In this review, we’ll look at the best dog food for medium sized breed puppies 2024.
We’ve compared quality of ingredients, nutritional information, and value for money.
Our Best Dog Food
- Calories
- 380 kCal/per 100 g
- Protein
- 29%
- Fat
- 16%
- Fiber
- 3%
- Our Score
Compare Our Recommended Dog Foods
All of our dog food suggestions are carefully selected by professionals. We extensively research the products to check if they’ve been approved by governing bodies before making recommendations. You can read more about our stringent review standards here. And remember, always consult your veterinarian first, before changing your dog’s food.
- Top 5 Ingredients
- Type
- Lifestage
- Calories
- Protein
- Fat
- Fiber
- Cost
- Our score
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- Fresh Chicken (27%)
- Freshly Prepared Salmon (10%)
- Chicken Liver (7%)
- Sweet Potatoes
- Pea Protein
- Dry Food
- Puppy
- 380 kCal/per 100 g
-
29%
29%
-
16%
16%
-
3%
3%
-
Buy now
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-
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- Turkey (36%)
- Brown Rice (26%)
- Whole Grain Barley (14%)
- Maize Protein
- Rapeseed Oil
- Dry Food
- Puppy
- Not Listed
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29.5%
29.5%
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12.5%
12.5%
-
3%
3%
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Buy now
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-
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- Chicken Meat (16%)
- Chicken Meal (13%)
- Turkey Meal (13%)
- Red Lentils
- Green Peas
- Dry Food
- Puppy
- Not Listed
-
33%
33%
-
20%
20%
-
5%
5%
-
Buy now
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- Salmon (27%)
- Dried Chicken (21%)
- Chicken (10%)
- Sweet Potato
- Potato
- Dry Food
- Puppy
- Not Listed
-
28%
28%
-
19%
19%
-
3%
3%
-
Buy now
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- Chicken (67%)
- Chicken Mince (8%)
- Potato Starch (8%)
- Peas (8%)
- Poultry Oil (3%)
- Dry Food
- Puppy
- Not Listed
-
39%
39%
-
22%
22%
-
4%
4%
-
Buy now
-
In-Depth Reviews
Lily’s Kitchen Complete Puppy Dry Dog Food review
At a Glance
- Top 5 Ingredients:
- Fresh Chicken (27%)
- Freshly Prepared Salmon (10%)
- Chicken Liver (7%)
- Sweet Potatoes
- Pea Protein
- Type: Dry Food
- Lifestage: Puppy
- Calories: 380 kCal/per 100 g
- Protein: 29%
- Fat: 16%
- Fiber: 3%
Lily’s Kitchen Puppy Recipe is a highly recommended diet that is well designed to support medium breed puppies through each phase of their development. The foundation of this top tier puppy food is chicken and salmon, two proteins that are rich in the amino acids puppies require for healthy muscle development. Salmon oil plays a starring role in this diet to boost the amount of essential fatty acids in this diet, providing additional support for brain and vision development and coat and skin health. Also found in this food are glucosamine and chondroitin to promote optimal joint functionality in growing medium breed pups.
Prebiotic fiber has been included in this food to assist with good digestion in puppies. Lily’s Kitchen Puppy Recipe, often recommended as one of the best dog foods for medium breed puppies today, contains no grains in its formulation. This diet is rich in fruits and vegetables that contribute the dietary fibre and antioxidants puppies need for good digestion and a healthy immune system. To ensure suitability for pups with sensitive stomachs or allergies, Lily’s Kitchen Puppy Recipe contains no fillers, wheat, maize, or soya.
Pros:
- Lily’s Kitchen Puppy Recipe contains no grains. Its formulation is ideal for medium breed puppies suffering with sensitive stomachs or allergies.
- Three proteins form the basis of this diet: chicken, chicken liver, and salmon. These meats are lean and easy for puppies to digest. In addition to these properties, these proteins ensure this food has sufficient amino and essential fatty acids to support optimal health and wellness in developing medium breed puppies.
- A premium quality puppy food, this diet prioritizes the use of ingredients that are 100% natural for optimal nutritional value.
Cons:
- Pea protein, whole lentils, and whole peas are included in large quantities in this puppy food. These ingredients are the subject of some controversy today and may not be of sufficient nutritional quality to support the needs of growing medium breed puppies.
- Potato protein features prominently in this food, a vegetable that contributes excessive to starch causing rapid spikes in blood sugar in puppies. Unfortunately, potato protein has only very limited nutritional content to contribute to the medium breed puppy’s diet.
