Rotating Your Dog's Food

• Posted on 5 January 2016
• By Dr. Jill Tack
• Posted in dog nutrition, dog tips, healthy dog food, rotating dog food, why rotate dog food
• 0

Many pet food companies use marketing to tell us that our dogs need to eat puppy food, adult food, and then senior food. What they don’t tell you is that your dog will be eating the same thing, every meal, every day. I don’t know about you, but if that was me, I would get bored and not want to eat.

By Erica Cook

Many pet food companies use marketing to tell us that our dogs need to eat puppy food, adult food, and then senior food. What they don’t tell you is that your dog will be eating the same thing, every meal, every day. I don’t know about you, but if that was me, I would get bored and not want to eat.

Benefits of Pet Food Rotation

Besides offering our pets' taste buds a variety, rotating their diet has a host of health benefits, including:

More Balanced Nutrition

Every food has a different nutrient profile. When we feed our dogs the same thing every day, we only give them one nutrient profile. However, when we change their food, we are able to give them different nutrients, making their nutrient intake more balanced.

Decreased Risk of Food Allergies

Animals fed the same thing over extended periods of time can develop sensitivities to those foods. When rotating foods, ingredients are not in your pet's diet long enough to develop allergies or sensitivities.

Improved Gut Health

When fed the same thing over extended periods of time, our pets stop making the probiotics and enzymes needed to break down other foods. This can cause gastrointestinal upset when new foods are introduced. Over long periods of time, it can even cause sensitivity to environmental allergens. When we support enzyme and probiotic formation, we maintain a healthy and happy gut. Also, since most of the immune system is held in the gut, food rotation is a great way to increase the immune system function.

Less Picky Eating

By offering our pets a variety of food options, we are giving them a chance to try new things often. This helps with their food drive and reduces chances of them becoming picky eaters. Offering food rotation is also a great way to add excitement back into mealtime!

How to Get Started

Orijen, a pet food that we sell here at The Pet Beastro, offers us a great way to shake up our companions' meal plans. They not only offer puppy, adult, and senior dog foods, but also three unique blends that are wonderful for every stage of life:

• 6 Fish is a blend of fresh and saltwater fish that are caught wild in Canada’s Alberta region. 6 Fish is a low-glycemic, low-carb food that is high in Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acid chains. These essential fatty acids (EFA’s) help to support the skin and coat structure of our pets.
• Regional Red blends black Angus beef, wild boar, Alberta lamb, heritage pork, and ranch-raised bison, along with fruits and berries for a taste of the open plains. All four of these meats are raised on local ranches in Canada. Regional Red is also low-glycemic and low-carb, offering a delicious blend that helps support proper blood sugar levels and optimal health.
• Tundra, Orijen’s newest flavor, blends goat, venison, mutton, ranch-raised bison, arctic char, rabbit, duck, cod, sardine, and trout with a small amount of fruit and vegetables. This formula helps to maintain muscle mass by providing richly nourishing meats. Tundra fits Orijen’s low-glycemic and low-carb profiles.

How Often to Rotate Foods

How often you choose to rotate your animal's food depends on both you and your pet. Most often we suggest grabbing a new flavor every time you pick up a bag of food for your pup. Orijen not only offers 6 Fish, Regional Red, and Tundra in kibble form, they also offer Regional Red and Tundra in freeze-dried form, too. This is a great option to add variety daily into your pet's current diet!

Depending on your pet and how long they have been on their current diet, they may need up to 14 days to transition to a new food. Each animal is different and some may need help when transferring to a rotational diet. Probiotics, enzymes, and raw goat’s milk are some great ways to help increase digestive function in pets. If you need more information, please stop in the store so we can help you get started!