Do senior dogs require special diet or senior dog food?
The thing about senior dogs is that they sometimes become overweight because of the fat and protein in regular dog food. When dogs age they become less active, so less able to “work off” the fat and protein from the regular dog food. I think that senior dog food is best, just because its the balanced nutrition specially designed for dogs that are less active, which keeps them from getting overweight. Another point to consider is the fact that when dogs age, the hard dog food becomes harder for the dog to chew, so the senior dog food is easier for the older dog to actually chew and swallow, which makes sure that the dog is getting enough to eat.
Sometimes dogs do medically require special diet. Sometimes there are changes in an older dogs ability to digest. Sometimes there are changes in their teeth and ability to chew which would necessitate a change in diet. I don’t think there is an actual rule of thumb on this..more like the breed or the individual dog’s needs. Personally, I know that it can’t hurt to switch to a senior dog food that has the nutrients better suited to an older dog. I feel that if they make puppy food for growing pups, adult food for an adult dogs nutritional needs that it seems logical to make a nutritionally correct food for senior dogs. I have a 3 year old M and a 16 year old F mix breed. The 16 year old has been on senior formula for about 6 years. I changed the brand once also. She’s doing pretty well so I am OK with that decision.
Do they require it? No because they’ll extract all they need from reasonable quality food until their organs begin to fail with extreme old age; and by then they’ll surely be under veterinary supervision, Might they benefit from it, Yes, most definitely. I’ve fed James Wellbeloved (plus table scraps, the occasional sardine, raw egg and treats) to my dogs for a quite a number of years. My last one, a Greyhound/Lurcher, with a long-term shoulder injury and arthritis requiring constant medication lived to a happy 14 years of age on it and with the senior light recipe (in the link below) since the age of 9. Yes, it’s a premium price hypoallergenic brand and from the link you’ll see there are plenty of valuable supplements included. You could buy these separately of course and I guess the price would end up about the same. In all the years that dog was well (until the last month) there was no waste whatsoever, with the bowl always being eaten clean in about 5 minutes on twice daily feeds. S
It all comes down to one simple premise: Evaluate the dog. Senior diets are formulated to meet the needs of a ‘typical’ senior dog, so they aren’t a bad idea to transition to as your dog gets older. Older dogs often have age related changes that can be mitigated through diet, but as most of my profs are very fond of saying: “Age is not a disease.” If a dog is doing well on particular diet, be it senior or not, there is no need to transition to a senior food. As an example, my dog who recently passed away, we kept on an “Adult” diet up until the day he died (at 14). Comparing “Iams Large Breed” with “Iams Large Breed Active Maturity” (diets I have data on in front of me) Iams Large Breed 23% Protein 33% Fat 44% Carbs 374kcal/cup Iams Large Breed Active Maturity 25% Protein 27% Fat 48% Carbs 293kcal/cup Key difference for me, is the lower fat content, which is made up by a higher carb content (making the diet less calorically dense). This to me says: If the dog is healthy, active, a good