- Some owners felt Lily’s Kitchen Puppy Recipe is a little on the expensive side though all agree it offers medium breed puppies premium quality nutrition.
Wainwright’s Puppy Complete Dry Food with Turkey and Rice review
At a Glance
- Top 5 Ingredients:
- Turkey (36%)
- Brown Rice (26%)
- Whole Grain Barley (14%)
- Maize Protein
- Rapeseed Oil
- Type: Dry Food
- Lifestage: Puppy
- Calories: Not Listed
- Protein: 29.5%
- Fat: 12.5%
- Fiber: 3%
One of the best dog foods for medium breed puppies available for purchase today, Wainwright’s Puppy Complete has been designed specifically to address each phase of a puppy’s development as it grows. This particular formula places a high emphasis on ingredients that are suitable for pups with sensitive stomachs or allergies. There are no wheat or combined wheat proteins included in this diet’s formulation.
Turkey is the foundational ingredient of this powerhouse puppy food, providing ample servings of the amino acids puppies need as they grow. A grain-inclusive diet, Wainwright’s Puppy Complete places a high emphasis on the use of whole grains to promote the dietary fibre content puppies require for ideal digestion. The correct ratio of calcium to phosphorous has been included in this diet to ensure the ideal growth rate in medium breed puppies.
Wainwright’s Puppy Complete has been rated as suitable for puppies aged 2 to 18 months old.
Pros:
- Yucca has been added to this food formulation to reduce unpleasant stool odours.
- The inclusion of turkey as the main protein in this diet ensures this food is rich in amino acids. Turkey is a lean meat of exceptional quality that is easy for puppies to break down and process well.
- Owners like that this diet is grain-inclusive, feeling it lays an excellent foundation for good digestion in growing medium breed puppies.
Cons:
- Some owners dislike that this diet contains grains, feeling it makes this food unsuitable for puppies suffering with food sensitivities and allergies.
- Maize protein is a less than optimal ingredient, offering extremely limited nutritional benefits for puppies. In addition to this, some puppies may be allergic to maize protein as it is a common allergen for many dogs.
- A few owners expressed concern that perhaps this food’s recipe had recently changed as their puppies were no longer doing as well on it as they once had.
Acana Puppy and Junior Dog Food review
At a Glance
- Top 5 Ingredients:
- Chicken Meat (16%)
- Chicken Meal (13%)
- Turkey Meal (13%)
- Red Lentils
- Green Peas
- Type: Dry Food
- Lifestage: Puppy
- Calories: Not Listed
- Protein: 33%
- Fat: 20%
- Fiber: 5%
Acana Puppy and Junior Dog Food is an exceptional quality diet that is considered to be one of the best dog foods for medium breed puppies available for purchase today. This diet includes a finite list of top tier ingredients, making it an excellent choice for puppies with food sensitivities or allergies. Each ingredient included in Acana Puppy and Junior is locally sourced and organic if possible to ensure the ultimate in nutritional quality. Chicken from Canada is the foundation of this diet, a meat that is lean and easy for puppies to digest.
A grain-free food formulation, Acana Puppy and Junior includes high fibre and antioxidant-rich fruits and vegetables in its carbohydrate profile to ensure ample support for good digestion and a healthy immune system. This top tier puppy food is free from artificial flavours, colours, preservatives, tapioca, and potato.
Pros:
- Owners expressed they are pleased with the size of the kibble pieces found in this food, expressing they felt they were appropriate for small to medium breed puppies.
- Most puppies had excellent digestion and good stool quality when fed a consistent diet of Acana Puppy and Junior.
- Cranberries play a starring role in this diet’s recipe, providing support for kidney and urinary health.
Cons:
- This Acana puppy food contains red lentils, green peas, yellow peas, and pea fibre. Each of these ingredients is considered to be controversial, contributing limited nutritional benefit and potentially affecting future fertility rates in adult dogs.
- No probiotics have been included in this recipe to assist with optimal digestive processing in puppies.
- Unfortunately, Acana Puppy and Junior is no longer available in resealable bags. Some owners expressed that this made it difficult for them to keep the food fresh for their puppies to enjoy.
Barking Heads Dry Dog Food for Puppies review
At a Glance
- Top 5 Ingredients:
- Salmon (27%)
- Dried Chicken (21%)
- Chicken (10%)
- Sweet Potato
- Potato
- Type: Dry Food
- Lifestage: Puppy
- Calories: Not Listed
- Protein: 28%
- Fat: 19%
- Fiber: 3%
For a top tier diet that truly helps growing puppies to thrive, it’s hard to go wrong with Barking Heads Puppy Days. Often rated among the best dog foods for medium breed puppies today, Barking Heads Puppy Days is well-renowned for its exceptional flavour, encouraging even the most reluctant of puppies to eat with hearty gusto. This diet is based on two lean and easily digestible proteins: chicken and salmon. The amino and essential fatty acids found in these premium quality meats offer a bountiful supply of nutrients growing puppies need for optimal brain and eye development and coat and skin health.
