How to Change Dog’s Food

Has your dog recently been rejecting its meals or showing some signs of disinterest in mealtime? Maybe it’s time to change its food. How to Change Your Dog’s Food.

Changing dog food is not just like human beings. Dogs are animals with strong habits. Their feeding is also habitual. They would respond to sudden changes in their meals just as they would respond to sudden changes in their environment. How do you change your dog’s diet or dog food?

As your dog develops, there may be a need to change its food from time to time. This article will walk you through several things to consider before and after you decide to change your dog’s diet. We will also look at the effect of changing your dog’s meal.

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How to Change Your Dog’s Food

Here things to Consider Before Changing Your Dog’s Food:

The first step is to reach out to your veterinary doctor and confer with them about your decision to change your dog’s food. We often conclude that changing your dog’s food is to your dog’s benefit, whereas it’s not.

Before you change its food, you need to reach out to your vet and allow him to check the dog and the new meal to validate that it’s a brilliant move. It would be unwise if you switch your dog from a healthy meal to a meal that sends its health into a tailspin.

Better to stick with what’s working than to turn to what’s debilitating. Once you confer with your veterinary doctor and get a go-ahead, here is how to go about it.

Switching your dog’s diet too quickly can cause your dog to have an upset stomach. Dogs are prone to constipation and other gastrointestinal illness because of their history as carnivores. Switching their food without due process can trigger several reactions.

According to the American Kennel Club, swapping a dog’s diet can cause vomiting, diarrhea, and food allergy. There is a need for a proper transitioning process when switching from your current dog food into another. Transitioning to a new dog food should happen over time, usually 4-7 days, depending on the dog.

Transitioning into a different dog food should follow a formula similar to the one below:

Day 1: 25% new dog food and 75% old dog food
Day 3: 50% new dog food and 50% old dog food
Day 5: 75% new dog food and 25% old dog food
Day: 100% new dog food.

Following this procedure may look a little slow, especially if you are a busy person who doesn’t have much time to care for your dog. However, you must follow this process as duly as possible. If you don’t think you have the time, get someone to handle it for you. It is better to pay this little sacrifice than to risk your dog’s health by feeding it with entirely new dog food.

Once your dog gets accustomed to the new diet, stick with it. You may need to allow for some time before you start measuring the results of the new diet. It takes time to see visible changes when you change your dog food. Therefore, feed your dog consistently for a while to see what changes and what doesn’t.

Consequences of Changing Your Dog Food

As soon as you change your dog’s food, you may notice some behavioral changes or illnesses in your dog. These changes in behavior vary from one dog to another, depending on the breed of your dog. Here are some changes you will notice:

Food Allergy

When your dog experiences a food allergy, the immune system will release some antibodies against substances or some compounds in the food that it should tolerate. In dogs, itchy skin, digestive disturbances, and hyperactivity are some signs of food allergy.

Food Intolerance

Food intolerance in a dog is a situation where your dog cannot digest its food. It may occur if you switch your dog’s food from a familiar one to a different diet. Your dog may show some signs when it is experiencing food intolerance. These signs include vomiting, diarrhea, intestinal upsets, etc.

Constipation

Constipation is a situation where your dog can’t process the food it consumes: inability to produce stool as usual. Constipation usually occurs when your dog consumes food that it can’t digest. Constipation can occur in your dog if you decide to change its diet. However, It is easy to treat if you take your dog to your vet.

Changes in Appetite

Your dog may reject the new food because of some displeasure or mood changes. You know your dog is a sensitive animal, and a change in its diet can trigger some reactions in it. The best way to combat this effect is to change your dog’s food as slowly as possible, as recommended in this article.