Posts Tagged ‘New Food’
Maybe you are changing from puppy food to an adult dog food or maybe you are changing from a regular dog food to a special diet food. What ever the reason, you need to know how to change your dog’s diet is a way that will be best for your dog and better for you as well. Sudden change in dogs’ diet often results in such stomach upset that bad gas, vomiting, and diarrhea occur. This is obviously not good for your dog. Not only is he not getting vital nutrients that he needs, but he can easily become dehydrated. The possibility of dehydration is higher according to the dog’s size. Smaller dogs, like babies, dehydrate faster than larger dogs. This is scary, since dehydration can lead to your dog’s death.
Any change in your dog’s main diet must be done gradually, over a week’s time. In addition to the above mentioned changes, changes can be something as simple as changing from one brand of dog food to another or changing from a hard food to a soft food. Plan the change in advance. For simplicity, this change is described in terms of feeding a small dog (10lbs or so). Make sure you have at least ½ of a small bag of your dog’s current dog food on hand and purchase the new dog food.
· Day 1: Mix ¾ c of the current food with ¼c of the new food.
· Day 2: Same as Day 1.
· Day 3: Mix ½ c of the current food with ½c of the new food.
· Day 4: Same as Day 3.
· Day 5: Mix ¼ c of the current food with ¾ c of the new food.
· Day 6: Same as Day 5.
· Day 7: You can now give your dog only the new food.
If your dog shows signs of stomach upset at any time, go back to the previous step and repeat for a couple more days. For Example: On Day 3 your dog develops diarrhea not long after eating; you would go back to mixing ¼ c of current food with ¾ c of new food for the next couple of days, then proceed with the next step. For larger dogs, the ratios should remain the same, no matter how much they eat.
Slowing Their Eating Style
Your dog may have a number of reasons for eating his food too fast. Often, other household pets and/or children are the cause. If you have these factors, your dog may be eating so quickly as an act of resource guarding (or food protection). They think that they have to hurry and eat or someone else will get their food. It may be true; your other animals may come in and eat food before the others can. To remedy this (whether it’s due to other pets or due to children), you will need to teach all of your dogs about sharing. Once the dog learns to share, he will not be as worried about missing out on food because he will understand that there will always be enough food to meet his needs.
It may also be that your dog is just a fast eater. This is much the same in some children, but just as dangerous. Choking is always a hazard when food is taken into the body and gulped without proper chewing. In this case, you will need to teach your dog to slow down. Here are a few tips to try that can help you teach this lesson:
· Get a large ball that is fairly heavy, enough so that he cannot knock it out of his food bowl very easily. Put the ball in the center of his dish and put his dog food around it. This way he will have to eat around the bowl and cannot grab huge mouthfuls at once and will force him to eat more slowly.
· Get an old cookie sheet and spread his dog food all over it. By spreading it out, he can only get smaller bites, which forces him to eat slower.
· Use your hands. Feed him a handful of food at a time, making him eat it out of your hands. Of course you won’t want to do this with moist food (yuck!). Make him wait between handfuls and he will eventually learn to eat slower.
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Food allergies are not exclusive to humans, but they can be difficult to diagnose in pets, especially when dog food allergies appear to manifest quickly. The biggest problem of course, is the pet’s inability to communicate the symptoms effectively, and they are many times confused with other ailments.
Symptoms of dog food allergies may include excessive scratching, hair loss, skin infections as well as ear infections. Most times antibiotics used for skin infections will clear them up briefly, but they will reoccur when the antibiotics are stopped. An animal with itchy skin that does not seem to improve with the use of antihistamines or steroids, may be suffering from food allergies.
There is also a difference between food allergies and food intolerance. An intolerance to certain foods may cause symptoms such as diarrhea or frequent bowel movements and vomiting. Fortunately, whether the animal is suffering from food Allergy or food intolerance, once the proper diagnosis has been made, they can both be treated.
Since most dog food is made from beef, chicken, wheat, eggs, soy and dairy products, it should be no surprise that most food allergies are caused by one of these ingredients. When pet food companies began producing lamb and rice formulations, many dog allergies seemed to disappear. Most veterinarians agree that it is not because of something special in the lamb and rice formula that reduced the incidences of food allergies in dog , rather it is the fact that the dog’s diet was changed and the animal has not developed an intolerance for the new food.
Dietary Change To Test For Food Allergies
Once other causes have been ruled out, such as flea bite allergies, intestinal parasites, yeast or bacterial infections a dietary change may be needed to reduce the symptoms of dog food allergies. A new food source containing protein and carbohydrate should be the only diet of the pet for at least 12 weeks to determine which of the ingredients in their old pet food was causing the allergic reaction.