A grain-free food, Barking Heads Puppy Days’ formulation includes none of the most common dog allergies such as soya, wheat, maize, artificial flavours, colours, and preservatives. To boost joint health in growing puppies, glucosamine and chondroitin have been included in this recipe. Salmon oil provides additional reserves of omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids to support ideal coat and skin health, brain and eye development, and good levels of energy in growing puppies.
Pros:
- Owners are pleased that this diet is completely free from grains, making it a good selection for puppies with food sensitivities or allergies.
- The two main ingredients in this food are chicken and salmon, lean meats of exceptional quality that are easy for puppies to digest and provide a powerhouse punch of nutrients to support optimal growth rates.
- Joint health is boosted through the addition of glucosamine and chondroitin in this exceptional quality diet.
Cons:
- A few owners felt this diet was quite costly but were pleased with its excellent nutritional quality, expressing it was worth the added expense.
- There are no prebiotics or probiotics added to this food formulation to provide added support for optimal digestion in medium breed pups.
- Both peas and potatoes play important roles in this diet. These ingredients are controversial today, potentially being linked to such health problems as rapid elevations of blood sugar levels and poor fertility rates in adult dogs.
Applaws Natural Dry Puppy Food review
At a Glance
- Top 5 Ingredients:
- Chicken (67%)
- Chicken Mince (8%)
- Potato Starch (8%)
- Peas (8%)
- Poultry Oil (3%)
- Type: Dry Food
- Lifestage: Puppy
- Calories: Not Listed
- Protein: 39%
- Fat: 22%
- Fiber: 4%
Applaws Puppy Food for Small/Medium Breed Puppies is a top shelf food formulation designed to assist growing puppies through each phase of their development. A diet that prioritises the use of all natural ingredients, Applaws Puppy Food is one of the best dog foods for small to medium breed puppies on the market today. This premium performance diet has been specifically formulated with pups suffering from food sensitivities in mind. It is completely free from sugar and is ideal for supporting the correct weight in growing pups.
Salmon oil contributes a powerhouse punch of omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids to ensure optimal brain and eye development and coat and skin health in medium breed puppies. This diet contains no grains but includes both prebiotic and probiotic fibre in its recipe to boost healthy digestion and encourage healthy gut flora to thrive.
Pros:
- Owners are pleased that this diet focuses on a list of ingredients that are easily digestible and unlikely to trigger food sensitivities in puppies.
- Chicken and chicken mince are the two primary ingredients in this food. These proteins are easy for puppies to digest, flavourful, and rich in amino acids to support healthy muscle growth.
- This diet is grain-free, making it a good choice for puppies with sensitivities to grains.
Cons:
- Some owners expressed their puppies disliked the taste of this food and would not eat it.
- Potato starch and peas are both included in this formula, ingredients of limited nutritional value and that may be connected to rapid elevations of blood sugar levels and poor fertility rates in adult breeding dogs.
- A few owners indicated this food was difficult to find in their local stores. However, it can be ordered online for delivery to your home.
How to Select the Best Dog Food for Medium Breed Puppies
Puppies of a medium size have unique nutritional requirements that must be met to support their ideal growth. Medium breed puppies grow at a slightly different rate to small breed puppies, reaching their full adult size by the time they are 12-18 months of age. Pups of this size should be fed the best dog food for medium sized puppies throughout their puppy years. Adult formulations have different ratios of ingredients which can negatively impact the puppy’s growth if transitioned too early.
It is very important to first determine how much food your medium breed puppy should receive in day. Once you have determined the total amount, it can then be broken down into meals fed at intervals appropriate for the puppy’s age. Here is a basic recommendation indicating how many meals a medium breed pup should receive on a daily basis:
- Age 8-12 weeks: four meals per day
- 12 weeks-6 months: three meals per day
- 6-12 months: two meals per day
To find out what portion size your puppy’s meals should be, the bag of food you have selected should provide helpful starting points. The servings indicated on the side of your bag of food will be based on weights, ages, and amounts. Use these as a starting point, you can then make adjustments until you find the correct portion size. Your puppy’s activity level, body condition, and appetite will all serve as helpful guides for you in this process.
