Is variety good or bad in a dog's diet?

 

Variety is a good thing in a dog’s diet for a number of reasons: it prevents them from getting bored and eating less than required; it is easier to give them a range of amino acids, vitamins, and minerals if there is a variety in food; and it helps prevent sensitivities or allergies to develop, which may happen if your feed a specific diet long-term. In fact, a variety in food may actually improve the gut by increasing the diversity of good bacteria, which ultimately leads to better nutrient absorption. 

Why does this matter?

  • Dogs need a number of essential nutrients. For example, dogs need 10 essential amino acids, omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids; vitamins A, D, E K and B-complex; minerals like calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, chloride, and even trace minerals. It is easier to ensure that they are getting such a wide range of nutrients if they have a variety in their diet instead of depending on a single diet.

  • Deficiencies in any of the essential nutrients may cause various health-issues and even long-term damage.

What do vets generally agree on?

It is true that, technically, dogs can have the same kind of food long term, if it is a complete and balanced meal. However, practically, it is hard to ensure that they’re getting all the nutrients they need from one single kind of food. Plus, dogs may sometimes develop allergies to a certain ingredient in the long-run, even if they had no sensitivity to it initially. This may happen especially with protein. Therefore, it is best to give dogs a variety of meals, especially when it comes to the protein source.  

When to be careful?

While it is good to feed your dog a rotational diet, sudden diet changes may cause digestive issues, such as vomiting, diarrhea, etc. So, when making a diet change, make sure that you start gradually. For example, even if you’re making a small change like feeding your dog fish for the first time after they have been on chicken for a long time, mix a little bit of fish with the chicken diet and slowly increase over 9–10 days. In fact, when feeding BLEP fresh dog food for the first time, we recommend that you check out BLEP’s Feeding Guidelines page.


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