Edie MacKenzie

Edie MacKenzie is a published author, traveler, dog lover, and tortoise enthusiast. Passionate about what she does, her books provide peopel a firm grounding in the dog breed and their unique characteristics with a nice touch of humor.

Dog Health – The Powerful Role Of Water To Your Dog

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Water is as important in dog health as it is in human health. Your dog’s body is made up of 70% water. He can live even if he loses all the fat and half of the protein in his body. However, he will die if his body loses even just 1/10 of his water.

In order to survive, a full-grown dog requires, at the very least, two milliliters (mls) of water for every pound he weighs every single day (keeping in mind that there are 30 milliliters of water per 1 ounce). The two milliliters are just enough for the dog to produce urine in his body.

Without enough water necessary for urine production, your dog, any dog, will not be able to live and their overall dog health suffers.

When given an unlimited amount of water, your dog will drink much more than the required two millimeters. This is especially true when you always keep a fresh bowl of water.

Giving your dog just the least amount of water every day may be enough for him to survive, but not for long.  Deficiency in water harms the body and gradually terminates its functions. He will eventually turn weak, get sick, and die.

The importance of giving your dog more water than the least amount needed for dog health is used in several ways:

1. Water is used to help digest and absorb nutrients.

2. It is used to burn fuel, which is turned into energy.

3. Water is responsible for maintaining a normal body temperature.

4. Drinking enough water replaces the fluids that are lost in the body during secretions.

5. Water is also responsible for mixing different types of chemicals in the body as they dissolve and transform into different chemical reactions.

6. Water carries nutrients to the cells and also transfers toxic waste products from the cells to the organs for proper elimination. With the absence of water, these organs will not be able to get rid of toxins from the body.

7. Last but not least, water is needed to regulate the blood’s acid level.

As you can see, water is almost always required for every function that takes place in the dog’s body.

And because of its versatility and the degree to which it is used, water is considered to be the most important nutrient for dog health required on all breeds of dogs.

So, in order to successfully maintain good dog health, don’t forget to fill the water bowl

Dog Health – Good Food & Bad Food

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How do you know whether or not the food you are feeding your dog contains all of the necessary nutrients he needs for optimal dog health and energy?

For Optimal Dog Health, Learn What The Labels Mean

Foods labeled “completely balanced” or “nutritionally complete” meet the nutritional requirements for either maintenance (adult dogs) or growth and reproduction (puppies and pregnant or lactating mothers), set aside by the Association of American Feed Control Officials.

The label must indicate the group for which it is intended.

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Dog Food Secrets You Need To Know!

“In This Shocking FREE Video Report You Discover Why 87% of Dogs Die Too Early & 3 Easy Things You Can Do Today To Stop It Happening to Your Dog”

Dog Food Secrets

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Dry food is the cheapest commercially available dog food. It’s bulky and takes longer to eat than other foods, so it’s more filling when eaten. And the crunchiness of non-moistened dry food helps keep a dog’s teeth healthy by reducing the accumulation of plaque. It also massages the gums.

You will find that canned foods cost more than dry foods, but if you own a small dog then this price difference should not be a major concern. However, when you are feeding a Rottweiler or Great Dane, then the difference could be phenomenal. Canned foods are a great choice for any canines that are underweight or those recovering from surgery or illness.

Then you have frozen pet food. Frozen foods have the same advantages of canned food products, however, frozen typically costs a bit more than the canned variety. What I like is that you can find both cooked and raw forms of frozen dog food.

Watch Out For Human Foods When Considering Dog Health

There are common foods that are in just about every household that can make your dog or puppy very sick, or worse, cause death. For your dog health, make sure they are stored where your pal can’t get to them.

1) Chocolate: Chocolate contains theobromine (a substance related to caffeine), which can cause vomiting, diarrhea, muscle tremors, seizures and abnormal heartbeat in dogs.

Different types of chocolate contain different amounts of theobromine.

2) Macadamia Nuts: While delicious to eat, these nuts can cause weakness in dogs, vomiting, depression, and other signs. The agent that causes it is unknown. Amounts as small as 2 teaspoons per pound of bodyweight have caused toxic signs.

3) Onions: Both raw or cooked onions contain a substance that causes rupture of the red blood cells, which can lead to severe anemia. Garlic can also produce similar signs, though not as severe.

A toxic dose is about 1 to 5 ounces of raw onions.

4) Raisins and Grapes: These foods can cause kidney failure in some dogs. The toxic agent has not been identified. According to the ASPCA’s Animal Poison Control Center, toxicity has occurred following ingestion of amounts ranging from a single serving of raisins to more than a pound of grapes.

Dog health is very important and by taking a few precautions, you prevent veterinary bills, and even more important, the death of your dog.

Dog Food & Supplements: An In Depth Look At Nutrition And Dog Health (7)

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According to the canine nutritional experts, a ninety pound adult German Shepherd can require up to seven cans of dog food per day for proper dog health.

