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How to convert a dog to dry food

Often, the owners, enthusiastically choosing to feed their pet according to the principle, all that is useful to me, helpful to my four-legged friend, encounter some problems, as dogs often get sick getting food from the master's table. There are other situations where the owner gets tired to cook large amounts of food for his once tiny, but the size of a calf, a pet. Whatever the reason, the owners come to a common opinion and begin to select the most useful dry rations for their pets. How to transfer a dog to dry food so that the changes would not negatively affect the ward's state of health?

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Rules for transferring dogs to dry food

How to convert a dog to dry food

Before drastically changing the menu of your tail (or tailless) comrade, you should familiarize yourself with some of the postulates underlying the transfer of the dog to dry food:

  • It is important not to rush . Any changes in the dog's diet are stressful for her, what to speak of replacing natural products with production dry food. If you do it sharply, then the animal often has various kinds of health problems. As a result, the pet may suffer from bowel disorders - constipation or diarrhea, it may develop vomiting, increased gas formation and other disorders in the activity of the gastrointestinal tract. This is a good reason for the gradual transfer of the dog to a new food for him.
  • It is better to give preference to high quality feeds . Saving dog food is a thankless task. First, the stress from going to “drying” will increase several times. Secondly, having tried the granules with flavors and enhancers, the dog would later refuse to have better diets. Thirdly, choosing economical low quality feed, it should be noted that their consumption is much higher than that of the highest class feed. This is especially noticeable if the pet belongs to the representatives of large or giant breeds. Ideally, before changing the diet, you should contact your veterinarian, who will offer the best option for your dog. If this is not possible, you should familiarize yourself with the ratings of the best feeds, and choose from those that belong to the premium, super premium and holistic class, the most suitable. But, even following this recommendation, no one is immune from the fact that food will not work. Therefore, it is worth preparing and choosing several alternative replacement rations.
  • Observance of water balance is very important. Receiving natural food, the dog with it also receives some amount of moisture. But in the case of dry rations this will not happen. Now, pet food and water are separate components. Therefore, you should take care that the dog has access to clean drinking water around the clock. And if the dog often turns over the bowl, you need to make sure that this does not happen with a container with water, and the pet is not left without the necessary drinking. Especially the dog will be thirsty in the first days after transferring to dry food, it will drink very often. This is a normal phenomenon and the needs of the pet must be met. Another nuance - the dog begins to drink more, which means that he will go to the toilet more often. While the body is not fully adapted to the new feeding regime, it is often more likely to walk your four-legged friend. This will not only relieve the house of bad-smelling puddles, but also contribute to better digestion of food, since during the movement the work of the gastrointestinal tract is more intense.

By the way, choosing a suitable menu, based on the age and size of the dog, you should always feed him with this food, without changing the brand, if there is no good reason for this.

Phased transfer of the dog to dry food

As already noted, when transferring a dog to rations ready to rush to anything. Moreover, it is necessary to do it when the pet has no health problems, and he feels great.

The entire transfer period can take from a week to one and a half. Every day it is necessary to systematically increase the amount of dry food, and to do less servings of natural food:

  • The first two days the ratio of natural products and dry ration is 3: 1.
  • 3, 4, 5 day - the number of "drying" and "naturalka" is balanced and is 50: 50%.
  • The end of the first week - only 1/4 of all daily food received by a pet, is previously habitual food, the rest is a ready-made diet.
  • 9, 10,11, 12th day - natural food is still present in the dog's menu, but its share does not exceed 15% of the total diet. In the future, the dog can be fed exclusively prepared feed.

It should be borne in mind that with this type of feeding, the interval between feeding should be at least 12 hours, in the extreme case - 10 hours.

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This question is interesting for many novice dog owners or owners who have just decided to change the type of feeding for their pets. Naturally, the main indicator is the health and well-being of the pet. Among the warning signs that indicate that food does not suit him, the following phenomena can be noted:

  • vomiting, difficulty urinating or diarrhea;
  • increased hair loss, not associated with seasonal moulting;
  • redness of the ears;
  • sour eyes;
  • the dog became lethargic, apathetic, sleeping more than usual.

In this case, it is important to consult a veterinarian, not thinking that this phenomenon will pass with time. Excellent, beautiful coat is the “mirror” of the activities of the digestive tract. And if this system fails, then the dog may experience dandruff, itching, bald patches and other phenomena that indicate negative changes.

Food allergies are a nuisance that many dog ​​owners face. And when transferring a pet from natural food to dry food, it often manifests itself, so it is worthwhile to get acquainted in advance with the symptoms of allergic manifestations:

  • skin itching and irritation (there are no parasites);
  • there are pockets of hair loss;
  • weeping areas appear in the armpits;
  • from the pet begins to emit a cloying, slightly sweet smell;
  • tearing increases;
  • darkish discharge from the ears appears.

These symptoms require the elimination of the causative agent of allergy and treatment that eliminates unpleasant symptoms. Naturally, this must be done under the supervision of a veterinarian.

If the dog calmly transferred the transition to a new diet, he does not have the above symptoms, he is cheerful and cheerful, it means that the chosen food is what you need. But still, the first time the owner should look at the quality of the pet's chair, evaluate how often he goes to the toilet and whether there are any changes in behavior.

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