Best Puppy Food For Dachshunds

Common Health Issues Of Daschunds

In addition to making sure that your Dachshund gets the right blend of protein and fat, you should also consider the nutritional impact of some of the health problems to which the breed is prone.

For example, Dachshunds are very prone to diabetes, a condition characterized by high blood sugar. Feeding your dog a food made with low-quality grains like wheat and corn can cause dangerous spikes in blood sugar it is better to go with something high in protein with moderate fat and low carbohydrate content to maintain stable blood sugar.

This breed is also prone to gastric torsion, or bloat, so avoid feeding him large meals try breaking up his daily portion into three or four smaller meals.

This breed may also be affected by skin problems, so a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids is recommended.

Natural Balance Fat Dogs Low Calorie Dry Dog Food

Unfortunately, dachshunds are prone to weight gain, which can put strain on their back and joints. To keep your furry friend healthy as long as possible, you need to ensure theyre eating right and exercising. Natural Balance offers a dry dog food that can help, with high fiber and low calories. We find it to be the best dog food for overweight dachshunds.

Natural Balance Fat Dogs has all the nutrition your dachshund needs with a reduced calorie content. Nevertheless, its particular blend of protein and fiber promise to keep your dog feeling full after mealtimes so they wont beg for treats. Customers report excellent results, particularly with corgis another long-backed breed for whom gaining weight can cause serious back problems.

Flavor: chicken and salmon

Sizes: 5 lbs., 15 lbs., 28 lbs.

Grains: oat groats, barley

What You Need To Look For In The Best Dog Food For Dachshund

The best dog food for Dachshunds should contain lots of calcium, as well as at least two sources of high-quality natural protein. Also, it should be free of artificial colors and flavors, additives, and preservatives such as BHA, BHT, and ethoxyquin.

All the ingredients should be globally sourced, with a rather limited use of synthetic supplements. Carbs should be easily digestible, such as whole grains, and the food should contain only low starch veggies.

The natural fat content should be fairly high, and there shouldnt be any animal by-products. On the other hand, good Dachshund food will benefit from vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

If you look at low-quality dog foods, youll notice that they are filled with ingredients that arent beneficial to your pooch. In fact, many ingredients can be outright dangerous.

Also, with just a bit of research, youll see that good food is usually made in countries with high safety standards. Ideally, that would be the US, but many good brands produce their food in Western Europe, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand as well.

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Royal Canin Dachshund Adult Dry Dog Food

Heres another excellent option from Royal Canin. Like the puppy formula, this recipe is made for the Dachshund breed. It has a lower protein content than the puppy food. However, its still very high at 26 percent.

One of the biggest benefits of this formula is digestibility. The recipe is made up of about 4.1 percent fiber. This fiber helps to keep your dogs gut in good shape.

A mix of digestive proteins and carbohydrates can benefit your dogs system as well.

Nutro Natural Choice Small Breed Senior

Rating:

Small Breed Senior Chicken is one of 19 dry recipes covered in our review of the Nutro product line.

• First 5 ingredients: Chicken, chicken meal, whole grain barley, split peas, brewers rice
• Type: Contains grain
• Profile: Maintenance
• Best for:Adult dachshunds

This Nutro recipe gets much of its animal protein from fresh chicken and chicken meal. Dry matter label analysis reveals the recipe contains 29% protein, 16% fat and 48% estimated carbs producing a fat-to-protein ratio of about 54%.

Contains no artificial flavors, colors or preservatives. Its also worth noting the recipe is 100% free of genetically modified ingredients, a rare feature in any U.S. produced pet food.

A nutritious, fully balanced design. A quality dog food at a reasonable price and featuring a kibble size thats perfect for adult dachshunds. Highly recommended.

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Wellness Core Natural Reduced

This food has all the protein and fiber that dogs need to feel satisfied without carrying around any extra pounds! With Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids from flaxseed and salmon oil for a shinier coat of fur in no time.

