What is the best diet for a golden retriever

Feeding a Golden Retriever for Optimum Health

Feeding a Golden Retriever involves meeting different nutritional needs at various stages in their lives; such as during puppyhood, nursing mothers, when convalescing from illness and in older age.

The Golden is a large breed of dog with a life span of 12 to 15 years. Golden Retriever nutrition requirements are extremely important and will change according to size and age. The Golden Retriever pup reaches its adulthood at the age of 12 months to 18 months and should then receive food suited or designed for adult Goldens.

There is no recommendation here for a single type of Golden Retriever food as each dog is different butgood quality foodis essential for the health and well being of your pet. It is highly recommended to follow the prescribed amount of food indicated on the package instructions by the Retriever dog food manufacturer (or the recipe you are following). An active dog may require up to 500 calories a day more than a sedentary dog.

The ideal dog food would be a ration that tastes like a postman. Anonymous

Feeding a Golden Retriever adult dog

Commercial Golden Retriever foods can be moist, semi moist or dry. Goldens need several different quality animal proteins indicated by the words meat, fish or poultry meal.

Dry foods (kibble) help to keep teeth and gums healthy but is a processed food. A high quality kibble should contain 25-30% protein but should not be the only food fed to your dog. Variety ensures that your Golden retriever dog food supplies all the nutrients required by your dog.

Feeding a Golden Retriever with a natural home made diet can be time consuming and difficult to balance the nutrients. Before you commence a natural (or raw food) diet you should research this well and consult with your vet. The best diet for Golden Retrievers must still be supplemented with fresh foods such as raw ground beef, turkey, chicken, cottage cheese, yogurt and finely chopped/ processed vegetables.

Feeding a Golden Retriever cheap food can make them prone to skin allergies and chronic infections related to a poor quality diet.

Remember that cheap Retriever dog food will contain meat by-products, fillers, dairy, soy, eggs, corn, wheat, multiple cereals, artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives. These are all additives that can have a negative impact on your Goldens health and exacerbate allergies andGolden Retriever shedding.

Some vets will advise against feeding a Golden Retriever with a bone as they can cause blockages in the digestive system. Cooked bones can splinter and injure your Golden, both in the mouth and internally. Choose bone type treats or chews made of hide, these will satisfy your dogs need to chew without the risks of a real bone.

Feeding a Golden Retriever with good quality foods:Retriever dog food ingredients to look for include:

1. Meat and/or meat mealprovides protein for growth, and repair of body tissues and organs (including the skin). It provides strength and flexibility in muscles and forms the essential components of the blood, hormone and immune systems. Good quality proteins are recommended to be the top or main ingredient in Retriever dog food.

2. A small selection of healthy grainsbrown rice, whole oats or barley. Carbohydrates are not an essential nutrient for dogs however, they can be useful in the diet as, when broken down during digestion, they become glucose and are used as energy.

3. Vitamins and mineralsensures complete nutrition.

4. Vegetables and fruitprovide essential fiber for good digestion.

5. Healthy fats (such as omega 3)fat is a major source of energy producing twice the calories of protein or carbohydrates. It helps the body absorb and transport certain vitamins and is essential for reproduction and pregnancy. Fat provides insulation and maintains skin health. It protects and waterproofs the coat hairs via sebum secretion.

6. Natural preservativesmany natural preservatives provide the fat soluble Vitamin E.

7. Prebioticscan be helpful when it comes to healthy digestion.

Read the package of Golden Retriever food; the ingredients will be listed according to weight. The top ingredient will also be the main ingredient in the Retriever dog food.

You must provide plenty of fresh water to your Golden throughout the day.

Avoid too many treats as Golden Retrievers are prone to gaining weight. A piece of kibble is fine to use as a treat when training your Golden. If your Golden Retriever gains too much weight from your feeding program, you can cut a few grams from its regular amount of food (1/4 of a cup at one or both meals) and encourage more exercise.

Feeding a Golden Retriever puppy

Puppies need to eat frequently since they are fast growing and energetic. Feeding a Golden Retriever pup should occur at least three times a day on scheduled intervals, up to the age of 6 months. You should ask the advice of theGolden Retriever breedersorGolden Retriever adoptioncenter from which you obtained your puppy and continue using the same Golden Retriever puppy food (at least initially). If you want to use a different food the transition should be gradual to avoid an upset tummy.

