s Abundance, Earthborn, Honest Kitchen, Canine Caviar, Acana, Orijen, Gentle Giants, Diamond Natural’s and Costco/Kirklands.
Search for your brand at the Pet Nutrition Alliance. See how they stack up against other brands that were asked a few simple questions. If they didn’t answer or refused to answer, find a different brand.
The brands we’ve listed in the paragraph above are NOT formulated by on-staff veterinary nutritionists, and we don’t recommend a single one of them.
Fromm is formulated by a chemical engineer.
Victor is formulated by a guy with a science degree and simple online certificate in ‘nutrition’.
Diamond (which makes Diamond, Costco, 4Health, Taste of the Wild, Nutra Nuggets, and others) is a giant co-packing company. They use a single off-site, marginally qualified consultant and a ‘proprietary formulation technology’ (a computer program or spreadsheet).
Midwestern pet foods (which makes Earthborn, Sportmix, Unrefined, Venture, and Wholesomes) is another giant company with no Veterinary Nutritionist on staff (not to mention repeated issues with aflatoxins and salmonella).
Unrefined is an excellent example of a ‘premium’ label that uses a lot of fancy marketing words and makes you think it’s a small, family-owned healthy option. It’s formulated, packed, and shipped along side several other Midwestern Pet Foods brands, each targeting different demographics.
These are huge companies, selling their products as ‘premium’, at a premium price point, and not a single bag of it is backed by legitimate feeding trials or peer reviewed research.
Identity Pet Foods ‘Understanding DCM’ (I don’t love that this small, upstart brand is anti-kibble, uses a co-packer, has no feeding trials, does not provide AAFCO statements, and does not staff a veterinary nutritionist as of 2022, but I do love what they are trying to do as a whole and this DCM article is ON POINT!)
Kibble Brands to Avoid
While there are many brands to avoid, these brands are absolutely on the ‘do not fly’ list. We’ve reviewed some of them below for your convenience.
Any food that is ‘vegan’, ‘plant based’ or ‘cricket based’ (NEW EXCEPTION: ROOT LAB may be acceptable)
Any food with 2 or more types or forms of PEAS, LENTILS, or LEGUMES listed in the ingredients. For example peas, dried peas, pea protein, pea fiber, pea flour, split peas, yellow peas, green peas, lentils, whole lentils, lentil fiber, etc.)
Any food that has a lot of peas, potatoes, legumes, garbanzo beans, beans, sweet potatoes, or chickpeas in general
Any one of the 300-400 new boutique food brands in the U.S. each year
What about Dog Food Advisor?
Many people turn to the ‘Dog Food Advisor’ blog to make decisions about what food to feed.
While that blog provides some interesting analysis about certain kibbles, it’s important to note that the blog is run by a dentist…NOT a Veterinarian or a Canine Nutritionist with any kind of legitimate, commonly accepted credentials. The blog is extremely profitable, as it is littered with affiliate links to purchase foods.
The rating system is made up, and has been changed to match current trends.
If you don’t trust your veterinarian because they are “not a nutritionist”, why are you trusting pet store employees, dog owners, the Dog Food Advisor, influencers, and people who obtained easy pay-for-purchase ‘pet nutritionist’ certificates on the internet?
If you are looking for a nutrition blog that uses science and actual research, not marketing and theories, visit PETFOODOLOGY! It’s run by Tufts University and has many helpful topics.
At Hello Danes, we follow, promote, and share the advice given by board-certified veterinary nutritionists.
Adult Great Dane Dog Food
Adult Great Danes still require dedication to their nutrition.
As an adult, your Great Dane will need a quality dog food that is rich in animal protein to maintain lean muscle mass.
The most appropriate meats that you want to see in the dry dog food you choose include meat meals and meat by-product meals. We recommend chicken, salmon, or beef.
Chicken allergies are wildly over-diagnosed by dog owners. Contrary to popular belief, Great Danes are NOT sensitive to chicken!
They are, however, sensitive to poor quality diets, environmental factors, overfeeding, and issues related to gut health that are resolved through other means.
Avoid lamb (it’s incredibly difficult for dog food manufacturers to work with, and may cause nutrient deficiencies) and exotic meats such as bison, cod, quail, kangaroo, or yak. Exotic meats are not well researched for small companion animals.
Meat meals of any type (including by-product meals) include a rendered form of whole prey. That means that the ingredient includes things such as meat, tissue, cartilage, bone, and organ.
While this may sound gross to you, these things are loved in parts of the world that don’t waste any part of an animal after slaughter. They are also the same things that make up a correctly balanced bowl of raw dog food: necks, feet, guts, skin, and fat.
Raw feeders know that dogs need and want by-products in their diet! They go straight for the organs, will crunch up the bones and love to chew up feet, necks and yes, eyeballs.
Choose a kibble formulated with your dog in mind, not your personal taste.
Transition to a comparable adult formula between 18-24 months.
Fiber, fresh foods, and canned foods have been shown in studies to reduce bloat risk!
The safest topper you can add to your dog’s food is a canned version of their kibble. This has been shown to reduce bloat risk, will be correctly balanced, is tasty, provides hydration, and will be free of salmonella and e.coli.
When offering puppies canned food, make sure you are choosing the large breed puppy version.
We love Olewo’ Carrots (rehydrated) which are great for your dog’s stomach and overall gut health. 1 TBSP of dried Olewo Carrots will make over a half cup of fresh carrots to mix in with the kibble you feed your Great Dane.
Olewo Carrots work BETTER than pumpkin and are easier to store, too!
We also like Dr. Harvey’s for easy, healthy fiber & fresh food toppers!
While some of these are technically made to be served as a whole meal with raw meat, they actually make a great ‘topper’ (less than 4-10% of all intake) for kibble and well-balanced raw diets.
Rehydrate a scoop or two of this with water! Dogs love it and the bag lasts a long time, too.
Can Great Danes have Grain-Free Food?
Grain-inclusive kibble formulas are best for Great Dane, as they are less likely to be filled with peas, potatoes, legumes, and pea protein that can throw off the balance of important amino acids.
These amino acids, including taurine, are necessary for heart health. Many grain-free food options are nothing more than meat-flavored peas.
Many dogs have been diagnosed with DCM (heart failure) caused by grain-free foods and foods of all types that were not formulated by veterinary nutritionists.
We recommend the addition of fish oil and Dasaquin or Green Lipped mussel, especially if your kibble food does not include these supplements in the ingredients list.
A quality science-backed food with meat meal or meat by-product meal (such as Royal Canin Giant Breed Adult) will contain joint support!
Big dogs benefit from the addition of these, and probiotics for their health.
Home-cooked diets are rarely healthy and can be exceedingly difficult to get right.
Balance It is a great website for determining if you are formulating your home-cooked diet for your Great Dane correctly. Test your recipe over there!
We haven’t found a dog food recipe on Pinterest yet that was balanced correctly.
You’ll likely find that the very common homemade Great Dane food diet consisting of ground meat, rice, and veggies is horribly deficient. Even recipes created by influencers and veterinarians (such as the famous ‘pup loaf’ by holistic influencer Judy Morgan) is dangerous.
I plugged Dr. Judy Morgan’s pup loaf recipe into Balance It, and the system could NOT resolve the recipe as-is (meaning, it’s unbalanced). It also indicated that the recipe could result in dangerous levels of vitamin D!
What your Great Dane eats will affect their health, and unfortunately, most home cooks have little to no credible background in canine nutrition!
An unbalanced home-cooked diet may be missing key nutrients, proteins, and amino acids that are necessary for a long and robust life.
Great Dane dogs are particularly susceptible to health issues of the heart and bones; an incorrectly formulated home-cooked diet for a Great Dane can be exceptionally dangerous.
Many veterinarians say that brittle bones are a very common complication associated with clients who make their dogs food at home.
One study found that nearly all of the 200 recipes they tested had nutrient deficiencies. (READ THAT STUDY HERE).
That’s not to say that it cannot be done! As a matter of fact, with the help of a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist and the website listed above (Balance It) you can take full control over what your dog eats.
