People have all sorts of ideas about what to feed a dog. If you try to follow all the advice you hear, you will be bewildered and poor Beans will be eating everything from soup to nuts. There are some good general rules, however, on which almost everyone is agreed. If you remember them, you can’t go too far wrong with your dog’s diet.
(1) A dog has very little sense about what’s good for him to eat, so don’t leave it up to Beans to order his food. If you permitted it, he’d pick his dinner from your garbage pail. Since this may contain small bones, coffee grounds, or slightly spoiled food, which could make him sick, it’s not a good idea to let him get near it.
(2) The amount of food you feed your dog depends on his size, his breed, and how much exercise he gets. But all dogs eat the same kind of food.
(3) Never, never overfeed your dog, no matter how hard he begs for more. A dog that is always a little hungry is a healthy dog. And do not feed him between meals, except those small bits of biscuit you use as a reward when you are training him.
(4) All dogs gulp their food down whole, so don’t worry if Beans doesn’t chew his meat. He’ll exercise his jaws and teeth on a hard dog biscuit, a large bone, a toy . . . or your father’s bedroom slippers!
(5) Meat is the most important part of every dog’s diet, in one form or another. It need not be the most expensive kind of meat. It can be canned or in the form of dry dog food. But dogs must have their daily quota of meat if they are to be healthy. Meat, whether raw,cooked, or canned, will not make a dog vicious, as some people say.
(6) Small bones of any kind . . . chicken, fish, chop, or rabbit . . . must absolutely never be given to any dog. They can splinter in the throat or intestines and so seriously hurt the dog. Only a very large marrow or knuckle bone is safe for Beans to chew on. Even then, only when you are around to see he doesn’t bite off a small piece and start to choke.
(7) You must never feed Beans candy, pork, potatoes, cake, nuts, spaghetti, sausages, frankfurters, fresh bread, alcoholic drinks, or spicy gravies. Such foods provide no real nourishment and they may make him ill. Or he may become too fond of them and refuse to eat the food he should eat. If this happens, he will get very fat, grow short of breath, find it hard to run or play, and eventually might die much sooner than he would have if he’d eaten his proper diet.
(8) If Beans does not finish all of his food at his regular mealtime, take his bowl away and wait until the next mealtime to feed him. Don’t try to force him to eat, and don’t worry if he doesn’t eat for a meal or two.
(9) Feed Beans at regular times, in his own clean dish or pan, and then allow him to rest. Never romp or play with him right after he has eaten.
(10) Always keep plenty of fresh water in Beans’s water dish.
Actual Diet
If you own a dog and have been feeding him without breaking any one of the above rules, and if he seems strong and healthy, there is no reason to change his diet to match the ones that follow. But if you have broken any of these rules, stop it now before it’s too late. Your dog may seem to be healthy on a diet of pork and spaghetti, say. But if he should get sick, his resistance may be so low that he will not recover as he should. Perhaps your dog has swallowed lots of chicken bones without any painful results. But the day may come when a splinter of bone does get stuck in his throat. When you see the suffering that causes your pet, you’ll be sorry you ever let him near a small bone.
If you’ve just got your first dog and want to know the best way to feed him, the following diets are based on suggestions made by various veterinarians. Remember that they are suggestions, not hard-and-fast rules. Remember, too, that the most important feeding is done while your pup is from three to eleven months old. This is the time he’s forming bones and growing very fast. This is the time he must have certain definite foods in his diet, given to him at frequent and definite meal hours. Once he’s a year old, he only needs a light breakfast and a big evening meal.
Now for Beans: when you buy him, you will ask his breeder what food he was getting at the kennels. For the first few days in your house, you should give him exactly this same food. An abrupt change of diet might upset his stomach. Then you can begin to follow the charts below, according to his age.
