Pomeranians are amazing canine companions, with a charming appearance. There is no way you are falling in love with these cuties, especially given their loyal and emotional nature. The Pomeranian is an active dog breed with a keen sense of alertness and activeness. The health and growth of this beautiful dog are primarily dependent on his food intake. The Pomeranian’s diet varies across several stages of its life.
The Pomeranian’s diet is typically split across dry foods, canned foods, and supplements. The amount of food intake varies as the Pomeranian matures. Usually, young pups need 3-4 meals of food daily. An adult Pomeranian should have 1-2 meals daily. Generally, Pomeranians need highly nutritious foods with significant calorie and protein content. This should be carefully supplemented with fats from sources like salmon oil and chicken fat.
The Pomeranian has a sensitive stomach; therefore, there are foods you shouldn’t feed it. Also, you know must know the right food capacity to feed your Pomeranian at various stages of its life to avoid critical health problems.
Do Pomeranians Have Sensitive Stomachs?
The Pomeranian’s stomach capacity is notably reduced. Salty and spicy foods will not only unhealthily pile up your Pomeranian’s stomach with empty calories, such foods can also cause worrisome stomach upset for your Pomeranian. With your Pomeranian’s stomach stacked with such foods, there will be far-reduced space for the Pomeranian to take in much-needed nutrition.
Pomeranian Gastrointestinal Problems
Pomeranians can suffer gastrointestinal conditions, which can manifest in the form of your dog frequently throwing up or even experiencing diarrhea. But this shouldn’t bother you much. Unless triggered by a severe underlying health condition, resting your Pomeranian would relieve it of the stomach upset.
This should be within 24 hours of giving the dog’s digestive system a break. Such a break involves keeping your Pomeranian off food for about 4-6 hours. Within this resting period, the dog should be amply supplied with water. This is for critical hydration.
What Should Pomeranians Eat?
Your Pomeranian can be fed dried food, canned food, supplements, and treats. Let us look into each of these.
Feeding Your Pomeranian Dry Foods
Your Pomeranian should be fed with high-quality dry foods. These foods should be in well-reduced pieces for ease of chewing and swallowing.
This reduces the risks of your Pomeranian choking while eating. The filter content of your Pomeranian’s dry food should be significantly downsized, with protein content dominating it.
Feeding Your Pomeranian Canned Foods
With palatability in mind, a fair portion of your Pomeranian’s diet should be derived from canned foods. Once again, avoid filler when choosing canned foods, and put more emphasis on protein composition. This is particularly important when buying canned foods for pups with far smaller stomach capacity.
Feeding Your Pomeranian Supplements
You should periodically lace your dog’s diet with supplements. These supplements should have wealthy vitamin and protein content. Calcium is one of such crucial vitamins, especially for growing Pomeranians.
These supplements can be readily derived from chopped boiled chicken fed in limited quantities alongside the staple meal. The supplement quantity depends on the age of the Pomeranian. For example, when feeding a pup, you shouldn’t feed it with more than a tablespoon at a time.
How Often Should Pomeranians Eat
Being high-energy dogs, the Pomeranian’s energy consumption rate beats that of other regular dogs. Considering this, you would feed your Pomeranian more frequently, especially if it is still very active.
An adult Pomeranian should be fed two times daily, while a growing pup could be fed 3-4 times daily.
How Much Should Pomeranians Eat
The major parameters determining your Pomeranian meal capacity include its activity levels, size, age, and overall metabolism. Averagely, an adult Pomeranian should be fed within an equivalent range of ½- ¼ cup dry food daily. Take note that this must be of premium quality.
A 1-pound Pomeranian pup should be fed ½ cup for a day, a cup should go for a 3-pounds Pomeranian pup, and 2 cups will do for a 6-pound Pomeranian pup.
If you notice that your Pomeranian is staying away from the food you dished it for say 4-6 minutes (or more), you should reduce the food volume. Importantly, let us point out here that pregnant Pomeranians should be fed differently. The same distinctive feeding also applies to Pomeranians who are getting significantly less active.
Can Pomeranians Chew on Bones?
Yes. Bones are excellent sources of vital minerals (amid other nutrients) that assuage your Pomeranian’s appetite. Chewing on bones is also suitable for its dental health.