If you want to offer food that is similar to a home-cooked diet, we recommend looking into Just Food For Dogs.
This fresh food option for Great Danes is a professionally formulated alternative to DIY. The jury is out on if it fully and truly meets the WSAVA guidelines above. However, it is a tested food with a respectable staff of formulators behind it.
There is nothing wrong with kibble. Don’t feel pressured or guilted into spending large amounts of money on ‘fresh’ or ‘holistic’ options.
Just Food For Dogs can be used as the entire diet, or as an outstanding fresh-food topper that dogs LOVE. It is VERY expensive.
For young dogs, we recommend the chicken and white rice or fish and sweet potato flavor only. As of this writing, they are the only ones formulated correctly for the growth of large or giant breed dogs.
Free Feeding Great Danes
Many pet lovers who offer kibble wish to free-feed their Great Danes.
Contrary to popular belief, resting after meals is not a reliable preventative for bloat in Great Danes! That’s great news for people who do not mind when their Great Danes eat and would prefer allowing them to graze.
The only difference is that instead of scheduling meals, you will offer food around meal times and leave the bowl down for your dog to graze.
Free-feeding can result in obesity. Talk to your veterinarian.
We recommend feeding 2-3 meals/day.
How to Reduce Bloat Risk
Always encourage slow eating! Fast eating, scarfing, gulping, and guarding are key predictors of bloat risk.
As a matter of fact, we believe that slow eating is a much more reliable way to reduce bloat risk in giant breed dogs than large, quickly-eaten meals followed by rest.
Studies show that bloat most often happens 2-3 hours after meals and often while resting or in the middle of the night!
Stop stressing every time your Dane eats food! Bloat is related to genetics: pedigree, temperament & gut health.
Our Great Dane feeding chart (below) still applies when choosing to free feed a Great Dane. Adult food requirements will be different than they will be for a 12 or even 18 week old Great Dane.
Resource Guarding & Picky Eaters
One important thing to note when choosing a free Great Dane feeding ‘schedule’ is that it will be inappropriate for some dogs. Great Danes that scarf food, guard food, stress about food, nitpick food, or obsess about it will require diligent training and management.
For those dogs, we recommend 2-3 meals each day, fed in a stress-free environment, and offered in a slow feeder bowl or food puzzle to manage intake and reduce scarfing (which can increase bloat risk and contribute to an unfortunately short life span).
Picky eaters benefit from scheduled mealtimes, not more enticing toppers or yet another change to the food offered!
Many pet parents are unsure of how much to feed a Great Dane or their Great Dane puppy. The condition of your Great Dane is the best indicator of how much food you should (or should not) be feeding.
If your Great Dane or Great Dane puppy is at a healthy weight, you are likely feeding the appropriate amount. Adult Great Danes should be on large or giant breed adult or senior formula.
Use the food chart as your guide.
You can see roughly how much to feed your Great Dane by looking at the back of your bag of dog food. As above, a Great Dane puppy may need to eat more than an adult Great Dane.
If your dog is overweight or obese, you will need to reduce your dog’s food intake and make sure they don’t get too many calories from their food, wet food, treats, or toppers.
If your dog is underweight, you may need to add more food and closely monitor food intake.
Age
Timing
Amount
Puppies under 12 weeks
3x/day
2-4 cups/day
Puppies 12-24 weeks old
3x/day
3-6 cups/day
Puppies 24 + weeks (6 months) or older
2x/day
5-10 cups/day
Puppies 12-18 months
2x/day
6-12 cups/day
Adults 18+ Months
2x/day
4-8 cups/day
These values are averages. Your pet may need more or less. Always talk to your veterinarian and use the manufacturer’s feeding chart as a guideline.
The easiest way to check your dog’s body condition is to use the Body Condition Score. This nine-point system is based on how easily you can feel your dog’s ribs and whether or not there is an obvious waist.
For the Great Dane breed, you want to see a defined waist, a tuck in the abdomen, and good muscle development. Great Dane dogs should be lean and fit, never heavy or slow.
In general, a female Great Dane will be smaller, and a male Great Dane will have more substance. ‘Euro’ is a marketing term and not actually a reason for a dog to be heavy, chunk or overweight.
If you are unsure of your dog’s body condition, please consult your veterinarian.
An Underweight Great Dane
A Healthy Weight Great Dane
An Overweight Great Dane
What if my Great Dane is Picky?
If your Great Dane or Great Dane puppy is turning their nose up at food, always address medical reasons first.
Most ‘picky’ dogs have either had enough and don’t actually need more kibble, or they have trained you to offer them different foods (they know you’ll give in)!
Remember, any Great Dane feeding chart that you find is a loose guideline, not a hard recommendation. If you really feel that your Great Dane is not eating enough, you must first start with a veterinary visit to rule out health problems.
You can also try enticing toppers such as raw egg, bone broth, Dr. Harvey’s (rehydrated), or canned foods; however, tread cautiously!
Bribing your dog to eat is a rabbit hole that you may not want to go down. Dogs will work for their food (training) and will not let themselves starve.
Giant breed puppies have big appetites and can eat up to 12 cups of food per day!
The cost of feeding a giant breed puppy will depend on the quality of food you choose and the size of your puppy.
On average, you can expect to spend $50-$100 per month on food for your giant breed puppy.
We also recommend supplements that can benefit the joints, increase gut health and reduce bloat risk.
Our favorite supplements for Great Dane owners to consider include:
Great Dane Feeding Chart
We recommend using this Great Dane Feeding Chart as a guide:
Fast-growing 12-week old Great Dane pups may actually eat more than adult Great Danes!
Because they tend to grow larger, a male Great Dane may also need more food than a female Great Dane. Great Danes in general have more complex nutritional needs than other breeds!
When considering exactly how much to feed a Great Dane, we recommend starting with the feeding chart on the back of the bag.
FEEDING GUIDELINES FOR GREAT DANES
This chart assumes you are feeding a quality kibble. Every kibble is different and some have more nutrition per cup than others. Some puppies receive more exercise or have a higher metabolism than others, too.
Remember that adding a lot of treats or toppers will change these ratios! These feeding guidelines are based on Purina Pro Plan Sensitive Formulas. Other kibbles and fresh foods may be different, and raw feeding will be by weight, not volume.
Age
Timing
Amount
Puppies under 12 weeks
3x/day
2-4 cups/day
Puppies 12-24 weeks old
3x/day
3-6 cups/day
Puppies 24 + weeks (6 months) or older
2x/day
5-10 cups/day
Puppies 12-18 months
2x/day
6-12 cups/day
Adults 18+ Months
2x/day
4-8 cups/day
These values are averages. Your pet may need more or less. Always talk to your veterinarian and use the manufacturer’s feeding chart as a guideline.
Great Danes age 18-24 months +: switch to an adult formula and closely monitor body condition, especially after spay/neuter. We’ve linked to an important blog post on this topic below.
Does your Great Dane eat a lot? Leave a comment below! We’d love to know more about your Dane pup and the experience you’ve had with dog food.
We hope this Great Dane feeding chart has been helpful in determining how to best feed your pooch. As always, if you have any questions please consult your veterinarian.
We occasionally like to pick a random pet food brand or gear and do a review. On the list, today is our Life’s Abundance Dog food review. This popular food is often recommended by breeders (who receive kickbacks for selling it), however, it is rarely if ever recommended by veterinarians. I wanted to dig into why that is!
Many breeders will offer and promote Life’s Abundance puppy food to puppy buyers, and may even require it as part of your contract or health guarantee!
This is not your typical review! We are not a dog food clickbait site – you won’t see us breaking down the merits of a food solely on its ingredients, but rather, it’s manufacturing process, formulation practices, and overall ethics.
Let’s dig in!
Life’s Abundance Food & Great Dane Breeder Recommendations
It is really important to understand first that Life’s Abundance Food is an MLM Marketing Scheme.
That means that it’s often sold through a hierarchy of distributors (often breeders) who make a profit on the sale of the food. They can also profit by building teams through the recruitment of ‘Field Representatives’.
