Although it is common place to add water to dry dog food for puppies, there are also a number of benefits of soaking dry dog food for adult dogs too that are often overlooked.
More and more people are starting to add water, milk, and broth to their dry dog food for adult dogs these days but we wanted to make this dedicated article going over the various benefits of adding water to dry dog food on the off chance that it is able to hlpe your dog.
We still maintain that a custom, tailor made dog food will always be the best option for anyone who has a dog with any dietary issues but we know that they can be a little pricey.
This is why adding water, milk or doggy broth to dry dog food is becoming more and more popular as it is a much cheaper alternative while still offering benefits or avoiding common health problems that different dogs can have.
As we are covering a number of different points in today’s article, we have added our table of contents below.
It allows our readers to quickly skip to the specific benefit that they are interested in without having to skim the whole article but if you are considering soaking dry dog food prior to giving it to your pet dog, reading the full article may be worth the time due to there being a number of advantages.
Should You Add Water to Dry Dog Food?
Soaking dry dog food in water, milk, or broth is not essential for most dogs and the majority of people who have a dog will be able to feed the dog food to their dog without adding water.
There are some health problems that do make adding water to the dry dog food more beneficial to your dog though as it can make the food easier for your dog to eat while also offering a number of other benefits.
There is rarely any downsides associated with adding water to dry dog food either so if you do want to try it, then there is minimal risk to your dog but it can help to counter some relatively common problems.
Rather than just adding water, you can also add milk if you need to help increase the calories in your dog’s diet for some reason with doggy broth being an excellent alternative that you are able to take advantage of for the same purpose if your dog has allergies to milk or you just want to add additional vitamins and minerals to your dog’s diet.
If your dog does have certain health issues then it can be very common for a veterinarian to recommend that you should soak your dry dog food in water prior to giving it to your dog.
This does tend to be common advice for some health issues and other problems with it having a high success rate while being cheap and easy to do.
Soaking Dog Food In Warm Water During The Weaning Phase!
Soaking dry dog food for a puppy in the weaning phase when you are initially trying to move the pup over to food instead of its mother’s milk can offer a great benefit.
Adding water to the puppy food works well but some people may choose to add milk to try and make the transition even easier.
Depending on the situation, mushing the dry dog food up after adding the water to it may make it even easier for your puppy to eat it too.
Adding Water to Dry Dog Food to Protect Puppy Teeth!
It is commonplace to add water to dry puppy food until they are around twelve weeks of age to help protect the puppies teeth while they grow in.
Although this is not essential, a large number of people do choose to soak the kibble for their puppy in these early months to prevent any problems with their dog’s teeth that can be more common then some people initially realize.
Some people will just stick to wet dog food during this time period instead of soaking their kibble and then switch their puppy over to kibble once its teeth have fully grown in.
Using Water in Dog Food For Hydration!
Using water in dog food for hydration can be a quick and easy way to get additional water into your dog on hot days when it may be overheating but not realizing that it needs to take more water on board.
This works very well with high-quality dry dog treats as your dog will be motivated to eat them due to their unique flavor rather than simply adding the water to your dog’s regular food.
Soaking Dog Food To Prevent Bloat!
Some people do soak dog food to try and prevent bloat in their dog but this is a controversial use of adding water to dog food as there is no evidence to support adding water to dry dog food prevents bloat.
There is a higher correlation to bloat occurring in your dog if one of the main four ingredients is some type of fat be it animal or plant-based fat but a very low correlation with some research finding zero correlation of dry dog food preventing bloat if water was added to it.
Putting Water in Dog Food for Jaw and Dental Problems!
If your dog has weak teeth, gums or jaw problems then it can be common for a veterinarian to recommend that you add water to your dog’s food to make the dry kibble much easier to eat.
This is generally done in older dogs who are set in their ways and used to a certain kibble as their primary food source and struggle to switch over to a wet dog food.
Some people will add warm water to the kibble to soften it even more and change the texture further often making it even easier for the dog to eat.
Soaking Dog Food When Switching Brands!
A common trick when switching kibble brands is to mix the older kibble and new kibble with each other in your dog’s bowl and then soak them.
The new texture but similar smell and taste has been shown to be able to make it easier to get a dog to switch over to a new type of kibble. Some people will actually add water to the kibble and then mash them together too but this tends to be unnecessary for most people.
Adding Water to Dog Food for Digestion!
Some people do claim that adding water to dry dog food will aid in digestion but to date, there is no evidence of this offering any benefit at all.
Some dog owners do feel that there is a correlation with their dog being able to better digest its food but this is highly likely due to your dog being dehydrated and food digestion being easier if your are well hydrated.
Trying to get your dog to drink more water will often result in the same results in this situation as adding water directly to the dog food.
Wetting Dry Dog Food if Your Dog Is Not a Good Eater!
Some dogs are very picky eaters and they may only pick at their dog food unless your wet it. Most people will use a doggy broth product in this situation rather than actual water tough but it can be a quick, easy, and cheap way to get your dog to eat its dry kibble without protest.
Both chicken and beef brother have been shown to work well in this situation and help get your dog to eat its meals.
Soaking Dog Food in Water to Deal with Bugs!
Although this one is rare, some areas do have constant problems with weevile bugs getting into dry dog food and adding water to the food can be a way to get the weevile bug out before feeding it to your dog.
The majority of the time, people will just feed the dog food to their dog though as dogs are omnivores and will be able to digest the weevil bug in their food without issue.
Conclusion
That brings our article going over the benefits of soaking dry dog food with water to a close. We hope that we have been able to help you better understand the various situations where adding water to dry dog food may be able to help you get your dog to eat its meals. As we touched on throughout the article, sometimes people will opt to use milk or broth instead of water but the basic principle behind it is often the same.