The food source must be completely different from what the animal was used to and cannot be supplemented with treats or other types of food if the test is to be effective. Once it has been determined the pet is not having an adverse reaction to the new diet, different foods can be added to help develop a more diverse diet. However, any addition must go through the same test procedures and if any reaction is noted, the new addition will need to be eliminated.
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With so much in the news about contaminated commercial dog food, I have started making home made dog food for my two beloved girls, Lady and Lola. Of course the number one natural ingredient in healthy safe dog food is meat.
Did you know dogs need and enjoy the fresh addition of vegetables to their daily diet? My dogs love mashed carrots in there freshly cooked meat as it is naturally sweet.
Rice or pasta mixed in with the meat and vegetables every day is not just used as filler and in proper proportion makes a healthy nutritious diet. Proper nutrition is a healthy mix of meat, vegetables and grain every day, made with fresh healthy food that your or I would eat. There are many resorses available on the internet for more information and healthy dog food recipes.
We have been told that feeding dogs our food is bad for them for so long that it has become an unsubstantiated part of our beliefs. We have actually come to believe and trust that commercial dog food with additives, toxins and all sorts of preservatives is better than home made healthy dog food. There is startling and upsetting information in the news on what we have been really feeding our beloved pets.
Before you start making healthy, home made dog food you must be aware that there are certain human foods that are toxic and can make your dog sick or worse, Most people know about chocolate being bad, but did you know that onions and raisins or grapes can harm you pet.
Always check with your vet before starting your pet on a completely new diet. Slowly introduce new food to your pet, and always make sure your know how much they require according to their size. You can ask your vet for the proper feeding schedule.
By making home made treats you can control the calories and reduces obesity in your pet, and he/she will not even know they are on a diet because the treats are so delicious. Your dog will live longer. Your pet will become healthier and this will show in the gleaming coat and fresher breath. Because you are not adding sugar, salt and fat to your home cooked recipes, you can help an overweight pet lose weight.
A chemical free diet can be nothing but an improvement over what we now know is being put in a lot of the commercial dog food. I know I have seen major changes in my two special girls and you will also with a healthy diet fed regularly to your pet.
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Check out my main site at : www.recipes4gourmetdogs.com to see what my pets favorite recipes are. I also have special treat recipes that are healthy, nutritious, and easy to make.
Here is what you need to do to ensure a smooth transition to a new dog food:
Day One: Start by mixing your old brand with the new brand in a ratio of 3/4 to 1/4 – the smaller amount representing the new brand. Do this for three days.
Day Four: After your dog has eaten the 3/4 to 1/4 mixture for three days, graduate to half and half for another three days.
Day Eight: For the last three days, go to a 3/4 to 1/4 mixture, only this time the smaller amount is the old brand of food.
By the end of the 12 days, your dog should be ready to eat the new food on its own.
If your dog is currently on a special diet, consult with your vet first before switching to a different brand of dog food.
One of the most important parts of keeping your dog healthy is to make sure his mouth and teeth are cared for. Proper oral hygiene is critical for dogs of all ages. And the older your dog gets, the more important it is to keep plaque and tartar off the teeth. In fact, not caring for your dog’s teeth is a much bigger deal than just yellow teeth or bad breath. It can lead to serious health problems. A positive step toward this very important aspect of maintaining your dog’s dental health is feeding healthy treats such as Gourment Dental Treats from HealthyPetNet.
Oral Problems
Plaque: Dogs usually don’t get cavities. They are more prone to plaque and tartar build-up on the teeth.
Tartar: If plaque is not removed, tartar forms. Tartar irritates the gums and can lead to damage of the gums called gingivitis. Gingivitis manifests itself as reddening of the gums closest to the teeth.
Periodontitis: If tartar is not removed, it builds up under the gums. It separates the gums from the teeth to form pockets leading to more bacterial growth. If left untreated, this could lead to damage of the teeth called periodontitis. Veterinarians can slow or stop this process.
Home care for your dog’s teeth:
Routinely examine your dog’s mouth. Warning signs of tartar build-up are bad breath, red and swollen gums, a yellow-brown crust of tartar around the gum line, pain or bleeding when you touch the gums or brush the teeth.
Use chew toys specifically designed for dental health. Brush your dog’s teeth according to your vet’s instructions.
Proper diet: Feed your dog healthy food and treats. HealthyPetNet distributes some excellent products. They have a dental treat that contains Microdent, a patented plaque fighting ingredient used in human oral hygiene products that is clinically proven to reduce plaque and freshen breath. Microdent helps reduce plaque buildup by forming a coating in the mouth that helps make mouth surfaces to slick that plaque won’t stick. This triple action formula also contains calcium for strong bones and teeth and parsley for fresh breath. The dental treats are made in a small bakery especially for HealthyPetNet.
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