Originally posted by MariaM
Ok thanks everyone. But what exactly *is* BHA/BHT?
I'll quote what's listed on Jordan's site:

"BHA (Butylated Hydroxysanisole) & BHT (Butylated Hydroxytoluene) - Often seen together, these carcinogenic chemical preservatives have been known to cause cancer, tumors, epilepsy, kidney failure, and a number of other things. A dog who eats food containing one or both of these has a 60% chance of developing urinary stones."

There's alot more listed on the site but.. don't feel bad if you can't change his food. By all means, feed him whatever you and your family can afford and what he does well on. My best friend has an older Golden (I think 12?) who has been fed Pedigree all her life. No problems what so ever. But then again, I've fed a couple of feed grade foods (Eukanuba and Nutro) and didn't get the same results with my dogs. So look around. If he does well on something and you guys are happy with it, stick with it.

Some people feed their dogs adult foods straight from puppy hood. Kai's breeder recommended this but I think I mistakened it for lack of knowledge. Puppy food is loaded with stuff that helps the dog grow faster. Growing too fast in larger breeds can lead to problems with the bones. I think I've read on a dane listing that alot of the owners feed adult formula right away so they can grow slowly and keep the stress on their bones minimal.

edit:
Here's what I found on Jordan's site.
When to stop feeding puppy food... A highly controversial subject. Believe it or not, puppy food does more harm than good. A dog's growth should be very slow, or else a dog may end up with bone problems. Puppy food is loaded with extra nutrients that can make your dog grow at a very fast rate and also make your dog end up with severe bone problems, such as dysplasia. Dog food companies will tell you that a puppy needs these extra nutrients to grow properly -- but these nutrients don't make a puppy grow properly at all; just faster. Most breeders won't recommend feeding puppy food beyond the age of eight weeks.