The indescribable feeling you get when you’re welcoming a new puppy to your home is one of the best things ever to happen. Now, you’re intensely involved in showering such a lovely creature with love in many ways.
To show your love, you might be thinking about feeding it with many kinds of treats. But as a new fur parent, your excitement might get in the way of checking the products first before purchasing them.
Of course, we also want you to be careful with the food you feed your puppy, which is why we’ve listed the things you need to know about dog treats before deciding which ones to buy.
When’s the right time to give your puppy some treats?
The safest time for your fur baby to be fed with puppy treats is when they’ve reached at least two months of age. However, it is more acceptable to start them when they’re six months old. But to be highly safe, wait for two more weeks to ensure that their teeth have grown and that they can chew the treats better.
Are the usual dog treats allowed for puppies?
The worry about feeding regular dog treats to puppies is valid, and the response to that is excellent. However, even if your puppy can be fed with dog treats, there are some treats that puppies still find difficult to chew, especially since their teeth are still in the process of developing. Likewise, dog treats that come in larger sizes may cause possible harm to your fur baby.
Stick with puppy treats first until the time your puppy has fully developed teeth that are capable of chewing even the hardest of treats. But while your puppy is still developing its canines, ensure that the treats are soft to chew and small enough to fit into their mouth.
How many treats should be given to your puppy?
The standard amount of Calories is 429 kcal per cup of dog food. The recommended amount for a 60-pound (adult) dog is 2 1/3 cups, equivalent to 1,001 calories a day. Therefore, puppies should only have a daily calorie intake of more than 100 calories.
It is advised that your puppy should not exceed 10% of their daily caloric intake gained from eating treats. At least 1-2 treats per day are allowed for puppies. Many experts suggest you use a calorie calculator to check the right amount of calories your puppy needs daily.
Buying Puppy Treats
We need to stress the importance of checking the labels that explicitly indicate the number of calories inside the treat to be sure of the calorie intake of your puppy. Another thing to consider is the presence of fat in a dog treat since it is a significant factor that contributes to the dog’s weight. Just because they treat themselves as full of fat doesn’t mean it’s healthy for your puppy.
Yes, we want our puppies to gain weight and grow taller but keep in mind that not every treat you see in a pet grocery store is produced to supplement all the nutrients your puppy needs. To ensure that you purchase healthy treats, inspect if the treats have passed the excellent nutrient content set by the agencies in charge. It would help if you also were wary of components like allergens and xylitol that could be harmful to your dog.
Check which food is safe for humans but dangerous for dogs, so you know which products to avoid. Have a list to carry around while shopping for puppy treats.
What should you avoid in dog treats?
As a pet owner, it is your responsibility to know which components to avoid when checking the food labels in dog treats. Inspect the list of ingredients indicated in the package and read them carefully. Avoid products that contain artificial preservatives or animal by-products as these could damage their kidneys.
Another thing to avoid is those treats that contain high sugar content since this may cause your dog’s tooth to decay, arthritis, or hypoglycemia. Look for food with low levels of salt as well because too much can lead to heart problems. Even dog treats with artificial coloring aren’t recommended for animal intake.
Remember to prevent your dog from overheating and maintain a balanced diet when preparing their meals. Keep them hydrated at all times and have them exercised regularly. Always refrain from buying dog food and treats with preservatives.
Conclusion
We want to shower our puppy with many things, such as treats, but their health comes first before anything else. That’s why we need to equip ourselves with the knowledge to feed them treats.
We should dig deeper about what we know about puppy treats so that when training them to respond and or behave, we know what to give them. This way, they’ll grow happy and healthy.