When it comes to your canine companion, you need to provide them with food that’s not only nutritionally beneficial, but also makes them as happy as they make you. Dog owners usually take a considerable amount of time deciding what food is right for their pet, but knowing which foods are best can usually be a struggle.

In total, Britain spent £899 million on dry and wet dog food in 2015 alone. Depending on the time of year and whether temperatures are mild or freezing, it can be difficult to determine whether your dog should be eating dry or wet food. If you’re walking your dog in colder temperatures, it’s vital that your dog receives a sufficient amount of nutrients in order to stay fit and healthy. In the summer, dogs can rely on a much leaner diet, so they don’t need the fatty content provided by wet foods.

Provided by natural dog food retailer Feedem, this guide will help you figure out how to ensure that your dog gets the right food and nutrients whatever the weather.

Check your dog’s fitness

We’ve all been there, you’re sitting in the living room with the dog, and sometimes, they get a bit of what you’re eating as a treat. Although you may not notice it, because you see them every day, this can be a significant contributor to weight gain. This will have an impact on your dog during their walks, as it might result in sluggishness and will affect how long they can walk for.

If you begin to notice this yourself, then change their food from a wet to dry serving, as dry foods typically have a lower fat content. As well as this, fewer dog treats are an easy way of regulating your dog’s weight; think of it like this, would you keep giving yourself a treat if you stopped exercising?

Try to remember that whatever changes you make to your dog’s diet, it still needs to be tasty for your pooch. For example, if your dog is content with wet food and they need a fattier meal to build a strong winter coat, then keep a small amount of dry food in their diet so that you’re changing what they’re eating, but it’s less of a shock to them when they’re eating new foods.

How often is your dog outside?

If your dog isn’t inclined to go on many walks, and likes to sit snug beside you rather than go outside, make sure that they’re receiving a low-fat dry food diet; it seems obvious, but when they’re moving around less, they aren’t going to burn off much of the food they eat. However, if your dog works outside all day, or likes to run around a field for hours during their walk, then try to give them 10 to 90% more fatty-wet foods depending on the dog’s circumstances.

If you’re unsure, then consider these key points as a guide:

Size: Depending on your dog’s size and build, you’re going to have to accommodate this through the foods that they eat. Subcutaneous fat keeps your dog warm and aids their fur coat, so it’s important their body fat remains constant and doesn’t deplete through the year.
Fitness: Dog foods contain a range of vitamins and minerals to uphold the general health of your dog. Look for ‘complete foods’ for dogs that are struggling with either their health or ability to complete their routine walk, these foods will help them reach their peak fitness again.
Fur density: If your dog carries a stronger and thicker fur, then they don’t need foods that are high in fat. This is because dogs with thicker coats don’t expend as many calories as those with thinner fur. Dogs use a significant amount of calories by shivering to keep them warm. For smaller dogs with thinner furs, make sure they’re given slightly more food than they would normally get during the winter. This will help them stay warm.

Each dog to their own

Complete foods are the best way of making sure that your pet will receive a nutritionally balanced meal that contains fats, proteins, and vitamins – everything your dog needs to stay healthy with every portion.

These types of foods are usually the best option for your dog as they are balanced, so they won’t receive more than they need of one food type, such as fat. However, we all know that dogs can be just as picky as us, so make sure it’s a gradual change if you’ve now spotted something wrong in their current diet. If you need some advice, then consider for a moment that in 2015 dry food outsold wet food by £241 million, so if you’re stuck for ideas then choose this option.

We recommend that your dog sticks to this diet unless your dog is exposed to temperatures that are freezing on a regular basis. In this instance, try to supply them with a wetter food that contains a type of gravy. These foods will provide your dog with a sufficient intake of calories when they need it the most. Remember, try not to provide treats alongside this diet, or they’ll need to go back to the dry foods after gaining too much weight! We all know it’s harder to lose weight than it is to gain…

dog food

Sources:

http://www.petmd.com/blogs/thedailyvet/ken-tudor/2014/october/how-much-should-you-feed-your-dog-fall-and-winter-32085

http://www.1800petmeds.com/education/winter-feeding-tips-dogs-33.htm

http://www.pfma.org.uk/types-of-dog-food/

http://www.pfma.org.uk/market-data

http://www.pfma.org.uk/using-the-right-ingredients

This is a guest post.

On 15th December a little 8 week old Sprocker puppy joined our family. Everyone who has met her has fallen for her fluffy puppiness, deep dark eyes and adorable snuggles. Make no mistake, she is a menace, an adorable menace. But she is not and never was intended to be a Christmas present for anyone. She is a much wanted and longed for, four legged member of our family and our dog is for life.

Back in October, fresh from our holiday to Majorca, my husband suggested we get a puppy. This was not an out of the blue suggestion, it was the result of two years of heavy hinting, blatant begging and sad “we want a doggy” eyes from both the small boy and myself.

In the summer of 2014 my best doggy mate Sam(antha) kept collapsing and was eventually put down. She’d been a fantastic companion for me and saying goodbye was an incredibly hard decision, but the right one. She was a boxer staffy cross, loyal to the last but probably not the kind of dog who’d do well on Canine University Challenge. We’d been dog-less ever since and the house needed a hound to make it feel like a home.

At the age of six, we felt the small boy was now old enough to shoulder some of the burden of pet ownership. I work from home and could do with an excuse to switch the laptop off and get some fresh air, so a dog seemed like a bit of a no-brainer to us all.

Once hubs had acquiesced and given us the nod, the search began in earnest. I wanted a smaller dog than I’d had before, my family had always had boxers or boxer crosses and I wanted a dog which wasn’t quite as strong. I wanted a dog that was bright and would enjoy being trained and I wanted a dog who would be a great family pet.

Our dog is for life, not just for Christmas

We looked at a few different breeds. Hubs said no to a few which he thought were too small or hard to find, but eventually we settled on a Sprocker – a cocker spaniel, springer spaniel cross. If a Sprocker puppy had been available in October we would have snapped her up, but the only one we could find was an hour away in Stoke and wouldn’t be available until the week before Christmas. This was not the worst news as it gave us 6 weeks to prepare the house for a puppy and buy the things we’d need. But it did mean she’d arrive the week before Christmas.

She is emphatically not a Christmas present or a Christmas pup. If anything I would suggest that Christmas with all its household upheaval, strange indoor trees, rich food and too much coming and going is the worst time to bring a puppy into your home. They’re lovely and I wouldn’t swap her, but I’m very much looking forward to her being toilet trained and not wanting to eat the Christmas tree lights every five minutes.

Meet Penny, our adorable menace. Our dog is for life, not at all for Christmas.

Our dog is for life, not just for Christmas