Dogs living in their natural environment obtain food independently, while animals kept at home depend entirely on their owners. For the dog to be healthy, fully developed, and boast a spectacular exterior, the owner must provide high-quality, balanced nutrition with sufficient proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins. It is essential to choose the proper diet and know how many times a day to feed your dog, considering its age, health status, and belonging to a particular breed.
Important points
The feeding regime is as essential for the dog as the proper organization of walks. A balanced diet on a schedule ensures normal metabolism, prevents obesity and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, and helps the animal get used to order. Dogs accustomed to eating simultaneously usually do not persistently beg for food and do not pick up food on the street, risking poisoning.
Responsible owners develop a daily diet for their pets and accustom them to a diet from early childhood. Puppies spend more energy than adult dogs; their metabolism is faster, and their portions are smaller, so they should be given food more often. As your pet gets older, the number of meals. Veterinarians advise sticking to two feedings a day for healthy adult dogs. It is desirable that the interval be 11-12 hours and that the regime be convenient for the dog and its owner. The interval between meals may vary if, for example, the dog is sick, pregnant, or nursing puppies. There are peculiarities in feeding elderly and aged animals.
Feeding dogs after a walk is recommended because they go outside hoping to play and run, but it is challenging to be active with a full stomach. For large dogs, feeding before training can even be dangerous. It is highly undesirable to treat your pet before a morning walk. At night, the animal does not have the opportunity to go to the toilet, and it is necessary to empty the bladder and intestines.
How many times a day should you feed your puppy?
Systematic, balanced nutrition of a puppy is the key to its future health, and the regime, in this case, is as essential as the organization of feeding a child. By eating high-quality, satisfying, and on schedule, the baby receives the necessary energy and develops fully and harmoniously physically. The regime allows you to control the puppy’s weight, discipline and teach him order. The pet’s exterior also depends on nutrition because it is formed and formed in the first year of life. Only by following the feeding rules will the owner be able to raise his purebred puppy into a dog that meets all the requirements of breed standards.
Kids in a new home, without a dog or mom, and among strangers, usually experience stress and are confused. Therefore, before you start feeding the puppy on a schedule, it is advisable to give him a couple of weeks to adapt – let him get used to the new place and owner.
If a new household member is only 1-2 months old, he needs to be fed 6-7 times a day at the same time, with an interval of approximately 3.5 hours. The first feeding is at 07:00, and the last is at 21:00-22:00. Your baby must sleep at least seven hours at night. Frequent feeding is required not only because puppies expend a lot of energy. This mode allows you to feed a small pet in small doses, limiting the load on the stomach, which cannot yet digest a large amount of food.
Pets are gradually transferred to the classic two-meal regimen, taking into account their size and sometimes breed. Small dogs develop faster and are ready to transition to the “adult schedule” earlier than representatives of medium and large breeds.
Puppies can be natural or dry food, but mixing them is not recommended. In the first case, the owner will have to create a diet independently and calculate the proportions strictly according to the weight and age of the pet. In the second case, the baby follows the instructions on the product packaging. Specialized stores sell varied dry food with a balanced composition, developed separately for dogs of different ages, weights, and breeds. Veterinarians advise buying super-premium or holistic food for growing children.
Soak dry food in water until the dog gets acclimated to it.
Healthy puppies have an excellent appetite. Competition is also of particular interest to food. If a family of four-legged animals lives in the house, little brothers and sisters will not miss the opportunity to be the first to take possession of the food.
If, in the absence of illness, the puppy refuses to eat, most likely:
- He didn’t have time to get hungry;
- He experiences stress, and all his vitality is on adaptation;
- The schedule does not suit him – during the period chosen by the owner for feeding, he would prefer, for example, to sleep;
- Appetite decreased due to the heat.
If the puppy leaves food in the bowl during one of the feedings, you should keep the amount the same next time; you need to observe his behavior and well-being. It is better to throw away the leftover food 15-20 minutes after the dog has left the bowl. Food for the baby is not left freely available, but water should always be in his container. It is advisable to change it 1-2 times a day.
Exercise immediately after eating.in 1.5 hours.
How many times a day should you feed an adult dog?
We recommend feeding adult dogs in the morning and evening. The owner chooses the timing based on his daily routine. However, feedings must be 11-12 hours apart. The transition from three meals to two meals a day should be gradual: firstly, a dog, suddenly and unexpectedly deprived of lunch, will begin to worry and beg for food during the daytime; secondly, the functioning of his stomach may be upset.