Wellness Core Natural Reduced Fat Grain-Free Dry Dog Food is made with ingredients of the best quality including turkey, including turkey, chicken, and salmon oil. It also includes fruits and vegetables like Spinach, Broccoli, Carrots, Parsley, Apples, Blueberries, and Kale, among other ingredients of the best quality.

This dry food is made with no chicken by-product meal, corn, soy, or wheat gluten, and no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives

Do Dachshunds Need To Eat Special Dog Food

Not really. Thats because the pet food industry has not established any official nutrient guidelines specifically designed for dachshunds. However, because doxie puppies, adults and seniors EACH have different nutritional requirements, its important to feed a dog food thats made to match the life stage of YOUR particular pet.

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Which Dog Food Is The Best One For My Dachshund

All of the dog foods on our list are designed to please even the pickiest dachshunds taste buds and can help to ensure that they live long healthy and happy lives.

The primary factors that differentiate them are their affordability and the brands that use grains as part of their ingredients.

The latter can have a detrimental effect on the health of dogs with sensitive stomachs and food allergies and the former can also have a devastating impact on the ongoing health of your pocketbook.

So, taking both into account, read the list again and the answer to your question should become fairly obvious.

That said if you were keen to follow our lead and want to feed your dachshund the same way that we feed ours, then without hesitation, wed point you in the direction of Royal Canin.

Its purpose-designed for your dachshund and has been formulated to cater to all of their dietary needs. And if our dachshunds always empty bowl is any indication, they also love the way it tastes too.

Special Dietary Considerations For Dachshunds

The Dachshund is a fairly healthy breed with a lifespan of 12 to 15 years. Because he is prone to obesity and a number of other health problems, however, you should be mindful of certain things to make sure he reaches his full lifespan.

Here is a quick list of the health problems to which the Dachshund may be prone:

Lets take a closer look at some of these health problems.

Though musculoskeletal issues are more common in large breeds, the Dachshund is prone to back problems due to his compressed body shape and poor genetics. Intervertebral disc disease is a condition in which your dog can lose the use of his hind legs as well as bowel and bladder control. Be careful how you hold your dog and dont let him jump up and down from furniture. You may also want to include joint-supporting nutrients like glucosamine and chondroitin in his diet.

Another problem Dachshunds frequently develop is diabetes, especially if they are overweight. Diabetes occurs when the pancreas doesnt produce enough insulin to control your dogs blood sugar or if his body cant use insulin properly. You should also watch out for gastric dilatation, a life-threatening condition in which the stomach fills with air and twists, cutting of blood flow to the heart and the rest of the body. It happens when dogs eat or drink too much, when they exercise too close to a meal, or by swallowing air as they eat. It occurs more frequently in deep-chested breeds like the Dachshund.

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About Instinct By Natures Variety Original Small Breed Canned Food

Featuring cage-free chicken as the first ingredient, this recipe contains a limited number of main ingredients with added fruits and vegetables for natural sources of key nutrients.

Orijen Fit & Trim Adult Dry Dog Food

As dogs get older, managing their weight increases in importance. This recipe is great for keeping your dog on a balanced diet.

Feeding Your Puppy On Kibble

A more popular choice among dog owners, many veterinarians, and canine experts recommend using kibble for both puppy and adult dogs. There are several reasons for kibble being more advantageous for dachshund puppy food, including:

• Kibble for puppies is smaller, so its easier to chew and to swallow it
• Premium kibble varieties contain a higher level of protein
• Kibble comes in a variety of sizes, shapes, and flavours
• It is easily accessible and therefore a more convenient type of dog food
• Finally, kibble can be bought to suit any specific diets, dog types, ages and activity requirements

Provided that the kibble you use is puppy friendly, this can be the healthiest option for your dachshund puppy. Some brands will even cater to the dachshund dog breed alone! All you need to do is ensure that the kibble you offer your dachshund puppy is appropriate for its age and weight.

When selecting kibble for your puppy, its highly recommended that you spend as much as you can and opt for the best quality. Its also a good idea to check the exact ingredients and ensure that the first one listed is meat.

