Feeding large dog breeds has its own characteristics and rules. which should be adhered to. Experienced dog handlers say that what you feed, it will grow. Therefore, those who have an Alabai puppy at home usually ask many questions about how and what to feed it.
From childhood, great attention should be paid to the diet of Alabai
For a breed such as the Alabai, it is important to organize nutrition correctly literally from the first weeks - the regime and diet for such dogs play an important role. Among other things, this is due to the fact that growth occurs very intensively - Alabai babies gain 3-4 kilograms at 1 month, and at 2 months they begin to grow even more rapidly.
At 6 months, such “babies” look almost completely grown up, so the alabai’s nutrition should be organized in such a way as to provide everything necessary for proper growth, the formation of the skeleton, muscle tissue, teeth, etc.
Below we will talk about what to feed Alabai at different stages of maturation, how many times a day to feed different age categories, what not to eat, etc. It is important to understand that how you feed your Alabai puppy will affect its health, appearance, character, etc.
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Depending on age, diet will vary
What to feed Alabai - briefly about the dog breed
Alabaya is a massive, large dog bred in Turkmenistan to protect people and animals. Among the common people, they were given the nickname wolfhound, and all thanks to their lightning-fast reaction, fearlessness and devotion to man.
Representatives of this breed are practically omnivorous, so they can be fed both natural and dry industrial food.
The Alabai diet should include a sufficient amount of phosphorus and calcium, which contributes to strong teeth and proper bone development. The ratio of these elements should be 2:1. If the owner neglects this rule, then over time the pet may develop disorders in the musculoskeletal system, weaken ligaments, slow growth and develop dysplasia.
But, you should not increase the dosage of vitamins, since their excess can negatively affect the functioning of the four-legged friend’s body.
Important! If your pet has health problems, you will need to take a biochemical blood test at the clinic. Based on its results, the veterinarian will tell you how to properly replenish the balance in the blood.
Dependence of appetite on the activity and physique of the dog
The question of how much Alabai eats per day worries every responsible owner. Feeding depends on the activity and body type of the pet. An adult dog that is quite active throughout the day is fed three times a day. If the pet prefers to spend time leisurely, then it is fed 2 times a day.
It is strictly forbidden to overfeed representatives of this breed, since an excess of food is harmful to their health.
Alabai's daily diet must include meat
Refusal to eat: possible reasons
It happens that just recently, a vigorous and active alabai becomes lethargic, inactive, and refuses to eat. This is not always a sign of disease. Such “whims” sometimes occur when a dog’s usual diet is changed, especially if the dog does not like the food. Sometimes refusal of food is caused by stress associated with moving, change of owner or death. Poor appetite often occurs during the hot season. From time to time, dogs arrange fasting days for themselves, drinking only water.
But there are cases when refusal to eat is caused by serious reasons that require urgent contact with a veterinarian. When emergency specialist help is needed:
- If a dog has a fever, it has a high or very low body temperature.
- The animal exhibits drooling, unmotivated aggression, and attempts to hide in a dark place.
- With purulent, bloody discharge, liquid, foul-smelling stool.
- If a dog's coat becomes dull, the animal has lost a lot of weight.
- The animal refuses not only food, but also water.
In such situations, delay is dangerous; failure to seek medical help in a timely manner can lead to the death of your pet.
Be attentive to your pet, show more affection and care, do not lose sight of changes in its appearance and mood. Feed your animal only high-quality, fresh food. And then the health of your Alabai will always be excellent. This means you won’t have to fear for your peace and well-being with such a security guard.
Basic feeding rules
The owner of the Alabai needs to follow simple feeding rules so that as the pet grows older, it follows the usual ritual.
Meal place
It is customary to keep Central Asian Shepherds in spacious enclosures, where a warm booth will be installed, near which the owner will place a bowl for food and water. It is necessary to feed your pet in the same place. To feed the dog, you need to call it exactly where its food bowl is.
Stand and utensils
To feed an adult dog you will need large, deep bowls with a volume of 2.5 liters. It is best to purchase a bucket for water. For puppies, you will need to buy smaller bowls and use them until the dog is older.
Particular attention must be paid to the material from which the utensils are made, so:
- ceramic dishes are not suitable due to the fragility of the material and impressive weight;
- plastic is dangerous when in contact with hot water due to the active release of toxins;
- The best option would be stainless steel utensils.
Bowls must be installed on a bracket with stands, the height of which should be at the level of the animal’s withers or elbow. As the Alabai gets older, it is necessary to increase the distance from the ground to the bowls, since it is unacceptable for the dog to hold its head down while eating; on the contrary, it should stretch up.
