11 Feb Changing Dog Food (Part 1)

Dogs aren’t interested in variety in their diet and quality food with all the necessary ingredients is enough for them. But sometimes you may have to change your dog’s diet. For example, you may have to change his diet as he gets older, more or less active, or get some illness. You may even decide to try new food for him. But the problem is that changing the dog’s diet isn’t just putting new food in a container! It has its complexities. Changing dog food should be done in the right way to avoid digestive problems for the dog. In this article, we want to explain the way and method of changing and modifying dog food for you.

Causes to change dog food

Changing dog food isn’t a bad thing and sometimes it may even be necessary. For example:

Aging

As puppies get older, you need to change their diet and give them adult dog food. Because his nutritional needs change. From about seven years old, most dogs are older and it’s better to use adult food for them.

Weight

If your dog is overweight or underweight, your veterinarian may recommend a diet. Of course, sometimes it isn’t necessary to change the type of food, just increase or decrease the amount of food.

Activity amount

Dogs that are outdoors and jump a lot or are very active for work (such as herding dogs) usually need to eat more food to provide energy. In addition, the food of these dogs should usually have more protein and calories. But if such dogs move to a small environment or retire from work, they may need to eat lower calorie foods to avoid gaining weight.

Health or illness

Some foods have special formulas that veterinarians use to help treat certain dog conditions. For example, some digestive problems may cause them to have special nutritional needs. So the veterinarian may prescribe such foods.

The best diet for dogs

For many reasons, we may want to change dog food, But one of the most important reasons is that we want to improve the quality of the dog’s diet. The best diet for dogs is homemade food prepared according to the veterinarian’s diet. Therefore make sure you give him the best and, of course, the most delicious food.

Time to change dog food

• When he malnourished
• If you sterilized him
• he eats his food fast
• eating one type of food for a week

The process of changing dog food

Different foods may contain a variety of substances such as proteins or fibre, as well as beneficial bacteria in the dog’s body that are needed to digest food. The type of digestion of food in dogs’ bodies is different from humans. Therefore, changing the diet suddenly may cause gastrointestinal upset, such as increased appetite, diarrhea, or decreased appetite. This change should be gradual so that the digestive system gets used to the new food. It’s better to change your dog’s diet in 7 to 10 days. During this time, gradually add more of the new food to your previous diet. For most dogs you can use this program:

First and second days

About one-fifth of a dog’s food should be a new homemade diet and the rest of the previous diet. Give the dog this combination on the first and second day. This ratio is maintained for the second day.

Third day

For the third day, eat two-fifths (40%) of the new food and the rest of the previous diet.

Fourth and fifth days

For these two days, combine three-fifths (60%) of the new food in the whole meal.

Sixth and seventh days

On the sixth and seventh day, use four-fifths (80%) of the new food and the rest of the previous food.

Eighth day

On the eighth day, little by little, you can just give him a new diet.

If your dog doesn’t like his new food or has digestive problems, extend this period a little longer. Some dogs that have a sensitive stomach, food allergies or gastrointestinal illnesses may need to change their diet for more than 10 days. The most important thing is to pay attention to the reaction of the dog’s body. If your dog shows symptoms such as loss of appetite or vomiting and diarrhea, you should proceed more slowly. If you change your dog’s diet very slowly, but the dog still has stomach upset, it’s better to consult a veterinarian. Sometimes it may be necessary to choose a completely different diet. Taking some probiotic supplements may also prevent digestive problems as they strengthen the dog’s digestive tract.