Summer Pet Food Blues
Aug 15th 2024
Have you ever noticed that during the summer months your pet food is lasting longer? Your dogs and cats seem uninterested or bored with their normal diet?
Don’t worry! This is completely normal. Pet owners everywhere agree on this and there are a few reasons for it.
In the summer, we typically are less active. Due to the higher temperatures, outdoor activity is simply limited for safety and for comfort. When this happens, appetite is decreased and therefore food consumption decreases as well.
Our pets are no different. The heat that accompanies the summer discourages our four-legged friends from playing and running for longer periods of time than they may be used to thus reducing the calories they burn.
Seeing our pet’s appetite decrease can be worrisome. But during the summer, this is something that requires a bit of patience. While it might be our first instinct to assume that our pet doesn’t like the food we are currently feeding them, the answer is not to change it immediately.
This is something you should keep an eye on. It is likely that your pet is simply not hungry. However, if eating stops completely, we recommend trying out a different protein source that might help pique their interest. Keep in mind, that if your pet has significantly decreased their eating habits but still has high levels of energy as well as proper water consumption they are perfectly fine. In the hot summer months, the most crucial part of feeding our pets is ensuring that they have cool water available at all times throughout the day.
Tip 1
It is generally not recommended to significantly reduce the amount you feed your pets during the summer. But also keep in mind that lighter, fresher meals that reduce fat proteins may be helpful when trying to encourage eating. In terms of Activa Custom Pet Food, we would recommend lowering the percentage of oils you enhance their food with and trying out less fatty protein sources like our Duck and Rabbit formulas.
Tip 2
Another trick that is successful for many is changing mealtime. When it’s hot out, we don’t want to eat a big meal in the afternoon when temperatures are at their highest and neither do our pets. Try feeding them during cooler times in the day such as the early morning or later in the evening.
Tip 3
Ensure that there is a cool and plentiful supply of water for your pets throughout the day. It is of paramount importance that our pets are properly hydrated!