It is advisable to extend the transition period for 7-10 days. During this period, the proportions of the feed. Daily food is reduced by several grams, for example, by 1/10 of a serving. The number of grams is divided by two, and the resulting mass is an addition to the morning and evening portions. This feeding “reform” must continue until the mass of lunch food becomes zero.
Feeding your dog twice a day is essential. In some cases, it is necessary to deviate from this regime. So, a dog more often. The expectant mother’s appetite increases, and she needs more food. To prevent her from overeating, during pregnancy 4-7 weeks, she should divide her daily diet into three meals. After the seventh week, the frequency of feedings is 4-5 times a day. This regime continues during the period during which the dog feeds its cubs.
You can feed a small dog more than twice a day. Representatives of small and toy breeds have small stomachs, so giving them a little food at a time is better than splitting up the daily allowance.
Feeding older pets should be memorable. The dog’s perception of tastes and smells decreases with age and shows less interest in food. In addition, most animals have problems with gums and teeth. Against this background, many pets lose weight. Others, on the other hand, may become obese as an aging dog’s metabolism slows and physical activity declines. For all these reasons, reviewing an older dog’s diet is essential. Her food should become more flavorful and less caloric, and it should be in smaller portions. The daily ration and the animal 3-5 times a day, taking into account its age and health condition.
For example, in diabetes mellitus, the number of meals depends on drug treatment accompanied by injections. After a series of injections, the dog is supposed to be given food. For any pet illness, its diet and feeding schedule are with the help of a veterinarian.
General feeding rules
Dogs are fed natural and commercial food (wet and dry). Combining wet and dry food is permissible, but not in the same container. It is advisable to alternate them: in the morning – one type of food; in the evening – another. It is better to choose a product from one product line. However, mixing natural food and industrial food is not recommended. There is no point in this, but there are risks.
The composition of ready-made food is balanced so that the dog does not need additional food. Such food contains all the proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, and microelements necessary for the animal’s body. If a dog eats both prepared and natural food, this can lead to dysfunction of the kidneys, stomach, and endocrine system.
You can find out how much food a dog eating commercial food should receive per day or at one time by reading the instructions on the packaging of the selected product. As a rule, this information contains calculations of portions considering the dog’s breed, age, and weight.
The daily food intake for dogs eating natural food is as follows: pets under six months should receive 7% of body weight, then the percentage is reduced to 3.5%. At the same time, half of the diet of an adult animal should consist of protein foods (meat, fish, offal), 30% of cereals (rice, buckwheat, bran, bread), and 10% – of plant products. Among vegetables, there is a preference for carrots, zucchini, pumpkin, and cabbage; among fruits – apples, not-too-juicy pears, and currants.
5% of your pet’s diet should contain butter and fermented milk.
The norms and composition of natural food are essential because a lot depends on the pet’s lifestyle, activity, physical activity, and constitution. In addition, it is difficult to determine the exact amount of food down to the milligram. The main thing is to prevent underfeeding or overfeeding, especially if the child is still small. Malnutrition may cause your pet to vomit, and overfeeding can lead to obesity, improper skeletal formation, and impaired development of internal organs.
To understand whether a dog eating according to the basic norm has enough food, you need to observe it. If the dog licks his bowl entirely and instantly, asks for more, is also an active breed, or is very energetic, try increasing his portion by 5-10%. If your pet shows such interest only in a specific type of food, he may have divided the food into favorite and unloved. In this case, you should not change the serving size.
It is essential to exclude snacks between feedings, especially if these are treats from the host’s table – smoked meats, sweets, or salty foods. However, you can only do with treats because they are a very effective reward for raising and training a pet.
The ideal treat should please the dog, not cause him harm, and be convenient for the owner if the treat occurs on the street. The food should be unique, not present in the usual diet. A wide variety of reward treats are available at pet stores. As a rule, these are dry snacks of various types. They contain crushed dried meat, cereals, and additives, for example, calcium. You can choose cookies, biscuits, apple slices, diced meat, cheese, and sausages as a natural treat.
If the dog is active during training, regularly follows commands, and spends a lot of energy, you need to feed it after a walk as usual. But sometimes, the dog gets lazy and is more interested in treats than activities. The calories received. In this case, the portion during the next feeding should be smaller than usual or contain non-calorie foods.
