IMPORTANCE OF DOG FEEDING
  Balanced feeding = Good health

Nutrients required for the dog play a vital role in keeping the dog healthy.  Conventional feeding fails to meet the dietary requirement, making the animal prone for many nutritional disorders / deficiency diseases.  A dog fed with balanced diet can prevent all the above problems.  Importance of feeding a diet which is pathogen free, which provides all essential nutrients, which is very easy to use, handle and cost effective is being reflected in the form of commercial pet food which are available ready-made.

Ø         Protein

Ø         Carbohydrates

Ø         Fats

Ø         Energy

Ø         Water

Ø         Feeding

Protein is one of the most important elements in an animal representing approximately 50% of each cell in the body.  They are the group of nutrients, which serve as building blocks of hair, skin, muscle, tendons and other connective tissues.  Protein acts as one of the most important elements of food for growth, muscular generation, development, sexual development, body repair, metabolism, immunity and more.  Quality of protein and balanced amino acid profile are the most important factors that decides the % of total protein needed by pets.  Normally this is considered in formulating pelleted, dry extruded food that contains 22-28% protein on dry matter basis.

These are met by the protein sources like meat, whole eggs or milk (complete protein sources) and soyabean, wheat/corn (incomplete) that do not contain a balanced amount of amino acids. 

Additional protein is necessary for sporting dogs, working dogs or dogs with stress.  Protein in a diet also does a lot to promote digestibility and palatability.

Carbohydrates are the major energy source for the dog.  The dog utilizes properly cooked CHOs with almost the same efficiency as man.  Like proteins, CHOs have more than one use in the dog's body once eaten :

• Energy supply for body functions
• Assist in digestion of fats
• Regulates Protein metabolism
• Important source of energy in muscular exertion

CHO's are present in form of starch, sugars and cellulose.

Lipids are the primary source of energy in dogs.  Fats form integral part of cell structures.  They are necessary for normal growth, healthy kidneys, shiny coat and play a positive role in controlling potential of inflammation in skin.  Too much fat can lead to obesity and heart problems.  Fats added during manufacture of dry foods are stabilized with antioxidants to retard rancidity, since rancidity  destroys Vitamin A and E.

Animal fats are one of the major source of fats in pet food.  They have low melting points and high palatability.  Ideally dog food should contain animal fat and three essential fatty acids namely Oleic acid, Linoleic acid and Linolenic acid.  The minimum requirement for the dog is 5 - 9%.  Pregnant, lactating bitches and growing puppies should have 8% fat with minimum 1% linoleic acid and adult dogs should have a least of 5% fat and 4% linoleic acid.

Besides these, the caloric requirement in a dog depends on the physiological state (Pregnancy, disease status, breed differences, environmental status, activity of the animal, breed styles - working/non working etc.).

• Feeding Puppies
• Feeding Pregnant / Lactating Bitches
• Feeding Working / Sporting Dogs
• Feeding Sick Dogs
• Question & Answers?
• Rules of Dog Feeding
• Truths and Myths of Dog feeding
• Management Tips to keep your dog healthy

The usual time for you to assume the responsibility of dog feeding is at weaning.  Whatever may be the age of the puppy, the first step in any puppy feeding program is to weigh the puppy.  A record of this weight and date on which it was taken should be kept on a separate record for each individual.

The next line of principles fundamental to all feeding programs are determining the diet to be fed and the quantity to be fed.

TABLE FOR GROWTH RECORD OF PUPPIES

As a thumb rule, every week, the body weight of the puppies doubles for first 4-6 weeks after birth.  If hand rearing is the procedure that is going to be adopted, careful attention should be paid to the following principles.

• Provide suitable environment : Keeping the puppy undisturbed with the temperature, humidity and keeping the puppy quiet are the 3 most important requirements.
• Feed a nutritionally complete formula.
• Institute a satisfactory feeding schedule.

The ideal food for a new born puppy is bitch's milk.

Any replacement to bitch's milk should be approximately as close as possible with its constituent.

