Feeding adult food short term?

Please please don't blast me with "If I can't afford a dog I shouldn't have one". I have already berated myself plenty this morning. Amber (or any of my other animals) has never ever gone without.

As some of you know, due to my on-going divorce and my boyfriend struggling with finding work, our money situation is... not brilliant. We've made savings in as many places as we can and we're dealing with the CCCS to try to get sorted out until my OH finds a job. My OH is trying to sell his motorbike, which will mean that we can pay some things off completely.

We took on Amber with the understanding that my soon-to-be-ex husband would be taking our African Grey Parrot (having threatened me with court for "custody") and that my boyfriend and I would quit smoking (we have ). The combined saving was (in theory) more than enough to pay for anything our puppy might need. I've also turned my horse away at grass for six months, having been unsucceful in trying to loan him out, which has reduced our outgoings by another £100 a month, but we won't see any benefit from that until next month.

For the last few months we have made it work, except my ex seems to be in no hurry to give me £250 for the parrot's cage and I am not prepared to part with her until he comes up with the money. I paid £500 for the bird and cage while my ex was refusing to work the first time around, and I know if I just hand her over, I will never see any of the money and I'm sick to death of financing the things he wants because he refuses to get a job. We buy all the animal feed in large sacks to last a couple of months, and have a rota so that we buy for half the animals one month, and the other half the next - it works out at about £30 a month in total that way (my mum pays for Sam's food).

This month has all just gone to pot . To begin with, I let myself get harrassed into making a £70 payment that I couldn't afford, even though the CCCS has insisted that I must only offer £1 and stick to it.
Then, I went to the feed store to buy Amber another sack of feed and my card was declined. When I checked my account, I have had almost two hundred pounds in bank charges come out. We're already living on a tight budget, and that money was for pet food, food for us and petrol for my car (I'm disabled so when my car hits 'empty' I'm going to be stuffed). I called the bank to see if there was anything they could do to help me, like an emergency over-draft, but they informed me that there is absolutely nothing they can do. Amber has enough food for another week and a bit, and my OH and I are literally living on those last few tins of things that you find in the back of the cupboard and having meals at a friend's house or my parents as often as they can accommodate us.

I am trying to borrow some money from my mum to tide us over. On the possibility that she isn't going to be able to lend us the money, will it do Amber any harm to have Sam's adult dry food for a couple of weeks? If we add a small portion to her puppy food, we may be able to make it stretch for ten days or so and then wean her back onto it on pay day when I can get another sack of puppy food. I'm just worried that it might do her some harm to go onto an adult feed while she is still growing (she is five months old).

So sorry to hear of your plight - you are evidently doing everything you can - you really deserve to get a break soon.

I'm not a nutritionist and have no idea about dog food against puppy food, all I would say is that there must be 1,000s of dogs who are raised successfully on a lot worse.

I just wrote about this else where, there is nothing that a puppy needs differently, nutritionally speaking, than an adult dog.
Quit feeling guitly, keep doing what you are doing and give your dogs a big hug. At the end of the day you could have given them up, and you haven't, so you have my respect.

Thank you both, that's an enormous weight off my mind!
I don't pretend to be an expert, but I am keen to learn and understand as many aspects of dog care as I can. It's sometimes a bit daunting when you see all these foods for puppies that claim to be the bees knees, or foods for particular breeds, etc.

So much for my decision that 2008 would be a relaxed and stress-free year!

Obviously you care, or you wouldn't be on Dogsey!

Nevermind the dogs for a moment, concentrate on you. If you end up getting ill because of all the stress (I know how easy that is done) then who will look after them?
I know you might think it is ridiculous etc, but for a min, just think right now, right this moment what do you need? Air, love, food.
Right now at this moment, are you ok.
Nevermind 10 mins away, or tomorrow when the post arrives. Just think right now, right now, you are alive, you are well. Be strong and take one moment at a time as it comes. Don't worry about the future, you can't do anything about it by worrying. Take it as it comes...
All the best.x.

I wouldn't worry too much about your puppy being affected by having adult food for a few weeks, there are dogs out there who have never been fed anything good, but who are ok. Someone I know uses the cheapest food on the market & their dogs look brilliant on it.

Much more important is that your dogs are loved & cared for, which I know they are

Just to let you know Dolly has been on adult food since about 10 weeks old!
Becky

Sorry to read of your struggles, and I hope you turn the corner soon. As others have said all sould be ok on the adult food x Wishing you all the very best.

I can only echo what the others have said, your doing your best, for all your animals, some would give up trying and re home.
And tell your x the cage is worth more than 250........ the parrot alone are 500-600 even at a few yrs old, so he is getting her b***** cheap!

Bless you sweetheart, I know how you feel. You dont mention what breed your baby is and I cant remember from previous posts. But whatever she is she'll do just fine short term on adult food.
I'm sure this is a daft thing to say, cos when you've got no money you cant find any at all no matter how little, but Autarky puppy food ( try a local independent stockist) is only 3.75 for 2.5kg and its quite concentrated so depending on her weight it could last a long time. So when you do have 4 quid to spare ( whenever that might be) it may go further than what you are currently feeding and be more cost effective.
Dont worry for now tho she'll be fine. I hope things look up soon.