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What large breed puppy food do vets recommend over Blue Buffalo?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Male | neutered | 2 months and 23 days old | 60 lbs

What is a good and recommended dog food brand that is similar to blue buffalo? I was feeding my German Shepard Puppy purina one smart blend puppy food is that good? What about for Great Danes what brand is recommended other than wellness and blue buffalo

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Destini R. Holloway, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on May 13th, 2017

You can ask 3 different vets and probably get 3 different answers when it comes to food recommendation; however, I personally am not a fan of Blue Buffalo because of their high protein content and also their unwillingness to list their complete ingredient list to AAFCO. I trust a couple of brands including Royal Canin (by far my favorite), Hills Science Diet, and California Natural (Innova). I would recommend either of those and it has to be puppy large breed until Timmy turns 1 year of age, at which point he can be switched to the adult food. Purina puppy is ok and is a little lower on the list of high quality brands to choose from. Iams is a step above the Purina in my personal opinion.

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    Answered By Lauren Jones VMD

    Veterinarian

    Published on March 24th, 2017

    Blue Buffalo is a good quality dog food brand, as are Science Diet (I like the Ideal Balance line), Wellness, Royal Canin, Purina ProPlan, etc. The differences in Blue Buffalo and Purina Dog Chow can be found in the types of meats and byproducts used to make the food, the presence of fillers, and sourcing of ingredients. If Purina is the preferred brand, I tend to encourage pet owners to choose from the Purina ProPlan line rather than the basic Dog Chow.

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