Do not feed your puppy human food. Some foods such as chocolate are poisonous to dogs.

Chews made of hide are especially important during the teething months, they will help to keep your Golden puppys teeth clean and keep his jaws in good condition.

It is not recommended to leave food in your Golden puppys bowl. If your dog does not eat their food within 20 minutes, take it away until the next meal time. This practice establishes YOU as the pack leader, prevents obesity, and makes your Golden puppy easier to house train as they tend to relieve themselves after eating.

A healthy Golden Retriever requires his or her owner to commit to providing the best care and good quality Retriever dog food! Feeding a Golden Retriever from puppy through to adulthood is a rewarding part of nurturing your dog.

The Best Golden Retriever Diet Plan Feeding Chart

Since Golden Retriever is one of the most popular dog breeds, everyone desires this dog breed. But parenting these high-maintenance dogs is a huge responsibility. So, you should be well aware of the diet plan with training, exercise, and grooming routine to ensure a qualitative lifestyle for a Golden Retriever.

So, how to make a diet plan for a Golden Retriever. Generally, to make an effective diet plan for your Golden Retriever, consider the age, physical activities, and health condition of your dog. Besides this, knowing your dogs food preference, how much it needs to eat, and how often it must eat are vital factors that you must consider while planning your Golden Retrievers diet.

Since Golden Retriever is a special dog, it becomes a vital part of your family after you bring it home. Therefore, as an owner, you want to give the best for your pet. So, to help your pal grow well and live a longer and healthier life effective diet plan is essential.

Thus, I will discuss and disclose an effective diet plan for your Golden Retriever according to its age further in this article. But before that, let us know about the harmful food and essential nutrients for your Retriever.

Harmful Foods For Your Golden Retriever

Since a Golden Retriever has a different digestive system than humans, all human foods arent beneficial for these dogs. Further, these dogs find difficulty digesting some food that halts the metabolism, digestion, and excretion process. Besides this, these foods result in various digestive problems like constipation, diarrhea, vomiting, bloating, and allergic reaction.

Therefore, it better to keep your pal away from foods like:

• Avocado
• Grapes and raisins
• Xylitol
• Chocolate
• Soda
• Mushrooms
• Nuts and nutmeg
• Broccoli
• Unripe tomatoes
• Tea and coffee
• Onions and garlic

However, it is best to skip human foods from your Golden Retrievers diet. Thus, if you need to include them in the diet plan, try consulting with the Vet before.

What Are The Essential Nutrients For Golden Retriever?

Since Golden Retriever is a needy dog, it needs adequate love, care, and attention from its owners. Besides this, there is a long list of nutritional requirements for this breed if you want to ensure a happier lifespan. Furthermore, the calories in dog food are due to various essential nutrients that promote the growth and development of your pal.

However, the amount of nutrients required for your pet varies according to height, age, level of activity, intensity of exercise, etc. Thus, it is vital to check whether the food you are feeding your pal meets up with its daily requirement or not. So, while choosing food for your pal, look for these things:

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are a great source of energy for both humans and dogs. Thus, without an optimal amount of carbohydrates in your pals diet, it cannot function properly. However, the amount of carbohydrate that your pal needs depend on its age, activity, size, and intensity of exercise.

Moreover, carbohydrate is responsible for the formation of glucose that promotes optimal brain activity of your pet. Further, it also helps to provide enough energy for physical activities, exercise, and training. So, without carbohydrates, your pet becomes lazy, weak, and exhausted.

Protein

Since Golden Retrievers love playing, they can play with the kids all day. Thus, they are prone to injuries. And thus, proteins are the best nutrient for building and repairing tissues, muscles so that your pet can recover quickly from those injuries.

Besides this, proteins also play a vital role in producing hormones, enzymes, hair, and new skin cells for the healthier life of your dog.

Apart from being an essential nutrient that helps a lot in your pal growth and development, proteins also provide enough calories for your pet to keep him active, happy, and lively.

Fat

Just like other nutrients, fats are vital for your pals development. Therefore, you need to make sure that your dogs food contains at least 18% fats.

