How to feed a chihuahua?

The breed of miniature centenarians is quite popular among beginner and experienced dog breeders. A chihuahua can delight its owners for about 20 years. The exact life span of a pet is largely dependent on nutrition. Curious dogs are very active, so it is important to provide them with a sufficient amount of nutrients. A complete diet will protect the animal from many diseases.

Comfortable living conditions are the key to long life and good health of the dog. There are certain rules for caring for representatives of this breed.

1. Food should be a little warm. Do not put food in the bowl from the refrigerator or just from the stove.
2. It is better to change the water 2-3 times a day. Use only clean, filtered. The dog should always have access to the bowl.
3. During the summer heat, feed your dog once a day.
4. You can not treat a pet from the table with food that people eat. Spices in it can disrupt the functioning of internal organs.
5. You need to feed your pet at the same time and in one place.
6. Give your dog food after walking and playing when it is hungry. If you properly care for the animal, follow the rules of walking and games, then all food will benefit.
7. The daily norm must be divided into several methods. The exact number of feeds depends on the age of the dog.
8. If the animal licks an empty bowl for a long time - it is not full. If food remains - overfeed. The latter can lead to obesity and disruption of the musculoskeletal system.
9. Dishes should be freshly prepared. If the food stays a couple of days, then the chihuahua can be poisoned.
10. Sweets and cookies are not suitable as treats.It is better to encourage the animal with diet cheese, fruit, carrots.
11. If you give vegetables and fruits, then rinse them thoroughly under running water, remove the crusts. The latter may contain harmful substances that were treated with plants during the growth period.
12. Bowls should be placed on the floor on a special stand. Adjust the height at the level of the pet's chest.
13. Remove the dishes after feeding.
14. Serve dinner no later than 19.00. The dog must use up all the calories before bedtime.

As such, there are no prohibitions on specific products for representatives of the Chihuahua breed. The diet should be designed in such a way as to use all healthy products and exclude those that do not bring benefits. In some cases, the latter can be harmful, so experts advise to completely abandon them. As a treat, you can use vegetables and fruits, and not flour products and sweets. Products that are worth including on the Chihuahua menu.

1. Meat of low-fat varieties. Use boiled chicken, beef, veal or horse meat.
2. Fish fillet. Do not give river, it has a lot of bones and can be worms. Pollock is also contraindicated, as it provokes the formation of kidney stones. Dice carefully select.
3. Boiled meat offal, liver, heart or stomachs.
4. You can give eggs, but not more than 1-2 times a week. Cook the chihuahua omelet without salt and spices.
5. Grains need to boil, grind or grind. You can give any kind of porridge, buckwheat, oatmeal, and corn are especially useful.
6. It is rarely possible to give crackers, bread, a small amount of well-cooked vermicelli.
7. Sour-milk products non-fat. Be careful with cottage cheese, cheese, kefir, yogurt and sour cream, they can cause fermentation in the stomach. If the dog begins bloating or rumbling in the abdomen, then discard such foods.
8. Vegetables should be grated and stewed without salt. This rule applies to carrots, beets, pumpkins and zucchini. Potatoes can be boiled.
9. Pre-chop the fruit with a blender until smooth.
10. Melon watermelon.
11. Finely chopped greens.
12. In a small amount, vegetable oil can be added to food.

A properly selected menu will provide the Chihuahua with good health for many years to come. Do not mix different foods, group foods intelligently. Only in this case will it be possible to identify a product that is harmful if the dog has stomach problems. If you introduce a new treat, then always monitor not only the status of feces, but also the level of activity of the pet.

Some foods can trigger gastritis, inflammation in the stomach or liver, tooth decay, and digestive problems. Do not feed Chihuahuas with such foods.

1. Pork - it is too fat and can be infected with worms.
2. Raw fish and any kind of river fish due to parasites and lots of bones.
3. Sausage products, sausages.
4. Pickled, salted, smoked products. They lead to an increase in blood pressure, disturbances in the functioning of the stomach, kidneys, and liver.
5. Grapes
6. Nuts. High phosphorus levels damage the dog.
7. Legumes cause bloating, flatulence.
8. Mushrooms.
9. Tea, coffee, alcoholic drinks.
10. Chocolate and sweets provoke the development of obesity, diabetes. Harm the pancreas.
11. Cabbage, radishes, onions and raw bell peppers lead to anemia.
12. Tubular and sharp bones of a bird.
13. Fresh cow's milk leads to indigestion, bloating.

Dry-fed chihuahua has its benefits. You not only save time on cooking, but also can easily calculate the portions and the amount of nutrients received. Food must be selected in accordance with the age and weight of the dog.

Saving aft is not worth it. Economy-class products contain many chemicals, which affects the duration and quality of life of a pet. When choosing a ready meal, you should pay attention to such nuances.

