It takes time, patience and a lot of love to help save a malnourished rescue dog. Nutrition and diet are important in a healthy dog’s diet, but are vital to the survival of a rescue dog. After seeing a veterinarian, you can take care of the dog yourself after understanding the special needs of rescue dog nutrition.

A malnourished dog can not start eating or digesting regular dog food properly. A rescued dog may need enzymes to help them break it down. Plus, regular dog food doesn’t do enough to nourish a healthy dog, much less bring a rescue dog back to health. A special diet has to be given for rescue dog nutrition. A diet consisting of ground meat, rice, pasta, eggs, uncooked oatmeal, and a quality dog supplement is a great way to start your rescue dog nutrition program. These ingredients can be mixed together and fed in small amounts several times a day. The rice, meat and eggs should be cooked before feeding. Raw meat and eggs can have salmonella and a malnourished dog won’t be healthy enough to fight off any sickness at this stage in his recovery. A raw food diet, such as the BARF (Biologically Appropriate Raw Food) diet, is actually very healthy and full of benefits for a healthy dog but rescue dogs are a special case.

Choosing the right food is not the only factor in rescue dog nutrition. The right amount of food can make the difference between a healthy dog and a very sick dog. Rescue dogs will seem ravenous when fed for the first few days. But overfeeding can cause more problems than feeding small meals. A starving dog eating too much food at once can cause heart damage, muscle weakness, cramps, seizures, respiratory failure and other problems. Many small meals, 5-6 a day, or at least every 6 hours, will work to give your dog the nutrition he needs without over-filling his stomach.

After a week of feeding a special diet you can start slowly adding dry dog food to the food mixture. Make sure the dog food is meat based, meaning meat is the first ingredient listed on the packaging.

A good dog supplement will give your rescue dog nutrition he needs other than those found in food. Vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids and other important nutritional needs can be found in a quality dog supplement. A high quality dog supplement will also contain nutrients to boost the immune and digestive system. This can help your rescue dog absorb and digest food properly.