These charts list the correct measurements of food to be given to the smaller dogs o f the terrier or non-sporting breeds. Usually these are the dogs that will weigh from twelve to twenty-five pounds when they are full-grown, such as a Boston terrier, a cocker spaniel, a beagle, or a dachshund.
If you have a toy dog, give the same food but only about one half these measurements. If you have a larger dog, such as a shepherd or a retriever, give the same food but about twice as much. And if you have one of the largest breeds, like a great Dane, give the same food but three or four times as much.
When in any doubt about kind of food or exact amount, ask the owner of the kennels or pet shop where you bought your dog or, if possible, consult a vet.
Feeding Charts
It will help you to remember what to feed Beans from month to month if you will copy each chart and put it up on your kitchen wall, as you need it. But first a few words of explanation: Milk: Where the chart uses the word “milk,” you may use either fresh whole milk, or canned evaporated milk to which you add one third of a can of water, or two ounces of whole dried milk added to one cup of hot fresh milk. Whichever milk you prefer to use, you must always heat it to body temperature. If you can buy some lime water at a druggist’s and add one teaspoon of this to the milk, it will help your pup have strong bones and teeth.
Toast: Where the chart says “toast,” you can give white, whole wheat, or rye bread toasted, zwieback, puppy biscuits, or shredded wheat, all well broken up. Or you can give one tablespoon of cooked barley or brown rice, or the dry dog food called “kibbles,” instead of each slice of toast.
Meat: Where the chart says “meat,” you can use raw beef, which is the best but is expensive. Or you can use cooked lamb, horse meat, or beef heart. All of these should be chopped up very fine. Or you can use any brand of canned dog food which bears the little sign reading “United States inspected and passed by the Department of Agriculture.” Or you can use dry dog food moistened with water.
Vegetables: Where the chart says “vegetables,” you can use almost any cooked vegetable you eat in your house, except potatoes, peas, lima beans, baked beans, parsnips, or corn. These are hard for a dog to digest. You may use cooked carrot or beet tops, with the water they were cooked in. Tomato juice is good, and you can also chop up raw lettuce, spinach, celery, carrots, or tomatoes and mix them into the meat and cereal. Be sure to mash all cooked vegetables well and chop up all raw vegetables very fine.
Now that you know what is meant by milk, toast, meat, and vegetables on the charts, you are ready to copy this first one and hang it on your kitchen wall.
AGE THREE TO FOUR MONTHS
BREAKFAST: 4 tablespoons of milk
1 slice of toast broken into milk
LUNCH: 2 large tablespoons of meat
1 slice of toast
1 teaspoon cod-liver oil, mixed into the food
DINNER:3 large tablespoons of meat
1 slice of toast
1 tablespoon of cooked vegetables
1 teaspoon of cod-liver oil
BEFORE BED: 4 tablespoons of milk
AGE FOUR TO FIVE MONTHS
BREAKFAST: 6 or 7 tablespoons of milk
1 slice of toast
LUNCH: 3 large tablespoons of meat
1 slice of toast
1 teaspoon of cod-liver oil
DINNER: 4large tablespoons of meat
1 slice of toast
2 tablespoons of cooked vegetables or
1 tablespoon of cooked vegetables and 1 tablespoon of chopped raw vegetables
BEFORE BED: 1 cup of milk
AGE FIVE TO SIX MONTHS
BREAKFAST: 6 or 7 tablespoons of milk/1 slice of toast
LUNCH:3 large tablespoons of meat/1 slice of toast/2 teaspoons of cod-liver oil
DINNER:4 or 5 large tablespoons of meat/2 tablespoons of cooked vegetables, with some chopped raw vegetables/2 teaspoons of cod-liver oil
BEFORE BED: I cup of milk
AGE SIX TO SEVEN MONTHS
BREAKFAST: 1 cup of plain milk, or whole dried milk mixed with water (no more canned evaporated milk or lime water needed)
2 slices of toast/1 soft-boiled egg several times a week, if this isn’t too expensive
LUNCH: 3 or 4 large tablespoons of meat/1 slice of toast/2 teaspoons of cod-liver oil
DINNER: 5 or 6 large tablespoons of meat/2 tablespoons of cooked and chopped raw vegetables/2 slices of toast/2 teaspoons of cod-liver oil
No more before-bed snacks.
