A Prescription for Good Health Hills Veterinary Diet for Dogs
5 Things to Know When Feeding Your Dog Hills Prescription Diet
The following article was written in partnership with Hills.
Precisely balanced nutrition is vital to the overall health and development of dogs, no matter their age, size, breed, or health status. At Hills, we know pets with certain health conditions can benefit from the specialized nutritional support that the Prescription Diet portfolio offers.
How Hills Prescription Diet Dog Food Works
The Hills Prescription Diet brand includes foods aimed to help veterinarians manage a range of health conditions for dogs (and cats). Hills Prescription Diet foods have undergone extensive testing to ensure they meet the nutritional requirements for the specific health condition(s) they are recommended for.
Nutrition can play a role in how veterinarians manage certain conditions. Some examples could include:
Your veterinarian plays an important role in recognizing more or less subtle conditions that can benefit from therapeutic nutrition.
Your Vet Can Determine If Your Dog Needs a Hills Prescription Diet
To determine if your pet should eat a Hills Prescription Diet food, your vet will start with a thorough physical exam and ask you questions about your dogs lifestyle and behaviors.
After the exam, they may recommend additional diagnostics (such as blood work, cytology, urinalysis, or diagnostic imaging) to help properly diagnose your pet and rule out other conditions. This will help your vet formulate a comprehensive care plan, including a nutritional recommendation.
In my experience as a practicing veterinarian, the cases where nutrition is most frequently recommended are when the dog has an underlying condition related to any of the following conditions: urinary care, kidney care, skin/allergy care, weight management, and digestive care.
Hills Prescription Diet and Obesity in Dogs
When it comes to weight loss, its important to look at everything the pet is eating during the day. The easiest place to start is cutting out any extra calories like treats and table scraps.
However, most pets that are carrying excess weight do not benefit from caloric restriction from treats alone. In fact, just feeding a pet a smaller amount (or fewer calories) of their normal food is not recommended and may lead to nutritional deficiencies.
Several Hills Prescription Diet foods are specifically formulated to help your pet lose weight. Wherever you see Metabolic or + Metabolic, this means that the food contains our synergistic blend of fibers from fruits and vegetables that activates the bodys natural ability to burn excess fat rather than store it.
This means that your pups metabolism will act more like the metabolism of a lean pet while ensuring that their nutritional and caloric needs are being met.
Results with Hills Prescription Diet
Every pet and health condition is unique and may respond differently when fed Prescription Diet foods. However, Hills performs extensive research and clinical studies to create specific and relevant product claims for Prescription Diet products.
To learn more about research conducted and results seen in our clinical studies for specific foods, visit hillspet.com or talk to your veterinarian.
Always talk to your veterinarian about their expectations and any important milestones to look for when giving your pet a Prescription Diet food.
Work with Your Veterinarian When Introducing a Hills Prescription Diet
Its important to work closely with your veterinarian when switching your pup to a new food. Your veterinarian will help you determine how much your pet should eat based on the specific food and your pet's ideal weight and lifestyle. Youll work together to create a feeding transition plan prior to switching to the new food.
Its important that the feeding transition is slow and gradual to ensure that your pet will eat the new food and reduce the chances of any GI upset. We recommend seven to 10 days to fully transition to the new foodbut for pickier patients, it may take longer.
Therapeutic nutrition can play an important role in managing your pets health. These foods have undergone extensive testing to ensure that they are precisely balanced and are an appropriate part of your veterinarian's treatment plan to manage your pets health condition.
Since these foods are only fed under the recommendation of your veterinarian, be sure to ask at your next appointment if a Hills Prescription Diet product is right for your pet.
Hills Prescription Diet FAQs
Do I need a prescription for Hills Prescription Diet?
Prescription Diet foods do not require a traditional prescription, but they do require a recommendation and approval from a licensed veterinarian. Schedule an appointment to ask your veterinarian to assess your pets health and nutritional needs.
How long can a dog be on Hills Prescription Diet?
Your veterinarian will advise what feeding plan is best for your pets nutritional needs. The majority of Prescription Diet products are suitable for long-term feeding.
How long does it take for Hills Prescription Diet to work in a dog?
Every pet and health condition is unique and may respond differently when fed Prescription Diet foods. However, Hills performs extensive research and clinical studies to help demonstrate the efficacy of many Prescription Diet products.
Always talk to your veterinarian about their expectations and any important milestones to look for when feeding a Prescription Diet food.
My pet is picky. Can I mix in other foods with the Prescription Diet food?
Never feed or supplement other foods without checking with your veterinarian first. When your pet is eating a Prescription Diet, it is important to feed only that food for optimal compliance to your veterinarians treatment plan.
If youre worried that your pet will crave more variety, talk to your veterinarian about what other flavor or form options (such as dry, stew, or pt) are available.
Featured Image: iStock.com/VYCHEGZHANINA
WRITTEN BY
Kristin Wuellner, DVMVeterinarian
Dr. Kristin Wuellner is a fun-loving veterinarian with interests that extend beyond the exam roomshes passionate about how client...
Should You Feed Your Pet Prescription Dog Food? Here's When It's a Good Idea
The line dividing food and medicine can be fuzzy. When you eat a handful of raspberries, youre providing your body with important nutrients and antioxidants. A piece of salmon contains a lot of protein, but its also high in omega-3 fatty acids that can reduce inflammation.
