Recent studies have shown that while consistently feeding your dog the same dog food isn’t unhealthy, it isn’t as healthy as it could be. More vets and dog health professionals are getting on board with rotational diets as it adds a level of variety and a spectrum of changing nutrients that your pet will need.
What is a rotational diet?
Rotational diets are diets where you switch what your dog eats systematically to provide your dog with a variety of nutrients. In most cases, rotational diets will either take on the cycle of kibble, then wet food, then dog food made of things like fresh beef, chicken and rice with some vegetables. Rotational diets change the dog food on a weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly basis in most cases. Rotational diets also do not usually include simply changing kibble brands as that does not allow for much different experiences in flavors or textures.
Why should pet parents do rotational diets?
There are a number of benefits to rotational diets with dog food. Some of those benefits include:
Creates a More Complete Nutrition
While most dog food is designed to balance your dog’s diet and give them the nutrients they need to grow, kibble isn’t always as effective as it could be. By rotating the dog food that you use, you offer your dog a more unique nutritional profile that no strict kibble or wet food diet could provide. Your dog will also ingest more good components such as amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and fatty acids that are all natural in the fish, beef, and chicken that your dog will in the rotational diet.
Keeps Mealtime Excitement
Some dogs can become picky because of the limits that come with mealtime. This pickiness and boredom may lead to your dog begging for your food while neglecting their own and this can lead to lack of necessary nutrition. Rotational diet changes the dog food, keeps your dog excited because of the changing flavors, and while it seems like spoiling, it maintains nutritional balance. This can all help diminish begging for table scraps.
Increases Water Consumption
Changing your dog food can help your dog get the amount of water that he needs to be healthy. Many house pets don’t drink as much water as they should, cats particularly. One way that water consumption is helped is through the moisture in foods like rice, chicken, and frozen foods. Increased water consumption can help prevent health issues like urinary infections, liver disease, and constipation.
Rotational diets help fight food allergies
Just like humans, dogs can be allergic to certain foods. By changing dog food with rotational diets, you’re able to expose your dog to different ingredients and allergens which can help build resistance to those allergens.
When to Rotate Dog Food for a Rotational Diet
Before you change your dog food, check with your vet to make sure you know the right items to use for optimal nutrition. It’s also better to start the rotational diet when the dog is younger as changing a diet can cause stomach issues at first. However with the help of a vet and/or nutritionist, you should have very few problems if any at all.
