What To Feed The Dog In The Summer?
Although our pets need a balanced diet throughout the year, it is essential to double attention as summer approaches. With excessive heat, it’s only natural for our best friends to reduce their appetite and feel thirsty rather than hungry. Therefore, it is essential to know what to feed your dog in the summer to strengthen its hydration and maintain good nutrition.
In this article, we will try to understand why dogs usually change their eating habits on warmer days. In addition, we will give you some tips to ensure a complete and refreshing diet during the summer.
Is it normal for your dog to eat less in the summer?
When high temperatures come, our best friends’ bodies exhibit specific nutritional needs. Therefore, his eating habits must also change to meet these new organic needs.
If it is very hot, your dog may want to drink lots of water and eat less food. This helps them cool down and decrease the feeling of heaviness, which is very common in the summer.
Since dogs only have sweat glands on the pads of their paws, they cannot sweat all over their body. That’s why, in the summer, dogs usually pant all the time: to help regulate their body temperature.
The intensity and availability of light in the summer also affects your best friend’s appetite. It has been observed that mammals usually reduce their food intake naturally when there are more hours of sunshine during the day.
It is thought that the brains of our animals associate the decrease in brightness with the arrival of winter. When there is less light, his little brain “orders” the endocrine system to speed up metabolism, store food and prepare for winter deficiencies.
Conversely, if there is a large availability of light and food abounds, the metabolism takes on a calmer rhythm. By moving less and having a quieter demeanor, your body requires fewer calories.
What should you feed your dog in the summer?
During the summer, it is highly recommended that your dog have a lighter and more varied diet. However, you should avoid making radical or sudden changes to his diet. This could cause negative symptoms such as diarrhea and vomiting, as well as a natural initial rejection of the new food.
The ideal is to divide the total amount of food into small portions. This way, your pet will feed regularly and won’t feel heavy from eating too much food. Also, do not overload the stomach all at once, it facilitates the digestion process and improves intestinal transit.
If your dog shows no interest in eating his dry food in the summer, an excellent option is to prepare a homemade wet meal. We can also mix dry food with chicken broth or hot water to soften it and form a gruel.
In addition, you can supplement his usual diet by adding fruits and vegetables, which are particularly refreshing and healthy. In this sense, you will have to remember that it is important to offer these foods in a moderate way, as they contain a lot of sugars and fibers that can cause diarrhea.
Water: even more necessary during the summer
With excessive heat, dogs’ bodies usually lose a good amount of fluids and electrolytes. Therefore, the animal needs to drink water or other healthy drinks, to stay well hydrated and recover the balance of the body.
When your best friend doesn’t drink enough water in the summer, this can cause a slow metabolism. As a result, symptoms such as fatigue or lethargy, decreased blood pressure, dizziness and even fainting appear. If the intake continues to be deficient, the animal may become dehydrated.
On the other hand, your dog’s kidney functions can be greatly impaired by a lack of fluids. As kidney damage progresses, the risk of failure increases.
In addition to leaving fresh, clean water available for him, you can also stimulate his curiosity and appetite with smoothies and fruit and vegetable juices. The most important thing is that these preparations contain a high percentage of liquids and ingredients that are beneficial for the health of your best friend.
Finally, you must always remember that the guidance of a veterinarian is essential to provide excellent nutrition for your pets. Before incorporating any new foods into their diets or changing programs, remember to consult with the professional you trust.