Pet food manufacturers have taken the idea of food as medicine a step furtherby designing products to help manage a wide variety of diseases. These foods are available only with a veterinarians prescription because they can do harm when used under the wrong circumstances.
Heres what you need to know about prescription dog food.
What Is Prescription Dog Food?
Prescription dog foods (also called therapeutic dog foods or veterinary diets) are made with ingredients and nutritional supplements combined in just the right proportions to support the health of dogs who have a particular disease or illness.
For example, a veterinarian might prescribe prescription dog food for a dog with arthritis that contains high levels of omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants to reduce inflammation, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate to protect joint cartilage, and added L-carnitine (an amino acid) to keep muscles strong.
Before a prescription dog food can be sold, the manufacturer must put it through extensive testing to show that its safe and effective for dogs with specific diseases. Manufacturers also adhere to rigorous safety and quality control standards when making these special diets. All of this helps ensure that prescription dog foods are worth the extra money.
When to Start a Prescription Dog Food Diet
Many health problems in dogs can be managed, at least in part, through their diet. A veterinarian familiar with the specifics of a dogs case is in the best position to determine if a prescription dog food is appropriate. Talk to your veterinarian about prescription dog food if any of the following apply to your dog.
1. Your Dog Needs to Lose Weight
Extra body fat makes life shorter and less enjoyable for overweight dogs. It can cause or make many health problems worse, too, including:
If your dog is only a little overweight, an over-the-counter diet dog food, such as Hill's Science Diet Adult Perfect Weight, may help. But dogs who need to lose a lot of weight tend to do better on a prescription weight loss food.
Different diets seem to work better for different dogs, but most vet-recommended prescription dog foods combine increased fiber to help dogs feel full without adding calories, moderate or high protein to maintain muscle, and low levels of carbohydrates and fats. Good options include
Your veterinarian can design a weight loss plan tailored to your dogs individual needs, help you monitor how its working, and make necessary changes as your dogs body condition changes.
2. Your Dog Has Bladder Stones
Symptoms of bladder stones in dogs include bloody urine, straining to urinate, and discomfort. Some types of bladder stones can be dissolved with prescription dog foods or medicine, while others need to be physically removed via surgery or other treatments. But an appropriate diet can almost always reduce the chances that bladder stones will return.
For dogs who are prone to bladder stones, wet foods are usually preferable to dry because they help keep the dogs urine dilute, which reduces the chances that stones will form. Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Adult Urinary SO and Hill's Prescription Diet c/d Multicare dissolve struvite stones and help reduce the formation of struvite and calcium oxalate stones. Hill's Prescription Diet u/d Urinary Care helps dissolve and prevent the recurrence of urate and cystine stones.
Your veterinarian can determine what type of bladder stones your dog has and how they should be treated.
3. Your Dog Has Kidney Disease
Dogs with chronic kidney disease can live for many months (or even years!) with appropriate treatment. Prescription dog foods for kidney disease can be an important part of therapy.
These diets usually contain a moderate amount of high-quality protein and are low in phosphorous and sodium to reduce the workload on the kidneys. Omega-3 fatty acids, essential amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants may all be supplemented to promote kidney function and overall health and wellness. Whenever possible, dogs with kidney disease should eat wet dog food to help prevent dehydration.
Because dogs with kidney disease often have a reduced appetite, its important to find a kidney diet that your dog enjoys eating. You might need to try several options before finding the one that works best for your dog. Some go-to's include:
5. Your Dog Has Arthritis
Arthritis is very common in dogs, particularly as they get older. Combining different forms of treatment, including diet, can decrease a dogs discomfort and increase their mobility.
Therapeutic dog foods that veterinarians prescribe to dogs with arthritis are usually enriched with omega-3 fatty acids, glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, and antioxidants to reduce inflammation and promote joint health. These foods are also often slightly calorie-restricted to help dogs stay slim and supplemented with L-carnitine, an amino acid that helps dogs build and maintain muscle. Hill's Prescription Diet j/d and Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets JM Joint Mobility are both excellent prescription foods for dogs with arthritis.
And these arent the only conditions that can be managed with prescription dog food! For example:
If you think your pet could benefit from prescription dog food, talk with your vet.
How to Transition Your Dog to Prescription Food
If your veterinarian has recommended prescription dog food, your next question is probably how to switch to the new diet. In most cases, its best to make the transition slowly.
Gradually mix increasing amounts of the new food in with decreasing amounts of your dogs old diet over a week or two. This gives your dog a chance to get used to the taste of the new food and gives their GI tract time to adapt. Go even more slowly if your dog is finicky or initially turns up their nose at the new food.
But there are times (when youre dealing with a food allergy or intolerance, for example) when your veterinarian may recommend making a quick transition to a new food, so always follow your vets instructions. If you cant get your dog to eat their new prescription diet, talk to your veterinarian about other options that may be available.
Prescription dog foods can reduce and sometimes even eliminate the need for a dog to be on medications or receive other forms of treatment. Ask your vet how diet can play a role in your dogs healthcare.
Featured Image: iStock/Chalabala
WRITTEN BY
Jennifer Coates, DVMVeterinarian
Dr. Jennifer Coates is an accomplished veterinarian, writer, editor, and consultant with years of experience in the fields of veterinary...
