American Bullies are energetic, muscular dogs that require a balanced and nutritious diet to maintain health and perform at their best. Choosing the right food for your American Bully is critical to their overall well-being. This article aims to give you insights and advice on choosing the best food for your American Bully companion.
1. The nutritional needs of American bully dogs:
American Bully Dog food can come from dry food, wet food or raw food. Food should contain up to 30% protein and 20% fat to provide your Bully with enough energy and support for muscle growth.
Protein: Make sure the bully is getting enough protein to maintain muscle and tissue health. Sources of high-quality protein include meat (chicken, beef, lamb), fish, eggs, beans, etc.
Carbohydrates: Choose carbohydrates that are high in fiber, such as whole grain bread, brown rice, vegetables and fruit. Avoid excess simple carbohydrates, such as sugar and white bread.
Fat: Bullies need a moderate amount of fat to maintain healthy skin and coat. Choose healthy sources of fat, such as fish oil, olive oil, and flaxseed oil.
Vitamins and calcium: Bulldogs must pay attention to calcium supplementation, especially for bulldogs before 8 months. In terms of calcium selection, liquid calcium is the first choice, followed by calcium powder. The most important thing about calcium is absorption. It’s useless, because the absorption of calcium tablets is poor, so when choosing calcium supplements for bulldogs, liquid calcium and calcium powder should be given priority. Try not to give bulldogs human nutrition. The calcium and phosphorus ratio of human and dog is not the same, which directly affects the absorption effect.
2. The special dietary needs of American bully dogs:
Foods American Bully Dogs Like:
Vegetables: Carrots, sweet potatoes, cabbage (cabbage), cucumbers, radish leaves, squash, greens. When feeding vegetables, they must be washed and drained before feeding.
Fruits: oranges, bananas, grapes, apples, strawberries. When feeding fruit, the American bully should appropriately reduce the water intake to adjust the water absorption.
Foods to watch out for:
If corn and peanuts are not fresh, they are prone to produce a toxic substance of Aspergillus flavus, so they can only be fed fresh. In addition, potato sprouts contain toxins, so special care should be taken.
3. Factors to consider when choosing dog food:
Specific Dietary Needs:
Puppies:
High protein: Puppies are in the growth and development stage and need more nutrition to support the development of bones and muscles.
Digestible food: The digestive system of puppies is not yet fully developed, so they need easy-to-digest food.
Wet food: Your puppy’s teeth may be growing and will require an easy-to-chew food, consider wet food or chopped food.
Adult dog:
Balanced Diet: Adult dogs need to meet basic nutritional needs and maintain a healthy weight. High-quality protein, healthy fats, and moderate amounts of carbohydrates are important.
Joint development: Large dogs may require additional nutritional support for joint health, while smaller dogs may require fewer calories.
Adequate Water: Adult dogs need adequate water to maintain body fluid balance and prevent dehydration.
Senior Dog:
Eat Less: Older dogs have a reduced metabolic rate and therefore need fewer calories to avoid overweight and obesity. At the same time, older dogs may have reduced activity levels and so require less energy.
Calcium and vitamin D: The bone health of older dogs may be compromised, and owners can meet their needs by providing them with foods rich in calcium and vitamin D, such as fish, dairy products, and leafy green vegetables.
Adequate protein: Senior dogs have progressively aging body tissues and are prone to muscle and bone damage. Protein is a key nutrient for bone development and repair.
Allergies and sensitivities:
Allergies and sensitivities are discomforts or adverse reactions in pets to certain food ingredients or environmental factors. For American Bulldogs, common allergens include grains, meat, eggs, dairy products and artificial additives in food, as well as environmental factors such as pollen and dust mites.
Consult a Veterinarian: If you suspect an allergy or sensitivity problem in your American Bulldog, you should consult a veterinarian first. They can do allergy testing to determine which foods or environmental factors may be causing an adverse reaction.
Choose hypoallergenic ingredients: After determining the allergens, choose foods with hypoallergenic ingredients. Some common hypoallergenic ingredients include fish, duck, potatoes, seaweed, spinach, and more. Make sure your food is free from artificial additives, preservatives and artificial colors.
4. The food type of American Bulldog:
Dry food ingredients
Contains meat, meat powder, water (8~10%), other trace elements, starch, etc.; but some vitamins and oils may be destroyed during the drying process, so the brand will increase the amount appropriately, or after cooling Only added, while locking nutrients.
Advantages of dry food
Convenience: Dry food is formulated by professional pet nutritionists according to the physiological nutritional needs of pets. It contains essential protein, vitamins, minerals, etc. for pets. The owner only needs to give the relative amount of dog food according to the weight of the dog.
