Animal Corner: Diets for Dogs - 7 April
Keeping your Dog Healthy - Diets for Dogs
General
- Nutrition is the cornerstone of health; you are
what you eat
- An appropriate, well balanced diet providing all the essential
levels of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, minerals and vitamins is
crucial for your dog's health.
- The best diet for your dog is one that takes into account the
dogs breed, age, sex, level of exercise, metabolic rate and state
of health.
- Some dogs do best on a good quality commercial; food, some are
better on well balanced homemade diets
- Rule of thumb is to get your veterinarian to assess your dogs'
dietary needs and recommend a suitable food.
Commercial foods
- Poor quality cheap commercial foods often are made from
poor quality ingredients and aren't condusive to good
health.
- Some commercial foods have lots of preservatives, colorings, dyes
and artificial additives which can impact negatively on your dogs
health
- Often they are highly processed which destroys or negatively
changes many of the important vitamins and ingredients (i.e.
essential fatty acids are destroyed with high temperatures used to
dry the foods; proteins and fats are changed with high
temperatures).
- Use only the best quality foods, ideally the super premium ones
with known good quality ingredients and well balanced
formulas.
- Good quality commercial foods are useful if you don't have the
time or inclination to create your own foods, and are reliably
providing all the essential nutrients your dog needs
Homemade foods
- Must know what you are doing, and provide the
correct ratios of proteins etc as well as appropriate supplements
(vitamins and minerals)
- This can be challenging to get it right, but if you do get it
right, you can provide healthy, fresh high quality ingredients
which are ideal for your dog's health.
- Get a good book with recipes and info on supplements, learn about
what nutrients are needed and in what quantities and spend the time
making the foods
- Homemade diets are great if you have the time and inclination to
make them, but not good if you don't provide quality
ingredients or are not supplying the minerals and vitamins required
by your dog
- Supplements can be nutritional yeast (rich vitamin B source),
kelp (rich mineral source) , ground up eggshells (calcium
/Phosphorus source), Vitamin E, Flaxseed or Evening Primrose oils
for essential fatty acids
- Can use raw or lightly cooked meats, grains and veges as well as
raw meaty bones for teeth and jaw exercise.
My recommendations
- Is dependant on what sort of dog you have - make sure
you get your vet to assess your dogs' state of health and
nutritional requirements
- Ideally combine a good quality commercial food for one meal
and a well balanced good quality homemade meal using high quality
meats, grains, veges as well as a well balanced supplement.
