Choosing your dog’s food is an important decision. It’s the difference between a healthy, happy canine and an itchy, flatulent, miserable one. There’s a huge distinction between living on preservatives & dog food fillers and feeding your dog the best food available for their complete dietary needs.
Your dog’s nutrition can also help prevent some annoyances such as itchy, flakey skin, hair loss, anal gland problems and more. If your dog has allergies, is overweight, underweight, a senior, has kidney problems or is just finicky, there’s a food especially for them.
Finding the perfect dog food can be challenging and is not for the weak of heart. It may take some time and require many experiments, but your dog is worth it.
Be patient. Be diligent. Do some research!
Once you decide to change your dog’s food, do it slowly. Spread it out over a full week. If you change too quickly it’s really tough on their sensitive digestive system & your dog will probably have diarrhea or at the least extremely loose stools. This can be sudden & very messy.
The following method seems to work well for dogs when changing their regular diet:
- Day 1: 90% Old Food, 10% New Food
- Day 2: 80% Old Food, 20% New Food
- Day 3: 60% Old Food, 40% New Food
- Day 4: 50% Old Food, 50% New Food
- Day 5: 40% Old Food, 60% New Food
- Day 6: 20% Old Food, 80% New Food
- Day 7: 100% New Food
You may notice a difference in only 3 days or it may take 3 months to know if the new dog food is the one for your unique dog. I suggest giving new food at least 4-6 months before moving on.
Lack of Nutrition can affect your dog’s health which can include their coat, teeth, ears, nails, breath, energy and brain. Unfortunately it can also affect how long they live and the quality of life they live. All too many times I have seen dogs that have eaten not so healthy food.