Simply put, the promotion of Life’s Abundance dog food is done in a similar way to other MLM brands such as Herbalife, Scentsy, Mary Kay, and Young living Oils.
Because their ability to profit from this product is directly tied to their ability to sell it to buyers and recruit other sellers, breeders are greatly motivated to produce more and more puppies to uphold their income stream.
This may be done without regard to health, structure, or diligence to breed type.
The Great Dane Breeders who are successful in selling lots of puppies will often be fanatic in their promotion of Life’s Abundance because, for them, it’s a winning numbers game.
More puppies produced = more food sales.
This creates an environment where unethical breeders are encouraged to breed more and more in the pursuit of ongoing commission-driven profits from puppy buyers.
Life’s Abundance is NOT a Dog Food Manufacturer or Company
Life’s Abundance is an MLM that sells nutritional supplements, cleaning supplies, and randomly…dog food.
Life’s Abundance is NOT a dog food company, and as of this writing, they do not manufacture or pack their products.
Additionally, the company does not make AAFCO Nutritional or formulation information easy to find.
As far as we can tell the brand is not involved in ongoing peer-reviewed nutritional research or legitimate testing. Despite this, their marketing relies heavily on the promotion that they sell a ‘proprietary’ blend of ingredients.
Without extensive testing and feeding trials, there is no proof behind the ‘health’ claims that this brand makes.
Life’s Abundance reps love to talk about how the brand is ‘free of recalls‘, however, this is intentionally misleading marketing. It can also be wildly unethical (see our study on Victor dog food, which had no recalls until November 2023 when it was discovered by a 3rd party that they had been selling contaminated food for months with no accountability).
‘No Recalls’ is a red flag. Recalls are a positive sign that a brand is making efforts to uphold standards and mitigate formulation and production issues within its product.
A brand with no recalls, that wishes to uphold that record for marketing purposes is likely to ‘hide’ minor formulation and quality control problems instead of recalling them publicly.
In other words, ‘no recalls’ is NOT a key indicator of quality and safety. Recalls can happen for several reasons and many are not catastrophic.
Life’s Abundance Dog Food and Breeder Ethics
Many breeders who promote and profit from this product will offer a more robust health guarantee to buyers who keep their puppies on this food.
Some will even require that the food and/or supplements be purchased, no matter what.
The health guarantee and breeder support may become ‘void’ if the food’s auto shipment is turned off, and these breeders may even require that you return the puppy to them if you don’t support their food commission scheme.
It is not uncommon for puppy buyers to feel pressured into keeping their puppies on Life’s Abundance foods and supplements despite knuckling, chronic loose stools, stomach problems, allergies, flat feet, heart problems or low energy.
All of these are health problems where nutrition, especially nutrition from a company that has no legitimate scientific backing, may play a key role.
It is extremely unethical for a breeder to require the purchase of Life’s Abundance food and/or supplements. We consider this practice a key red flag, as it often rides in tandem with other unethical breeding practices such as inadequate health testing and breeding dogs with questionable structure.
Life’s Abundance Quality
Life’s Abundance makes it difficult to find their ingredients list; on their website, you can expect a list of ingredients within the food, but not in any particular order.
We are not board-certified Veterinary Nutritionists, so we have no business commenting on the specific ingredients, formulation, or health claims.
Coincidentally, neither do the breeders, ‘Dog Food Advisor’, or any other ‘food rating’ website.
Not to mention the fact that Life’s Abundance is not even formulated by a credentialed, board-certified veterinary nutritionist (DACVN).
A DACVN is one of the only people qualified to completely formulate kibble dog food and judge ingredients. (Read more here: https://vetnutrition.tufts.edu/2016/06/why-you-shouldnt-judge-a-pet-food-by-its-ingredient-list/)
The person in charge of creating the Life’s Abundance recipes is a ‘holistic’ veterinarian whose writings and focus seem to have been on…cats. While some people may take no issue with this, consider this.
The current FDA warnings about grain-free foods and boutique diets causing heart problems indicate that the problem is strongly correlated with boutique diets that are not formulated and rigorously tested by a credentialed veterinary nutritionist. So yes, that should alarm you.
Life’s Abundance is a marketing company, not a pet nutrition expert company.
The nutritional analysis of protein, calcium, and phosphorus in some Life’s Abundance formulas appear to be appropriate for Great Dane puppies, however, we are unable to definitively say if the correct balance of other nutrients (including key meat-based amino acids) is present.
For a 40lb bag (the typical size needed when raising Great Danes), you can expect to pay nearly $100.
As with all MLM products, the price is high to support the commission-based business model, not necessarily because it’s a higher-quality product.
We do not recommend Life’s Abundance dog food and encourage you to tread cautiously with any breeder that is heavily promoting, selling or encouraging this brand.
The same can be said for Life’s Abundance supplements and NuVet Vitamins, which we will cover in another blog post.
Do you sell or use Lifes Abundance dog food? Leave your comments below! We are open to friendly, polite, scientific dialogue on this topic.
Choosing the right food for a Great Dane sometimes feels like rocket science. We get it because we’ve been there. Selecting the right food for your Great Dane is crucial for maintaining its health and well-being, so this is important! Our Great Dane Dog Food 101 post cuts through the fluff and gives you the best and most up-to-date answer.
This post covers several Great Dane food topics including:
How much dog food does a Great Dane need?
What is the best food for Great Danes?
Is Grain-free food good for dogs?
Should pet owners be feeding large breed puppies puppy food or adult food?
What does a senior dog need to be eating?
Let’s dive into the best dog food as well as get answers to other commonly asked questions.
Great Dane Dog Food Nutritional Requirements
Giant breed dogs, such as Great Danes, possess distinct nutritional needs due to their size, growth rate, and physiological characteristics. The sheer magnitude of their bodies requires careful attention to nutrient levels to support healthy bone development and prevent musculoskeletal issues.
It is well-studied, for example, that excess calcium is damaging to growing bones. Giant breeds undergo rapid growth during their puppy stage, making their nutritional requirements specific to this critical phase.
Additionally, their slower metabolism and susceptibility to health conditions necessitate controlled calorie intake and a balanced diet to avoid obesity-related complications.
Here is our shortlist of requirements. Check each one of these items to narrow down your choices!
Calcium level of 1.0 – 1.3%, ideally less than 1.2%
3.5g or less of calcium per 1000kCal
For puppies under the age of two: AAFCO Large Breed Growth Statement
Formulated for large or giant breed dogs
Grain inclusive (never feed grain-free dry kibble, more on this below)
Ideally formulated by a company with a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist on staff, that does feeding trials and nutritional research
At Hello Danes, we researched this for you and recommend the following formulas (for your convenience). All of these meet the current science-backed recommendations:
Determining the appropriate amount of food for Great Danes requires a balanced approach, taking into account their size, age, activity level, and individual metabolism. The food you choose matters, too.
Generally, adult Great Danes may consume between 2,500 to 3,500 calories per day, but this can vary. Puppies, during their rapid growth phase, may require up to twice the amount of calories compared to adult dogs!
It’s crucial to follow feeding guidelines provided by reputable dog food brands and to monitor the dog’s weight and condition regularly.
Feeding too much to puppies can contribute to orthopedic growth disorders, and feeding too much to adults can contribute to obesity-related health problems.
Consulting with a veterinarian to tailor the diet to the dog’s specific needs and adjusting portion sizes based on age and activity level is key to maintaining optimal health and weight in Great Danes.
I’ve seen puppies eat 6-12 cups/day, while adults may eat only 3-7 cups, depending on the nutrient density of the food.
Author’s Note: The outdated practice of feeding adult food to Great Dane puppies is NOT recommended. It often results in above-average food intake, because the puppy is starved for protein and nutrients. Read more about this HERE.
Never Overfeed a Great Dane
More is not always better when it comes to feeding your dog. Overfeeding can lead to health problems like obesity and digestive issues.
Great Dane puppies that are fed too much will grow too quickly, putting them at risk for developmental orthopedic conditions such as Panosteitis, HOD, OCD, and Carpal Laxity.
