WHAT ARE THE NUTRITIONAL NEEDS OF SMALL BREED DOGS
It’s very important that when you choose the food that you will give to your puppy, you keep in mind that the nutritional needs of dogs are different according to age, physiological stage, size, breed, lifestyle, level of activity and / or health problems, you shouldn’t ignore the nutritional needs because you can cause health problems for your pet. The best way to meet nutritional requirements is to find the best commercial food, properly formulated and tested. Premium food is the best option, since in addition to having optimal ingredients for your pet’s nutrition, it also has scientific research that corroborates the information, there is currently a wide variety of products formulated for the breed, age, size or specific needs of your pet.
Puppies have very specific nutritional needs, because they are in a growth phase and the energy demand is pretty high and the food they receive at this stage will influence their health in the future. You should also know that small breed puppies have a higher metabolism rate than large breed puppies; therefore, they should be feeding an energy-dense food containing more calories in a smaller volume.
As I already said, small breed dog adults have a faster metabolism and therefore need more energy than large breed dogs. Also, make sure that the food has a rich source of animal protein as a first ingredient and a good content of carbohydrates that provide enough energy.
Energy is needed to allow optimal protein utilization and maintain optimal body weight during growth, maintenance, activity, pregnancy, and lactation. Protein is a source of essential amino acids and a source of nitrogen for non-essential amino acids, they also provide a greater feeling of satiation when eating. Therefore, small dogs benefit from diets rich in protein, especially when it is of animal origin and of good quality. For small breeds, in puppies the minimum protein content in the food must be 22% and in adults 18%. You should also consider that the source of protein that the food has will determine its biological value, the content of essential amino acids, its digestibility and the metabolization.
Keep in mind that small breeds need the size of the kibble to adapt to the size of their mouth, this helps to improve chewing and the digestive process in general.
Avoid feeding cat or human food to dogs, as they do not have the proper nutritional balance for their proper development.