CHANGING YOUR PET's DIET

Unless your veterinarian advises otherwise, it is not a good idea to change a pet's food without a little planning ahead of time. If a pet's diet is changed suddenly, almost all pets will have some difficulty, ranging from mild (stomach discomfort or unwillingness to eat) to severe (vomiting and diarrhea). These can be potentially life-threatening problems in very young and very old pets, as well as animals with specific health problems such as kidney disease.

With proper planning, almost every healthy adult pet can be changed from one diet to another. By following a few simple guidelines, you can protect your pet from suffering the ill effects of a sudden change in diet:

Remember:

• Plan on weaning your pet onto its new diet over a 10-14 day period.
• For the first 3-4 days, feed your pet a mixture composed of 75% of the old diet with 25% of the new diet.
• For the next 3-4 days, feed your pet a mixture composed of 50% of the old diet with 50% of the new diet.
• For the final 3-4 days, feed your pet a mixture composed of 25% of the old diet with 75% of the new diet.
• If your pet turns down the 75% to 25% mixture in the first few days, try a mixture composed of 90% of the old diet and 10% of the new diet and then increase the percentage of the new diet on a slower schedule.

By following these guidelines, the large majority of healthy, adult pets can be successfully weaned from one diet to another.