In many cases, chronic loose stools can be attributed to excess intake of food! Cutting back is a healthy choice.
Accelerated Growth: Overfeeding can lead to rapid growth in puppies, contributing to musculoskeletal issues and joint problems.
Obesity: Overfeeding contributes to obesity, placing extra stress on joints and exacerbating existing health concerns.
Digestive Issues: Consuming more food than necessary can lead to digestive problems, including indigestion and diarrhea.
Reduced Lifespan: Overweight dogs are more prone to various health issues, potentially reducing their lifespan.
In adult dogs, overfeeding increases the risk of many conditions, including surgical complications. For overweight dogs that get Osteosarcoma, life-saving amputation surgery may not be an option.
Many people are tempted to feed their Great Danes too much food out of concern that they are too thin! They are rarely undernourished.
For dogs that refuse food and lose weight doing so, a medical emergency is indicated. This is not a sign to add fatty foods to the diet.
Here are some common health problems associated with excess weight in adult dogs:
Arthritis: Overfeeding can contribute to excessive weight gain, placing additional stress on the joints and increasing the likelihood of developing arthritis in dogs.
Joint Problems: Excessive weight can lead to joint issues, including hip dysplasia and elbow dysplasia, affecting the dog’s mobility and comfort.
Cardiovascular Conditions: Overweight dogs are at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular problems, such as heart disease and hypertension.
Respiratory Issues: Obesity can strain the respiratory system, leading to difficulties in breathing and increased susceptibility to respiratory infections.
Reduced Immune Function: Excessive weight can compromise the immune system, making dogs more susceptible to infections and illnesses.
Liver Disease: Overfeeding may contribute to the development of liver problems, impacting the organ’s function and overall health.
Decreased Quality of Life: Dogs that are overfed and overweight may experience a reduced quality of life due to limited mobility, discomfort, and increased vulnerability to various health issues.
Can Great Danes Eat Grain-Free Food?
In recent years, concerns have been raised about a potential link between certain grain-free diets and a serious heart condition called dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). While not exclusive to Great Danes, this breed, like others, may be susceptible to DCM if their diet lacks proper nutrients.
DCM is a condition where the heart becomes enlarged and weakened, affecting its ability to pump blood efficiently.
Several studies have suggested a likely connection between grain-free or boutique diets and an increased risk of DCM. In some cases, the condition is reversed with a diet change, indicating substantial theories that diet does indeed play a huge role in heart health (just as it does in humans!).
Many holistic veterinarians and influencers promote that grain-free foods “have more meat and fewer carbs and fillers”. They also believe that removing grains from the diet can help resolve allergies, itching, and digestive issues.
This is an absolute myth. At least, the part about having “more meat and less carbs”, is. Grain-free dry diets are loaded with carbs in the form of lentils, potatoes, peas, and other legumes…not more meat as marketing has led us to believe.
In our popular Great Dane group on Facebook, several members have come forward to tell us their stories of losing (or nearly losing) their beloved Great Danes to heart disease after feeding them grain-free foods. Until we have more information, it’s just not worth the (very real) risk.
If you have a Great Dane suffering from an unhealthy gut, allergies, and itching, perhaps a trip to a veterinary dermatologist or veterinary internist is in order. They have other treatment options that will be ultimately safer and more effective.
Feeding Guidelines for Great Dane Puppies
You cannot feed a Great Dane Puppy the same way that you feed an adult dog. Great Dane puppies must have a diet with strictly controlled calcium, phosphorus, vitamin, mineral, and energy levels.
Here are some general feeding guidelines to ensure the healthy development of your Great Dane puppy:
Large or Giant Breed Puppy Food: Choose a puppy food specially formulated for large breeds. Look for options that specify “large breed” or “giant breed” on the packaging, as these diets typically address the specific nutritional requirements of growing Great Danes.
Balanced Calcium and Phosphorus: Ensure the puppy food has a balanced ratio of calcium to phosphorus, typically ranging from 1:1 to 1.2:1. This helps support proper bone development and minimizes the risk of skeletal issues.
Caloric Intake: Great Dane puppies have a high metabolism, but it’s crucial not to overfeed. Follow the feeding guidelines on the food packaging, but individualize portions based on your puppy’s age, weight, and activity level. Regularly monitor their weight and adjust portions as needed.
Meal Frequency: Feed young Great Dane puppies three to four meals per day to accommodate their fast growth and reduce the risk of bloat. As they mature, you can gradually transition to two meals per day.
Avoid Rapid Growth: While it’s essential to support growth, avoid overfeeding to prevent excessively rapid growth. This helps reduce the risk of musculoskeletal issues, including hip dysplasia.
Treats and Table Scraps: Limit treats and table scraps, as excessive treats can contribute to weight gain. Too many goodies will unbalance the diet and encourage picky eating.
Regular Veterinary Check-ups: Schedule regular check-ups with your veterinarian to monitor your Great Dane’s growth and ensure they are meeting developmental milestones. Your vet can provide guidance on adjusting the diet as needed.
Here is our list of foods that meet all recommendations for Great Dane puppies. They need to stay on an appropriate formula until age 2. This is the most current recommendation (2023-2024).
Check out THE GIANT DOG FOOD PROJECT to compare brands and values.
Supplements for Great Danes
Navigating the world of supplements for Great Danes is like walking into a Jungle! There are so many options and a lot of companies trying to get our money. The supplement industry is largely unregulated!
It’s easy for companies to bring new-fangled options to market. All they have to do is pay a factory to manufacture their products and package them with a well-designed label.
The truth is that many supplements are not proven, not researched, not carefully manufactured, and may do more harm than good.
When considering supplements for your Great Dane, stick to brands that are both veterinary recommended and/or have the NASC Seal (which is obtained by proving the safety and potency of the formula being sold).
Never give a multivitamin or multi-supplement. If your pet’s diet is properly balanced, a vitamin or mineral supplement may result in excess nutrients such as vitamin D and calcium intake. This can result in a slew of nutritional problems. More is not better!
Here are some supplements you might consider!
The Best Fish Oil for Great Danes
Great Danes are prone to many health conditions. Some include food allergies, skin issues, joint conditions, and digestion problems.
Fish oil is a great way to support large breeds regardless of the dog’s age. It can be given at any life stage, in moderation. Because fish oil is high in fats, it does add a lot of calories to the diet. Watch your pet’s body condition score and don’t let them become overweight!
Buyer beware, not all fish oils are created equal. With any product you choose, you must verify that the company is using exceptional quality control and proving its supplements in clinical and safety trials.
Nutramax Welactinis a great example of a fish oil that is carefully sourced and formulated, manufactured by a company that backs up their promises with clinical research and industry-leading quality control.
Joint Supplements for Big Dogs
There are MANY joint support options on the market, and like the others, it can be hard to choose. Save your money! Don’t even consider ones that don’t have clinical research and owned manufacturing facilities.
We use and recommend Dasaquin and Cosuquin products.
A lot of Great Dane breeders recommend giving all puppies a lot of vitamin C to “prevent knuckling”.
This practice is not backed by science. Like many home remedies, this is one that may do more harm than good.
See, here is the thing. Puppies DO need vitamin C in their diet. At one time, decades ago, pet food manufacturers didn’t know how to formulate food for giant breed puppies.
As a result of incorrect nutritional levels, big puppies were experiencing all sorts of problems with growth including Carpal Laxity and growing pains. In response, breeders tried all sorts of things!
They tried feeding adult foods to slow growth (you’ve probably heard this outdated and damaging recommendation before!) and adding vitamin C to promote healthy bones and collagen development. These remedies seemed to work, and this advice has stuck around in the giant breed community for decades now.
There is a fair amount of clinical research showing the important role that vitamin C plays in bone growth and stability!
“Overall, vitamin C exerts a positive effect on trabecular bone formation by influencing expression of bone matrix genes in osteoblasts.”
Now it’s 2023 and modern large and giant breed puppy foods have been formulated correctly to remove dietary influence on bone growth disorders. We no longer have to starve our puppies of nutrition on adult foods to slow their growth.