A sixty pound Collie can require five cans per day. For the average household and overall dog health, this can become an expensive choice.

Dry dog foods, on the other hand, contain only about ten percent moisture – the other sixty five percent having been removed intentionally during the dehydration process.

The dog owner is expected to replace the moisture for better dog health  either by providing the dog with ample amounts of water alongside the feeding dish, or by adding it directly to the dry food.

Feeding directions on labels of dry dog food are very explicit about this.

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Dog Food Secrets You Need To Know!

“In This Shocking FREE Video Report You Discover Why 87% of Dogs Die Too Early & 3 Easy Things You Can Do Today To Stop It Happening to Your Dog”

Dog Food Secrets

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The drawback in feeding dry dog food usually has been caused by the dog owner having allowed the family pooch to enjoy table scraps. Eating people-food accomplishes absolutely nothing for Sparky’s nutritional needs or dog health and simply creates the problem of the finicky eater.

Under the mistaken belief that he’s doing the dog a favor, the dog owner is really robbing the animal of nutrients that are rightfully his – taking food right out of his mouth, so to speak.

In the middle of the scale are the “soft-moist” products which contain more moisture content than dry foods, but considerably less than the canned foods. They are the easiest of all three types to prepare, but are far and away the most expensive. Probably, they are economically most suitable for the small dog.

A compromise solution for the family with the finicky eater as well as the family with a limited dog food budget might be a combination of both canned and dry. Mixing two types – each balanced nutritionally – does nothing to upset the interrelationships of the nutrients.

It’s much easier to control the weight of the family dog when this combination is used. Rather than cut down on the volume intake of the obese dog, a decrease in the amount of dry food, with corresponding increase in canned food will accomplish this without having a constantly hungry dog begging for handouts.

On the other hand, increasing the amount of dry food, with a corresponding decrease in canned, may help to bring the weight up and improve the dog health on the dog that has a tendency to be skinny.

The diet of today’s pet dog has come quite a long way from the old days of being fed whale blubber, potatoes and cornbread. Now if manufacturers would take just as much interest in human foods… but for now, if your dog’s choice between caviar or a commercially prepared, balanced dog food, he’d be wise to select the dog food. Pound for pound – and dollar for dollar – the dog and his owner would be way ahead.

Dog health is important so pay extra attention to what your dog hoovers.

Dog Food & Supplements: An In Depth Look At Nutrition And Dog Health (6)

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Pet food manufacturers have made it quite easy for the average dog owner to feed their pets and positively effect dog health without having to be an expert nutritionist.

All of the work has been done by the modern manufacturer for easy and effective measures to ensure proper dog health.

Since it isn’t possible for manufacturers to list all of the nutrients and their required percentages as published by the NRC (National Research Council) on their labels, the terms “complete diet”, “nutritionally complete”, “balanced”, and “balanced diet” are used.

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Dog Health Secrets You Need To Know!

“In This Shocking FREE Video Report You Discover Why 87% of Dogs Die Too Early & 3 Easy Things You Can Do Today To Stop It Happening to Your Dog”

Dog Food Secrets

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This tells the consumer that the product inside the can, bag or box, contains all the essential vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates and fats the average dog needs to satisfy his daily requirements.

The nutritional requirement for good dog health puppies, however, is somewhat different than that required for adult dogs. The diet of the adult dog is usually referred to as a “maintenance diet” where a puppy diet is referred to as a “growth diet”.

In 1974 a regulation went into effect that required all dog food manufacturers to specify on their labels whether the product is complete and balanced for the adult dog (maintenance), complete and balanced for puppies (growth), or complete and balanced for growth and maintenance both. Since all manufactures comply with this regulation, the only thing left to the consumers is to read the label.

Among the varieties of canned, bagged, or semi-moist dog foods, there are certain drawbacks, as well as advantages. This is true even though they are nutritionally identical if advertised as “complete” and/or “balanced”.

Because canned dog food may contain up to 78% moisture, a dog necessarily has to eat a larger quantity of a canned product to get the same volume of food that he would get if fed a dry product. It takes three pounds of commercially prepared canned dog food to be equivalent to one pound of dry food.

But manufactures do not fill a can two-thirds of the way with water, then top it off with a little dab of dog food. The moisture content inside the can is there by the very nature of the ingredients. For example, when a human buys a thick juicy steak, he’s buying well over fifty percent moisture. The butcher didn’t inject that moisture into the steak with a hypodermic needle.

The moisture content in canned dog food serves a definite and useful purpose toward dog health, both in processing and in the dog’s digestive system. The drawback to the consumer insofar as canned dog food is concerned, is usually one of economics. It can be very expensive due to the large quantities of canned food most normal to large sized dogs will need to eat to get in their daily caloric and nutritional needs. Keep in mind, proper dog health can be very expensive, but well worth the love and affection!

