What is an adapted diet for puppies?

A specific food for puppies contains more proteins than an adult dog food because proteins are required for the synthesis of all new tissues (muscles, skeleton, skin and coat, etc.). If puppies do not get enough protein, or if the proteins do not provide all the indispensable amino acids, the growth will be altered. 

A high-protein diet helps to maintain the puppy’s good health. Proteins are essential for the support of the immune system. They also encourage satiety and limit overconsumption.

Barf (“Bones and raw food” or “Biologically appropriate raw food”) diets are composed of various sources of meats (chicken wings and necks, beef bones, offals...). The risks associated with the consumption of a Barf diet are numerous and widely documented.

A study found at least one nutritional imbalance in 60% of the Barf diets analyzed: energy deficiency, calcium deficit, imbalance between calcium and phosphorus, frequent deficiencies in trace elements and vitamins especially vitamin D... These diets can be very harmful in growing animals, they can lead to demineralization of the bones, skeletal deformity, fractures…

Regular feeding of poultry bones, even raw ones, may promote constipation due to high mineral content. In addition, dental fractures, perforations, or digestive obstructions are always possible.

Parasitic and bacterial contaminations of Barf diets appear as potentially dangerous both for dogs and for human people. For example, raw meats are important sources of Salmonella, bacteria that can be resistant to several antibiotics and can cause severe gastroenteritis in humans.