Royal Canin Puppy Food by Size: Medium, Maxi and Giant
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Royal Canin names its puppy foods by the weight your dog will be as an adult, not by how big the puppy is today. That is the key to reading the range. This review covers four products from the Amazon.co.uk listings: Medium and Giant dry foods, and Maxi and Medium wet pouches. Nothing here comes from our own testing, so everything below comes from the listings and the maker's own descriptions.
Reading the size names
The listings give two of the weight bands. Medium puppies are expected to reach 11 to 25kg as adults, and Maxi puppies 26 to 44kg. Royal Canin's "Maxi" is what other brands tend to call "large", and "Giant" sits above that. If you are unsure which band your puppy falls into, your vet can estimate adult weight, and our guide to puppy food by breed size sets out the thinking.
The dry foods
Royal Canin Medium Puppy comes in a 10kg bag, and the listing says it covers growth from weaning until 12 months. The product description claims a high energy content (4190 kcal/kg) and 32% protein, plus an adapted calcium and phosphorus balance. Ingredients are led by dehydrated poultry meat and animal fats, then wheat flour, maize flour, maize and dehydrated pork protein. The listing gives a feeding example of 200 to 300g a day for a 10kg dog, in two or three meals. It shows 4.6 out of 5 from 526 ratings at the time of writing.
Royal Canin Giant Puppy is a 15kg bag for giant breed puppies aged 2 to 8 months. The listing says it is tailored to a period of intense growth, helps limit excess weight gain, and has precise levels of calcium and phosphorus. The panel starts with dehydrated poultry meat, rice, vegetable protein isolate, maize and animal fats, and includes fish oil and hydrolysed cartilage. The directions say to follow your vet's feeding instructions and to move to Royal Canin Giant Junior at 8 months. The listing shows 4.3 out of 5 from 699 ratings.
There is also a Maxi dry puppy food in the range. The wet-food listings mention it, but it is not one of the products we have details for, so we have not covered it.
The wet pouches
The two wet products are complete wet foods for young dogs in gravy, sold in 140g pouches. The Maxi version comes in a pack of 40 pouches, for up to 15 months, and the listing gives the Maxi adult weight band as 26 to 44kg. It shows 4.6 out of 5 from 132 ratings. The Medium version comes in a pack of 20 pouches, for puppies up to 12 months, and shows 4.9 out of 5 from only 21 ratings, which is too small a sample to lean on.
Both listings describe an antioxidant complex including vitamin E to support the developing immune system, and digestion-supporting nutrients. The Maxi description says it has a moderate energy content to suit large-breed puppies. The Maxi pouches and the Medium pouches list neither an ingredient panel nor analytical figures in the text we have, so read the pack for those.
Mixing wet and dry
Royal Canin's own descriptions say each wet food is also available as a dry kibble, and that if you are mixing the two you should follow the feeding guidelines so the total is right. That is the practical rule: count wet and dry together in the daily amount, rather than adding pouches on top. Our guide to mixing wet and dry food shows how to do the sums.
Where to be cautious
- The listings are untidy. The Maxi wet listing has spec fields that do not match its title, including a different brand name, a "can" container and a Turkey flavour, and the Medium wet listing shows both 20 pouches and a "24 count". Go by the title and the description, and check the pack size before buying.
- Allergens. The Medium dry food lists wheat, the Giant dry food lists fish and soy, and the Maxi wet listing flags gluten and salmon. If your puppy has a known sensitivity, check the pack against your vet's advice.
- Narrow windows. The Giant dry food only covers 2 to 8 months, so you will be buying another product within a few months.
- Bulk. A 15kg bag, or 40 pouches, is a lot to store.
- Running cost. Pouches and kibble work out differently per day. Divide the pack price by the days it lasts at the recommended amount to compare, and check the current price on Amazon.
Which one to buy
Choose the dry food that matches your puppy's expected adult weight, and treat the wet pouches as an optional extra rather than a requirement. Medium Puppy suits a puppy that will end up in the 11 to 25kg band, and Giant Puppy suits the very largest breeds. For a large puppy between those two, look at the Maxi dry food on the pack, and see our page on large and giant breed puppy food for other options. Whichever you pick, change foods gradually and ask your vet to check your puppy's growth.
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