Feeding Your New Puppy
February 2, 2010 by Paris and John
Filed under Puppies, Tips
Just like feeding a baby, feeding your new puppy can be as simple or as complicated as you make it. You’ll get lots of suggestions from other dog owners, dog books and magazines, but the best advice comes from your vet.
However, there are a few basic guidelines can be established for feeding your puppy:
Puppies should be fed frequently, usually three times each day.
Puppies should be allowed to eat all that they want at each meal during their rapid growth period, which is up to about nine months of age.
A steady diet is better for the majority of dogs than are scraps and leftovers which may be lacking the proper nutritional elements for growth and development.
Many puppies do well on a diet of semi-moist foods or dry meals mixed with some canned food for flavoring. The semi-moist and dry foods provide a high calorie energy supply while the canned foods supply additional taste.
For tiny puppies or toy breed dogs, the semi-moist and cereal-type foods can be made into a mix if necessary.
Fresh, clean, and cool water should always be available.
Make changes to your puppy’s diet slowly. If you need to make a change in his diet, slowly add a new food and decrease the amount of the original food over a period of several days until a complete changeover has been accomplished.
For those dogs that come equipped with loose bowels, a bland diet is advisable. Cooked, drained ground beef mixed with an equal amount of boiled rice is easy to digest and may help firm up stools until a trip to the veterinarian can be arranged. Remember, water is especially important to dogs that are dehydrated by diarrhea or other diseases.
Always feed your puppy at the same time each day. This will help your puppy adjust to your family’s routine, but will also be an invaluable aid in housetraining.
After each feeding, his dish should be removed and any remaining food discarded or refrigerated until the next meal time.
Leaving food down for your dog to have access to at all times will encourage picky eating and poor habits. It also makes housetraining much more difficult.
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