1. Use expensive premium or super premium feeds. They contain meat and vitamin complexes.
2. Choose products that are specifically for the Chihuahua. For example, Royal Canin offers a wide range of feeds for each breed. Veterinarians recommend treating this rule as fundamental and most important. In such food all features of an animal organism are provided.
3. To determine the serving size, you should read the instructions on the package. Manufacturers usually provide special measuring cups for simplified calculation. Keeping an eye on this is important because chihuahua dogs are prone to obesity.
4. Be sure to consider the physiological characteristics of the pet. Manufacturers offer different products for puppies, pregnant, elderly dogs. A separate menu is also provided for sterilized and neutered chihuahuas during the period of illness and recovery. Each such product has a unique composition in which trace elements important to the dog are present.

Do not use various nutritional supplements with vitamins and minerals in combination with dry food. High-quality prepared food is already enriched with everything you need. If you think your dog is missing something, then consult with your veterinarian in advance. Many people prefer to feed Chihuahuas that way, because crackers are considered to be excellent prophylaxis of stone formation on teeth.

Chihuahua eats mother's milk the first weeks of life. During this period, you need to monitor exclusively her diet. If for some reason a little puppy cannot eat milk, then it is necessary to purchase a special mixture. Such products are in all pet stores. Choose only well-known companies and do not save on it.

With a pipette or syringe, feed your puppy every 3 hours. Over time, you need to start introducing complementary foods. The first 2 months of a Chihuahua's life should receive such foods.

1. From 3 weeks begin to give boiled lean meat in small quantities. In the same period, you can feed fat-free cottage cheese.
2. From 4 weeks, give the puppy porridge boiled in milk or water. Use different cereals, such as rice, oatmeal, semolina, buckwheat.
3. From the 5th week, prepare soups for the animal on chicken or fish broth.

This is directly related to the features of the stomach during this period of life. Be sure to dilute the curd with low-fat milk, mix until smooth. Twist the meat in a meat grinder or grind it with a blender.

You can not abruptly transfer babies from mother's milk or a mixture to solid food. Such recklessness will lead to digestive problems. The correct maintenance of puppies involves a gradual change in food. It is important to combine new food with the old one. Gradually increase the volume of the first and decrease the amount of the second.

Formation of food habits begins at 3 months of age. During this period, the puppy understands which products he likes best. Further nutrition directly depends on which food you prefer, prepared (feed, canned food) or natural. Moreover, the choice can be made both at your discretion, and guided by the tastes of the dog.

Changing the type of feed is not recommended, unless in case of emergency. It is impossible to combine natural nutrition with crackers. The dog produces certain enzymes for the assimilation of food, so it will take time for the body to rebuild.

Monthly puppies are fed natural food, so new owners can continue to feed the animal the same way. However, in this case, you will have to give certain vitamin and mineral supplements. They will help the animal grow and develop properly. Dry food and bones can be given to puppies only after the complete replacement of primary teeth with molars.

The growing body needs a different number of meals to fully develop. A small puppy needs to be given small portions more often, and a large puppy needs large portions, but rarely. Approximate feeding schedule by age:

• up to 2 months - 6-7 times a day;
• 4-6 months - 4 times a day;
• 6-10 months - 3 times a day;
• 10-12 months - 2 times a day.

So gradually the puppy is accustomed to 2 meals a day. Distribute meals in the morning and evening so that the dog has time to get hungry. Do not allow indulgence, do not feed the animal during the day. It is allowed to give extra food exclusively during training.

Chihuahuas require special attention during the period of gestation. It is necessary to increase the amount of calcium in the diet of a pregnant dog. Use cottage cheese, cheese, apples, cauliflower, sea fish, yogurt when making the menu. Remember that all foods must be dietary. Fish needs to be boiled so that the bones become soft.

From the first days of pregnancy, the female needs vitamins such as A, B1, E, D.

About 7 days before the intended birth, you can feed the Chihuahua with an unlimited amount of dry food. You should stop giving fish and meat. This is due to the fact that the body can be oversaturated with animal protein, which leads to eclampsia. In most cases, the disease leads to death.

After giving birth, while the dog feeds the puppies with milk, their nutrition should also be closely monitored.. To improve lactation, give her tea with milk and honey. Sometimes you will have to feed the dog forcibly, since after giving birth the appetite decreases.

Increase the number of feeds to 4-5 per day. The menu includes cereals, meat (you need to pre-pour boiling water), boiled fish, fruits and vegetables, nuts, dried fruits (raisins, dried apricots), dietary cottage cheese. Enrich your diet with phytin and calcium gluconate, supplements are needed daily.

To recover from childbirth, you should immediately reduce the number of meals a dog has after weaning puppies. On the first day, do not feed the animal at all to stop milk production. Over the next week, return the animal to its usual diet, as before pregnancy. Provide your chihuahua with constant access to fresh water.

The nuances of feeding a chihuahua are presented in the next video.