It is necessary to develop a unique feeding ritual
Limited access to food
It is unacceptable for a four-legged friend to have constant access to food, since in this case intestinal motility suffers, constipation occurs, appetite is distorted and the dog begins to actively gain excess weight. That is why, after feeding, food must be removed, even if the dog has not finished it - this will help form a routine.
Important! It is useful to give your pet fasting days, completely eliminating food, but before making such a decision, you need to consult a veterinarian.
Pure water
With water the situation is the opposite. It is the availability of clean, or even better filtered, water that is a mandatory requirement.
How often to give food, how much
The frequency of meals depends on the age of the dog:
- up to 2 months, the puppy needs to be fed at least 6 times a day;
- from 2 to 6 months of age, the frequency of meals should be 5 times a day;
- at six months of age, puppies must be fed 3 times a day;
- From 10 months, 2 feedings will be enough.
For an adult Alabai, the average serving size is two liters of food, but how much the dog will eat depends on a number of factors:
- age;
- taste needs;
- individual metabolism;
- seasons: in winter the dog needs more carbohydrate food, in spring in light and dietary food, in summer in fast carbohydrates, and in autumn in high-calorie food.
Important! The owner must be able to correctly calculate how much alabai eats, while avoiding overfeeding.
You cannot teach an adult dog that it can eat at any time.
Development 1 to 12 months
The table below shows how the size of the Alabai changes as it grows, as well as how the puppy develops.
| Age | Height at withers, cm | Weight, kg | Description |
| 1 month | 25-30 | 3-5 | If puppies are healthy and well-nourished, they will gain significant weight and height within 1 month of life. It is still impossible to distinguish males from females |
| 2 months | 30-35 | 9-10 | The beginning of a period of intensive growth of bones and muscles, the dog becomes taller and heavier, which is due to the deposition of calcium salts in the skeleton |
| 3 months | 40-45 | 15-20 | The musculoskeletal system continues to develop. It is necessary to exclude high physical activity and active training, since the dog’s bones are still too fragile |
| 4 months | 50-55 | 25-30 | At this age, the puppy’s limbs and body lengthen noticeably, as the skeleton grows rapidly, dense bone tissue is formed and the skeleton is strengthened, the body becomes elongated |
| 5 months | 55-58 | 35-37 | The growth of the skeleton and the formation of the chest continues, the intensity of growth in most representatives of the breed decreases |
| Six months | 65-70 | 40-50 | After 6 months, active muscle formation and breadth growth are observed. At 6-8 months, skeletal growth increases, the bones are finally formed and strengthened |
| Year | 80 | 70-80 | Around 9-10 months, bone growth and breast formation finish; weight gain is due to muscle building |
Activity after meals
Some owners mistakenly assume that after eating it is useful to take the dog for a walk, where it can spend the calories it receives. However, within 1-2 hours after feeding, active games and training sessions are contraindicated for the pet. During this period, the dog needs to relax and sometimes sleep.
Beneficial physical exercises
A few hours after eating, it is useful for Alabai to spend time doing physical activity. Of these, you can choose swimming or running, as they help improve intestinal motility and promote their rapid release.
How to toilet train?
To train an Alabai to use the toilet, you need to allocate a place in the house for this, fence it off so that the puppy cannot get out, put bowls of food and water, several toys and a place to sleep there. Cover all available space with newspapers or absorbent diapers.
The puppy should be placed in such an improvised enclosure while the owner is away, after sleeping and feeding. This will help the little Alabai learn to go to the toilet only on newspapers or diapers. Every time the dog relieves itself in the designated area, it must be praised and treated with a treat.
Gradually, the number of diapers needs to be reduced, and a tray should be placed in the free space. After the Alabai gets used to going to the tray, the fence can be removed.
If the puppy wanders past the litter box, you need to scold him, but you cannot hit him or poke him with his nose.
What to feed Alabai, diet
To feed Alabai, you can choose industrial feed or natural food. If, as a rule, there are no difficulties with industrial food, then there are a number of requirements for natural food:
- it must be freshly prepared;
- food must be served warm;
- food should be moderately thick.
Important! If the Alabai is on a natural diet, then a prerequisite is the addition of vitamin and mineral complexes to the diet.
The owner also needs to know what foods should be included in the four-legged friend’s diet.
The dog can be fed both natural products and ready-made dog food.
Meat, sea fish
It is acceptable to include the following types of meat and fish in the diet:
- veal;
- beef;
- horse meat;
- lean lamb;
- sea fish;
- squid.
Important! The idea of feeding river fish should be abandoned due to the risk of developing helminthiases.