However, most owners have a falls assumption that fats might degrade their dogs health. Further, in contrast to this myth, your pal needs an optimum amount to perform its daily activities. Along with this, fats are also vital for the growth and proper functioning of tissues, muscles, and nerves of your Golden Retriever.

Therefore, if you want to make your pal glossy, healthy, active, and more appealing, you must include omega-rich foods in the diet plan of your Golden Retriever.

Vitamins

Since vitamins are one of the most vital nutrients for your pal, they are crucial during the growing stage. And thus, they help for the development of your pals teeth and bone.

Apart from this, vitamins are essential for healthy skin, skin coat growth, and a stronger immune system. Therefore, your pal needs a healthy mix of Vitamins A, B, C, D, E, and K in its diet.

Moreover, since homemade foods are a great source of vitamins, you should consider mixing them with dog food while making a diet plan for your Golden Retriever.

Minerals

Like humans, dogs also need food equipped with phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, zinc, iron, potassium, and calcium for a healthier and happier life. Moreover, these minerals transport oxygen in the bloodstream.

Further, they also maintain the balance of the fluids inside and outside the body cells in your dog. So, minerals assure proper functioning and development of the organs in your Golden Retriever.

In addition, minerals also promote hormone production, muscle function with bone and cartilage formation so that your pet grows properly and lives an active life.

Water

Since dehydration can lead to illness in your dog, water is vital for them. Therefore, it is essential to manage your pals body water content above 15 percent.

Besides this, Golden Retrievers have a thick skin coat that makes them more vulnerable to heat. So, your pal needs to drink enough water to maintain its homeostasis. Thus, you should ensure that your pals water bowl has fresh water throughout the day.

Furthermore, giving excess water prevents the chances of overfeeding and malnutrition. As a result, your pet will be less susceptible to chronic diseases. Hence, water is one of the vital nutrients in your dogs diet.

So, do you know how much water should you give your pal?

How Much Water Should A Golden Retriever Drink?

Moreover, the amount of water your pal needs every day depends on its activity level, size, weather, food type (dry or wet), weather, health conditions, etc. Further, since wet food has a high moisture content (70-75%), your dog needs lesser water when you use wet food in its diet.

Besides this, it is better to include more water in your pals diet if it is overweight to prevent illness and ensure its regular activity. Generally, a Golden Retriever needs to drink about 30 ml of freshwater every day for each pound of its weight. Thus, when the dogs mostly rely on dry food, you need to increase their water intake.

However, when your dog avoids drinking water, you need to add more moisture to its diet or use a water fountain to encourage it to drink water. Along with this, dont forget to regularly switch the water of its water bowl with fresh water.

Further, you can also ensure that your dog gets all the essential nutrients through some easily available kitchen foods.Do you know about them?

Foods That Fulfill Your Golden Retrievers Nutritional Requirement

Although, commercial food claims its benefits. Yet, some kitchen foods can be the best to ensure that your Golden Retriever is getting all essential nutrients in its diet. However, just mix these foods in your pals regular diet plan, and you will for sure notice a difference in its health.

What Is The Ideal Weight For Your Golden Retriever?

Generally, the ideal weight of your Golden Retriever depends on various influencing factors from age, type of breed, sex, and environmental condition. Furthermore, Goldendoodles weigh lesser than the English breeds a typical Golden Retriever. Thus, ideal weight in different growing stages varies a lot as per the breed type.

However, the ideal weight of a typical Golden Retriever is as follows:

Ideal Weight Of A Male Golden Retriever

Since a male Golden Retriever has a larger body frame, it is taller and heavier than the female. So, the ideal weight of a male breed as per its age is as follows:

Ideal Weight Of A Female Golden Retriever

As we know, a female Golden Retriever is shorter and weighs a little less than a male. But once it reaches its first heat cycle and delivers puppies, its weight increases drastically. Thus, after it is one year old, it is heavier than most male dogs.

Besides this, a pregnant Golden Retriever weighs 50% more than the adult, while a senior dog might weigh 15-25% lesser than the adult.

However,do you know how to make a diet plan and feed a Golden Retriever in different stages of its life?

