Best food for French Bulldog.
In this post we’ll have a look at the different options for feeding your French Bulldog. How many times a day should you feed your French Bulldog? Should you feed them wet or dry food? Organic? Grain free? With so many options to consider, this might take a while as we try figure out how to choose the best food for your French Bulldog.
First up, we’ll talk about the big white elephant in the room….
Best food for French Bulldog (raw vs dry.)
If you have the patience to trawl through the internet you’ll probably find an equal amount of arguments for both sides. It’s possible that the main issue with the raw diet is that some people take a DIY approach. This means that the dog is fed perhaps one type of meat with nothing else on the plate. This would be an unbalanced diet as no single source of food can provide everything that a dog needs when it comes to nutrients. Even Wolves, which would be considered as a dog’s most primal from, have a varied diet which includes fish, fruit and vegetables. You can read in detail what a Wolf eats here in Ranger planet.
The other problem lies in meat quality. Farmed animal welfare is an ever increasing problem as meat farmers struggle to keep up with rising demand plummeting prices. This often leads to cutting corners in the meat supply chain which can result in farmed animals living in terrible conditions which in turn produces low quality and often diseased meat. Since raw food is uncooked many of the bacteria present in the meat can cause problems for your pooch and their digestive system.
Raw Vs dry conclusion.
I think what’s important with any diet is that it absolutely has to be balanced and the food has to be good quality. A dog’s diet, should it be dry or raw can be bad on either side if it’s not done properly. We go for a little bit of both and feed our dog dry, grain free kibble topped with sardines which our vet is happy with. We use two types of kibble, sometimes we use Beco (UK only) and sometimes we use Veggiedog. She loves both and with the sardines (or occasionally an egg) we find this to be a well balanced meal.
Do my French Bulldog’s dietary needs depend on their age?
The short answer to this is yes. An extremely active and growing French Bulldog puppy will have different nutritional needs to an aging, not very active Frenchie. You’ll find that most brands have separate foods for puppies and adults, this is because they have different calorie needs and the foods has to cater for growth and repair in different ways. French Bulldogs will keep growing up until 12 months and some even on to 18 months old. Make sure you’re feeding your Frenchie age appropriate food.
Best food for French Bulldog (allergies.)
The French Bulldog breed is well known for potential health issues and allergies. Food allergies and food intolerances can be an issue for any breed, not just Frenchies. Both our French Bulldogs have had an allergy to grains and this can be one of the more common ones. Certain animal proteins can also be a factor and it can be difficult to pinpoint a culprit without professional advice. Listed below are just some of the symptoms which could imply that your dog has a food allergy or slight intolerance.
If you have any doubts or feel that your dog could be suffering it’s a good idea to make an appoinment with your vet. Some vets will be happy to discuss over the phone if you can offer them a list of symptoms.
Signs your dog may have a food allergy.
Internal.
1: Diarrhea (or soft stools.) Inspecting your dog poo might not be you idea of fun but a healthy dog poo usually means a healthy dog. Your dog’s stool should be fairly firm, consistent and free from traces of blood.
2: Vomiting. This could mean a number of things but regular vomiting is definitely not a good thing and you should get in touch with your vet.
3: Farting. We all know Frenchie’s like to fart but more than usual can mean stomach upset.
External.
1: Constant scratching. Your dog may be scratching more than normal and even to the point where the skin becomes raw and red.
2: Swollen, inflamed patches of skin. Sometimes swollen skin around the paws can be a grass allergy but either way, it’s a reaction and one worth investigating.
3: Rashes or bald patches around the body. Monitor the health of your dog’s coat and any unusual patches of skin which look sore and bald.
So what should I feed my dog?
Really you need to make a decision based on the above information. Does your dog have allergies? How old is your dog? Below are some examples of dog food you might consider for your fully grown French Bulldog.
1: Royal Canin French Bulldog food is made specifically for adult Frenchies. This one is not grain free so that’s something to keep in mind if your Frenchie does have a grain allergy. A whopping 87% of owners rate this at 5 stars and this is a dry food option.
2: Nulo Limited Ingredient Small Breed dog food is based on a simple recipe and of course is grain free. The reviews section has plenty of 5 star reviews coming from French Bulldog owners which would suggest this is a good choice.
3: Finally, Hill’s Science Diet Dry dog food is produced specifically for dogs with sensitive stomachs and comes with a grain free option.
Alternatives.
As mentioned earlier, we feed our dog with Veggiedog kibble. How can you think it’s ok to feed your dog a veggie diet I hear you say in shock??? We don’t feed our dog a vegetarian diet. Our dog’s kibble is almost always topped with either sardines or locally caught, fresh fish. Sometimes we give her a free range egg. All of that aside, it is perfectly acceptable and healthy to feed your dog on a vegetarian diet.
If you don’t believe me, there are plenty of vet approved articles (like this one) online. We use Veggiedog because it’s grain free and our dog loves it. Usually, we get it shipped over from Germany but if we’re having issues getting it we use Beco dog food instead. We choose Beco because we believe in the practices they use to source and produce their food.
Conclusion on the best food for your French Bulldog.
The raw diet vs dry food debate could go on and really it’s down to you to make your own decision on that. You’ll find plenty of cases to fight both sides of the argument. We prefer dry food and put fresh but cooked foods on top. Some may disagree but the fact that our dog is healthy proves to us that what we’re doing is working.
Hopefully this post has given some things to think about and maybe a few options to consider as you look to find the best food for your French Bulldog.
Feel free to check out some of the related posts below and thanks for reading.
Kyle
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Header image credits: Image by Mylene2401 from Pixabay
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