By-products
Beef should appear regularly in a dog's diet:
- kidneys;
- liver;
- heart;
- scar;
- udder;
- lungs;
- spleen.
Important! By-products cannot be a complete replacement for meat, so you can give them to your pet no more than 2 times a week.
Milk
Whole milk is allowed only until the age of 4 months.
After 4 months, puppies stop giving milk, otherwise they can cause harm to health.
Dairy products
The following fermented milk products can be offered to alabai:
- low-fat cottage cheese;
- kefir;
- curdled milk;
- serum;
- calcined cottage cheese.
Vegetables fruits
Vegetables and fruits are healthy at any time of the year. It is imperative to give your dog the following foods:
- fresh or boiled cabbage;
- carrot;
- zucchini;
- pumpkin;
- beets.
Puppies can be given:
- apples;
- garlic.
Eggs
This product is allowed only at an early age if it is part of milk and egg shakes.
Greenery
Puppies can be offered to taste the tops of inedible plants, and an adult dog can be offered Jerusalem artichoke.
Alabai's diet should be balanced
Sample menu by age
On the advice of experts, the best option for raising puppies is breastfeeding for up to 2 months and introducing complementary foods from natural products from 3 weeks of age.
Advice! It is not advisable to use ready-made food in the diet of young Alabais up to 3 months.
The diet of growing young animals should consist of 30-50% protein products, that is, meat, fish, offal, milk and fermented milk products. In addition to protein, small pets should receive carbohydrates and fiber in the form of cereals, boiled and fresh vegetables and fruits. Let's take a look at the approximate Alabai menu by age.
Up to a month
Asian newborns feed on breast milk from their mother or adoptive mother 9 times a day for up to a month.
- From 2 weeks of age, babies can be given 50 g of calcined cottage cheese diluted with kefir or yogurt and 100 ml of whole goat milk.
- From 3 weeks, raw scraped meat scalded with boiling water is introduced into the evening feeding.
1 month
Month-old babies can already be fed oatmeal, rice or buckwheat porridge once a day. At 1 month, 6 meals a day are introduced, the first time the puppies should eat no earlier than 7 o'clock in the morning, the last meal - at 10 o'clock in the evening.
Between feedings, babies are given 100 ml of goat's milk mixed with raw egg and honey. The meat is served in the form of minced meat, formed into small balls.
At this age, it is necessary to add one new product per day every day; babies should eat raw meat, dairy products, fresh carrots with vegetable oil, rye bread, fruits and dried fruits.
Alabai menu for 1 month: 150 g of raw meat, 100 g of cottage cheese, 100 g of cereals, 200 ml of milk and fermented milk products, 100 g of vegetables, sunflower oil, nuts.
2-3 months
At 2 months, young Asians are separated from their mother, at this age the babies acquire their permanent owners. A change of environment and separation from the mother is a huge stress for the cute cubs, so the owner must at first pay a lot of attention to the puppy and feed it its usual food.
What not to eat
The owner must know not only what to feed the Alabai as an adult or as a puppy, but also what is strictly forbidden to feed to representatives of this breed.
It is strictly forbidden to feed pets the following foods:
- tubular and bird bones;
- pork;
- citrus fruits;
- fatty lamb;
- sweet;
- raw cereals, with the exception of rolled oats;
- smoked meats;
- spicy and fried foods;
- pasta;
- legumes;
- white bread.
Important! You should not give bones to dogs, but at weekly intervals you can give a puppy over 2 months old a sugar beef bone, which helps to naturally clean teeth and strengthen gums.
Vaccination schedule
| Age | The drug and its purpose |
| 3-4 weeks (optional vaccination) | Nobivac Puppy DP – vaccine against canine distemper and parvovirus enteritis |
| 8-10 weeks | Nobivac DHPPi + Lepto – against canine distemper, infectious hepatitis, parvovirus enteritis, parainfluenza and leptospirosis |
| 10-13 weeks | Nobivac DHPPi + Lepto + Rabies – against canine distemper, infectious hepatitis, parvovirus enteritis, parainfluenza, leptospirosis, rabies |
| 6-8 months (after teeth change) | Nobivac DHPPi + Lepto + Rabies – against canine distemper, infectious hepatitis, parvovirus enteritis, parainfluenza, leptospirosis, rabies |
In the future, vaccinations must be carried out annually at the same time.
In addition to the Nobivac drug, Eurican, Primodog, and Duramune vaccines are popular.
NOTE!
Only a healthy dog can be vaccinated; deworming must be done 10-14 days before vaccination.
Puppy nutrition from the first weeks
Caring for an Alabai puppy is a responsible process and it is important to avoid mistakes related to feeding.
