I keep ALL my breeding dogs, male and female, on dry puppy food all the time. i also free fed. When my girl is going into her last month, I add a couple of meals a day of wet puppy food. The last two weeks, I add a tablespoon of cottage cheese once a day. I didn't do that with my last litter and had disasstrous results with the mama so I am back to the old tried and true method for me. There are people that don't agree but it is what has worked for me so I'm sticking to it.