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Your new puppy's first meals at home are very important. Find out what formula your puppy has been eating, and continue feeding this food for a day or two after you bring him home. If you want to change his diet to a premium food such as IAMS™ ProActive Health™ Smart Puppy Original , gradually move him to the new formula and help avoid intestinal upsets by using the following steps:
Day 1: Fill your dog's bowl with 75% of his old food and 25% of IAMS ProActive Health Smart Puppy Original.
Day 2: Mix his former food and IAMS ProActive Health Smart Puppy Original in a 50/50 ratio.
Day 3: Feed your dog a mixture that's 75% IAMS ProActive Health Smart Puppy Original and 25% former food.
Day 4: Feed 100% of IAMS ProActive Health Smart Puppy Original.
To feed a puppy from weaning to 4 months of age, offer a 100% complete and balanced premium puppy formula. To determine each serving size, start with the daily amount recommended by the feeding guidelines on the pet food label, and divide that number by the number of times a day (usually three times) you plan to feed your puppy.
Serve the food at room temperature and remove the bowl within 30 minutes after he's done eating. After four months, you can feed a puppy twice daily on a regular schedule.
Don't add nutritional supplements to your dog's diet. Adding commercial dietary supplements or 'people food' such as hamburger, eggs, cottage cheese, or cow's milk is unnecessary and might even do more harm than good.
Nutrients such as protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals are important players in the skin and coat health of dogs. To understand the role of these nutrients, it is necessary to start by understanding skin and hair.
The purpose of skin and hair is to block things from leaving (such as water or heat) or entering (such as viruses and bacteria) the body.
The hair coat is composed almost entirely of protein. If the animal's diet doesn't contain adequate protein quantity and quality, hair may fall out, or become dry, weak and brittle.
Skin is made up of squamous cells, flat cells tightly packed together. These cells have tough membranes that are composed of proteins and fats. Without proper amounts of these nutrients, cell membranes weaken, allowing water to escape and bacteria and viruses to enter more easily.
Proteins are found in both animal-based and plant-based ingredients. Animal-based proteins contain all the essential amino acids dogs need, whereas plant-based proteins may contain only some essential amino acids. Animal-based proteins help dogs achieve optimal health.
Fats can also be found in both animal-based and plant-based ingredients. They are incorporated into skin cells as fatty acids. There are two essential fatty acids for skin and coat health. Linoleic acid maintains skin and coat condition in dogs. Without enough linoleic acid dogs may experience dull, dry coat, hair loss, greasy skin and increased susceptibility to skin inflammation.
Both of these essential fatty acids are omega-6 fatty acids and are found in animal tissues like chicken fat. Linoleic acid is also found in some vegetable oils, such as corn and soybean oils.
Most commercial dog diets contain more than adequate amounts of omega-6 fatty acids. Because these fatty acids can be converted to compounds that increase susceptibility to skin inflammation, it is important to balance the amount of omega-6 fatty acids in the diet with omega-3 fatty acids, which reduce susceptibility to inflammation.
Omega-3 fatty acids are found in oils from fish and some plants (canola and flax).
IAMS research has found that combining fat sources in the diet at a ratio of 5-10 omega-6 fatty acids to 1 omega-3 fatty acid results in excellent skin and coat health.
Vitamins and minerals are essential for the development of healthy skin and hair coat. The best way to provide these nutrients is through a complete and balanced diet containing appropriate amounts of essential vitamins and minerals rather than through supplements.
| Vitamin or Mineral | Importance to Skin and Coat Health |
| Vitamin A | Necessary for growth and repair of skin |
| Vitamin E | Protects skin cells from oxidant damage |
| Biotin | Aids in the utilization of protein |
| Riboflavin (B2) | Necessary for fat and protein metabolism |
| Zinc | Necessary for fat and protein metabolism |
| Copper | Involved in tissue pigment and protein synthesis |
Diet is often believed to be a factor when changes in skin and coat condition are noticed. The most common causes of these changes, however, are season and life stage.
As cold weather approaches, most dogs grow a thick coat to help keep heat in and cold air out. As the weather begins to warm up, they shed the thick, heavy coat.
Most puppies are born with soft fuzzy hair, but as they age, a coarser coat grows. Pregnant or lactating dogs also may experience a change in coat condition or hair loss. And, as with humans, the hair on dogs may thin out and become coarser and white as they reach their senior years.