Diet
For the first 2-3 weeks of its life, the puppy receives all the necessary substances from its mother’s milk, therefore, after weaning, the owner must provide proper complementary feeding.
A one-month-old puppy should receive 150 grams of meat per day in its diet. In addition to meat, it is necessary to have porridges, namely oatmeal and wheat, as well as boiled vegetables. The total volume of the diet per day should not exceed one glass, and it should be based on meat.
Method and frequency of feeding
It is important not only what to feed an Alabai puppy at 2 months, but also how often. So, in this case, feeding should be done every 3 hours. Subsequently, as the puppy grows, the intervals increase.
Important! The break in feeding a puppy at the age of 2 months at night should not be more than 6 hours.
When can you give dry food?
You can switch your four-legged friend to dry food when he reaches the age of 2-3 years. For nutrition, you need to choose food that will suit the age and lifestyle of your pet.
Vitamins and supplements
When raising your beloved puppy on ready-made super-premium food, no additional vitamins and mineral supplements are required in the diet of a small dog, since high-quality food contains all the elements necessary for the animal. Oversaturation of the body with vitamins or minerals leads to the development of hypervitaminosis and the development of systemic pathologies.
A natural diet is not able to fully provide the body of growing young animals with all important nutrients, therefore, in order to form proper bones, muscles and prevent rickets, it is recommended to give the pet vitamin and mineral supplements in dry or liquid form.
The dosage of drugs should be determined by a veterinarian taking into account the age, physiological condition and individual characteristics of the puppy.
Feeding Alabai with dry food
For owners who are not ready to spend time preparing food for their pet every day, feeding dry food becomes a real salvation.
Feed classes, their features:
- Economy class This class of dog food is made from beans and does not contain vitamins, minerals, macro- and microelements. The point of such food is only that the alabai will fill the stomach, but will not receive any benefits for the body.
- Premium class. This category is intended for daily feeding. You can give such food, but only if the diet additionally includes vitamins, mineral complexes and proteins.
- Super premium class. Such foods contain the necessary elements in the required quantities for the full growth and development of the pet.
- Holistic. This product is the most expensive compared to others and, of course, it contains vitamins, minerals and other useful elements.
For dry food, it is better to choose super-premium or bachelor class
Feeding rules
The daily food intake is indicated on the manufacturer's packaging, which allows the owner to accurately calculate a single serving.
Important! If the dog eats industrial feed, then the owner needs to provide him with unhindered access to water to avoid the development of urolithiasis.
List of prohibited products
It is important to exclude prohibited foods from the Alabai puppy’s diet:
- Bones, pure fat, skin, especially poultry.
- Palm oil.
- Grapes, raisins.
- Soy.
- Mushrooms.
- Corn and semolina.
- Raw freshwater fish.
- Dry, salted fish.
- Products containing sugar or sugar substitutes.
- Products containing xylitol (chewing gum, some sweets).
- Products containing flour or yeast.
- Products containing caffeine, cocoa, any stimulants (sweets, tea, coffee, chocolate).
- Products containing marinades, salt, spices.
- Smoked products, including sausages, balyki, fish.
- Expired products.
- Leftovers from the table.
The consumption of a number of products is associated with the risk of an allergic reaction. Such products should be introduced into the diet carefully, in small quantities.
Controversial products are:
- Lean raw pork.
- Raw ocean fish.
- Whole milk.
- Honey.
- Chicken eggs.
- Raw and boiled chicken liver in large quantities.
If the dog feels good after eating controversial foods, they are left in the diet. By the way, lactose intolerance is extremely rare among Alabais.
Features of feeding an elderly dog
Adult dogs need a special diet.
For Alabais over 7 years old, special dry food complexes have been developed. If the owner has chosen a natural diet, then it will be necessary to reduce the usual portion sizes, as well as the amount of fish, offal and raw meat.
For older dogs, it is recommended to add vegetable oils, boiled vegetables, eggs and low-fat cottage cheese to their food.
The health of the Alabai is greatly influenced by the diet, which is why it is so important to choose only high-quality, vitamin-rich foods for feeding, and in the case of industrial feed, only the best class.
How to choose your future pet?
Before buying a puppy, you need to check with the breeder about the number of dogs in the litter - if there are more than 5 puppies, there is a high probability that they will develop serious pathologies.
It is also important to carefully examine your future pet. He must be active, inquisitive and have a good appetite.
A healthy Alabai has shiny fur without dandruff, clean skin without rashes or scratch marks, a scissor bite, a wide head, a flat forehead, and oval paws.
