Gun Dog Forum

I’ve got my 11 week old Labrador on pro plan sport 30/20. Have since 7 weeks as breeder food was not available. Had him into the vet and vet scolded me for it saying I needed him on the focus puppy because sport could cause growth problems. Anyone else heard this


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My bag of PPP Sport 30/20 says "all life stages" right there on the front.

Due to the final adult size of most labs many lab breeders and vets recommend a Large Breed Puppy formula for the first year, with a goal of slow even growth. They almost always have a lower amount of fat, calcium and phosphorus. If the dog is going to be over about 60-65lbs it would probably be advisable to follow what your vet recommends. The AAFCO statement on the bag should say it has been tested or formulated for dogs with a final weight over 70lbs.

That said, Purina Pro Plan 30/20 has pretty low calcium and phosphorus levels so if the dog is not allowed to get over weight, which labs are very good at doing then it should work fine and most likely has for many labs. It is what I am feeding my Setter pup at the moment with good results.

Garrison wrote:Due to the final adult size of most labs many lab breeders and vets recommend a Large Breed Puppy formula for the first year, with a goal of slow even growth. They almost always have a lower amount of fat, calcium and phosphorus. If the dog is going to be over about 60-65lbs it would probably be advisable to follow what your vet recommends. The AAFCO statement on the bag should say it has been tested or formulated for dogs with a final weight over 70lbs.

That said, Purina Pro Plan 30/20 has pretty low calcium and phosphorus levels so if the dog is not allowed to get over weight, which labs are very good at doing then it should work fine and most likely has for many labs. It is what I am feeding my Setter pup at the moment with good results.

That’s what confused me. He brought up the high protein and fat content which I get could lead to overweight. He also brought up that didn’t want high calcium and phosphorus. But sport has lower of both than the focus large breed puppy.


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As long as you don't overfeed, Pro Plan 30/20 should be fine. However, if you overfeed the large breed puppy, regular puppy, or even an adult feed, the overfeeding is more likely to lead to problems.

Three different post's in a row dealing with what to feed. Read the bag and determine if it's adequate for the age and activity level of your dog and go for it. If the dog won't eat it, change food. Boy dog food it a huge business and people pay out a lot more than they need to thinking they really are getting something better, I don't think they are. At the same time if they can afford it and the dog does well on it, no harm no foul! I suspect many if not all successful, if not all, dog food company's have testing facilities to test their food on real dog's. Let's see, lot of people think corn in dog food is awful. Bad new's, might be but people have been feeding dog food with corn in it a lot longer that any of us have been around. Pretty successfully too. I hear about recall's on dog food and it has always been some premium food!

WhitBri wrote: ↑

Fri Apr 12, 2019 3:40 pm

Garrison wrote:Due to the final adult size of most labs many lab breeders and vets recommend a Large Breed Puppy formula for the first year, with a goal of slow even growth. They almost always have a lower amount of fat, calcium and phosphorus. If the dog is going to be over about 60-65lbs it would probably be advisable to follow what your vet recommends. The AAFCO statement on the bag should say it has been tested or formulated for dogs with a final weight over 70lbs.

That said, Purina Pro Plan 30/20 has pretty low calcium and phosphorus levels so if the dog is not allowed to get over weight, which labs are very good at doing then it should work fine and most likely has for many labs. It is what I am feeding my Setter pup at the moment with good results.

That’s what confused me. He brought up the high protein and fat content which I get could lead to overweight. He also brought up that didn’t want high calcium and phosphorus. But sport has lower of both than the focus large breed puppy.


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I think that the thought used to be that the higher protein in the PPP was causing dogs to grow too big and have orthopedic problems. Research then indicated that it wasn't the protein but the calcium.

I think if I did it again I'd feed Purina puppy food til about 6 months.

Overweight is Overweight. Protein or Fat or Carbs, calories are calories. You can make the dog fat on crummy WalMart food or Dr. Tims or PPP or Raw Feeding. If the dog is too fat either run him more or feed him less or both.

I feed Purina Pro Plan Focus for 6 months . Switched over to Pro Plan Sport Salmon and Rice . I have a very lean lab good stools , beautiful coat and a high drive . I did have to switch to feeding to 1 time in 24 hrs .He doesn't do good with 2 feedings in a 24 period . That where I rely on the high fat content to come in .