This precaution will ensure a healthier and increased protein kibble type as opposed to those containing fillers instead. Fillers in kibble include those ingredients such as grains and cereals that is wheat, soy, and corn, for example. Brands using these as their main ingredients should be avoided.

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How Much Exercise Does A Dachshund Need

Exercise for Dachshunds is a great mental stimulation, apart from being a health booster.Dachshunds are among those dogs who love going outside and explore things. While a 6-month-old puppy needs only 30 minutes walk outside, adult Dachshunds above 1 year old should have atleast 60 minutes walk daily . Remember that these breeds were used as hunting dogs and their natural instincts to toil is still there. Daily walking is enough to keep them fit and healthy.

How To Switch From Puppy To Adult Dog Food

There isnt a specific age when you should immediately stop with puppy food and go on to an adult one. Instead, the transition should be done moderately and slowly.

The rule of thumb is to mix 25% of new dog food with your Dachshunds current diet and keep doing this for 23 days. Then, mix 50% of the new food with the old one. After a few days, you should be able to switch to the new dog food entirely.

The same should be done whenever transitioning to a new diet. Otherwise, your pups tummy might become upset.

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Nutro Natural Choice Small Breed Adult Dry Dog Food

With high-quality protein and non-GMO ingredients, this small breed dog food will help your sausage dog look and feel its very best. Every bite contains antioxidants for immune support, fiber for digestive health, and 100 percent natural chicken. It also has a crunchy texture that helps clean your dogs teeth as they chew, so there are an endless amount of reasons youll want your dog to munch on Nutro Natural Choice.

Just like other top-quality dog foods, you wont find chicken by-product meal, corn, wheat, or soy anywhere on the ingredients list.

Best Dachshund Food For Allergies

1. Wellness Simple Limited Ingredient Diet Grain-Free Small Breed Salmon & Potato Formula Dry Dog Food

Our rating: 5Top ingredients: Salmon, Salmon Meal, PeasType: Dry

Wellness Simple has created a natural and grain-free formula thats easily digestible and ensures whole-body health.

Added omega fatty acids, antioxidants, glucosamine, probiotics, and taurine supports healthy digestion, immune systems, skin, and coats.

This dog food is also known as an alternative to therapeutic diets that can be prescribed to dogs.

Pros:

• Globally-sourced ingredients to ensure a quality product
• No added preservatives, colors, or flavors
• With single-source protein from salmon and easy to digest carbohydrates

Cons:

2. Instinct Limited Ingredient Diet Small Breed Grain-Free Turkey Recipe Freeze-Dried Raw Coated Dry Dog Food

Our rating: 4.5Top ingredients: Turkey Meal, Peas, TurkeyType: Freeze Dried

When your pooch has food sensitivity issues, its essential to know the ingredients of the food you give them.

This freeze-dried dog food is grain-free and has added turkey to promote protein and immune-boosting.

This brand specifically has a shortlist of ingredients that promote raw and simplistic nutrition, with this recipe focusing on the dogs essential needs.

Pros:

Cons:

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Royal Canin Breed Health Nutrition Dachshund Adult Dry Dog Food

Royal Canin is renowned for its breed and health-specific formulas, including this one for adult Dachshunds. Everything from the ingredient list to the shape of the kibble is designed especially for your Weenie, so you truly know youre getting the best.

This formula helps provide complete nutritional support, bone and joint health, and more. Lean protein sources and L-carnitine help your dog build healthy muscle, while highly digestible protein and fiber reduce stool content and odor.

How To Choose The Best Dog Food Brand

Unfortunately, its hard to get good, unbiased information about dog food. There are a lot of dog lovers out there who want to feed their furry friend the very best, and that means theres a lot of money flowing through the dog food industry. It can be hard to know whats actually best for your pooch versus what sounds good to you. Even veterinarians may have biases, as many sell certain brands of food right from the office. Some may even have had their education sponsored by a particular brand.

Also, theres little to no publically-funded research into pet nutrition, so scientific studies must have a corporate sponsor. In other words, the companies that sell the food have control over the money that determines what kind of research gets done. This doesnt mean that theres anything wrong with these foods, just that its hard to find impartial information about what your dog actually needs. Everyone providing those answers is also trying to sell you something.

