You love your dog, and this means you worry about his or her health. Perhaps you worry about it enough that your pet-less friends don’t understand. You definitely worry about it enough to do research on the internet about what you can do to encourage health. The following will explore a few elements of your canine friend’s overall health, paying special attention to the role nutrition plays and how you can help.
Nutrition
While dogs are quite a bit different than humans, when it comes to health, we have more in common than you might think. A diet balanced with the right nutrients and macronutrients is important for your furry friend in the same way that it’s important for you. A balanced diet for dogs includes:
- Protein: There are 23 amino acids that build protein within your dog’s body. He or she can only produce thirteen of them, and this means the other ten need to come through diet.
- Fats: Just like with humans, healthy fats give your dog energy and keep his or her coat shiny and smooth.
- Vitamins and minerals: Dogs need a variety of vitamins (A, D, E, K, and B-Complex, to name a few) as well as minerals like calcium and phosphorous.
- Water: As for you, water is an important part of your dog’s ability to absorb nutrients, and so it’s just as critical.
Probiotics
In today’s world, most of our food preparation techniques reduce the chances for healthy bacteria to be ingested. Dog food is no exception. Because of this, many pet owners are looking for the best dog probiotics to ensure their dog has a healthy gut microbiome. The gut is responsible for mood, energy levels, digestion, nutrient absorption, and many other factors that influence the quality of life. It doesn’t matter if your pooch is eating the best dog food in the world if his or her gut is struggling to draw nutrients from the food.
Similarities To Human Needs
It might come as a surprise to you how similar dog nutritional needs are to human needs. Yes, canines can produce their own vitamin C, so they don’t need to eat that, but many of their requirements are the same. This might be because dogs and humans have been evolving together for thousands of years. This also means that the dog food industry is beginning to reflect the people’s food industry. Labels know that you’re concerned about the health and so are designed to lead you to make the assumption that they’re healthy. Learning how to read labels and ingredients and researching ingredients and whether dogs respond well to these ingredients and can absorb them properly will help you choose between brands.
The above information should have gotten you started in the world of dog nutrition. Once you start learning and seeing the positive effect on your energetic and furry friend, you’ll want to keep learning about canine health and what you can do to cultivate it. You can learn more about some common goldendoodle diseases and health conditions on the page linked. Remember, no one knows your dog as well as you do, so if you sense something is off, investigate it. You are your dog’s biggest advocate.
