Dog Nutrition Tips

A balanced diet is critically important to your dog’s cell maintenance and growth and overall health. Barring any special needs, illness-related deficiencies, or instructions from your vet, your pet should be able to get all the nutrients he or she needs from high-quality commercial pet foods, which are specially formulated with these standards in mind.

But dogs of different ages have different nutritional requirements. So, how much—or how little—should you be feeding your four-legged friend? Read on to learn what your pet’s body needs at the various stages of life.

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Nutrients Your Dog Needs:

There are the six essential classes of nutrients dogs need for optimum healthy living.

1.Water

water accounts for between 60 to 70% of an adult pet’s body weight. While food may help meet some of your pet's water needs (dry food has up to 10% moisture, while canned food has up to 78% moisture), pets must have fresh clean water available to them at all times.

2.Proteins

Proteins can be obtained from a number of sources including animal-based meats such as chicken, lamb, turkey, beef, fish and eggs

3. Fats

Fats are the most concentrated form of food energy, providing your pet with more than twice the energy of proteins or carbohydrates

4. Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates provide energy, play a vital role in the health of the intestine, and are important for reproduction. Moderately fermentable fibers—including beet pulp, which is commonly used in dog foods—are best to promote a healthy gut while avoiding the undesirable side effects of highly fermentable fibers, like flatulence and excess mucus.

5. Vitamins

Tiny amounts of vitamins are necessary in dogs for normal metabolic functioning. Most vitamins cannot be synthesized in the body, and therefore are essential to obtain in the diet.

6. Minerals

Minerals are nutrients that cannot be synthesized by animals and must be provided in the diet. In general, minerals are most important as structural constituents of bones and teeth.