Puppies, like many babies, are very voracious. They are constantly not averse to eating. But the owner must understand that a small pet is not able to control their own appetite.
How can I feed a German shepherd puppy? And how then to feed an adult dog? Details in the article.
A little bit about the breed
Before we talk about the diet for the German Shepherd, let's talk about the features of the breed.
What is this animal? Everyone knows about what a “German” looks like thanks to all kinds of films and TV shows dedicated to German Shepherds. What is the character of these dogs?
In fact, how many representatives of the breed, so many characters among them can be found. But they all have one thing in common: a limitless mind. A more intelligent breed has not yet been invented.
The German Shepherd is a confident dog. It lends itself perfectly to training, and the mind of this animal requires constant loads. If you do not deal with the shepherd, do not strain her mind, then the dog will start to occupy itself on its own. And this means that she will simply make a decision, not taking into account the opinion of the owner. If the owner is weak morally and can sit on his neck, then the representatives of the breed immediately feel it. This is not to say that the dog will not obey such an owner. Of course, she will listen to him, but she will think about whether to fulfill his commands.
The German Shepherd also needs physical activity. Walk with an adult dog should be at least 3 hours a day. And combine cardio loads with training. This means that for half an hour they play outdoor games with the dog, and then they train the teams for about fifteen minutes.
With proper upbringing and constant loads, a calm and obedient dog devoted to its owner will grow out of the puppy. Otherwise, the owner runs the risk of getting something poorly managed and very aggressive.
Pet Care
How to feed a German shepherd? We will talk about this a little lower. Now we will touch on the topic of caring for the breed.
We have already said that the shepherd dog needs regular physical and mental stress. First of all, there must be contact with the owner. It is achieved by regular play from puppyhood and the right attitude towards the dog. There should be no screaming, let alone beatings.
In addition to walking and training, German shepherds need to be well walked, that is, give them the opportunity to run. An ideal place for walking is a field or forest.
Once a week, short-haired representatives of the breed are combed out. As for the long-haired German shepherds, they take care of their toilet two to three times a week.
And returning to the topic of feeding. How to feed a German shepherd, how many times a day? Adult dogs are fed twice. Pregnant bitches - three or four times a day. The diet of puppies begins with six-times feeding and gradually decreases to two times. What is the best way to feed your pet? We will talk in more detail about the diet and its choice below.
What's better?
What is better to feed a German shepherd? Disputes in this regard are ongoing. Someone prefers dry food. Other owners choose natural food.
What to stop at? Let's look at the benefits of dry food.
- It's comfortable. The owner pours the necessary portion, soaks it in water, and that’s all.
- Quickly. No need to suffer in order to cook porridge for your pet.
- The food is balanced. With natural nutrition, the diet will have to be carefully thought out. Good dry feed already contains all the necessary minerals and vitamins.
Now let's talk about natural feed.
- The quality of food. The owner himself makes a diet for the pet and knows what she eats.
- If the shepherd needs to gain weight, she will do it much faster when eating natural products.
- It is cheaper than dry food.
Dry food: types, benefits and harms
How to feed a German shepherd, we figured out. This is either dry food or natural food.
What classes of dry food can be distinguished today? Economy, premium, super premium and holistic.
What is good economy class feed? At its cost. They are cheap, affordable, and sold at any pet store. This ends the benefits.
What are the disadvantages of this class of feed? First of all, their composition. Manufacturers write on the packaging that the content of meat products in the feed is at least 4%. But what does it mean? And the fact that the composition of the feed includes meat waste and ground bones. Or bone meal, in other words. Everything else is cornmeal, flavor enhancers and colorings. How to feed a German shepherd? Is it really like feed? It is unlikely that such a diet will benefit the pet.
What about premium feeds? They are more expensive than the previous option. But their quality is much better. The composition of premium feed includes meat offal, corn or rice flour, dry vegetables. Will such food suit puppies? Better not take the risk. Although for an adult dog, this diet is also not the most useful. But much better than a feed-economy class.
Super premium class. They include natural meat, almost 50%. The rest is rice, vegetables or fruits. For an adult dog, a very good nutritional option. But the price category of this class of feed is quite rather big.
And finally, feed-holistic. We warn you right away, they are very expensive. A fifteen-pound bag will cost 6,500-7,000 thousand. However, the feed is worth the money. It contains only quality products: at least 75% of natural meat or fresh fish, vegetables, fruits, essential vitamins and minerals. Foods of this class, as a rule, do not cause allergies in dogs.
Natural nutrition
How to feed a German shepherd? If it is not possible to buy quality food, plant it on natural food. But this does not mean that the dog can be turned into a living trash and drain it all the rest from the table into a bowl.
What kind of diet should a German shepherd eat on “human” food?
- Meat. At least 50% of the daily food intake.
- Vegetables and fruits.
- Dairy products.
- Chicken or quail eggs.
- Cereals: rice, buckwheat, oat.
- Vitamin complex for dogs.
We found out with the diet, let's talk about how to feed the pet with all this good.
First of all, it should be remembered that shepherds are creatures quite prone to allergies. Therefore, chicken in their diet should be minimized. It is better to replace chicken with turkey or beef.
Boil the beef and give the dog. Boiled turkey too. If you want to pamper your pet, offer her sugar beef bone. For a dog this is a tasty and healthy treat. But do not offer it more than once a week.
What do we do with vegetables? Boil and mix with pieces of meat. It turns out tasty and healthy food for your pet. Three to four times a week, this stew can be given to a pet.