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Best Food For Senior Dachshunds

As your Dachshund starts to age, youll want to monitor their food intake. Doxies are known for gaining weight relatively aggressively if they free feed, so getting them to a Senior food at around 7 years of age or older is a very good idea.

If youve done a good job keeping your pups weight in check, any of the below options will work well with your Doxie as they enter their golden years. In no particular order, lets look at our favorite foods for older Dachshunds.

This recipe completes the Blue Buffalo Life Protection set that we have recommended at each stage, so this makes the obvious choice if you have given him this kibble throughout his life. Its a top senior food brand for Yorkies as well as other small breeds like your Dachshund. A mixture of LifeSource Bits and small kibble bites ensure that his interest is piqued with extra taste and texture, as well as being packed with life-stage nutrients.

This recipe has a precise blend of glucosamine and chondroitin which assists with his slowing mobility as well as keeping his teeth strong, and his immune system is supported with fruits and vegetables. Blue Buffalo is often compared to Merrick, another top food brand that youll read more about below.

We love that this recipe has the highest fiber content for those senior Dachshunds who need a little bit more help with their digestive tract, or those with loose stools.

What To Avoid Unhealthy Ingredients In Dachshund Puppy Food

Unfortunately, theres a lot of crap ingredients in dog food too. Cheap companies cut corners with leftover animal parts and skimp on higher quality more expensive ingredients by using inexpensive fillers.

Heres a good idea of what kinds of ingredients to avoid for your Dachshund puppy:

• Rendered fats from unspecific sources like poultry fat or animal fat
• Castoffs like brewers rice
• Corn syrups and refined sugars
• Cheap grains like soy, wheat, and corn
• Indigestible materials like cellulose
• Artificial dyes and preservatives

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What Are The Best Dogs With Different Ingredients For Dachshunds

The best dog foods with pumpkin for Dachshunds

• Wild Earth Clean Protein Formula. The primary ingredients are Dried Yeast, Chickpeas, Oats, Peas, and Pea Protein. Pumpkin is on the ingredient list. All these ingredients are proper as they contribute to your dogs overall well-being.
• Earthborn Holistic Venture Limited Ingredient Dry Dog Food. It is crafted with butternut Squash and Pumpkin for high-quality fiber to boost digestive health. Other main ingredients are Wild Boar, Pork Meal, and Tapioca which are proper ingredients.

The best chicken-free dog food for Dachshunds

• Earthborn Holistic Venture Limited Ingredient Diet Rabbit Meal & Pumpkin Dry Food. The main ingredients are Rabbit Meal, Pumpkin, Tapioca, Alaska Pollock Meal, and Sunflower Oil. it is free from chicken thus suitable for dogs who cannot tolerate chicken
• Diamond Natural Skin& Coat Formula. The first five ingredients are Salmon, Fish Meal, Potatoes, Lentils, and Peas. These are perfect ingredients as they provide proteins and fiber for muscle and digestive health. It has L-carnitine for heart health.

Natures Variety Instinct Raw Boost Small

Best Food for Dachshunds with Sensitive Stomachs: For Dachshunds with sensitive stomachs, digestibility is key and that means high-quality, natural ingredients. This Natures Valley Instinct Raw Boost Small-Breed Recipe with Real Chicken fits the bill exactly because it consists of high-quality kibble mixed with freeze-dried raw pieces for a boost of nutrition and flavor. This recipe contains cage-free chicken as the main ingredient with chicken meal for glucosamine and chondroitin. Chicken fat provides a nutrient-rich source of energy with grain-free carbohydrates like chickpeas and tapioca. All in all, it provides 37% protein and 16% fat.

• Pros: Premium quality nutrition, high-protein kibble and freeze-dried raw pieces, rich in essential fatty acids, fresh fruits and vegetables, probiotics, glucosamine and chondroitin
• Cons: Very expensive to feed as a staple diet

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