Dog'ged Juniors

Do you hydrate your food? Why or why not?

We usually feed them dry food because I've heard it's better for their teeth (Smush has awful teeth and trying to brush them is a huge ordeal, so I figure he needs all the help he can get).

I soak my food overnight because it gives them extra water and they think they are getting more food because it expands. I give them all bones to keep the tarter from building up on their teeth. 

Dry except in the case of a sick or ancient dog.

I feed dry kibble, although I put it in water IMMEDIATELY before I feed it. Watering down food is similar to digesting it. In other words, when you water it down and soak it, it begins to break the nutrients in the food down, so unless they drink all of the water too, they arent getting the full benefit of the food.

I switched a couple of weeks ago to putting the food in the water right when I feed, like Emily, cause soaking it turned out to be more of a hassle for me( and anyone who had to feed while I was gone) than a benefit for the dogs.  You just gotta watch the smarty pants who tip over their bowl or go snorkiling for their food.

I've tried putting Smush's food in water at flyball tournaments to get him to drink more, but he doesn't like it... he thinks it's icky   Such a little prima donna...

I usually soke their food in water for 5 minutes, only because Max and Ringo are fast eaters, and doing this prevents them from sucking up the food in less than 5 seconds.

I put the food in water right before I feed them. The kibble doesnt get soaked and each dog can then get the portion of food they need. If my dogs all ate roughly the same amount I would just dump the kibble in the bucket, and water then feed right then.

Honestly, I do pretty mucheverything to my dog food. It's dominantly dry kibble, mixed with afork full (or a bit more, for the Aussie cause she's still a growingpup) of canned food. I stir it all together, occasionally I addcarrots, green beans, potatoes, noodles, meat chicken or scrambledeggs, and fill the bowl about halfway with water right before I give itto them. Lately I've been putting fish oil pills in the food as well,because winter has been drying out their skin like no other. Now we'vegot moist skin and shinier coats after a couple of weeks with the fishoil :] Then again, I'm an animal nutrient nerd.

Can't wait for college in the fall, where I can officially major in Animal Nutrition.

Starstrukk - What kind of fish oil pills do you add to your dog food?

Just plain ol' fish oil. I buy them from the Aldi grocery store, just because they're generally cheaper. They look like yellow gels, but I don't know an exact brand because I threw the bottle out about a week ago.

http://img4.cookinglight.com/i/2009/05/0905p68e-pills-l.jpg

they look like that XD I put 2 in their dinner, none in their breakfast. so, basicly, they'd just need 2 a day. or you can use Flaxseed Oil pills. it's pretty much just personal preference, but I believe (not totally sure, so don't take my word to heart) that Flaxseed is cheaper.