These new foods also contain the correct amount of vitamin C to support healthy bone and cartilage development. There is not too little, nor is there too much.
Reread the above quote about “influencing [the] expression of bone matrix genes in osteoblasts”. To put this simply, in the context of wanting to SLOW bone growth and prevent the bones from maturing too quickly, we have to consider once again that over-supplementation may be harmful.
I’d also like to point out that too many Great Dane puppies suffer from chronic loose stools. This is a side effect of excess vitamin C.
Don’t blame those loose stools on chicken or grains; look at your supplements, first.
Great Dane Feeding Chart
The numbers on the chart below can vary depending on the food you feed, your dog’s age, their overall health, and their activity level. If your pet receives a lot of additional calories in the form of treats, toppers, enrichment toys, and supplements this chart will be inaccurate.
We recommend offering puppies 3 small meals a day. Transition to 2 meals each day at around 6-8 months of age, if you wish.
This chart is just a guideline of what you can generally expect when feeding a proper diet that meets WSAVA recommendations. Follow the manufacturer’s directions and your veterinarian’s advice. Always monitor body condition, too! Fast growth and excess weight are bad for Great Danes. Err on the side of caution.
Pro Tip: if your dog has loose stools, you may be overfeeding them!
Age
Timing
Amount
Puppies under 12 weeks
3x/day
2-4 cups/day
Puppies 12-24 weeks old
3x/day
3-6 cups/day
Puppies 24 + weeks (6 months) or older
2x/day
5-10 cups/day
Puppies 12-18 months
2x/day
6-12 cups/day
Adults 18+ Months
2x/day
4-8 cups/day
These values are averages. Your pet may need more or less. Always talk to your veterinarian and use the manufacturer’s feeding chart as a guideline.
Pet Food Ingredients 101
Distinguishing between fact and fiction is crucial when making informed choices while selecting pet food. Common misconceptions can arise regarding ingredients such as by-products and grains.
A lot of misinformation about pet food is spread by profit-driven influencers and veterinarians who want to drive sales for their books, courses, and supplements.
Not to mention the millions of dollars made by pet food rating websites such as Dog Food Advisor. They earn money every time you click.
Here is some information about pet food ingredients that mirrors what board-certified veterinary nutritionists have to say on the topic!
Chicken Meal and By-Product Meal in Dog Food
Meals (such as chicken meal, beef meal, salmon meal, or chicken by-product meal) in dog food are essentially a concentrated and dehydrated form of meat, excluding moisture content.
When utilized in well-formulated pet foods, meat meals are far superior to ‘fresh meat’ or ‘raw meat’ in terms of nutritional content, protein, and balanced amino acids.
To put this simply, pet food companies that attempt to woo you with “freshly roasted meat” as the primary or only meat ingredient may be making up for the resulting nutritional deficiency in the synthetic vitamins (which are in all pet foods). Some companies have to use more added vitamins than others.
Fresh meat is 80% water and doesn’t have bone, organ, or cartilage in it; these are nutrient-dense and biologically appropriate foods for dogs, even if they don’t sound good to all humans.
Chicken By-Product meals from companies like Royal Canin are a nutritious and high-quality source of protein that is more similar to a properly formulated raw diet than anything else. If you’ve heard otherwise, you’ve been misled.
I don’t know about you, but I am SICK and tired of predatory influencers that spread misinformation in exchange for profits. Let’s move onward…
Rice & Corn
Rice and corn are commonly included in dog food for several nutritional reasons. While many influencers have disparaged these ingredients, they are desirable when feeding Great Danes!
Energy Source: Both rice and corn are excellent sources of carbohydrates, providing a readily available energy source. Carbohydrates are crucial for fueling the day-to-day activities and metabolic functions of dogs.
Digestibility: Rice, in particular, is easily digestible for dogs, making it a suitable option for those with sensitive stomachs. Corn, when processed properly, is also digestible (more digestible than beef, actually) and provides dogs with essential nutrients.
Fiber Content: These grains contain dietary fiber, which aids in promoting healthy digestion. Adequate fiber in a dog’s diet supports regular bowel movements and helps prevent constipation. It can also reduce the risk of bloat!
Nutrient Profile: Rice and corn bring a range of essential nutrients to the table, including vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. These nutrients contribute to overall health and well-being, supporting functions such as immune system maintenance and skin health.
Cost-Effective: Both rice and corn are cost-effective ingredients, which can contribute to making dog food more affordable without compromising on nutritional value. This affordability allows pet owners to provide their dogs with quality nutrition at a reasonable cost.
Alternative Protein Source: While not as high in protein as meat, rice, and corn can still contribute to the overall protein content of the diet. This can be beneficial for dogs that may have allergies to certain meat proteins or for pet owners looking to diversify protein sources.
Gluten-Free Option: Rice is naturally gluten-free, making it a suitable option for dogs with sensitivities or allergies to gluten-containing grains. This provides a grain alternative for dogs with specific dietary requirements.
It’s important to note that the quality of rice and corn in dog food depends on factors such as sourcing, processing, and overall formulation. Responsible pet food manufacturers carefully select and process these ingredients to ensure they meet the nutritional needs of dogs.
Additionally, individual dogs may have unique dietary requirements, so consulting with a veterinarian can help tailor a diet that best suits a particular dog’s health and preferences.
Welcome to the world of owning a Great Dane Puppy! Now you have to figure out what to feed it. Choosing the right Great Dane puppy food can be difficult and confusing. There is a lot of conflicting, misleading, and even dangerous information out there. We get it, because we’ve totally been there!
Great Dane puppies grow extremely fast and unfortunately, the wrong dog food can be devastating for their health. Giant breed dogs are susceptible to a number of nutrition-related imbalances and orthopedic growth disorders.
Many of these conditions are preventable with the right diet. Choosing the best puppy food for your Great Dane is key, and the right kibble may not be what you think!
If you have a new Great Dane puppy and are confused about what to feed it, you’ve found the most scientific, up-to-date article! We are driven by current research and science, not outdated advice or clickbait.
In this post you will find:
A list of the best foods to feed a Great Dane puppy (2023 update!)
Health problems caused by incorrect nutrition in puppyhood
How to choose food for a Great Dane puppy
Best practices for feeding Great Dane puppies
Supplements and health information
Read on, Great Dane friends!
2023 Best Foods for Great Dane Puppies
Before we dig into the WHY, please check out this list of foods that are the best and most well-researched options. You don’t need to flip endless bags to find the right one; choose from the list below and you WILL be making a solid choice.
We know you are busy chasing that cute puppy around, so if you want the simple, already researched-for-you answer, here it is. Easy-peasy!
The foods on the list below meet the following science-backed recommendations:
1.2% or less calcium
3.5g or less calcium per 1000kcal
Formulated by a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist who is on staff for the company (not a consultant)
Grain-inclusive
Contains Meat Meal as a top ingredient (reduces bloat risk)
Has the AAFCO Large Breed Growth Statement
Formulated correctly for the growth of large AND giant breed puppies (not “adult maintenance” diets)
Check out THE GIANT DOG FOOD PROJECT to compare brands and values.
Great Dane Puppy Growth Disorders Caused by Wrong Food
If you are new to Great Danes, you may not be aware of how they are different than other dogs. They experience explosivegrowth from birth to 8 months of age, and then continue to grow and fill out until they are nearly 3 years old.
Imagine going from 1 pound to 100 pounds in just 8 months!
The wrong kibble formulation and unbalanced, untested foods from boutique companies or home cooking can cause:
Increased risk of adult arthritis, wobblers, osteosarcoma, and orthopedic problems
There is a lot of confusion and misinformation out there about what to feed a Great Dane Puppy.
Today we are using science and modern knowledge to clear it up, once and for all!
If you are looking for dog food for an older or adult Great Dane (18+ months), read HERE.
Great Dane Puppy Food – What You Need to Know
We are going to cover some important need-to-know topics below. You may notice that we are going to dispel a LOT of myths about what to feed Dane puppies, too!
Here are some common nutrition myths in the world of Danes. If you hear these, you are hearing information from people that are stuck in 1993.
“Never feed puppy food!”
