Keeping a healthy diet

Why a healthy diet is important…

Keeping a healthy diet and a balanced diet is critically important to your dog’s cell maintenance and growth and overall health.

Barring any special needs, illness related deficiencies or instructions from your vet.  Your pet should be able to get all the nutrients he or she needs from high quality commercial pet foods.

All commercial foods should be specially formulated with these standards in mind.

The wrong nutritional balance can cause problems

But dogs of different ages have different nutritional requirements and if the balance is wrong it can cause health problems.  These problems include:

• Obesity.
• Respiratory problems.
• Pancreatitis.
• Diabetes.
• Gastrointestinal Illness (Colitis, Gastroenteritis, etc.)
• Heart disease.
• Cancer.
• Skin & fur conditions.
• Bad breath

Obviously, you nor us want to create any problems for our beloved dogs.

What Factors Impact How Much to Feed a Dog?

Several factors can impact not only how much food to feed your dog, but also what type of food he needs.

• Weight: Maintaining an ideal body condition is important for your dog’s overall health.  A few little changes can make a big difference.  Here at Rose Cottage we are a big fan of Raw food and we can offer advice regarding this.
• Activity Levels: The feeding recommendations on dog food packages are based on average adult dogs with normal activity levels.  If your dog gets a lot of daily exercise by going on daily runs or hikes with you, he may need more calories to sustain his energy. 
• Age: As your dog grows, his nutritional needs change.  If your dog is still a puppy, he needs a puppy food for growth and development. Seniors may benefit from senior formulas that help keep older dogs active and their minds sharp. 

Once you find a complete and balanced food that meets your dog’s individual needs, you can determine how much food to feed him.  The dog feeding chart on the back of his dog food package can help guide you.

How Often Should I Feed My Dog?

Set mealtimes are recommended for most dogs for a variety of reasons.

Keeping mealtimes consistent, as well as the type and amount of food you feed him, helps maintain a routine.

It will also help him maintain both his digestive health and his weight.  Consistent mealtimes can also help prevent accidents in the house.

For most dogs, feeding twice each day is best.  Once in the morning and once in the evening.

Why Does My Dog’s Food Amount Matter?

The right kind of nourishment helps keep your dog healthy.

Overfeeding your dog can cause weight gain, which can lead to joint problems and other health issues.

Keeping portion sizes consistent and appropriate based on his age, weight and activity levels will help him maintain his ideal weight and remain active. 

It can also lead to obesity which can lead to many of the health problems above.  This is something we really need to avoid!!

Obesity in dogs

It may sound obvious, but the simplest way to tell if your dog is eating too much is to check their waist.

Body weight alone is not the only indicator whether your pet is overweight so it’s important to look at their overall shape and take a ‘hands on’ approach.

A healthy dog’s waist should be clearly visible from above (look for an hour-glass shape) and you should be able to easily feel their ribs, hips and spine. Being able to see the last couple of ribs when a dog is moving is indicative of the perfect weight.

If you have to press to feel the ribs or the waist is barely visible, this means that there is a layer of fat covering them and your dog is likely to be overweight.

While owners often worry more about seeing their dogs’ ribs than extra weight, there are more health problems associated with dogs being overweight than lean.

Our top tips for feeding and keeping your dogs healthy:

• Without water to drink, your dog may become seriously ill within hours.  Give your dog constant access to clean drinking water.  
• Your dog needs a well-balanced diet to keep them healthy. Make sure your dog eats a diet suitable for their age, lifestyle and health status.  Why not try our dog food?  
• Feed your dog twice a day, unless advised by your vet
• Most human meals will not provide dogs with the nutrition they need.  Some human foods, such as chocolate and onions, can even be poisonous to dogs.  
• How much your dog needs to eat depend on their diet, lifestyle and health.
• Read and follow the feeding instructions on any dog foods that you buy.  
• Adjust how much you feed your dog to make sure they don’t become under or overweight.  
• If your dog’s eating or drinking habits change, find or call a vet, as your dog could be ill.  
• If you don’t give your dig enough exercise, why not try taking them on our field of freedom, that way they can run to their hearts content.
• Agility paddocks can give great exercise and of course we offer this at Rose Cottage too.

Here at Rose Cottage

We take great care in making sure we feed your dogs the best food we can.  If your dog has special requirements please let us know.

Here at Rose Cottage we only offer health dog treats.  Don’t forget as lovely as it is to give your dogs treats, they can gain weight too.  So be careful, you don’t treat them too much.

What we recommend

If you are unsure on anything then speak to our staff and we would happily make recommendations to you.

Stay safe

If you want to treat your dog, there are sooo many safe ways you can.  Healthy dog treats are available from us and we would love to help you look after your dog and keep them safe.  But spoilt all at the same time!

Join me again for top tips and  information on your dogs health.  Look after your fur babies.