What is the right food to feed my dog?
It depends on your dog's life stage, lifestyle, and weight. Choosing the right nutrition involves considering these factors and should be discussed with your vet.
Dr. Rebecca McIntosh
Loch Haven Veterinary Hospital
What are the life stages of feeding my dog?
There are three life stages: puppy, adult, and senior. Each stage requires different nutrition to avoid overfeeding or underfeeding.
Should I feed my dog on a schedule?
Ideally, yes. Feeding dogs twice a day on a schedule helps monitor their food intake and observe if they're eating regularly.
How do I know if I'm feeding my dog too much?
If you notice excessive amounts of stools or if your dog struggles to lose weight, you may need to adjust their food intake.
What are the essential nutrients my dog needs?
Dog food is rich in nutrients like proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and water. The specific ratios of these nutrients vary across different dog food brands.
How will a veterinarian be able to assess if my dog is getting proper nutrition?
A veterinarian will check your dog's health, hair coat, and stool. If these are normal, it indicates that your dog is receiving proper nutrition.
There's so many brands of dog food. How will I know the best one for my dog?
Stick with brands that have a veterinarian involved in the diet formulation process. These brands usually have ample research backing them.
When would my dog need a prescription diet?
Prescription diets are required when your dog has a specific medical problem. If your dog has a GI or urinary issue, your vet may prescribe a specific diet.
If you still have other questions and you'd like to reach out to us, you can call us directly at (407) 896-0941, or you can email us at [email protected]. But please do reach out, and we'll get back to you as fast as we can. Don't forget to follow us on social media Facebook, Instagram
Dog Nutrition - FAQs 1
Dr. Rebecca McIntosh
Loch Haven Veterinary Hospital
How do I know what foods are toxic for my dog?
There's a whole list of things that can be toxic if your dog eats them. There are a lot of really good resources out there, including the ASPCA's Poison Control website, where you can find a comprehensive list of things that are toxic for dogs.
Can I feed my dog human food?
There are many human foods that can be used in small quantities and not cause a problem, but we want to make sure that we know which ones are safe and which ones aren't safe. That's a conversation to have with your vet, and it's always a good idea to look up the food before you give it to your dog.
How do I know if the food I'm giving my dog is making them sick?
Nine times out of ten, if there's a food issue, you're going to see things like vomiting and diarrhea. If these symptoms occur either after you give the food or within a couple of days after you change the food or after you give a certain treat, those are all possibilities to say that maybe your dog can't tolerate that food.
Can changing my dog's diet suddenly cause harm?
Sudden changes in diet can upset dog stomachs. We can see things like diarrhea and sometimes also vomiting if we're changing from one type of food to another, even within a brand. Whenever we're changing diets, I always recommend doing it slowly, starting with a little bit at a time and changing the diet over about a week or so to avoid causing upset.
How does an elimination diet work?
An elimination diet is used to find out whether or not a dog is hypersensitive to a certain part of the diet, usually the major protein source. When we try to see which ones they may be sensitive to, we start with a food that doesn't have any of that protein in it. After we've gotten a totally normal dog on that food, we start adding back in proteins like chicken, fish, or beef for a week at a time to see if they have issues with it. If they do, we can tell which one is the problem and keep that out of their diet.
How do I know if my dog has eaten something toxic?
Anything that goes in the mouth can potentially cause vomiting and diarrhea. But if something truly toxic is ingested, it can cause other signs like neurologic symptoms, hyperactivity, or panting. It's important to investigate what the dog was around and look for any wrappers or items they could have gotten into, including anything in the trash. If you suspect they've eaten something toxic, take that item with you to the ER when you go to see your vet.
If you still have other questions and you'd like to reach out to us, you can call us directly at (407) 896-0941, or you can email us at [email protected]. But please do reach out, and we'll get back to you as fast as we can. Don't forget to follow us on social media Facebook, Instagram
Dog Nutrition - FAQs 2s
Dr. Rebecca McIntosh
Loch Haven Veterinary Hospital
Can a dog live on a vegan diet?
Not really, because there are a lot of complex things about dog food and balanced dog nutrition. Vegan diets tend not to be particularly balanced, so it's not a great idea.
Is wet food more nutritious than dry dog food?
