How many times a day should a dog eat?
This dog blog will answer the major question, “How many times a day should a dog eat?” we will also discuss the major threats of overfeeding and underfeeding your dog, what affects the food quality and quantity for your dog, and what are the important parts of dog food.
How many times a day should a dog eat?
The dog should eat at least twice a day with a gap of 12 hours. If the gap is increased it can lead to acidity in your dog, and it can be dangerous as it can digest the mucosal lining of the stomach. You should divide the meals into two equal portions and give them after 12 hours each day.
What are the major threats of overfeeding and underfeeding your dog?
Following are the major threats of overfeeding and underfeeding your dog:
Overfeeding your dog
Following are the threats of overfeeding your dog:
- Obesity can lead to joint problems because the joints are unable to lift the extra weight of the body. This leads to inflammation of joints called arthritis.
- Heart disease is one of the major problems with the canine due to the extra fat content in the body which can block the major arteries supplying the heart.
- Pancreatitis is the inflammation of the pancreas in the body which can lead to painful abdominal pain and fever in the body.
- Extra weight gain also affects the reproductive performance of your dog as the fat is deposited on the ovaries and it hinders the activity of the estrus cycle in your dog.
- With a heavier body, your dog is reluctant to move and it can lead to further weight gain due to minimum activity.
Underfeeding your dog
Following are the major threats of underfeeding your dog:
- It leads to a condition called pica in which your dog eats what it finds. It is due to the nutritional deficiency of phosphorus. In underfeeding your dog is not able to get enough phosphorus in the diet.
- Malnourishment can lead to weak bones which are prone to fractures. You should be well aware of it and should include a well-balanced ratio of calcium to phosphorus in the diet of your dog.
- Malnourishment also leads to lower reproductive performance of your dog, and deficiency of certain vitamins and minerals can lead to anestrus in your dog. If you have kept your dog for breeding purposes you should feed your dog properly.
What affects the food quality and quantity?
Following are the factors that affect the quality and quantity of the food:
Age of your dog
The age of your dog is the biggest factor that affects the quality and quantity of the food. If you are feeding your puppies you have to give them a high-calorie diet because they are in their growing phase. If your dog is an adult you should feed it well-balanced food.
Senior dogs require more protein than fats and carbohydrates because in old age there is degeneration of muscles.
Breed
Large breed dogs require more food than small breed dogs because of the size and the metabolic rate of the large breed dogs.
Activity level
Large breed dogs are active so they need more energy. You need to be sure what type of dog you have in your house. If you have German Shepherd and Rottweilers they need more food as compared to Shih Tzu and Pugs.
Medical condition
If your dog is suffering from any medical condition then the diet of that dog is different from others. It is because of the medicines you are giving your dog. The medicines affect the digestive system of your dog and your dog has to take a soft diet in order to gain maximum nutrients from it.
What are the important ingredients in well-balanced dog food?
Following are the ingredients in well-balanced dog food:
- The first is chicken which is healthy for your dog as it is full of protein. You should avoid giving chicken bones and skin as it can prove harmful to your dog.
- The next is rice which is beneficial but consuming too much can cause unhealthy weight gain in your dog.
- The next ingredient is the beans that are healthy such as black beans. Beans have several vitamins which improve the digestive, heart, and nervous health of your dog.
- The last ingredient is the eggs which may or may not be present in dog food.
Conclusion
In this dog blog, we answered the major question, “How many times a day should a dog eat?” we also discussed the major threats of overfeeding and underfeeding your dog, what affects the food quality and quantity of your dog, and what are the important parts of dog food.
