mixed proteins?

Dog food and feeding General discussion
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Hello …am confused. Why do so many dog foods contain multiple protein sources? ie chicken, lamb and beef/ I have been advised many times to feed my pup a single source protein/ or have I got this all wrong? thanks all

Oh I read you can use wet food as a ‘topper’ for dry - so can you feed dry food and wet food alternatively to vary? only I have been advised never to mix or feed my pup - but to feed only his dry food-not even veg (which he loves) as his system will ID this as partially digested and he will not ‘retain’ other food long enough to get max benefit as it will be pood out too quick ???

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You haven’t got it wrong. For many years it has been thought that you find a suitable food for your dog and stick to it, sometimes for many years. I perceive that there has been a shift in thinking and that dogs need some variety in their diet. One raw feeding company advises to mix their products to reduce the incidence of intolerance to one protein source and also to widen the range of nutrients.

These days I have changed my thinking and I feel that as long as a dog is healthy and has no intolerances then it is good to give a variety of meat, just as in human diets. This is why I tend to prefer products where there is three or four varieties within one range, preferably including fish.

As for toppers, many people add a small amount of wet meat to counterbalance the dryness and to improve the taste of kibble. It’s fine as long as the kibble is reduced in quantity, otherwise it can lead to weight gain.

There is a notion that a dog’s digestive system is a sensitive thing and in consequence their diet needs to be unvaried. This is reinforced by the advice given by companies to transition to new food very slowly and carefully. Possibly for some dogs this is a good thing but I wonder if the case is a bit over stated, particularly where the dog is perfectly healthy.

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Its funny you should say that. I’ve often wondered if it was a gimmick by the companies to try to discourage you from changing. Of course if a dog has had exactly the same diet for years then is given something different there’s going to be changes. A bit like us have meat and 2 veg then changing to madras and rice ;D

Personally I’ve never held with the one food, my boy has had his food mixed up between raw, kibble, freeze dried, home cooked all different types of proteins all different brands and has never had any issues since he was a puppy. I think its because his system has always been used to it that he’s fine on anything. I’m sure people are like dogs in that some people can eat anything and everything with no change whereas others have intolerances. Its a matter of knowing what works for your dog.

Lets face it domesticated feral dogs in various countries eat whatever is edible and get on fine.

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Thanks for your replies :slight_smile: I will look at introducing more variation - but will keep him on his present food for a little while longer…he’s a lot better except I have noticed he has started going berserk and racing around the house and garden over the last couple of nights ??? and always round about the same time …

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Single protein source foods are great for dogs with intolerances, they can help identify the intolerance. It is however better to vary what they eat for a number of reasons that Dottie has already mentioned, in the wild they will eat different things depending what they can catch that day.

The mix of proteins can be in the one food, or can be achieved by using several different single protein foods over time, it all “averages” out in the end

Slow changes between foods aren’t always needed, most dogs can swap and change at will, the advise is just to play it safe for the few dogs that do struggle, it is also more important when going from high carb to low carb to allow the organs time to adjust the levels of enzymes and for gut flora to adjust.

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