So a cow's milk can not meet the requirements.  A more suitable formula can be made from evaporated milk by mixing 3 parts of it with one part of warm water and milk with 20% solids.  Commercial products are also available as milk replacers.  It is better to note any commercial formula can match bitch's milk but for one constituent i.e. colostrum.  It is very important to feed colostrum as the puppy gets passive immunity through that.  If the formula resembles the bitch's milk, it is enough to feed 4 times a day.  For larger breeds this can be increased to 6.

The nutrient requirement to support normal growth and development of puppies are greater than those for an adult dog.  So a balanced diet is always advised.  But just remember : It is better to underfeed than overfeed.

The amount of food fed to a puppy depends on its activity, body weight and environment.  Overweight puppies not only loose their appearance but are prone for many orthopedic abnormalities.

Rapidly growing puppy :

Once weaned (4-6 weeks), the puppy does not know how to handle and digest different new foods.  Formulating a diet for a fast growing puppy is one of the most important steps in starting a dogs life.  The rapidly growing puppy needs twice as energy and nutrients as an adult dog.

Continue to feed the growing puppy the same food that was used to wean it, but gradually add additional foods to train the puppy as the digestive system is not matured.  A high protein diet is always necessary to cope up with the growth.

More care and attention should be taken to a sick dog as compared to a normal dog. But sick dogs must eat the same as healthy dogs and the same reasons, to supply energy and nutrients for growth, replacement and repair and to meet an ever changing need. A sick dog's nutritional requirements usually do not differ greatly from those of a healty dog.

A sick dog's dietary needs, however can become substantially different from that of a healthy dog. 
Anorexia is one of the predominant symptoms of sickness.  The same diet the dog was eating before
anorexia is suitable as long as the cause of anorexia does not make it unsuitable.  Some dogs
become less active with anorexia and caloric need is less for most dogs during this period.  If they have fever, however, this rapidly increases their caloric requirements.

Foods fed to anorectic dogs should be concentrated so that the daily quantity needed is low.  A food satisfactory for feeding anorectic dogs should contain nutrients at the following levels.

Where caloric density is the total number of calories a given quantity of food contains.

Over Nutrition : Food rich in protein, energy and calcium induces enhance growth and hyper calcitonin.  The latter is manifested by decreased resorption of bone and cartilage cell maturation.

WHY TO CHANGE TO A READY MADE DIET?

• Ready made extruded food delivers balanced Nutrition whereas conventional food does not.
• Easy to administer.
• Avoids hassles of cooking.  Hence, time saving.
• Economical.

HOW TO CHANGE A DOG'S ROUTINE DIET?

Do not change the food in stressful situations like - New environment for the dog / Change of owner.

Start with substituting 25% of old food with Nutripet Petmeal.  Mix both foods thoroughly.

Increase the substitution to 50-50 of old food and Nutripet Petmeal.

Now 75% is the concentration of Nutripet Petmeal.  Most dogs will readily accept the Nutripet Petmeal by this time.

This is the final step the one and all of the old food is eliminated from dog's diet.

RULES OF DOG FEEDING!

Some of the general considerations to be made when feeding any dog.

A regular feeding schedule should be established and once established, should not be altered.

Make sure that your dog is used to car travel - the holiday excursion should not be his first trip in a car. If you know that he is likely to be sick or excitable in the car, then ask your veterinary to prescribe some travel sickness medication - this usually also has a tranquillising effect.

Make regular stops to allow him to relieve himself if necessary and offer his water to drink. Keep him on a lead when you exercise him and never let him run loose at a service station or near a busy road.

Do not leave your pet in stationary car in hot weather. Never leave him in direct sunlight; always park in the shade. Even in dull weather, dogs should not be left in cars for more than 5-10 minutes. Make sure that he has some drinking water. Leave the windows open wide enough to allow fresh air in but not him out! Window attachments are available that allow the window to be left open, without your dog escaping.

Do not let your dog put his head out of a moving vehicles as this can lead to eye injuries and may cause an accident.

Dogs should not receive excessive praise (constant petting), especially for doing nothing. Excessive praise elevates the dog's social status and sends him mixed signals. Prevention of aggression requires that the owner win each and every confrontation with the dog. If the dog wins a showdown by growling when you try to get him off the sofa or take his toy or approach his food bowl, he receives a 'go' signal for the next step in an attempted takeover. Remember, once a dog has reached dominant status, punishment cannot be used to correct his aggressiveness.