Feeding Your Doxie
What you feed your doxie and how much you feed it, is more important than some people think. There are many choices in dog foods out there, but unfortunately, many are not healthy or safe for your dog. Even feeding what your vet recommends is not always the best food for your dog. Vets get very little or no training in dog nutrition. The few vets that have taken the time to learn abut nutrition are rare and very much appreciated.
The most important thing I can tell you is READ LABELS. If the food contains by-products of any kind, corn, soy, or artificial colors, do not feed it to your dog. The most popular dog foods you see on TV are not necessarily the best. A better quality dog food spends their money on their product, not on advertising. So the foods that are best for your dog may be foods you never heard of or rarely heard of. If you ever see a label that says MADE IN CHINA, don’t buy it. This not only refers to dog food but dog food snacks. Again, you must READ LABELS.
Once you find a dog food that seems to work well for your dog, do not become complacent. Dog food companies are sold to other companies and the new companies can and do change the ingredients. So something that was good last year may have drastically changed this year.
If your dog is older, it should eat a food that is lower in protein. If your dog is overweight, it should eat a food that is lower in fat. There are major differences in these things and the only way you will know is to READ LABELS. I never buy anything for my dogs without reading labels. If I see by-products on anything or Made In China, I don’t buy it no matter how yummy or cute it looks.
There are frequently “recalls” on dog foods. Dogs have gotten sick and many have died from eating a food that contains things that no dog should ever have to ingest. Some have been found to have little pieces of plastic in them. Some have things included that are nothing but “fillers” and have no nutritional purpose.
The Whole Dog Journal is an excellent source of keeping up with what’s going on in the pet food industry. Their staff does in depth studies, visits processing plants, checks the ingredients on the bag to make sure the food has what it actually says it does. Becoming knowledgeable about dog foods is a learning process and if you make the right decisions, you are doing your dog a big favor, not only by keeping your dog healthy, but by saving yourself money at the vet.
Knowing how much to feed your dog is also very important. Do not look at the size of your dog, but instead think about the size of the dog’s stomach. Dachshunds do not need more than 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup of dry food twice a day. If you feed canned food, the dog probably doesn’t need more than 1/2 a can in a day. Again, think about the size of the dog’s stomach. Your doxie may seem like it’s still hungry but doxies are famous for being ravenous eaters and would eat themselves into oblivion. If you see the dog’s weight changing where you think the dog is too thin or too fat, you can always adjust the amount of food. When a dog is fat, you cannot blame the dog. You are the one controlling the amount of food the dog eats and what it eats. The dog does not have the ability to go out and shop for it’s own food or fix it’s own dinner. It does have the ability to get into things if you are not careful and leave food accessible to the dog.
For each dog that I adopt out through my rescue, I gave the adopters a list of dog foods that I prefer based on information from the Whole Dog Journal. I’ve been lucky enough to stay ahead of the recall fiasco and none of my dogs have ever gotten sick from a recalled food. The Whole Dog Journal also gives you information on how many recalls a particular brand of dog food has had over the years. Spending a little bit more money on a better quality food benefits your dog and your wallet for not having to take your dog to the vet for getting sick on a cheap dog food.
Your dog does not care about the color of his food. Foods with colors are just filled with dyes which are definitely not good for your dog. One dog food has different bags that are specific to one breed. There is NO dog food that can be good for all of one breed. Every single dog is different regardless if they are the same breed. If you have multiple dogs, you know they each have different needs even if they are the same breed. So don’t be fooled by an advertising ploy that makes you think that one food is good for every single one of your dogs. Unfortunately, sometimes you have to use several different kinds of dog foods for multiple dogs to make sure each one is getting the right amount of protein, fat, vitamins for that particular dog. You wouldn’t feed a 14 year old dog the same as a puppy or young active dog.
Although rawhide is a popular item for your dog to chew on, in fact it is not good for your dog. It can twist and turn in their stomachs and the dog can become sick or die from it. There are some raw hides that may be safe but since the majority are not, I say stay away.
