senior or not to senior at age 6

[sandeegc]

currently giving eukanuba yorkshire terrier to my 6 year old yorky. she likes it, my only concern is she is less active and i'm afraid of her gaining weight. she is one pound heavier now then when i first got her at 1.5 years old. she now weights 5 lbs, was 4 lbs which is a 25% gain in weight. is it time to switch to senior, and is their as much fish oil in senior small breed as yorkie formula. she has always had dry skin and yorkie formula seemed to help.

[tokipoki]

I would not consider a 6 y/o yorkie a senior...I think smaller breed dogs aren't considered seniors until they are around 10?...not 100% certain though.

I'm not sure if you free-feed or just give a certain amount at meal times but our 10 y/o we used to have would get like 1/2 a cup of kibble to graze on throughout the day. She was fed just a regular kibble (Acana Regionals...not a senior formula) and did great on that...it was kinda like free-feeding since she would pick at it whenever but she had a limit on how much she got throughout the day. But for my pups, the easiest way for me to maintain their ideal body condition is to have scheduled and measured feedings and I'll trim down the amount of their regular food if we're not being as active or if they're gaining weight. If your yorkie is getting a little heavy from becoming more sedentary, I'd decrease her regular food a little bit and try to increase her activity to see if she is able to lose a little weight (or maintain her current body condition if that's your goal) before considering a senior formula, especially if your yorkie is doing well on the current food.

[107barney]

I don't feed senior foods to my 13 year olds.

[Maximo]

Originally Posted by tokipoki

I would not consider a 6 y/o yorkie a senior...I think smaller breed dogs aren't considered seniors until they are around 10?...not 100% certain though.

For vet checks, 7 - 8 years old is considered senior.

For food, I don't think I would ever use a senior formula.

For weight loss, simply decrease the amount as Tokipoki suggested. Like humans, dogs need less as they grow older. Activity level is an important factor at all ages.

[chestermama]

chester is 11 and he is not on a senior formula, my vet doesnt think dogs need it anyway

[kjc]

I put Peek A Boo on a Senior Diet at 10 years old, and he slowed down even more. I became alarmed and switched back immediately, and his activity picked up again. I believe there's not enough nutrition in them to benefit nor maintain health in a small breed dog.

[Ellie May]

Not a senior yet..

My 12 year old is not on senior food bc she eats rx food. But depending on brand and such I would consider switching an older Yorkie over. Lower phosphorus (not lower protein) can be important. Some senior diet makers don't knw what they are doing. However, if an od pup is thriving on a quality kibble with perfect labs I'd hesitate tipo switch.