Diet Plan A Golden Retriever

Since the nutritional requirement of a Golden Retriever varies according to its age, it requires different amounts and types of nutrients in each stage of its life. Therefore, you should ensure that your dog is getting a sufficient amount of nutrients at each phase.

Thus, to ease your struggle with the diet plan of your Golden Retriever, you can read further to take reference:

Diet Plan For Golden Retriever Puppy

Like humans, a Golden Retriever puppy also solely depends on its mothers milk during the early phases of its life. Thus, you shouldnt separate a puppy from its mother until it is eight weeks old.

Further, if your puppy is avoiding its mothers milk, you can switch to puppy milk available in the market, likeHartz Powdered Puppy Milk Replacer,Meyenberg Whole Powdered Milk, etc. Besides this, you can start introducing your puppy to dog food by mixing it with an adequate amount of water that makes it easier to swallow.

Diet Plan For Adolescent Golden Retriever

Usually, once a Golden Retriever puppy grows above 12 weeks of age, it reaches its adolescence stage and teething. So, in this stage, you should start giving your pal some healthy chewing options like fish skin, chicken bones, etc.

Furthermore, start giving your pal dry food mixed with an enormous amount of water. Besides this, you can also use wet foods for your Golden Retriever. In addition, try adding some vegetables to the dog food while preparing your pets meal to ensure that the meal has all the essential nutrients.

However, be careful that your pals food is not too dry. Thus, always maintain a run-in consistency.

Diet Plan For Adult Golden Retriever

After your Golden Retriever is a year older, you should start giving it a meal two times a day. Further, you must ensure that your pal gets enough amount of protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals in each meal. Besides this, start adding some healthy natural snacks to the diet plan of your Golden Retriever as treats.

In addition, dont forget to include omega-rich foods in its diet for the proper growth of a healthy skin coat and fur. Moreover, you can start mixing dry food with wet food and give it to your dog to get the benefits of both foods.

However, make sure you dont include harmful human foods in your dogs diet, as mentioned above.

Diet Plan For Senior Golden Retriever

Like humans, the functions of organs start declining, and your pal becomes more inactive and ill as it grows older. Besides this, senior dogs are also susceptible to several health issues like eye diseases, cancer, thyroid disorders, joint problems, cancer, ear infections, etc.

Therefore, as your pal gets older, it needs a lesser amount of food. So, you need to cut down fats, proteins, and fibers from your dogs diet after it is two years old. Further, you should give more emphasis on wet dog foods, milk, and water.

Along with this, you can also prepare the meal by mixing chicken broth with pumpkin, carrots, green beans, and fish oil for your senior dog. Dont try to overfeed or starve your pet. So, include foods that are easy to digest and filled with vitamins and minerals in your senior Golden Retriever diet plan.

Moreover, as explained earlier, your dogs needs vary according to its age. So, what might be the food requirement of your Golden Retriever?

Food Requirement According To The Size And Age Of Golden Retriever

Generally, based on the age of your dog, the amount of food it needs varies. Therefore, you should change your diet plan according to the age of your Golden Retriever. However, to help you ensure your pal gets an adequate amount of food, I am disclosing a table with food requirements according to the age and weight of Golden Retriever:

However, after you know about the food requirement of your Golden Retriever, you might be thinking about what type of food to include in your pals diet. Arent you?

What Type Of Foods Should You Give Your Golden Retriever?

Furthermore, with the hype in demand of Golden Retriever, the dog food options are also increasing. Thus, you will find many dog foods that claim they are best for the growth and development of your pal. However, based on the amount of water content, there are usually two types of food. i.e.:

Dry Food

Generally, dry foods are lower in water content. Thus, you can store these foods for a longer time. Besides this, these foods are cheaper and convenient to use if you have more than one pet in your house.

In addition, the dry foods come in bite-size so that your pal can get the required nutrients from eating small portions daily. However, based on the method of preparation, there are two types of dry food:

• Kibble prepared at a higher temperature of more than 120C.
• Cold Pressed foods produced using a lower temperature. Hence, it helps to retain the nutrients, aroma, vitamins, and flavors in food.

Wet Food

Usually, wet foods are the best food options for a puppy that is just weaning off its mothers milk and trying to get familiar with dog food. Since these foods contain about 60-65% moisture, it is easier for a teething puppy to chew and swallow.