Dog Food & Supplements: An In Depth Look At Nutrition And Dog Health (5)

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Of the twenty six nutrients needed for proper dog health, none can be left out of the ration, or added at inadequate levels, if optimum growth and performance are expected.

Because the nutrients interact with each other, they must be included in precise ratios. If a large excess of one nutrient occurs, then the quantities of other nutrients in the ration must be increased accordingly. Otherwise, a deficiency of certain nutrients exists.

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Dog Health Secrets You Need To Know!

“In This Shocking FREE Video Report You Discover Why 87% of Dogs Die Too Early & 3 Easy Things You Can Do Today To Stop It Happening to Your Dog”

Dog Food Secrets

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This can be a dangerous situation regarding dog health.

A good example of this is the relationship between calcium, phosphorus and vitamin D. All effects are interrelated. The ratio of calcium to phosphorus must be maintained at 1.2 or 1. If additional calcium is added, creating an imbalance, there would be an inefficient assimilation of these minerals.

The result could cause a disease known as rickets.

Considering that vitamin D acts as transportation for calcium, one can begin to see how these three elements are connected.  While a deficiency of calcium predisposes to rickets, an excess of calcium will do likewise.

In adult dogs, the condition would be referred to as “paper bones”.

A more common example is an excess of fat in the diet. If fat increased to high levels, then fat will satisfy the energy requirements of the dog before the requirements for other nutrients are met. The result would be a nutritional imbalance. An increase of fat requires a corresponding increase in vitamin B12.

Of particular concern are those professional breeders who attempt to bred over-sized, large boned “super dogs”. Nutritional experts state that certain supplements such as oils, enzymes, and minerals should be used only under a veterinarian’s supervision or recommendation. This is especially true of calcium and cod liver oil (vitamin D), both of which are frequently used by breeders during growth. In excess, they can cause serious problems, particularly with bone development.

In this regard toward dog health, it should be added that excess vitamin and mineral supplements may be the aggravating cause of heart problems, hip problems, and lower the all-around health of a dog.

With the hip dysplasia problem being so rampant, and no longer confined to just one or two breeds, professional breeders must become more aware of the dangers up upsetting intricate balances with their “home treatments” and super “bone builders” (genetic inheritance notwithstanding).

Drugs have a very definite place in our society. It is the misuse and abuse of drugs that creates a problem. Likewise, vitamin and mineral supplementation has an important place in the dog world, but misuse and abuse creates a dangerous problem in dog health.

Dog Food & Supplements: An In Depth Look At Nutrition For Dog Health (3)

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Supplementing For Better Dog Health

Labeling in the pet food industry is carefully controlled by state and federal regulations and is important to dog health.

Words such as “complete” and/or “balanced” cannot arbitrarily appear on a label. Before any labeling claims that a product is complete and/or balanced, manufacturers must prove it to the satisfaction of the American Association of Feed Control Officials (AAFCO).

The AAFCO is made up of representatives from each state, and representatives from the Federal Trade Commission and the Food and Drug Administration. The AAFCO is closely affiliated with the individual state departments of agriculture. Manufacturers must prove that the product actually meets or exceeds the acceptable guidelines as set forth by the National Research Council.

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Dog Health Secrets You Need To Know!

“In This Shocking FREE Video Report You Discover Why 87% of Dogs Die Too Early & 3 Easy Things You Can Do Today To Stop It Happening to Your Dog”

Dog Food Secrets

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Because of the variety of dog foods now available to the consumer, he finds himself faced with the question, which is best? Canned, dry, or semi-moist food?

Complete and balanced foods are available in all three forms.

Nutritionally, they are the same. Only the means used to arrive at the end result (putting it in a can, bag or box) are different. In canned foods, fresh or frozen meat or meat by-products are used as a source of protein, though they are not the only source of it. In dry foods, the very same products are dehydrated, and other ingredients added to compensate for any loss of nutrients during the dehydration process.

This raises another set of questions around dog health.

Why then is there such a wide diversification of prices? How can some dog foods be priced at just a few dollars while seemingly the same amount of nutrients in a more popular brand be priced triple that amount? If both foods are labeled as “complete” and “balanced” then what is the difference?

The answer can be found in the list of ingredients the manufacturer uses to make the product. The ingredients used will affect the palatability of the product – that is – how it tastes and smells.

A person sitting down at the dinner table with a plate of broiled lobster, french fries, corn on the cob, and homemade yeast rolls would really savor the taste and smell of the meal, provided he enjoyed such cuisine. Then again, the smell of Hungarian goulash emanating from the table alongside wouldn’t turn him on at all. A person adverse to lobster meal might very well relish the Hungarian goulash. The price paid for each of the two meals would vary greatly.

In other words – people’s tastes differ – and likewise, dog’s tastes differ.

The manufacturer strives to develop the one taste that will be enjoyed by the largest percentage of dogs. To this end, each manufacturer strives for consistency. The job for proper blending to achieve taste and smell falls directly upon the manufacturer’s quality control staff; this ensures great dog health for your pet.

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