​[1. What is Golden Retriever]

Golden Retriever, also called Golden Retriever. It is a well-proportioned, powerful, active dog, sound and well put together, with legs that are neither too long nor clumsy, with a friendly expression and a personality that is enthusiastic, alert and confident. Because it is a hunting dog, its essential characteristics can only be shown in a difficult working environment. His general appearance, balance, gait and purpose of the breed should be given more emphasis than any one individual part of the body. The Golden Retriever was bred by a Scottish monarch in the 19th century using yellow Labrador Retrievers, Irish Setter dogs and the extinct Part-Colored Water Spaniel to create a golden long-haired retriever. . Later this breed gradually became the famous golden retriever. At that time, this kind of dog was very suitable for holding prey in its mouth, because their mouth was very gentle when holding it. Therefore, Golden Retrievers have strong swimming abilities and can bring prey back to their owners from the water. They are the most loyal and friendly family dogs and guide dogs for humans.

[2. How to raise golden retrievers]

The work of raising golden retrievers is extremely tedious and requires the owner to have a strong sense of responsibility. The Golden Retriever is a large dog. It is necessary to ensure that the Golden Retriever has adequate nutrition and a reasonable dietary structure every day to allow the dog to grow up healthily.

1. What to feed your golden retriever

Feed: For a golden retriever, nothing is more practical than dog food. Because dog food basically contains all the nutrients needed by golden retrievers, during the preparation process of dog food, scientific nutritional ratios have been carried out based on the growth characteristics of golden retrievers, so eating dog food is the simplest and most direct way. method. Of course, the price of dog food is not that cheap now, so you can also make your own dog food (there are many recipes and production methods online). However, it must be stated that no matter how sophisticated your own dog food is, it is still very difficult to meet international standards in terms of nutrition. Generally, homemade dog food will not meet the standards. Therefore, long-term use of such dog food will cause malnutrition of dogs and the breeding of corresponding diseases. Therefore, if the economic conditions are not particularly poor, commercial dog food is still the first choice to use as feed for golden retrievers.

Moisture: The golden retriever’s moisture supply is also an important part of its diet. Sufficient moisture supply can promote the dog’s blood circulation and metabolism. Therefore, golden retrievers must have sufficient water supply every day. The water given to Golden Retrievers must be boiled water, the container used for feeding water must be clean, and the water must be changed every day. Do not give your golden retriever raw water or overnight water. Trace elements: Like people, dogs also need many trace elements for their growth. Due to differences in their own digestive systems and age groups, these trace elements cannot be fully absorbed from dog food. At this time, the owner needs to provide the dog with appropriate trace elements. Trace elements areRefers to minerals such as calcium, copper, iron, zinc, selenium, etc. Generally, Golden Retrievers need to supplement calcium when they are young to enhance bone growth. If adult Golden Retrievers do not find physical decline caused by lack of trace elements through physical examination, they do not need supplements. Excessive trace element intake can also cause golden retriever poisoning.

Pay attention to your salt intake. Dog People Network - It’s not that you can’t eat salt, but you must eat salt. If a dog doesn’t eat a little salt, it will be doomed. Because sodium ions and chloride ions are essential mineral elements for animal bodies, plant-based feeds generally contain less sodium and chlorine. In order to supplement these two elements and increase the animal's appetite, salt should be supplemented in the diet. However, excessive salt intake will also be harmful to dogs. Because eating too much salt will cause you to sweat more. You must know that the dog's sweat glands have degenerated and will not sweat on the skin. Dogs sweat mainly through their mouths, so they are prone to skin diseases when eating too much salt. Excessive salt, especially insufficient water, can cause salt poisoning. However, because dogs’ kidneys have very good excretion function and are not allergic to salt, there are very few cases of dog salt poisoning. The summary is that dogs must eat salt, but it must be controlled within the standards.

2. What should not be given to golden retrievers

In fact, except for the things mentioned above that can be given to golden retrievers, in principle, it is not recommended to give golden retrievers anything else. But what needs to be pointed out here is that there are many things that Golden Retrievers must not eat, because these things are irritating to the Golden Retriever’s stomach or are not conducive to digestion.

Common things that golden retrievers cannot eat include the following: seasonings, such as soy sauce, salt, MSG, sugar, pepper, aniseed, etc. (which affect the dog’s olfactory sensitivity). Sugar, chicken, duck and fish bones, beans, garlic, onions, milk, grapes, tea, seafood, high-sugar, high-fat, high-salt foods, meat, etc. In terms of fruits, do not eat peaches, plums, plums, loquats, cherries, pineapples, apples, etc. that contain alkaloids, especially seeds, leaves, peels, or immature fruits, which have the highest content! If eaten, you will be poisoned. So it is best to just feed your dog dog food, this is the best option.

3. How to feed golden retrievers

Good feeding habits: Just like children, good habits should be developed from an early age. Therefore, when your dog is very young, you must consciously cultivate your dog’s eating habits so that he is not picky about food, so as to ensure the health of your dog in the future. Many directors feed their dogs food indiscriminately, which not only affects the dog's health, but also disrupts the dog's eating habits. In the end, the dog doesn't like to eat dog food and cannot keep up with its nutrition. Feeding dogs must be fixed in one place, for a certain period of time, and provided with fixed utensils. This will keep your dog’s diet regular and beneficial to his health.

Reasonable dog food ratio. If people want to live a long life, they cannot eat too much at every meal. The same goes for dogs. in whatHow much dog food should a dog of his age eat every day requires a scientific ratio. Especially for puppies, they don’t know how much they should eat, and sometimes they don’t even know they eat too much, so owners must strictly control their dogs’ daily food intake. Maybe your dog won’t eat dog food at first, but don’t be soft-hearted at this time, and he will eat it in the end. According to the physical characteristics of golden retrievers and their nutritional needs at different ages, different dog foods generally have a feeding guide (as shown in Figure 001-1). The owner must follow the feeding guide to provide the dog with daily dog food. Picture: 001-1

In addition to adjusting the amount of dog food according to the dog food ratio, the amount of dog food can also be appropriately adjusted based on the observed performance of the dog. Generally speaking, the degree of fullness or hunger of a dog can be seen from the performance of eating dog food. If the dog eats very quickly and swallows in large gulps, it means that there is no problem with appetite; if after eating, the food bowl is gone and the dog continues to lick the empty food bowl with his tongue, or looks at the owner expectantly, it means that he has not eaten. full. You can add a little bit appropriately, but not too much. Generally, the ideal state is for dogs to eat until they are 70% full.

4. How to feed golden retrievers of different ages. The young period of golden retrievers is the main stage of growth and development. The body grows rapidly, so sufficient nutrition must be provided. Generally speaking, golden retrievers mainly grow in body and weight in the first 3 months after birth, in body length in 4 to 6 months, and in height after 7 months. Therefore, different diets should be formulated according to different development stages. Eat smaller meals more frequently, and the amount will decrease month by month. Puppies under 3 months old should be fed at least 4 times a day as long as the daily amount of dog food is fixed. Puppies aged 4 to 6 months have increased food intake and rapid weight gain, and the daily amount of feed required also increases. At this time, the number of feedings per day can be reduced to at least 3 times. Dogs after 6 months old can be fed twice a day. After 12 months, feeding once a day is enough.