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  #1  
Old January 9th, 2006, 10:06 PM
Okami Okami is offline
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Food for older dogs?

I was wondering what type of food is best for a older dog around the ages 10-15. How much should a older dog be eating? (I mean how many feedings per day does it still stay at 3?) This is for a medium older dog.

Ever since I switched my dog to a seinor type of dog food she's been reluctent to eat it, but when she gets hungry enough she gives in and eats it. Is there anything tastier but still healthy for my old doggie?
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Old January 9th, 2006, 10:41 PM
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mona_b mona_b is offline
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Well I was never one for the "senior" foods.

My boy is 9(10 in March) and I have him on the regular(meaning not senior) food.I still feed him 3 times a day.Mind you,He gets the canned 3 times a day and the dry is left out....I did this also with my first GSD who was with me till he was 13.

If she was fine before the switch,then I say don't worry about it and let her have her regular food again.

IMHO,I don't think it's fair to have a dog starve just to have them eat what they don't like.

I'm not saying you are doing this....
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Old January 9th, 2006, 11:40 PM
Prin Prin is offline
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I don't like the senior foods either. I think you should feed a bit less as they age and their metabolism slows and their energy lowers, but that's it. If their food is working for them, I don't see why you need to change.
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Old January 10th, 2006, 12:06 AM
Okami Okami is offline
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:sad: I don't like feeding my dog the senior foods just for the reason she dislikes eating it. But I had to switch we had been feeding her iams for 9 years until we started getting all sorts of health problems, like her poop and becoming overweight. So we made a switch to nutro senior hoping that it would reduce her weight.
Are there other methods of weight loss? I'd love to feed my dog canned food but every time I do she vomits I've never been able to figure out why, though this problem has occured in her parents before.
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Old January 10th, 2006, 12:10 AM
Prin Prin is offline
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I would just feed her less, but gradually. You can't just cut back in one shot or the dog will become hungry all the time. Maybe an 1/8th of a cup a week less.

And don't forget that Nutro would be more dense than Iams anyway, so even if she wasn't on a diet, she should be eating less Nutro than the Iams.
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Old January 10th, 2006, 08:48 AM
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Beaglemom Beaglemom is offline
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Many times, as a dog gets older they slow down and thus their metabolism also slows down. If they eat the same amount of calories as they did before but are less active, they will gain weight and will become overweight.

I too don't like the senior foods. I've actually been told that once you start to feed senior foods, they start acting like a senior! Don't know if I believe that though.

I would rather give less of the food that they enjoy and maintain their weight with exercise and proper meal portions and have them enjoy what they are eating to having them hate their food and only eat it because they are hungry. That is not the best way to live.

My dog is 9.5 years old. She is on a regular diet, not low calorie and not senior, but a natural holistic diet of good quality ingredients. She too has the tendency to pack on a few extra pounds. We watch her weight very carefully and adjust her food intake accordingly. If we notice she has gained weight, we cut back on treats and on her daily food portion. This seems to have worked for us in the last few years.

I would follow the cutting back just as Prin has suggested. Doing it too quickly will leave her wanting more and feeling hungry. You might also want to split her daily food portion into 2 or 3 portions and feed her 2 or 3 times a day so that she isn't hungry all the time.
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Old January 10th, 2006, 08:58 AM
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mona_b mona_b is offline
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Quote:
Many times, as a dog gets older they slow down and thus their metabolism also slows down. If they eat the same amount of calories as they did before but are less active, they will gain weight and will become overweight.
This is so true.

And at times owners think that just because they are slowing down,this means they don't have to exercise them that much anymore.This is far from the truth.

As you didn't mention that he has become overweight,then I agree with what was said about cutting back.

See with my dogs,they never became less active,or became overweight.Tron is still very active at his age.And still looks darn good for his age....
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Old January 10th, 2006, 08:13 PM
Okami Okami is offline
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I'm not sure if it's the food or the dog but yes my dog is less active. She doesn't run that much or bark that much anymore. But she still looks like a puppy and acts like one too (when she's active).
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