Feeding your Dog
There are three diet types used in the pet food industry:
Dry foods are usually a bagged kibble containing 3-11% water.
Canned foods are usually in a solid or soft-sided container with 60-78% water.
Semi-moist foods are usually packaged in pouches with 25-35% water.
Dog foods are generally sold as complete and balanced products.
What makes up a Balanced Diet?
Your dog needs a balance of nutrients in his diet. Dogs have complex nutritional requirements: dogs are known to require 38 nutrients daily. A label indicating that a food is “complete and balanced” means that the food not only contains all of the known nutrients required by the animal but that those nutrients are in proper balance with the energy density of the food and with each other.
Unlike human nutrition where we are encouraged to eat a variety of foods because no one food contains all the nutrients we require, pet food products do contain all of the known nutrients required.
Protein is used to build the body tissues and Carbohydrates provide energy.
Animal fat is important both as an energy source and because it contains essential vitamins like vitamin A. Fat also gives flavour and texture to the food.
There are many other essential ingredients of the diet such as vitamins and minerals
Prior to the commercialization of pet foods, people fed their pets table scraps, leftovers, or meat scraps purchased especially for pets. In addition, pets were generally allowed to hunt and forage for themselves. There was very little control over nutrient content and balanced diets were achieved only by coincidence. Parasitism was much more common due to the prevalence of raw meat in the diet as were food-borne toxins. Most veterinary surgeons agreed that the convenience of buying a pet food already prepared, easy to store, proven to be nutritionally balanced, and safe has been an important factor for the increased life expectancy enjoyed by our pets.
What is the best Diet for my Dog?
All it takes is a visit to the store to be bombarded with pet food brands.There are a wide range of commercially prepared foods to suit your dog's needs. The well known brands are usually formulated to give your dog everything it needs. The best feeding method is one that maintains optimal body weight and condition.
We will be able to give you impartial and well-informed advice on feeding your pet.
Do all Dogs need the same amount of Food?
Dogs come in many shapes and sizes and have very different feeding requirements. Dietary modifications are required by body weight changes in life stage, environment, condition, and disease.
Obviously smaller dogs tend to eat less than bigger ones and workings dogs which take a lot of exercise will need more food than a lapdog. Some dogs do not have good appetites and other breeds, such as the Labrador, are notoriously greedy. Every dog is an individual and any feeding recommendations are only a guide.
Your dog will need different kinds of food at different stage of its life:
The diet should not be changed abruptly; new food should be introduced gradually over 10 days. When changing diets, it is better to offer slightly less than the calculated new food dose. Overindulgence and abrupt changes are frequently the inciting cause of stomach upsets or diet refusal. In dogs, the new food should be introduced slowly by replacing 25% more of the old food every third day until the diet is 100% new. There are several stages during a dog's life when its food needs are greatly differerent. These include:
Pregnancy - A pregnant bitch needs to eat more food to support her unborn puppies. However, feeding recommendations for the pregnant bitch through the first two thirds of gestation (roughly first 6 weeks) are the same as before pregnancy ! A common mistake is to overfeed the bitch during early gestation and to underfeed during lactation. In the last third of gestation, the total amount of food offered may be slightly increased (10-20%) over the amount for maintenance, or the same amount of a growth diet can bet fed. During their first two months puppies grow exceptionally fast. This puts a big strain on the bitch and during the lactation a bitch may need to eat twice as much food as normal. The lactating bitch often requires energy levels 2-4 times those of maintenance to avoid excessive loss of body condition. You may need to feed her more frequently or get a high-energy diet for pregnant bitches to get the balance right (we will be able to advise you on this).
Puppyhood - Try giving some solid food at three weeks and gradually giving more until they eat only solid food at about eight weeks old. Overfeeding during growth increases growth rate, which not only is incompatible with proper skeletal development but also contributes to obesity later in life. Feeding methods for growing puppies should be individualized for the puppy and owner(we will be able to advise you on this). General recommendations are that puppies between weaning and 6 mo of age should be fed at least three times a day; puppies 6-12 mo old should be fed twice daily. Large- and giant-breed puppies should be fed complete and balanced (based on feeding trials) growth diets that contain calcium, fat, and protein closer to the minimum levels stated by the AAFCO. Small-breed puppies may have to be fed more than three times a day using a diet that contains calcium, fat, and protein at levels greater than the minimums stated by the AAFCO. Although there are no published breed growth curves to serve as guidelines, it is now accepted that in large breed a slow growth rate is preferable to a fast growth rate. Weight gains should be closely monitored (weekly), and feeding recommendations adjusted such that the puppy gains a correct amount of weight each week. When growing large-breed puppies were fed 50-70% of their littermate's ad lib intake(as much as they could eat), adult height, length, and bone or muscle mass were not stunted; only total body fat was affected. The first food should be soft and easily digestible so dry food should be soaked in water (preferably) or diluted cow's milk. Some puppies very rapidly loose the ability to digest the sugar part of the milk (lactose) leading to stomach upset. A puppy's stomach is small so it cannot eat large volumes in one go. We recommend putting your puppy on a specially formulated high-energy diet to make sure that it gets a properly balanced diet for growth.
Old age - Older dogs have not been documented to have different nutritional requirements from middle-aged dogs. However, older dog often have decreased appetite and feeding a food with a different fat and fiber content (increased or decreased) may be needed to maintain optimal body weight and condition. Geriatric dogs and cats should be monitored in a preventive health program that includes periodic assessments of body weight and condition. The incidence of chronic degenerative organ disease increases with age, and early diagnosis fosters earlier intervention and effective nutritional management are available for a range of condition such as brain disorders, kidneys and heart diseases,..(we will be able to advise you on this).
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