Besides this, wet foods are palatable that most dogs prefer to eat. Moreover, the high water content helps to maintain an optimum fluid level in your dogs body.

However, the drawback of these foods is that your pal needs to eat more portions to get the required nutrients from wet foods. Along with this, they are more likely to stick in your pets teeth that promotes dental problems.

Therefore, I prefer mixing these two types of food to get the benefits of both foods. Moreover, you can mix up these foods in equal portions or the ratio of 2:1 according to your preference and include them in the diet plan of your Golden Retriever.

Treats

Besides the regular dog food, treats are also vital in the diet plan of your Golden Retriever. Moreover, most owners fail to include treats in their pets diet plan. As a result, it leads to health problems like diabetes, obesity, thyroid diseases, etc.

Furthermore, Golden Retrievers love eating and are always hungry. Thus, treats can be the best way to encourage your pal to follow your orders. However, using natural snacks as treats in the diet plan is a convenient way to reward your pal and promote its healthy lifespan.

So,how to prepare a diet plan for your pal? I know you might be struggling with this question ever since you bring your pet home. Thus, to ease some of your stress, I have some diet plans for your Golden Retriever. Therefore, as you read further, you will get to know them.

Diet Plan Of A Golden Retriever According To Age

Like humans, your Golden Retriever food preference and requirements vary according to its age. So, you should also make adjustments in your diet plan as it gets older. Therefore, to help you, I have a diet plan for your pet:

Weekly Diet Plan For Your Golden Retriever

Now, as you know the need of your pal according to its age, you might want to prepare a weekly diet plan. Dont you?

Further, since a weekly diet plan ensures your Golden Retriever gets all the nutrients, it is best. For this, you can take help from the following diet plan that I made for my pet.

Furthermore, you must remember that each cub contains 250 grams. Thus, you can either increase or decrease the quantity of food according to your dogs requirements. But dont leave its bowl with food all day.

Also, change the diet plan of your dog every week to find the one that suits it.

What Are The Best Food For Golden Retriever?

Further, after the immense popularity of Golden Retriever, these dogs have become a member of most houses. Besides this, much more people are planning to own this beautiful dog. So, taking this into concern, you will find different types of dog food in the market.

However, the best among them with the good reviews are as follow:

Weight Loss Food For A Golden Retriever

Since your Golden Retriever loves eating, it is more likely to get obese. And although obesity results from overeating, you cant starve your pet.Can you?

Thus, there are some foods in the market to help a Golden Retriever in weight loss. Along with this, they also provide all the essential nutrients for your pet to keep functioning. Thus, they are:

Weight Gain Food For A Golden Retriever

Owing to your Golden Retrievers love for food, it is less likely to be underweight. But sometimes, due to diseases and past abuse, these dogs can be skinny. Therefore, to maintain their ideal weight, there are some weight gain foods in the market. Such as:

What Are The Health Risks Of An Inappropriate Diet Plan In Your Golden Retriever?

Moreover, food plays a vital part in making your Golden Retriever healthy, happy, and active. So, if you fail to manage its diet plan, your pal may suffer from various health issues like:

• Decrease in lifespan by two years
• Cancer
• Weakened immunity
• Arthritis
• Heat intolerance and more likely to get cold in winter
• Soft tissue damage that leads to bone and joint defects
• High blood pressure
• Heart diseases
• Respiratory problems
• Arthritis
• Diabetes
• Kidney and liver disease
• Digestive disorders (bloating, constipation, diarrhea, allergies, etc.)

Furthermore, I hope this article helped you in making an effective diet plan for your Golden Retriever.

Summing up, Golden Retriever is an expensive and high-maintenance dog breed. So, it needs constant attention, care, and love. Thus, you must be very conscious while parenting this breed.

Besides this, food plays a critical part in strengthening your bond with your pal. Moreover, if you manage to give your pet healthy and adequate food, it loves and adores you. Hence, you should ensure your pal gets all the essential nutrients in enough quantity.

However, you might give your pal more food due to its pleading attribute and a contagious smile that may lead to obesity. Thus, be careful not be overfeed them.

I hope you enjoyed reading this article, and it was informative enough to help you get closer to your pal.

If you have any suggestions, please share them through comments.