A Senior Dog Diet-just When Should You Give Your Dog One?

You may not want to admit it, but your furry friend is getting older. So you will want to make sure your pet will be happy and healthy for the more years to come. You may have seen all of the promotions about the new dog diets for older pets. Are there differences between dog food for adult dogs and kibble that is recommended specifically for seniors? How will you know when to switch your pet to a different diet?

The best resource for advice about dog diets is your pets vet. Only you and your trusted vet know the particular needs of your pet. Talk with your vet about any concerns and questions you may have. Your will vet help you with any changes, that is if any, need to be made to your dogs diet.

If your older dog does not have any health problems and maintains a healthy weight, there is no need to change your dogs diet from adult to senior dog food. On the other hand, if your dog has trouble keeping the weight off or digestive issues, you may need to switch. If weight is the only issue, consider slightly lowering the amount of dog food you give to your pet. This may be all the change your dogs diet requires.

A senior dog is classified as a dog in the last third of their life span. Larger dogs, for instance a Great Danes, live to be about 9 years old. Around the sixth year of life, you may want to consider a senior dogs diet. A poodle, on the other hand wouldn't reach senior status until about age ten due to the longer life expectancy. Primarily, the decision to change your dogs diet should be based on health condition rather than actual age in years. Your vet will help you to determine when the right time is to alter your dogs diet.

Dog food especially prepared for senior dogs typically has less calories. This helps to combat any weight issues. The senior dog food also contains more fiber for the different needs in your dogs diet. As dogs age, they tend to suffer from constipation, this extra fiber will help remedy this problem.

Renal failure can be another medical problem for senior dogs. How can your dogs diet help this problem? Reducing the amount of protein in your dogs diet will decrease the work load for the kidneys. For this reason, senior dog food frequently has lower protein content than regular adult formulas.

You should when possible, give your dog to eat dry dog food to encourage excellent dental health. Dry kibble helps to reduce plaque and any tartar buildup. If your senior pet rejects the food dry, then try moistening it with water or you could the purchase moist canned varieties.

If your vet recommends that you need to use supplements as part of your senior dogs diet. It will be because, some pets are unable to eat properly due to oral problems. Other older pets are unable to get all of the nutrients they need from their food for different health reasons. Supplements such as daily vitamins and glucosamine can be a benefit to maintaining a healthy diet for your dog.

Glucosamine helps joint health. For senior dogs, glucosamine can help to fight arthritis and hip displasia.

Vitamins C, A, and E may prevent the natural aging process and encourage better health for senior dogs. Talk to your vet about adding such supplements to your dogs diet.

You want what is best for your pet. Your senior dog needs to have a diet that meets their special nutritional requirements. You and your vet can work together to decide what is the best diet for your senior dog. Your dogs diet directly affects his or her health. Take care of your pet by monitoring your dogs diet closely with the aid of your veterinarian.