I know this is a lot of information but it’s all important to you and your dog. If you have further questions regarding what to feed your dog, please feel free to e-mail me at [email protected]. I am not an expert but I know more than the average person since I have many years of experience with doxies and read a lot about dog foods.
The most important thing I can tell you is READ LABELS. If the food contains by-products of any kind, corn, soy, or artificial colors, do not feed it to your dog. The most popular dog foods you see on TV are not necessarily the best. A better quality dog food spends their money on their product, not on advertising. So the foods that are best for your dog may be foods you never heard of or rarely heard of. If you ever see a label that says MADE IN CHINA, don’t buy it. This not only refers to dog food but dog food snacks. Again, you must READ LABELS.
Once you find a dog food that seems to work well for your dog, do not become complacent. Dog food companies are sold to other companies and the new companies can and do change the ingredients. So something that was good last year may have drastically changed this year.
If your dog is older, it should eat a food that is lower in protein. If your dog is overweight, it should eat a food that is lower in fat. There are major differences in these things and the only way you will know is to READ LABELS. I never buy anything for my dogs without reading labels. If I see by-products on anything or Made In China, I don’t buy it no matter how yummy or cute it looks.
There are frequently “recalls” on dog foods. Dogs have gotten sick and many have died from eating a food that contains things that no dog should ever have to ingest. Some have been found to have little pieces of plastic in them. Some have things included that are nothing but “fillers” and have no nutritional purpose.
The Whole Dog Journal is an excellent source of keeping up with what’s going on in the pet food industry. Their staff does in depth studies, visits processing plants, checks the ingredients on the bag to make sure the food has what it actually says it does. Becoming knowledgeable about dog foods is a learning process and if you make the right decisions, you are doing your dog a big favor, not only by keeping your dog healthy, but by saving yourself money at the vet.
Knowing how much to feed your dog is also very important. Do not look at the size of your dog, but instead think about the size of the dog’s stomach. Dachshunds do not need more than 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup of dry food twice a day. If you feed canned food, the dog probably doesn’t need more than 1/2 a can in a day. Again, think about the size of the dog’s stomach. Your doxie may seem like it’s still hungry but doxies are famous for being ravenous eaters and would eat themselves into oblivion. If you see the dog’s weight changing where you think the dog is too thin or too fat, you can always adjust the amount of food. When a dog is fat, you cannot blame the dog. You are the one controlling the amount of food the dog eats and what it eats. The dog does not have the ability to go out and shop for it’s own food or fix it’s own dinner. It does have the ability to get into things if you are not careful and leave food accessible to the dog.
For each dog that I adopt out through my rescue, I gave the adopters a list of dog foods that I prefer based on information from the Whole Dog Journal. I’ve been lucky enough to stay ahead of the recall fiasco and none of my dogs have ever gotten sick from a recalled food. The Whole Dog Journal also gives you information on how many recalls a particular brand of dog food has had over the years. Spending a little bit more money on a better quality food benefits your dog and your wallet for not having to take your dog to the vet for getting sick on a cheap dog food.
Your dog does not care about the color of his food. Foods with colors are just filled with dyes which are definitely not good for your dog. One dog food has different bags that are specific to one breed. There is NO dog food that can be good for all of one breed. Every single dog is different regardless if they are the same breed. If you have multiple dogs, you know they each have different needs even if they are the same breed. So don’t be fooled by an advertising ploy that makes you think that one food is good for every single one of your dogs. Unfortunately, sometimes you have to use several different kinds of dog foods for multiple dogs to make sure each one is getting the right amount of protein, fat, vitamins for that particular dog. You wouldn’t feed a 14 year old dog the same as a puppy or young active dog.
Although rawhide is a popular item for your dog to chew on, in fact it is not good for your dog. It can twist and turn in their stomachs and the dog can become sick or die from it. There are some raw hides that may be safe but since the majority are not, I say stay away.
I know this is a lot of information but it’s all important to you and your dog. If you have further questions regarding what to feed your dog, please feel free to e-mail me at [email protected]. I am not an expert but I know more than the average person since I have many years of experience with doxies and read a lot about dog foods.
