Puppies & Dogs - A Suitable Diet

One of the best ways to achieve this is to feed according to ‘life stage’. This means feeding a different diet according to whether your dog is a puppy, adult or senior dog, because Dogs of different ages have different nutrient requirements. For example, puppies need more calories in their food because they are so energetic.

Several leading brands of commercially available dog food offer different foods for different life stages. This is a good way of ensuring your dog gets the nutrients needed.

Feeding a complete, commercial dog food is normally preferable to a homemade diet. It is not easy to achieve the correct balance of nutrients if formulating your dog’s diet yourself.

Follow the packet feeding guidelines so that you know how much to feed. This might mean weighing the food out a couple of times to check that you’re getting it right. Feeding the right amount of food is important because obesity is the commonest nutritional problem seen by vets and causes health problems such as diabetes, heart disease and painful arthritis.

Feeding treats and scraps, in addition to your dog’s main food, is especially risky. Treats should only be given occasionally, such as when training your dog. Even then your dog’s main meal should be cut down slightly to account for the extra nutrients received in treats.

Puppies are usually ready to eat solid food when they are about five-weeks-old. Initially, they will need four meals a day but this can be reduced to three a day at about 12 weeks. At six months, they can have two meals a day, which can continue for the rest of their life. Some Dogs have just one meal a day, but two are usually preferred and recommended.

Water
Your dog will need constant access to fresh, clean water from a clean bowl.

Food and water bowls
These should be easy to clean. Stainless steel bowls, or heavy pottery ones are fine. It is important to throw out any uneaten food after your dog has finished eating to make sure it doesn’t go stale or mouldy. Replace bowls if they become chipped or cracked.

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