Easy to store: dry food has low moisture content, is not easy to deteriorate, and is easy to store, so as to prevent dogs from getting sick due to eating expired, moldy, and spoiled food.
Reduce dental food residue residue: dry food particles also increase the friction against the teeth, thereby reducing tartar.
Insufficient dry food
Long-term consumption of dry food may lead to insufficient water intake, which will further lead to urinary diseases.
Dry food has low moisture content, general palatability, and high carbohydrate content. For pets who lack exercise for a long time, long-term consumption of dry food is likely to induce obesity.
Wet Dog Food/Canned Food: Highlights the benefits of wet dog food, such as increased moisture content and palatability.
Wet food ingredients
Meat, liquid raw materials (such as fish oil, gravy), water (70~80%), other trace elements. The difference from dry food is that wet food can directly use fish oil to adjust EPA/DHA, and the water content is greatly increased.
Advantages of wet food
Better palatability: its state is close to the food that animals hunt in nature, so the general acceptance of fur kids is very high. Great news for picky eaters.
Easy to digest and chew: For old, bad teeth or sick dogs, it is easier to eat and digest.
High water content: Wet food contains gravy. For dogs who don’t like to drink water, wet food is a good way to increase the amount of water they drink.
Insufficient wet food
Wet food usually has a short storage time and needs to be eaten within a short time after opening, especially in areas with hot weather, it will deteriorate after a few days after opening.
Eating wet food for a long time, lack of chewing and tooth friction, is more likely to produce tartar and form dental calculus.
Raw Food Diet:
A raw food diet refers to a feeding method that feeds ingredients raw or uncooked directly to pets. For the American Bulldog, the concept of a raw food diet is to change its diet to something closer to its natural foods, such as raw meat, bones, organs, fruits and vegetables, and other natural ingredients.
This brings me to HPP applied to raw food, and since HPP is used by many manufacturers, you may not have much choice when buying raw dog food. With HPP food, you can minimize the risk of germs to your dog and your family. Multiple studies have shown that HPP makes meat more digestible. At least one raw pet food manufacturer’s study showed that the digestibility after HPP was 95.6% protein, 97% fat, and 96% calories. This data indicates that your dog is still getting most of the nutritional benefits of the food.
Raw Food Advantages:
CLOSE TO NATURAL FOODS: A raw food diet provides an approach to eating more natural foods for the American Bulldog, helping to meet his basic nutritional needs.
Provides More Nutrients: Raw meat, bones, and organs in a raw food diet provide an abundance of protein, vitamins, and minerals that support your dog’s health and immune system function.
Improve the digestive system: Dogs are carnivores by nature, and their digestive system is more adapted to digest and absorb meat food. A raw food diet provides more natural enzymes that help dogs digest food better, reducing stomach upset and digestive problems. Processed food may be difficult for dogs to digest completely due to the loss of enzymes during processing, which increases the burden on the stomach.
Not enough raw food:
A raw food diet needs to be balanced to ensure your dog gets all the essential nutrients. This may require the addition of aids or supplements, such as bone supplements, vitamins and minerals.
A raw food diet requires the use of fresh, high-quality ingredients that are free from bacterial contamination. Avoid raw foods where bacteria or parasites may be present.
Homemade Meals: Provides guidelines for preparing balanced homemade meals, emphasizing the importance of consulting a veterinarian.
5. Grain storage methods
For canned food, please remember to refrigerate it in the refrigerator; for dry food, please pay attention to airtight storage to avoid food contamination or moisture, which will destroy the nutritional value and taste.
6. Common diet problems and health problems
Food sharing control:
Diet control refers to controlling the amount and frequency of feeding to prevent bullies from overeating. Overfeeding can lead to obesity problems which can negatively impact the bully dog’s health. Obesity puts a strain on joints and bones, increasing the risk of diseases such as osteoarthritis.
Due to their own appearance characteristics, a flat-bottomed bowl should be used for feeding bulldogs. Bulldogs 2-3 months old should be fed 4 times a day, and the dog food should be diluted 1:1 with warm water before feeding. It should be fed 3 times a day, the bulldog after 6 months should be fed 2 times a day, and the bulldog over 1 year old can be fed once a day. Before the bulldog is 6 months old, try not to control their food intake. Once the nutrition cannot keep up, their size development will be restricted, which is not conducive to growth.
Calories:
Calorie intake is also a key dietary factor. American Bully dogs are very active and require a lot of energy to meet their living demands. However, excessive calorie intake can also lead to obesity problems. The owner needs to reasonably calculate the daily calorie intake according to the age, weight and activity level of the bully dog, and choose the appropriate food on this basis.