“Great Dane puppies should only eat adult food!”
“The protein level must be very low! Never feed a food with protein above 24%”
“Add calcium to the diet so their bones can grow.”
All of those statements are outdated and misleading! Let’s dig into this!
Should I feed puppy food or adult food to my Great Dane?
This is the biggest and most important question you can ask yourself as a Great Dane Owner! Should Great Dane puppies eat adult food?
Absolutely not! Get that idea out of your head right now.
Story time!
20 years ago we didn’t have an understanding about what causes growth disorders in large and giant breed puppies. Anecdotally, breeders found that if they fed adult food to their puppies, they experienced fewer growth problems.
At one time, this concept did have merit. The problem here is that it’s now 2023 and we have much, much better choices.
Adult food works to minimize growth disorders by literally starving the puppy of the nutrition that it needs to grow.
Seriously. I don’t know about you, but I am not ok with that. We see a LOT of 8-18 month old Great Danes that have no muscle tone and are hopelessly lanky and skinny. This is why! They are being fed adult food and don’t receive enough nutrients to support their muscle, tendon, and brain development.
Guess what?
Through feeding trials and data research, dry dog food formulas have been modified and updated. Many large and giant breed PUPPY foods are now considered ideal for giant breed puppy dogs.
A science-backed, properly formulated large-breed or giant-breed puppy food will have been designed, tested, and proven to encourage slow growth and healthy bone development. Veterinarians and veterinary nutritionists will repeat this.
Great Dane puppies should be on a well-researched large or giant breed puppy formula until 18-24 months. Intake and body condition should be monitored. You should never, ever feed traditional puppy foods that are not made for large breed dogs! This is of key importance.
Here is our list of appropriate foods to feed a Great Dane Puppy (more on why, below!):
Check out THE GIANT DOG FOOD PROJECT to compare brands and values.
Calcium & Phosphorus Ratios in Great Dane Puppy Food
In addition to being an appropriate grain-inclusive large or giant breed growth formula, the ratio of calcium to phosphorus is a key consideration when choosing food for your puppy.
Calcium must be at or below 1.3% (1.2% is even better) and the Phosphorus should be CLOSE behind it.
NOTE: However, even foods with correct calcium and phosphorus ratios may not be appropriate!
There is a lot more to nutrition than just that. Amino acids, the source of those nutrients (meat vs. peas or legumes), and ultimate bioavailability and formulation of the finished product are incredibly important. It is also believed that vitamin D and zinc levels contribute, which is why it is difficult to compare foods in an informed manner. Two foods may appear to be very similar based on the limited information the label provides, however, they likely are not.
A typical CA/PH analysis might look like this below, or similar. Do not feed food brands that don’t have this information easily accessible on the label!
Calcium 1.2% Phosphorus 1.0%
Look specifically for the AAFCO large breed growth statement on the bag of food. This is a requirement to find in addition to seeing the calcium levels at or below 1.2%!
The AAFCO large breed growth statement will contain something that looks like this:
“including growth of large-size dogs (70 pounds or more as an adult)“
If it says “excluding growth of large-size dogs”, do NOT feed it. If it does not have a statement about the growth of large-size dogs, don’t feed that either.
What is the Best Protein Level for Great Dane puppy food?
Many people believe that protein is the most important thing to look at. This is fairly dated information, based again on old observations. Some people believe you should keep protein levels less than 24%.
Many Great Danes are being starved of protein in the name of this. Protein provides amino acids that are necessary for health. Protein must come primarily from a meat source. Meat meals and meat by-product meals are ideal, as they offer a concentrated source of amino acids and protein!
Food brands that use ‘fresh deboned meat’ and no meat meals will be deficient and likely heavy in starches; don’t fall for marketing that is designed to appeal to your tastes. Foods that are extremely heavy in peas, lentils, garbanzo beans, potatoes, or derivatives of them are not safe to feed.
Meat meals (or by-product meals) contain biologically appropriate meat tissue, bone, cartilage, and organ. These ingredients have also been shown to reduce the risk of bloat by 53%!
Some of the best foods will have protein levels up to 32%! Royal Canin Giant Breed Puppy, for example, which has been scientifically proven for growth.
Here are other considerations:
Meat and/or ideally meat meals must be in the first 4 ingredients (may reduce the risk of bloat)
The food you choose for your Dane puppy should have an AAFCO statement on the bag with only small variations to the following statement.
This statement should indicate that the food is formulated for the growth of large-sized dogs AND that food trials were used to prove that the formulation is correct for growth:
Animal feeding tests using AAFCO procedures substantiate that [THIS FORMULA] provides complete and balanced nutrition for all life stages, including growth of large sized dogs (70 lb. or more as an adult).
***Note: In dog food, ‘Large Sized Dogs’ is a simplified term that INCLUDES giant breeds.
If the nutrition statement says “formulated to meet the nutritional levels established by the AAFCO Dog Food Nutrient Profiles”, it means that the food wasn’t substantiated in food trials. It was only seen to meet certain minimums on paper.
It’s important to understand that MANY food companies can use a computer program to spit out recipes, send it to their marketing department to make adjustments that appeal to you (ingredient splitting), and have it signed off by a consulting company that it meets AAFCO minimums.
Use your best judgment here. Ask questions and look past the marketing.
Best Food Brands for Great Danes
The following food brands are recommended for these reasons:
They meet the highest standards for analysis, formulation, testing, science, nutrition, and ethics
Formulated by on-staff board-certified veterinary nutritionists
They use biologically correct ingredients such as meat by-product meals
Subjected to millions of dollars in research, testing and feeding trials
Balanced protein, fat, calcium and phosphorus ratios
Proven
Science-based, not marketing-based
All of the items below are links to this product on Chewy. We recommend placing your choice on autoship!
Large Breed Puppy foods from these brands are ideal for Great Dane Puppies:
Check out THE GIANT DOG FOOD PROJECT to compare brands and values.
This list is not exhaustive, and it is up to you to do your own research. It is important to note that the Great Dane community is full of anecdotal stories and dated advice.
Our blog is focused on science and we update it often with the most current recommendations.
We no longer recommend brands that do not meet WSAVA guidelines. See our FAQ for more information.
Signs that your Great Dane puppy food may not be the right choice:
You’ve chosen a food from a boutique ‘feel good’ company that doesn’t employ a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist (DACVN) to formulate and test the food
We do not recommend Life’s Abundance or similar foods or supplements (including NuVet) where breeders receive commissions (‘kickbacks’) when you purchase from them.
These foods are not formulated by boarded, professional Veterinary Nutritionists. The high pricing is reflective of the commission scheme underneath the brand, not of the actual quality.
Here is our list of dog foods and supplements we would never feed for any reason. These brands made this list because of extra-shady marketing tactics, having a bad reputation among the veterinary and veterinary nutritionist community, having high rates of harm caused by unbalanced nutrition, extreme ingredient splitting, and/or because they are MLM.
Orijen
Acana
Gentle Giants
Life’s Abundance
Paw Tree
NuVet
Most grain-free kibbles, especially 4Health, Acana/Orijen, Zignature, Fromm, etc.
When should my Great Dane puppy switch to adult food?
As long as you are feeding one of our recommended formulas, you should follow the manufacturers recommendation.
Pro Plan, for example, has foods that encourage you to feed them until 18-24 months. Royal Canin does as well.
We believe that Great Dane puppies should have puppy food until 18-24 months.
Puppy Food Q&A
What are WSAVA Guidelines?
The WSAVA is a non-profit, worldwide organization dedicated to supporting veterinarians, health, science, and nutrition. Any food brand can sponsor these important efforts, however, most boutique brands do not.
The WSAVA has released a set of common-sense guidelines to consider when choosing food for your dog. These guidelines are simply a set of recommendations. There is no such thing as ‘WSAVA Approved’, and the WSAVA does not make ‘kickbacks’ or money from food brands.
Some science-backed food companies (including Royal Canin and Purina) make ‘Giant Breed’ specific formulas, and those are fantastic!
The Royal Canin Giant Breed line is perfect.
