When it comes to providing food to your dog, it will always be good to provide a balanced diet for them. There are essentially six basic nutrients that you should provide to your dog, which are water, fats, carbohydrates, proteins as well as minerals and vitamins. So while all of the above constitutes a balanced diet, you should note that each dog’s requirements can be different from another dog of the same breed. Hence, there can be a need to cater to the different dietary requirements of each dog. So, if your dog is having heart issues, what are some of the things that you will need to know?
Not all fats are bad
One of the most common perceptions is that fat is the main cause of heart problems in dogs. While there is some truth to that, there is differences between good fats for your dog and fats that are harmful to them. Do note that fat is part of the 6 essential nutrients for your dog, and rightfully this is so because fat is needed as a source of energy and hence fuel to your dog’s daily life. Some of the good fat can increase the level of HDL cholesterol in your dog, which is important as it helps to protect the heart from problems.
There is another kind of fats that helps in more ways than one. For example, Omega-3 and 6 acids are well known to strengthen the heart as well as to maintain the dog’s coat and skin.
Providing optimal levels of protein does help the dog
One of the possible reasons that contribute to the heart failure of the dog is the inadequate amount of protein in the dog's diet. In the past, people used to reduce the dog's protein intake to prevent too much metabolic stress on the dog's internal organs, especially the heart, liver, and kidneys. This is, in fact, detrimental to the dog's health since the dog loses muscle mass, and the reduction of muscle means losing the protective layer that surrounds the dog's heart. Without this protective cover enveloping the dog's heart, your dog will be more susceptible to develop heart problems. As such, it is highly recommended that you provide your dog with a diet that consists of 25- 30% of the content in protein.
Reduce salt content in dog’s food
It is always common to reduce the salt content for dogs as too much salt can cause problems to the dog's body. However, if your dog is having heart issues, the key here is to ensure that the amount of sodium that you give to the dog should be constant so that your dog will not be subject to levels of sodium that resembles a sin wave. Any large spikes in sodium in the dog's food can cause the level of sodium in the blood to increase, which is bad for the dog's heart health. Do note that most of the dog food that is readily available in the market are high in sodium. Hence, it will be important to always find out the level of sodium in food packaging.
Maintaining weight for pets is the key
For dogs with heart issues, it can be possible for them to gain weight as well as to lose weight. Obviously, dogs that are obese can be more susceptible to having heart issues. For the case of dogs that are already having heart problems, they might not be eating properly. This results in a lower composition of healthy fat in the dog’s body, and this isn’t good since there is a lack of healthy fat that could protect the dog’s organs and hence their body. Hence, the key to having a healthy dog without heart problems is to maintain their weight. And how do you go about achieving that?
Tips on maintaining the dog's weight to ensure a healthy heart
First of all, you should always try to provide frequent meals but with a smaller portion. Also, in terms of giving your dog heart-healthy dog food, you can opt for dog food with ingredients that will help the dog to strengthen their heart. Some of the common ingredients include Schisandra as well as liquorice. These two common ingredients do help to protect the heart and ensuring that it is healthy.
Schisandra
More commonly known as the Schisandra Berry, it is better used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. It was first used in ancient China as a treatment to improve the respiratory system in the lungs. It has a secondary function in that it helps to provide care for the canine’s hearts. Indeed, Schisandra helps to reduce sluggish performance in the hearts, which is optimal when it comes to providing care to the dog’s heart.
Liquorice
When it comes to caring for the canine’s heart, it will be good to protect or regulate allergic reactions, and one of the best ingredients that help to achieve this function by ingesting liquorice. Liquorice contains anti-inflammatory agents that help to restrict the onset of allergic reactions. This is important, given that with a lack of such agents, there is a chance that the adrenal glands are not active, and it will not provide enough hormones that are necessary to prevent an allergic reaction from happening. The prevention of allergic reaction is not the only function of the adrenal glands though as the glands itself are responsible for protecting the dog from other issues such as hay fever. All of these issues can severely impact the dog’s heart and hence their health.
Wrapping up
As you can see, the key to ensuring that the dog has a healthy heart lies in knowing the fats as well as maintaining the dog's weight. Apart from exercises, the best way at which you can maintain the weight is to control the dog's diet, and the most optimal way is to provide heart-healthy dog food that consists of ingredients that helps to protect the heart!
We hope you’ve found these suggestions to keep your dog's heart healthy and would love to hear some ways you’re already incorporating! If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to share below or email us at hello@wellnergypets.com