Not necessarily. There is more moisture in canned food, but it's not necessarily more or less nutritious. It may be more calorie dense, so you may have to feed less of it. But having that conversation with your vet is important.
Are prescription diets better for my dog?
Prescription diets are meant for dogs who have medical conditions or something that we're trying to treat. You can use a lot of prescription diets as maintenance diets if your dogs tend towards either obesity or having urinary tract infections or certain medical conditions that we're trying to avoid. But that is a conversation to have with your vet.
If my dog eats grass, does that mean they are missing something in their diet?
Not necessarily. Dogs are omnivores. They'll eat basically anything, and it is in their nature to graze. Some dogs will eat more grass when they don't feel well, but it doesn't mean that there's any deficiency in their diet.
Will human food make my dog overweight?
It's not so much what you feed, but how much of it you feed and how calorie dense the diet is. We certainly want to make sure that none of our treats or our human foods are more than 10% of that balanced diet, and then making sure that we're weighing our pet on a regular basis to watch that trend.
Will free choice feeding my dog make them overweight?
Free choice feeding isn't helpful in some cases. In some cases, the dog will eat as much as they want, and then they'll leave it alone. A lot of dogs will just eat until they get sick, and then they'll eat some more. We try to stay away from free feeding dogs because we want to get them on a schedule. We want to know when they're going to have to go to the bathroom. We also want to know how much they're eating and how well they're eating. It's much easier for us to manage how much they're eating and control that if we're meal feeding as opposed to free feeding.
What are some other myths about dog nutrition that you hear as a veterinarian?
We hear a lot of things, but a couple of the big ones are that there are particular dog foods, because they're just super expensive, the more expensive the dog food, the better it is for my pet - that's not necessarily true. Also saying grain-free diets are better - that was a marketing thing that came up that has no medical bearing, and we are actually finding that there are some grain-free diets that are causing problems and some heart disease in dogs that are not coming from anywhere else. So, we tend to want to stray away from those types of diets. If you have questions about your dog's diet, definitely ask your vet.
If you still have other questions and you'd like to reach out to us, you can call us directly at (407) 896-0941, or you can email us at [email protected]. But please do reach out, and we'll get back to you as fast as we can. Don't forget to follow us on social media Facebook, Instagram
Dog Nutrition - FAQs 3
Dr. Rebecca McIntosh
Loch Haven Veterinary Hospital
What kind of food is best to give a puppy?
Definitely food that is specifically for your puppy's specific breed and size. If you've got a small breed puppy, you want small breed puppy food. For a medium-sized dog, regular puppy food is fine. If you've got a larger breed like a Great Dane or an Irish Wolfhound, you definitely want your large breed food because they all have different requirements.
What kind of food is best to give an adult dog?
An adult dog needs adult dog food, as long as they don't have any medical conditions that would require a prescription diet. We certainly want a good high-quality, balanced diet that is a regular maintenance for adult dogs. You do not want to feed all life stages food because it's basically feeding them puppy food. Some of the senior diets or other diets out there may be more restricted than they need, but definitely talk with your veterinarian and make sure they approve your dog food.
What kind of food is best to give a senior dog?
Senior dogs have different nutritional requirements. They need less of some things and sometimes they need more fat, more carbohydrates, but less protein. So, using a diet specific for that dog's life stage, like a senior dog food maintenance diet, is usually okay unless there's a medical condition that would require a prescription diet.
What are a dog's nutritional requirements?
There are a lot of nutritional requirements for dogs. It does change throughout your dog's life stage. They certainly need things like carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, and minerals, which can all be found in balanced dog food. Using a dog food that is specific for your dog's life stage, that is balanced, and has a vet somewhere formulating that recipe, those are all good things to stand by.
Is dry food, wet food, or a combination of both best for dogs?
It depends on your dog. I tend to like a combination because it gives me more variety. I can put the canned version of their diet in a Kong or on a lick mat, or use it to occupy their time. I can also freeze those things and make them little popsicles. You can use the dry food as training treats throughout the day. A little bit of variability doesn't hurt and as long as your dog doesn't end up with diarrhea or vomiting with any type of dog food, you can mix the two.
If you still have other questions and you'd like to reach out to us, you can call us directly at (407) 896-0941, or you can email us at [email protected]. But please do reach out, and we'll get back to you as fast as we can. Don't forget to follow us on social media Facebook, Instagram