I recommend a Premium Dog Food brand that is NOT grain free. If you change food, make sure the transition is gradually to not upset the puppy’s digestive system. For the first 6 months please add probiotics, such as Forti Flora or any other brand.
I prefer to feed my dogs Pruina ProPlan as this food is formulated by certified nutritionists and based on scientific research. It also goes through several quality controls. Stay away from “designer foods” with pretty labels. This is my personal opinion, you can certainly feed another brand. Also, check food brands (treats) for Rosemary extract. Rosemary have found to possibly trigger seizures.
For puppies up to 1 year a puppy food 28g protein, 14 g fat. After a year of age a 26/16 formula maintance food is perfect. Too high protein levels for puppies can cause too fast growth, which has an impact on bones and joints. Unless your teenage, adult dog is a hard working “sled dog” there is no need to feed a sports or high performance food. A good indicator that your dog is at a good weight is, feeling the ribs. If you can feel the ribs with no pressure applied your dog is in perfect shape. Sometimes it can be hard to keep weight on young Belgians. They just burn it off quickly. In that case I would change temporary to higher fat content, such as performance or sport. Dogs that are neutered or spayed tend to gain weight quickly. Once the dogs get over weight, it is pretty hard to get it off. In that case a lower fat diet is better. Feeding the dog less of the same food means the dog gets less vitamins and other nutrition their body needs. It is better to buy a “weight control” food. There are several on the market.
Here some articles about raw food.
Depending where you live in the country you should give your dog heartworm and tick preventions. There are many different products on the market. Your vet will advice you on those medications. NOTE: I would stay away from Bravecto and Nexguard since these medications have caused seizures in certain herding breeds.
For puppies I recommend the 1/2″, 8 – 13 inch Mini Soft Web collars and matching leash from White Pine Outfitters . They don’t break the hair. Also many dog leashes are just heavy and not practical for training. For older puppies and adult Belgians I recommend rolled leather collars. All our puppies are microchipped and enrolled with AKC Reunite. You can buy a flat collar on their website that has already your dog’s information printed on the collar. Advantage is that you don’t have dangling tags. Material is a woven soft material that doesn’t break the hair (I use those). They reduce matting. If the puppy pulls hard consider getting a harness.
Puppy coats tend to lumb. The best tool to brush them are slicker brushes, which you can get in any pet store or on Amazon. For adult coats I recommend a pin brush, such as the brand #1 All Systems 27mm Soft Pin Brush. When the dogs blow their undercoat an undercoat rake is very helpful. Please do not use a Furminator or similar deshedding tools, because they take out way too much coat. Matting occurs often behind the ears and in the breeches. In this case you can use a little bit diluted conditioner and rub it into the mat and then pull it apart with your fingers.
Whenever you brush use a spray bottle and mist the area you are working on. This prevents hair from braking.