However, many ‘giant breed’ formulas have been phased out or are hard to find.
Large Breed foods from Purina, Hills, Science Diet and Royal Canin are formulated and tested for dogs over 70+lbs, and this includes our giant breed dogs.
Therefore, both giant and large breed formulas are ideal and can be correct for Great Danes!
Meat Meal and Meat By-Products? YUCK, right!?
Many people see ‘Meat Meal’ or ‘Meat By Product Meal’ on the ingredients list and immediately believe that it must mean the food is full of cheap protein and junk.
Meal and Meat By-Product Meals are a concentrated form of whole-prey meat, not junk as you may have been led to believe.
Dogs don’t eat nicely cut and trimmed steak and chicken filets like us humans do.
They eat the WHOLE animal! Bone, organs, muscle, tendons and more. There is absolutely nothing wrong with meat meals and meat by product meals.
“By Product” simply means that the food is a rendering left over from some other process. Us humans don’t eat a lot of organ meat. Therefore, organ is ‘by product’.
Dogs NEED organ, bone and other ‘yucky’ things in their diet.
Whole prey model raw diets rely heavily on bone, organ and other tissues.
It’s not junk, it’s necessary nutrition.
What are Boutique Food Brands?
A boutique food brand is a dog food from a company that:
-Does not employ a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist (DACVN) to formulate and test foods -Does not regularly utilize ongoing AAFCO food trials to test and substantiate their formulas -Does not participate in or contribute to veterinary-level research and nutrition science -Does not support ongoing veterinary health efforts (WSAVA, for example)
Boutique food brands often:
-Use marketing to make you ‘feel good’ about the food
-Rely on generic, unregulated terms such as ‘holistic’, ‘farm fresh’, ‘family-owned’ and ‘human grade’ to guide you so that you look past deficiencies in their scientific practices
-Will intentionally misrepresent science-backed and heavily-researched foods as ‘trash’, ‘garbage’, ‘fast food’ or ‘horrible’ so that you feel emotional or worried about food and buy their brand instead
I don’t see a popular food recommended here, why not?
Popular foods seen in the Great Dane community include Victor, 4Health, Diamond Naturals, Costco, Fromm, Zignature, Nulo, Nutro, Solid Gold, Orijen, Acana, The Farmer’s Dog, Honest Kitchen, Canine Caviar, Liberty, and Holistic Select (among others).
These are all ’boutique’ foods. We will not recommend them.
They do not employ DACVN Board-Certified veterinary nutritionists to formulate their foods. They do not participate in well-run nutrition research and food trials for their brand or for the greater good of dogs.
For example, Fromm foods are formulated by a chemical engineer. Victor foods are formulated by a guy with an online certificate in dairy cattle feeding.
Contrary to popular belief, boutique food brands are not inherently ‘higher-quality’.
Many dogs that suffer from nutritional DCM have healthy coats and good stools! They die suddenly, often without warning because their heart enlarges and eventually gives out.
It is believed that a majority of nutritional DCM cases go undiagnosed, because of this.
We recommend sticking with science at this time and feeding only the highest quality, heavily researched diets that were substantiated in actual feeding trials, not just looked over by a ‘nutritionist’ on paper.
Don’t vets get a kickback on food?
Many people believe that the only reason their veterinarian recommends Purina, Hill’s or Royal Canin is because their vet is receiving kickbacks and took all of their nutrition education from those companies.
Considering that those companies are the ones spearheading and funding most, if not all of our existing canine nutrition research, those are the companies that should be educating veterinarians!
Veterinarians that sell foods in their lobby mostly offer the prescription formulas to pets who need them and yes, they do receive a nominal amount of money for this, which covers the costs associated with stocking the food.
Keep in mind that the pet store who is trying to sell you the pricier boutique food brand with the higher margin is ALSO receiving a ‘kickback’ to promote the foods they sell. As a matter of fact, these kickbacks can be both high-pressure and HUGE. Influencers, bloggers (yes, even us here at Hello Danes), and brand reps all make money selling food brands to you.
No matter what food you buy, somebody somewhere stands to make money on the deal. Veterinarians are approached by ’boutique’ food brands OFTEN and absolutely could sell those options in their lobbies.
But they don’t, because veterinarians believe in science and research. Not marketing and woo.
My trainer/breeder/nutritionist recommended something else
Your trainer and breeder are not nutritionists. They are subject to the same marketing as you, which was created to make you feel nervous and guilty about choosing food for your dog. Follow the money here!
‘Nutritionist’ is an unregulated term. Anybody can take an online course and obtain that as a ‘title’. There are many ‘nutritionists’ out there, many of whom charge money for their services.
The only legitimate nutritionists are veterinarians who have obtained additional credentials, study, degrees, and board certifications in the field of animal nutrition. Read more about DACVN at https://acvn.org/
We recommend supplementing a healthy, well-formulated science-backed kibble with up to 10% raw or fresh foods. Purina One or Pro Plan Canned, balanced raw, Olewo Carrots, fresh fruits and vegetables, or Dr. Harvey’s are some of our favorites.
What about raw feeding?
Raw feeding can be done right!
We recommend working with a board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist and learning a lot about raw feeding before getting started. www.perfectlyrawsome.com is a great resource.
Formulating your own raw dog food at home is rewarding, but you have to do it correctly. There are many misconceptions and myths about raw feeding and the truth is that most owners are not educated or equipped enough to do it correctly. Each meal must be perfectly balanced, and care must be taken to ensure food safety.
We do not recommend raw-feeding giant breed puppies during their extreme growth phase (birth to 9 months) without professional veterinary nutritionist support. https://acvn.org/
What about home-cooked diets?
Meat, veggies, and rice is NOT a balanced diet and may be extremely dangerous, despite the fact that it makes you feel like you are doing something ‘healthy’ for your pet.
If you do make a home-cooked stew, use it as a topper for an already balanced, science-backed commercial food.
Walking into a dog food store is like walking into a shark tank. You’re immediately inundated with nutrition advice and thousands of bags with bright colors and promises of better health for your pet. If you are interested in what we believe are the best foods for Great Danes, this blog post is the place to be (NOT the pet store)!
Back in the day, before Natalie and I started this site and put literal years into educating ourselves about the most current advice for Great Dane care, we were confused. So confused! It’s easy to get sucked into marketing and anecdotes from other dog owners. We all love our pets and want what is best.
When we dug around in search of the best foods for our Great Danes, here is what we found:
Outdated advice, including food brands that no longer exist
Nutrition information and ideas that are not based on any actual research and science
Recommendations for food brands that are poorly formulated
Click bait articles that seem to know very little about Great Danes
Promotional articles from dog food companies that don’t know how to formulate for Great Danes
Fear mongering, elitism, and pseudoscience in pet food marketing
A whole lot of confused Great Dane owners!
This blog post today is for those who feed Great Dane KIBBLE, and we are bringing you science-backed, UP TO DATE information about what to feed your giant breed dog! Raw and fresh info coming soon, though we share some of that here, too!
Great Danes have very specific nutritional requirements.
The appropriate food will keep them at a healthy weight and will support their gut health, joints, growth, and structure. Read on!
Food Requirements for Great Danes
The best foods for Great Danes may not be what you think.
Remember, on this blog we look at science, research, and evidence; not marketing.
Foods for Great Danes must be formulated specifically for the growth (puppies) and maintenance (adults) of large and giant breed dogs. This means that puppies need a large or giant breed puppy or all life stages food, and adults over the age of 2 need an adult or all life stages food.
Additionally, we like to see foods meet the following guidelines (especially for Danes under the age of 2):
Calcium level at or below 1.2%
3.5g or less calcium per 1000kCal
Calcium to Phosphorus ratio of as close to 1 : 1 as possible
Specifically labeled for large or giant breed dogs
Grain-inclusive
Includes meat meal or meat by-product meal, which may lower the risk of bloat
Board Certified Veterinary Nutritionist or PhD in Animal Nutrition employed by the company
We are going to break down the science of dog food in this blog post below. Our recommendations MAY surprise you, so we’re backing up our information with science!