The calorie intake for bully dogs at different stages is as follows:
Puppy stage:
During the puppy stage, bullies grow rapidly and require a lot of nutritional support. In general, calorie intake should be between 1,200 and 1,800 calories per day, depending on the pup’s weight and activity level.
Adult dog stage:
Once a bully enters adulthood, its growth rate will slow down, but it will still need enough energy to maintain daily activities. In general, calorie intake should be between 1,200 and 1,600 calories per day, depending on the weight and activity level of the adult dog.
Senior dog stage:
As bullies age, their activity levels gradually decrease, and therefore their calorie needs decrease accordingly. In general, calorie intake should be between 1,000 and 1,300 calories per day, depending on the senior dog’s weight and activity level.
In addition, the gastrointestinal system of the American Bully is relatively sensitive and prone to digestive problems, so it is necessary to choose high-quality food that is easy to digest to reduce the risk of indigestion. Feed the highest quality meat possible. If possible, eat meat from grass-fed, free-range animals. They are less likely to contain pathogenic bacteria than poorly fed factory farmed animals.
Minimize vaccinations and avoid antibiotics or other medications that can disrupt healthy gut bacteria and weaken the digestive system. Always provide filtered or spring water, not straight tap water. Because the bulldog has a relatively short snout and poor breathing, you must let it drink water when you take it out to play to prevent heatstroke.
One question per article: What can bully dogs not eat?
[Chocolate] Coffee salt (Theobromine) in chocolate is a kind of poison to animals. It will reduce the blood flow to the brain, which may cause heart disease and other fatal problems. The higher the purity of the chocolate contained The higher the salty coffee content, the greater the danger to dogs.
Symptoms of poisoning: Severe drooling, frequent urination, dilated pupils, rapid heartbeat, vomiting and diarrhea, extreme hyperactivity, vigor and trembling, coma.
[Onions] Raw or cooked onions contain disulfide (Disulfide) components, which are harmless to humans, but can cause the danger of oxidation of red blood cells in dogs. May cause Hemolytic Anemia
Symptoms of poisoning: weight loss, fatigue, sluggishness, frequent panting, depression, rapid pulse, weakness, film-like secretions from the gums and mouth.
[Liver] Liver is one of the dog’s favorite foods, and many snacks or dog food contain liver. Eating a small amount of liver is actually fine for dogs, but excessive amounts can cause nutritional problems. Because the liver contains high units of vitamin A, taking too much vitamin A may cause vitamin A poisoning or vitamin A hyperactivity.
Symptoms of hypervitaminosis A: malformed bones, rapid development of bones in the elbows and spine, weight loss, anorexia.
[Raw Eggs] Raw egg whites contain a protein called avidin, which will deplete the vitamin H (existing in vitamin B group) in the dog’s body. Vitamin H is an indispensable nutrient for the growth of dogs and the promotion of fur health. In addition Raw eggs often contain germs, such as salmonella. Feeding raw eggs will eventually turn into toxins fed to dogs by mistake, which is more likely to cause vitamin H deficiency.
Symptoms of vitamin H deficiency: hair loss, weakness, growth retardation, bone deformities.
[Pork] The fat globules in pork are larger than other meats, so avoid pork products, especially those containing sodium nitrate. Possibly blocked microvessels in dogs.
[Milk] Many dogs have lactose incompatibility. If your dog develops symptoms such as farting, diarrhea, dehydration or skin inflammation after drinking milk, you should stop feeding. Milk, dogs with lactose incompatibility should eat lactose-free Ingredients of milk.
[Fungi]Commercially available edible shiitake mushrooms and shiitake mushrooms are harmless to dogs, but dogs should avoid eating them, so as not to accidentally eat poisonous mushrooms in the wild.
[Grape] can cause nephrotoxicity (kidney failure), and must not be fed to dogs.
Symptoms of renal failure: vomiting, anorexia, straining to urinate, decreased urine output, weakness, anuria, hematuria, curled up unwilling to move, pain in the kidney area, etc.
[Bones]Do not feed bones that will splinter, such as chicken bones. Head fragments may pierce the dog’s throat or cut the dog’s mouth, esophagus, stomach or intestines.
Asphyxia: Pale and blue gums, panting, mouth breathing, grasping face, shallow and slow breathing, unconsciousness, dilated pupils.
Conclusion:
A nutritious diet is the cornerstone of your bulldog’s health and happiness. By understanding their unique dietary needs, offering appropriate foods, and avoiding harmful items, you can provide your bulldog with a diet that promotes vitality and longevity.
