What We Feed - Labrador Puppy Food Guide

It won’t be long before you welcome your newest family member home and life with puppy will begin!

Taking the time you need to prepare your home for your puppy’s arrival will help to ensure a smooth transition from kennel to home; allowing you and your precious new family member to enjoy all the love and excitement that comes with owning a new puppy.

As your puppy’s Breeder, we are here to offer you advice on all things related to the health and well-being of your new pet. One of the largest factors in any puppies health and that of your adult dogs is the food they eat. Just as we do with our own food we look for natural and wholesome foods we can trust. That is what we have found from TLC pet foods.

Our journey to this dog food started by feeding a national brand that is well recognized. As care givers for animals we keep a close eye on their fecal matter. What we noticed was a lot of corn coming through their poop. We soon switched to a grain free diet. This was a big improvement as we only needed to feed four cups instead of six cups each day. A third less going in is a third less going out. 🙂

We fed this grain free nationally available food for a long time. We began to notice that our dogs coats weren’t shinny and had lost their luster. We started feeding supplements like fish oil, butter, anything to get that glowing look of health back. One day I had that light bulb going off over my head moment. Why was I feeding a dog food that didn’t work. We began a search for a natural grain free dog food that, most importantly, had good results.

We found TLC whole life dog food. It has a high percentage of meat, dogs natural food. It is made close to us in Canada where their chicken doesn’t contain arsenic as it can in the US. All of their ingredients come from the US, Canada, or New Zealand. They have no artificial preservative or colors, and no meat byproducts in the food. They don’t “ingredient split”, and have Glucosamines, Chondroittins, prebiotics and probiotics for good joints and health. TLC pet food has a low glycemic index. 

The biggest factor was in the results we saw within two weeks. The dogs coats had a shine and luster to them. Their feces was denser, meaning they were getting more good out of the food. The dogs ate it readily and had the right amount of weight and condition. We have been very pleased with this food and feed it exclusively to our dogs and our puppies.Continuing to offer your puppy this incredibly dynamic food is the first step to helping them adjust to life outside the kennel. Delivering the ultimate balance of quality meats, animal fats, vitamins and minerals; TLC Whole Life Dog Food has everything needed for optimal health and nutrition.

TLC Pet Foods delivers directly to your doorstep for FREE, offering automatic shipping according to your puppy’s unique eating habits at no additional charge. Order your pet’s food today to make for an easy transition to your home. Use the coupon code 60090-1025 to save five dollars on your order.  

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A recent press release from the FDA has indicated concerns that “…dogs that ate certain pet foods containing peas, lentils, other legumes or potatoes as their main ingredients… ” [most often labeled ‘grain-free’] are at higher risk of developing canine heart disease, known as dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). This announcement has rattled the pet food industry and led to many concerned pet parents, wondering about the nutritional value of the food they’ve chosen for their dogs. We wanted to break down the FDA’s concerns and help answer any questions you may have. We’ve taken some of the questions we’ve received from customers and laid them out along with our responses to give you the answers you need to make the right choices for your pet.

What does the FDA press release mean?

The FDA is investigating potential links between an unusual surge in DCM found in dogs whose primary diet consisted of pet food made with legumes and/or potatoes listed as primary ingredients,
which is the case in many “grain-free” formulas. Grain-free formulas often replace grains with vegetable-based protein sources, like peas, lentils, and other legumes. This leads to having to reduce the amount of higher quality meat-based protein sources, or an unnaturally high protein level (30% or higher), which can have its own health implications. Meat, like chicken, lamb, and salmon are considered higher quality protein sources for pups and dogs compared to vegetable-based protein sources. This is because meat based proteins are easily digested and turned into important amino acids, including taurine, an amino acid only available in meat-based protein sources and important in supporting canine heart health. Reducing the amount of quality meat-based protein sources in a formula can mean that pups aren’t getting important nutrients they need to thrive. The FDA is investigating the potential link between formulas relying on vegetable-based proteins and the sudden and unusual increase in cases of canine heart disease.

Is TLC a “grain-free” pet food?

No. TLC formulas include ancient whole grains. The nutritional benefits these ingredients add to our formulas include high digestibility, a quality source of dietary fiber, magnesium, and carbohydrates.

Why is taurine not listed as an ingredient in TLC?

TLC’s primary ingredients include high-quality meat-based protein sources, like farm fresh Chicken, New Zealand Lamb and Atlantic Salmon. As mentioned above, most quality meat-based protein
sources are easily digested and naturally turned into important amino acids, like taurine, by your pup’s own body. TLC includes an adequate amount of meat-based protein and there is no need to
artificially add taurine to our food.

Aren’t legumes, peas and lentils “bad” ingredients?

A misconception since the FDA’s announcement has been that legumes are unhealthy ingredients. This is untrue. It’s not the ingredients themselves but the lack of quality meat-based protein sources believed to be causing the unusual surge in DCM cases. TLC includes legumes, not as a primary protein source but sources of dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals.

How can I tell which ingredients are being used as “primary ingredients” in pet food?

Thanks to the FDA and AAFCO, pet food labeling is heavily regulated. All pet food labels must clearly list ingredients in order by weight, meaning that ingredients listed first, have higher inclusion
rates. Although reading the label will give you a pretty good sense of what ingredients are being relied upon for primary sources of nutrition, pet parents should be aware of “ingredient splitting”. A
formula relying on legumes for protein may attempt to push wanted meat-protein sources up the list by splitting legumes, like peas, into multiple named ingredients. For example, instead of listing “peas” as a single ingredient, a label may say, “pea fiber”, “green peas”, “yellow peas”, “pea hulls”, and “pea fibre”. This practice can be misleading and should be looked for when considering different pet food.

Dave