One of the key components to look for in a dog food for medium breed puppies is that it contains the correct ratio of calcium to phosphorous. When included in the proportions of 1.2 units of calcium for each unit of phosphorous, the ideal rate of growth for medium breed puppies is encouraged because this ratio is in proper balance.
The ideal diet for medium breed puppies is well-balanced nutritionally and contains approximately 22 percent protein and 8 percent fat.
Choosing the Correct Calorie Count for Medium Breed Puppies
In order to grow at an appropriate rate, it is very important that medium breed puppies receive the correct number of calories for their age, activity level, and weight. The best dog foods for medium breed puppies are very rich in calories, allowing the puppy to consume a smaller amount of food while maintaining dense nutritional quality required for a healthy body. To ensure the medium breed puppy does not become overweight, all meals should be carefully measured, and free feeding should be discouraged.
Medium breed puppies most often really enjoy their food and can easily become overweight if overfed or not sufficiently exercised. When this happens, the puppy experiences excess strain on its joints and muscles which could lead to permanent structural problems down the road. Monitoring all food and treats given to the puppy is the best way to ensure your pup stays at an ideal weight.
Dog Food Dietary Requirements for Medium Breed Puppies
Balance is key when it comes to a healthy diet for growing puppies. The best dog foods for medium breed puppies should be properly nutritionally balanced and based on ingredients of exceptional quality. Some owners opt to prepare a raw or cooked diet for their puppies, feeling this approach is the best to ensure optimal health and wellness as their puppies grow. However, there are many commercially prepared diets of excellent quality that can well meet your puppy’s nutritional needs if fed in sufficient quantities.
Puppies require the same nutritional elements adult dogs do; however, the proportion of each of these components should be different since adults and puppies have different needs. A high quality meat protein should form the basis of any diet for a medium breed puppy. Whole meats or meat meals are the gold standard choice, providing a powerhouse punch of the amino acids required for healthy muscle development.
Plant-based proteins such as soya, maize, and wheat are of far lower nutritional quality, and thus, should be avoided in a diet for the medium breed puppy. In addition to this, many of these ingredients are common allergens for pups and can be hard on a puppy’s digestive system. Other ingredients that should be avoided in a diet for medium breed puppies include fillers, preservatives, artificial flavours, colours, and chemicals of any sort.
Another questionable food ingredient is meat by-products. Meat by-products are sometimes included in pet foods as a cheap source of protein. They are most often taken from pieces of the animal that are unlikely to be used for human consumption because they are difficult to break down, hard to digest, or simply unpalatable. These ingredients are not of sufficient nutritional quality to be included in a diet for medium breed puppies, and thus, are best avoided entirely.
Every top tier puppy food should have a hearty carbohydrate profile to encourage healthy digestion and a strong immune system. Some medium breed puppies do very well on a diet that takes the majority of its dietary fibre from whole grains. However, some puppies cannot process grains well, thriving on a diet that makes use of fruits and vegetables as its main carbohydrate sources. Regardless of whether the carbohydrates in a diet come from fruits, vegetables, whole grains, or a combination of all three, they should provide ample servings of dietary fibre and antioxidants.
All diets require ample servings of healthy fats to encourage optimal coat and skin health, strong reserves of energy, and support for brain and eye development. The best sources for these fats are animal-based and include such foods as chicken fat and salmon oil. Some plant-based oils such as safflower, sunflower, and canola are also excellent sources of the omega 3, 6, and 9 fatty acids medium breed puppies need.
It is always a good idea to look for a diet that includes supplements that can benefit a medium breed puppy as it grows. Among the most helpful supplements to look for in a small breed puppy food are prebiotics, probiotics, glucosamine, and chondroitin.
Though kibble contains little water, canned puppy foods do list a maximum of 78% water in their formulations. Whether you feed kibble, canned food, cooked, or raw, none of these foods contains sufficient amounts of water to meet a puppy’s daily needs. For this reason, puppies should always have plentiful access to clean drinking water to keep their bodies well-hydrated, Proper hydration is key to healthy growth and development.
Things to Look for in the Best Dog Foods for Medium Breed Puppies
In selecting the best dog food for medium breed puppies, here are some guiding principles to keep in mind:
- Meets APHA nutritional requirements for a complete and balanced food
- Free from chemicals, flavours, colours, or other difficult to identify ingredients
- Fortified with beneficial supplements such as prebiotics, probiotics, glucosamine, and chondroitin
- Based on lean meat proteins
- Contains the correct ratio of calcium to phosphorous to promote a healthy rate of growth
- Includes sufficient carbohydrates that are rich in antioxidants and dietary fibre
- Designed with the needs of small breed puppies in mind
