Dog and Puppy Feeding Tips
I totally recommend making home made food for your dog, that is if you have the time to do so. You have to ensure that the recipes that you use have accurate ratio's of nutrients plus the supplements and vitamins that you will have to add.
Here is a recommended breakup of what a typical meal should consist of for your dog. There should be no less than 18% protein at adult stage. Fat should be kept to a minimum of about 5% and up to 8% when they are reproducing. A higher fat content will make the dog eat less as he will feel full. The problem with this is that if they eat less ,then they will be missing out on other things like vitamins, minerals and proteins
In general terms, commercial dog food is produced to meet these guidelines but its important to read the label to ensure that large amounts of other foods that are especially high in fat are not added.
Whether you decide to make home style food for your dog or yo decide to go the commercial route, then there are a few tips to think about so you don't create a fussy food eating dog.
- you should aim to feed your dog only once a day once they enter adulthood. Alternatively, you can opt for two small meals. One in the morning and one in the evening. If you feed your dog too frequently when he is older, he will become full and seem like he is being fussy
- feeding regularly can also put your dog into the routine of expecting food frequently therefore this can lead to weight gain. In fact doing the opposite, i.e. letting him go hungry by feeding him less frequently is not always a bad thing. Dogs would only eat once a day until full in the wild where food was available. But please note, its important that you do feed your dog at least daily. It would be cruel to not do so.
- Once his meal is prepared and left for him, let him be and don't hover around waiting for him to eat. He might feel uneasy that your watching him and not eat at all.
- If your dog refuses their meal, don't give in and offer him something else. He must eat what you give him and at the time you want him to eat. If you give in, then you are teaching him that its OK to not eat his food and that he will get a more favorable replacement.
- I totally recommend varying your dogs diet but don't change the food constantly because he isn't eating it. Once you have ruled out any illnesses or health issues then you must start teaching him to eat in the alloted time. Count about 20 or so minutes once you put down his food. Come back after this time and remove the food whether he has eaten it or not. By continuously doing this you are in fact teaching him to eat his food at the time you specify. He will soon learn that dinner time is for eating and not for playing. I must stress the point once again that if your dog suddenly goes off his food then he may have stomach or other health issues and it wouldn't hurt to get him checked out by your vet.
- Dogs, just like people have preferences. As it is important that he eats the food that you give him, you must also realize that its better to give your dog something that he actually likes and no I don't mean feeding him treats for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Try different brands and flavors to see what he prefers.
- And finally the big no-no's in terms of feeding your dog is try not to feed them food that are high in fat, junk food, garlic and don't give them chocolate as it could kill them.