Now before you go crazy and start looking at a million labels, let us help you.
What are the Best Food Brands for Great Danes?
To keep things simple, here is our list of foods that meet the guidelines and recommendations outlined in this post. Click on any to see them on Chewy.
Check out THE GIANT DOG FOOD PROJECT to compare brands and values.
I like to note that some people have not loved our recommendation to choose well-researched, science-backed foods. We believe that such opinions are often misinformed. To be perfectly honest, I used to be misinformed as well, and actively considered foods such as Purina and Royal Canin to be absolute garbage.
Of course we all want to believe that the ‘holistic’ option is best, but I’ve learned that’s not always the case; millions of dollars are spent every year on dog food marketing and we are all susceptible to it.
A dry diet which contains named (chicken, beef, or salmon) meat meal or meat by-product meals will have MORE meat and more meat based nutrition in it, and that’s just good science.
“Fresh meat” and “deboned meat” can be in the food as well. It’s important to note, however, that fresh meats are roughly 70% water, and once extruded into kibble won’t be a large portion of the final product.
For this reason, we recommend steering clear of foods that only use fresh or deboned meats to appeal to YOUR taste and wallet.
Organ, bone, tissue and cartilage on the other hand (in the form of meat meals and meat by-product meals) are species-appropriate and will contain necessary amino acids, vitamins, proteins, fats, and even glucosamine!
All about Calcium & Phosphorus Levels
Calcium should be 1.0% – 1.2% Phosphorous should be 1.1%-.8%
The overall calcium level should not exceed 3.5g per 1000kCal
For puppies, it is also very important that the food has the AAFCO Large Breed Growth Statement, indicating that the formulation is appropriate for growing puppies that will be 70+lbs or more as adults.
The ratio of calcium to phosphorus should be as close to 1:1 as possible. (For example, a 1.4 to 1 ratio is not acceptable, but 1.2 to 1 is)
However, these are NOT the only considerations!
A food with the correct ‘analysis’ and ‘healthy sounding ingredients’ may still be incorrect.
This is why choosing an appropriate large or giant breed formula from a company with qualified nutritionists on staff matters so much.
Additionally, many foods on the market that are popular in the Great Dane community are actually dangerously high in calcium and way too low in protein.
There is a lot of outdated misinformation out there about protein levels in Great Dane food. Many people believe (and promote) that Danes should be fed ‘low protein’ foods to ‘prevent knuckling’.
That statement is unfortuantely based on pseudoscience, anecdotes, and misunderstandings about protein in pet food.
Quality protein from meat, meat meal and meat by-products is necessary, and studies show that protein does not actually “cause knuckling”.
Too many calories and too much of the wrong kind of nutrition is what causes growth problems in Great Danes, not too much protein.
Foods that use a lot of peas or legumes, especially when paired with “fresh deboned meat” (which as mentioned above is 70% water) may have replaced a significant amount of meat protein with plant-based protein. This is not healthy.
Large Breed foods that are backed by legitimate peer-reviewed science and research will have optimal fat, protein, calcium, and phosphorus levels. Most also offer joint support.
If you are choosing an appropriate food, the protein level on the bag should not be a consideration.
A more extensive list of our favorite foods for Great Danes is below, but until then, here are some of our favorites.
Great Dane Food Dealbreakers
Here are some foods that you definitely want to avoid for your Great Dane.
Grain Free Food for Great Danes
Unbalanced foods from boutique companies are believed to lead to dietary-induced heart problems (Secondary DCM).
Grain-free foods in particular are problematic as most are from boutique food companies that tend to replace a lot of actual meat content with peas, potatoes, chickpeas and legumes.
There is a growing body of evidence that should be addressed, especially because Great Danes are already prone to genetic heart problems (Primary DCM).
Secondary (nutritional) DCM is often a silent killer. You may not know your dog is sick until it’s too late.
Secondary DCM is often reversed completely, however, by choosing science-backed dog food formulated by Veterinary Nutritionists.
Bloat & Nutrition Risk Factors
To date, no food brand has been correlated with an increase in bloat risk.
However, the following factors HAVE been noted and require more study:
Low fiber diets
Poorly formulated diets with fat in the first 4 ingredients, often seen in foods from Victor and Life’s Abundance which are not formulated by a veterinary nutritionist or backed by research. There is one exception to this rule; the Royal Canin Giant Breed line. Read more about this HERE.
Dogs that are fed only a dry food diet (we recommend mixing in canned food into at least one of your dog’s daily meals
Dogs that eat quickly (we recommend slow-feeder bowls)
Dogs that eat from raised bowls (though more study is needed). This is likely related to gulping and excess intake of air from the unnatural eating position that occurs with raised feeders.
MLM Foods for Great Danes Scam
MLM foods such as Life’s Abundance (also NuVet Vitamins) are foods where breeders profit off of the (expensive) food being sold to puppy buyers.
Some breeders also participate in the unethical practice of essentially requiring this purchase or in offering a more robust health guarantee if you feed this food.
These foods are backed by a lot of marketing claims, but no science.
Some foods meet WSAVA Guidelines but unfortunately, most don’t.
Look past the marketing and fancy words on your dog food bag.
Start asking questions.
Food should be formulated by on-site, employed, credentialed Ph.D Veterinary Nutrition professionals with extensive, certified knowledge in veterinary health and nutrition.
If you reach out to a company and they have a list of excuses for why they don’t actually staff a full-time board-certified Veterinary Nutritionist (DACVN or ACVN), or why they don’t also then test their foods by investing heavily into research and trials, tread cautiously.
Many companies will say they use a “team of nutrition experts, including nutritionists“.
What this most often actually means is that they paid a consulting company to sign off on a formula they generated using software or spreadsheets. If it meets nutritional minimums, a box can be checked and the company can claim that a ‘Nutritionist’ was involved.
Photo credit to @born.greater
The List of Best Foods for Great Danes
As before, this food list is not exhaustive. Remember to get your nutrition advice from credentialed professionals and those who share the same ethos of choosing science-backed, highly researched nutrition.
This list is for ADULT dogs over the age of 12-18 months.
These are the same foods that are recommended by veterinarians and fed by the top breeders (whose dogs are healthy, lean, robust and long-lived). We recommend putting your favorite on autoship from Chewy.com!
For puppies, choose the Large Breed puppy version.
The addition of fresh whole foods and toppers (up to 10% of the diet) on a professionally formulated food will provide better nutrition than a few dried blueberries in a bag of ’boutique’ food ever will.
We recommend feeding same-brand canned food, in addition to dry food.
Here is a list of ‘popular’ Great Dane food brands that we do not recommend.
Why are these foods on the ‘not recommended’ list?
Simply put, they don’t meet basic criteria for ethical, quality formulation and nutrition.
In other words, these foods are not typically formulated, researched and/or then fully tested by people with legitimate credentials to do so.
Most ’boutique’ foods only look healthier and feel ‘higher quality’ because of marketing, not because they actually are.
They do not participate in common canine health research and journals (choosing instead to do their own ‘testing’), and they often do not substantiate their formulas in actual food trials (choosing instead to pay somebody to just look it over on paper to see that AAFCO minimums are reached).
Most of these brands below have documented, verified cases of secondary (dietary-induced) DCM.
This is despite having only a tiny market share and minuscule sales compared to ‘big dog food’ (science-backed brands with a huge market share) that do not have any documented cases of nutrition-related DCM).
It is a myth that ‘holistic’, ‘ancient grains’, ‘super premium’, or ‘human grade’ boutique dog foods are healthier or better for your pet.
These are marketing terms with no true regulations or standards.
Foods that are not Recommended
Many of these foods are popular in the Great Dane community, but that doesn’t make them better. A lot of these foods are made in factories that manufacter many other brands on contract, and none of the brands listed below have qualified nutritionists on staff. Many of them have calcium levels that are in excess of current recommendations, too!
Nutrition is a KEY element in Great Dane health. We believe these brands should be looked at with higher consumer demands of quality and ethical formulation practices:
Earthborn Holistics
Diamond Naturals
4Health
Victor (high calcium levels in all but one formula)
