…..for the longest life possible!
Want your dog to live forever? Me too! Unfortunately, we almost always outlive our beloved canine companions and that’s not something we can control. There are quite a few things we can control in our lives though, that will help our doggos live their longest and healthiest life possible.
Heres a few top tips to achieve optimal canine health!
1. FOOD
Of course the number one most important thing is the food you feed- you are what you eat! And the same applies to our furry family members. There are SO many options when choosing the right diet for your dog, and with a lot of conflicting information out there it can be difficult to know if you’ve made the right choice.
We recommend and advocate for a balanced raw diet with plenty of protein variety and raw meaty bones. We know that highly processed food is bad for us and again- the same rules apply to our dogs. If you want your dog to thrive rather than survive- aim for a diet that gets closer to nature than a little, dried up brown bikkie!
More on this here and here.
- SUPPLEMENTS
Using the right supplements at the right time for your dog can have major health benefits throughout their life, and support them into old age.
You can delay the onset and progression of arthritis by using joint support supplements and even things like behaviour can be positively affected with the supplementation of omega three fatty acids, magnesium and zinc.
- HYDRATION IS THE KEY TO HAPPINESS
There are so many things that we know are good for human health that also apply to our pooches. Another one is DRINKING WATER. Being well hydrated supports every system in the body.
A healthy dog should drink, on average, between 30-60ml of water per kg of body weight per day.
You can help hydrate your dog by having multiple water sources (some pets prefer a moving water source like a fountain) and ensuring that the water bowl is always clean and fresh.
Adding some extra water to their meals can increase hydration and offering a nutrient dense bone broth regularly is a great way to encourage dogs to drink more.
- GET ZEN
Stress ages us, and does the same to our dogs. Our dogs are intuitive creatures and can pick up on our own stress levels so the best thing we can do to avoid stressing our dogs out, is to stress less!
This is easier said than done in today’s world, but any attempts you make to improve your own mental health will have a positive effect on pooch too, so pop on a meditation track, run yourself a bath and try to get zen!
- EXCERCISE
The three oldest dogs in the world got at least 2 hours of exercise daily. Enough said!
- STAY LEAN
Anther human health issue that seeps over into the dog world is obesity.
What most people see as a healthy weight for a dog is actually a dog that is overweight. I talk about body condition all the time, and in their optimal state your dog should have ribs that you can feel easily and clear waist definition. Dogs should be lean and are much healthier when they are.
You can see a recent tik tok where I talk about this here!
If your dog is overweight (keeping in mind that most dogs are), reducing their dinner by 20-25% could extend your dogs lifespan significantly.
- REDUCE CHEMICAL EXPOSURE
Just like us, our dogs are exposed to a lot of different chemicals as they go about their daily lives. So any reduction in this exposure can contribute to a longer, healthier life.
There are chemicals in things we use to clean, in pesticides we use in our gardens and most flea and tick medications are actually harmful chemicals that can do more harm than good.
Stick to organic cleaning products if you can and only medicate what needs to be medicated- more about this here.