Knowing what to feed your wolfdog can be tricky! Should you feed them kibble, is raw food a must, what about freeze dried foods? And ultimately what is best for your wolfdog?
When it comes to wolfdogs, depending on the content level, there may be some unique dietary requirements you will have to think about. The higher the wolf content, the less likely your wolfdog will do well eating the same things you feed your domestic dog. In simpler terms, you may need to swap the kibble diet for a raw based diet.
This all traces back to the evolution of wolves versus dogs. Wolves have evolved in the wild to predominantly eat unprocessed meat; think ungulates (deer, elk, moose) and small mammals (rabbits, mice, squirrels). Through the domestication process, dogs evolved to eat more of the same things that us humans eat; think meat, grains, and veggies. This means that a high content wolfdog’s digestive system likely isn’t going to be very good at digesting processed kibbles, especially those that are high in grains, or those that are overly processed. Things like canned food can also wreak havoc on a wolfdog’s digestion.
Of course, digestive systems can be very individualized between animals, but we have found that generally speaking, low content wolfdogs can do well on a high quality, high protein kibble, while high content wolfdogs very much require a raw based diet. Some animals may in time be able to adjust to a specific food, but don’t expect a high content wolfdog to ever do well on Alpo or Kibbles n’ Bits. Below we detail our experience with different foods for the wolfdogs. Use this information to make your own decisions about what is best for you and your wolfdog.
Raw
We highly recommend feeding your wolfdog raw food. We find as a whole they just seem to thrive on a well rounded raw based diet. One thing to keep in mind with a raw diet is that you want to ensure you are feeding your wolfdog a balanced or complete raw diet. This means ensuring they are not only getting muscle meat, but also bones, organs, cartilage and some fruits and veggies. Most commercially prepared raw dog foods that you can buy in pet stores are complete. If you choose to make your own at home, you will want to do your research and ensure you are including all these things in the right ratios.
Here at Wolfhaven we feed a all raw diet to our wolfdogs. We go through approximately 100lbs of raw food a day! One thing you could do is choose to feed raw food frozen. It helps slow the wolfdogs down a bit but also does a great job at cleaning their teeth. It’s also logistically impossible to thaw that much raw food every single day. Most of our wolfdogs eat 1.5-3lbs per day.
Kibble
A high quality, high protein kibble can be a great option for many low content wolfdogs. When shopping for kibble, make sure to buy a kibble that is devoid of fillers and dyes. Remember, if the kibble is coloured and cut into fun little shapes, the dog food company cares more about pleasing you than it does about providing good nutrition to your dog. Good quality kibbles will list a real meat source as the first ingredient and not have to hide behind fancy marketing and gimmicks. Also, if you can buy it at the grocery store, it’s likely a crappy kibble. Go to a quality pet store that actually specializes in animal products and pick up a good bag of kibble there. You can choose to go grain free or not, as long as grain isn’t the predominant ingredient.
Pros:
-easy to feed and store
-good for wolfdogs who like to graze all day
-can be used as enrichment to stuff into toys, kongs, etc.
-won’t make a mess in your house
Cons:
-must do your homework to distinguish ‘good’ kibbles from ‘bad’ kibbles
-can cause digestive issues in some wolfdogs
-may require some trial and error until you find a brand your wofldog does well on
Here is a good site that can help you make wise choices on your wolfdog kibble and gives you updates on any kind of recalls. Dog Fido Food Advisor
Treats
If there’s one thing I have experience with other than raw food, it’s dog treats! We go through so many treats at Wolfhaven it’s not even funny. Treats are a fantastic way to bribe wolfdogs, however they must be used in moderation as to not upset their digestive systems as they are essentially junk food. Of course every wolfdog has their own preferences, but below is a list of treats that wolfdogs tend to love and which ones they tend to dislike.
Treats they love:
-jerky treats
-meaty, soft treats
-smelly treats (bully sticks, fish skin, tripe treats, etc.)
-disgusting treats (chicken/duck feet, rabbit/lamb ears, you get the idea…)
Freeze Dried Food
We don’t have much experience with freeze dried foods. We think it’s probably a good middle ground between raw and kibble, but personally We find it a pain to have to rehydrate.
Pros:
-easier to digest than a processed kibble
-easy to store
Cons:
-annoying to have to rehydrate before feeding
-some wolfdogs may find it revolting as it’s wet and kind of gloopy
-does nothing to help keep teeth clean
Supplementary Foods
Supplementing your wolfdog’s main diet with other types of food can keep things interesting and add enrichment to their lives. Note, that this says supplement! This is not a replacement for a complete diet. However, through supplementing other types of food, this can be a good option to cut down on some of your feed costs. At the Wolfhaven we ensure all the wolfdogs get their complete meals, and then we supplement with some of the following things:
-raw bones (never feed cooked bones as they can splinter and cause serious issues)
-donated meat from people cleaning out their freezers (we only accept unseasoned, unprocessed and uncooked items). This can range from roasts, steaks, pork chops, chicken wings, whole fish, ground meats, sausages, pork fat, the list goes on.
-donated meat from restaurants and grocery stores*
-donated deer bones and trimmings during hunting season
*some grocery stores and restaurants are happy to give away meats that are at their ‘sell-by’ date and would otherwise just be thrown in the garbage