AGE SEVEN TO ELEVEN MONTHS
BREAKFAST: 1 cup of milk/2 pieces of toast/1 soft-boiled egg 3 or 4 times a week, if possible
LUNCH: 4 large tablespoons of meat/ 1 slice of toast/1 teaspoon of cod-liver oil
DINNER: 6 to 8 tablespoons of meat/2 tablespoons of cooked and chopped raw vegetables/2 slices of toast/1 teaspoon of cod-liver oil
ELEVEN MONTHS ON
BREAKFAST: 1 cup of milk/2 slices of toast/1 raw or soft-boiled egg 4 or 5 times a week, if possible
DINNER:
1/2 to 3/4 pound of meat/2 tablespoons of cooked and chopped raw vegetables/2 slices of toast/1 teaspoon of cod-liver oil
As far as possible, these charts should be followed rather exactly until your dog is one year old. From then on, he will eat only breakfast and dinner. You can vary his meat by using boiled fish with all the bones removed, or canned tuna or salmon, cooked chicken without any bones, tripe, cooked lamb or mutton, and liver or heart either raw or cooked, in addition to cereals and vegetables and whatever prepared dog foods you prefer. You can also stop giving him cod-liver oil after he is a year old. If it seems necessary, you can slightly increase the amounts of food.
With a little thought, and these charts to guide you, the problem of feeding your dog need not be a hard nor an expensive one. If for any reason you would like additional suggestions and cannot afford to ask a veterinarian, do this: write to the United States Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., and ask them to send you the free booklet called Feeding Dogs, Yearbook Separate Number 1716, of the Department of Agriculture. Several of the better known dog-food companies will also send you free booklets on request.
DAILY PROGRAM FOR YOUR PUPPY: 5 TO 11 MONTHS OLD
You can copy this chart on a large piece of paper or cardboard and hang it on the wall of your room. See Feeding Chart for foods to give on this program.
FIRST THING IN THE MORNING Take puppy out
Feed puppy his breakfast
Take puppy out again, until completely housebroken
MIDMORNING
Puppy out, probably with your mother
NOON
Feed puppy his lunch, or arrange for your mother to do this if you’re at school Puppy out, until completely housebroken
AFTERNOON
Puppy out to walk and play with you
BEFORE YOUR DINNER
Brush and comb puppy Wash and fill his water dish Feed puppy his dinner Take puppy out, until completely housebroken Puppy rests, while you eat your dinner.
AFTER YOUR DINNER
Play with puppy, or teach him some basic commands.
LATE EVENING
Take puppy out, or ask one of your parents to Give puppy snack of milk, until 6 months old Puppy goes to bed.
SATURDAYS
Air puppy’s mattress
DAILY PROGRAM FOR YOUR DOG: 11 MONTHS AND OLDER
You can copy this chart on a large piece of paper or cardboard and hang it on the wall of your room. See Feeding Chart for foods to give on this program.
MORNING Feed dog his breakfast Take dog out for short walk.
MIDMORNING Dog out for walk, probably with your mother
AFTERNOON Take dog out to walk and play with you.
BEFORE YOUR DINNER Brush and comb dog. Clean and refill his water dish Feed dog his dinner Dog rests while you eat your dinner.
AFTER YOUR DINNER Take dog for short walk Play with dog, or give him training lessons Let dog sit with you while you do your homework.
LAST THING AT NIGHT Take dog for short walk, or ask one of your parents to Dog goes to bed.
SATURDAYS Air dog’s mattress. Give dog bath, if needed. Take dog with you on hike, in car to country, to park, swimming, et cetera