How to feed a monthly German shepherd? And more adult puppies? About this a little later, while we are talking about adult dogs.
Cereals give four to five times a week. They are boiled and mixed with meat. You can also include vegetables here: it all depends on the imagination of the owner.
Can dogs be salted with food? A little can, but only in very small quantities. A pinch of force.
Cottage cheese and kefir. Curd is given to adult dogs no more than twice a week. As for kefir, it is quite possible to treat them to a pet three times a week.
Chicken eggs: two pieces per week, raw or boiled. Quail eggs produce up to four per week.
Fruit. Apples, in particular, can be given at least every evening. They cleanse the animal’s teeth and are suitable as a tasty toy.
We have decided on the nutrition of adult dogs. And how to feed a German shepherd puppy in 1 month? Below we will deal with the diet of puppies.
Monthly puppy nutrition
Now there is a tendency to give puppies a little over a month old. By this time they are accustomed to liquid cereals with minced meat or to dry food for puppies. Therefore, it is extremely undesirable to transfer the baby to a new diet. For up to two months, he is fed what the breeder fed. If we are talking about dry food, then it is pre-soaked. If about porridges, then they should be liquid.
How to feed a German shepherd in 1 month we found out. We move on to feeding the puppy at the age of 2 months.
Here is a trick. What are we eating?
The puppy grows, but they continue to feed him, as at the age of one month, six times a day. Every three hours. If the puppy’s first meal is at 8 a.m., the last should be at 23 p.m.
Now the puppy can be transferred to adult food. Do it gradually, mixing it with the usual. For a week, the pet is transferred to a new product. The food is soaked before giving the puppy.
How to feed a German shepherd puppy in 2 months? If we are talking about natural food, then boiled vegetables, cottage cheese and kefir begin to be added to liquid meat porridges. Cottage cheese is given three to four times a week. Kefir can be given every day, but very little. Eggs are gradually introduced into the diet, starting from half a week.
You can try to give apples, a piece every day, preferably before bedtime.
What to feed a German shepherd a month and two, we found out. Now let's talk about how to feed a three-month-old puppy.
Three months
The diet does not change significantly. The number of feedings is reduced. Now the puppy is transferred to five meals a day. Kefir is gradually removed from the daily diet. Expand the amount of meat and cereals, diversify vegetables.
How to feed a German shepherd puppy in 3 months? The same as younger puppies.
From four months and older
We now know how to feed a German shepherd puppy at 2 months and at 3. What can be said about the diet of an older puppy?
To begin with, it is transferred to four meals a day. The amount of meat increases, dairy products in the diet decrease.
And we must not forget about the vitamin complex for puppies, for example, "Calcium 8 in 1".
You need to know
How to feed a German shepherd, we now know. Let's talk about the most important aspects that concern the dog's diet.
- Puppies up to 2 months old are fed with specially developed food for them and nursing bitches.
- If the breeder’s kids are used to eating natural food, then they feed only her.
- Starting at the age of three months, puppies are fed five times a day. The first two months - six times.
- At four months, the canine baby is transferred to four times a day.
- Do not mix natural food and dry food. The dog is fed with one thing.
- As a treat, you can give your pet sugar bone.
- What should be the bowls? Iron that is easy to wash.
- The dog should always have access to clean water.
- If when feeding a natural food the pet has an allergy, then the following recipe will help very well: sauerkraut is boiled with rice and the addition of a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Oddly enough, but the "Germans" for some reason are actively eating such a brew.
Just a little bit about dog games
As we said at the beginning of the article, the German shepherd needs physical and psychological stress. And it all starts from childhood. First find contact with the dog, establish it. This is done with the help of the game and simple exercises that turn into gaming.
How to play with a puppy? Get a special flagellum on a rope, play with your pet, like with a kitten. Such a game in the “catch the flagellum” is very useful for a further exhibition career and posing the dog in the person involved. Remember the golden rule - the dog must win. The puppy caught the flagellum, praise him, exchange the toy for a treat. And one more rule: we play only when the owner wants it. Played, you see that the pet is interesting and stop the game at this positive point. A puppy should always want to play.
As for exercises, the principle is the same as in the game. We practice with the puppy, not forgetting about praise and refreshments. As soon as we saw that the pet went into a rage, we praise for the last time, treat and stop the lesson. What exercises can be included in a complex for a puppy? First of all, it is "sit-lie-stand". You can deal with it from two months of age.
The team "next" begin to work out at the age of three puppy months. All the same, in a playful way.
Summarize
The purpose of the article is to tell readers how to feed a German shepherd. We single out the main aspects.
- Puppies are fed six times a day. The older the puppy, the less feeding he has. Servings and time intervals between meals increase.
- Adult dogs receive food twice a day. Pregnant and lactating bitches - three or four.
- Do not mix feed and natural food. Either one or the other.
- On the dog’s menu, 50% of the meat of the total daily intake.
- Cereals, vegetables and fruits are required.
- It is useful to give kefir and cottage cheese several times a week.
- Eggs are given twice a week, one at a time.
- A treat for training can be dried white bread, cut into small pieces, a boiled heart, kidneys, stomach or liver. It is about chicken or beef entrails.
Conclusion
The goal is achieved, the reader now knows how to feed the German Shepherd. On top of everything, we spoke not only about this.
A dog is a friend of man. This mundane phrase perfectly reflects the essence of the German Shepherd. This is a unique breed, and if the puppy is directed in the right direction, then there is a great opportunity to raise a beautiful dog.