There are five basic steps when it comes to changing your dog's diet. They are as follows:

Step 1: lf a dog is in a new environment, has a new owner, or is being required to undergo some other emotional or physical strain, food changes should be postponed until the stress has been eliminated or the dog has adapted to it. With changes in ownership, the diet fed by the previous owner should be obtained if at all possible and fed until the dog becomes accustomed to its new surroundings.

Step 2: Once the dog is in a proper emotional state to accept a dietary change it should be accomplished without delay. Start by substituting 25 percent of the old food with new food. Mix the two thoroughly making every attempt to conceal the new food within the old. This mixture should be fed until the dog eats the mixture with the same relish that it ate its previous food. For some dogs this may be the first time the mixture is fed; for others it may take several days or even weeks. Don't hurry the procedure. After all, the dog may have had 24 months to get accustomed to its old diet. Don't expect it to change all of that in just 24 hours. Once the dog is eating the 25:75 mixture as well as it did its previous food, proceed to step three

Step 3: During the third step, 50 percent of the old food is replaced by new food and slightly less effort is made to conceal it within the old food. Again, when the dog is eating the 50:50 mixture with the same gusto it did its previous food, proceed to step four.

Step 4: Now 75 percent of the new food is present in the mixture being fed, and little if any effort is made to conceal the new food except to mix it evenly with the ordinal food. By now, most dogs will readily accept the increased mixture the first time it is fed. If the dog accepted the 50:50 mixture at the first feeding, step four can be eliminated and you can proceed directly to step five.

Step 5: This is the final step, the one in which all of the old food is eliminated from the dog's diet. One hundred percent of the new food is fed from then on. For some dogs this procedure may take only three days and require only steps two, three and five. For others it may take longer and must progress through each step separately. Do not become discouraged. With dogs, food likes and dislikes are mostly learned from previous experiences. Changing a food is a process of unlearning and relearning, and such things cannot be hurried.
The third general consideration that should be made by all dog feeders any time they feed a dog has more to do with human behavior than it does with a dog's.

Inspecting Your Dog's Semi-Moist Food Packaging

You owe it to your dog to thoroughly inspect and check the dog food that you buy for him. If you are purchasing semi-moist dog foods that come wrapped in cellophane then be sure to follow the simple guidelines below.

The cellophane should be soft and pliable, and it should not be off color. Pillow-pouched bags should contain a small amount of air that does not escape under moderate pressure. A careful inspection should also be made through the unopened wrapper for any dull or furry, gray or black spots; or for any shiny or moist, whitish or yellowish spots. The first is mold growth, the second bacteria.

Soft-moist foods are not subjected to high heat and many species of both mold and bacteria remain viable in soft-moist foods. A little water is all either needs to get started, and away they go, held in check only by the inhibitors within the soft-moist food.

Once the visual inspection of the wrappers and wrapped surface of the food has been made, tear open the cellophane. Observe all odors at the time of opening the wrapper. Pick up a piece of the food and squeeze it. Regardless of the type, it should be soft, spongy, and tender. It should have a slight lubricated feel, but should not feel moist on the surface.