However, you shouldn’t feed your Pomeranian with cooked bones as they could mistakenly swallow it. Also, avoid feeding this dog with rawhide bones. These bones trigger allergic reactions in most Pomeranians. More than this, rawhide bones can destroy the dog’s jaw and teeth.
What Foods Pomeranians Can’t Eat
Below are some foods you should never feed your Pomeranian, and the reason why.
Don’t Feed Your Pomeranian Chocolate
Yes, we humans savor chocolate, but chocolate most times contains theobromine. This is a highly toxic agent that makes it dangerous for your Pomeranian to ingest chocolate. This agent is particularly concentrated in chocolate mulch, dark chocolate, and even your regular chocolate.
Just a lick can cause severe diarrhea or vomiting in your Pomeranian. More than this, chocolate can trigger seizures, tremors, and irregular heart rhythm. In some extreme cases, chocolate intake can cause the death of your beloved Pomeranian.
Don’t Feed Your Pomeranian Caffeinated Beverages
Feeding your Pomeranian drinks containing caffeine is a big NO-NO. A significant intake of caffeine can kill your Pomeranian. When it is not fatal, ingesting caffeine can trigger severe restlessness in your Pomeranian. In other cases, the dog could suffer bleeding, muscle tremors, and fits.
Don’t Feed Your Pomeranian Onions or Garlic
Keep onion and garlic out of your Pomeranian’s reach. These foods can trigger anemia, severely devastating its red blood cells. You shouldn’t feed your Pomeranian any form of onion – whether cooked, uncooked, powdered, or dehydrated.
Other foods that you shouldn’t feed your Pomeranian include raisins, Macadamia nuts, olives, grapefruits, and tomatoes.
Safe Fruits for Your Pomeranian
In this section, we will look at some of the most nourishing (and safest) fruits you should feed your Pomeranian.
Apples are Great
Apples are lovely fruits to feed your Pomeranian. They contain a wealthy bank of Vitamin A and C. As snacks, apples are particularly befitting for senior Pomeranians whose metabolism is slowing already.
In other cases, you can dish your Pom slices of apples if you notice it putting on too much weight. Nonetheless, never feed the apple seeds or its core to the dog.
Feed Your Pom Bananas
Bananas are great fruits to feed your Pomeranian. Bananas (especially fresher ones) supply your dog with vital omega-3 and omega-6 acids, helping keep the dog’s coat healthy.
Also, the potassium richly derived from bananas is crucial in enhancing the functionality of your Pomeranian’s heart and kidney. Bananas are also an excellent relief for Pomeranians when they are suffering from allergies.
Nevertheless, ensure your Pomeranian never eats the banana chips. This has a substantial composition of calories, fats, and sugar that could be unhealthy for your dog.
Safe Vegetables for Your Pomeranian
Below are some of the most nourishing vegetables to feed your Pomeranian.
Greens
You should feed your Pomeranian greens. They don’t have much calorie content, but can substantially supply your dog with much-needed energy. Greens like cucumbers are excellent choices to feed your Pomeranian if you notice excessive weight gain or increased lethargy from the dog.
Spinach
Spinach has an admirable wealth of cancer-combating capacities, most notably iron. This very helpful for growing pups. Spinach also contains fiber, which improves the Pomeranian’s digestive tract.
Broccoli
Modest consumption of broccoli is excellent for your Pomeranian. Broccoli supplies your dog with Vitamin C, fiber, and is low in fat. So long you don’t add seasonings, your Pom can eat broccoli cooked or raw.
Foods to Avoid (Not Dangerous, But Not Great for Pomeranians)
Certain foods are not outrightly dangerous for your Pomeranian, but they should be avoided if possible. It is not excellent feeding your Pomeranian with eggplants, except those you grew organically.
Pomeranians are known to exhibit allergies for eggplants. Also, the mango core shouldn’t be fed to your Pom. Your Pom shouldn’t also eat olives, due to their high levels of sodium.
Special Diet for Pregnant Pomeranians
A pregnant Pomeranian will require a different feeding regimen. A pregnant Pomeranian more than ever needs a supply of high-quality foods. Her nutritional needs (particularly balanced diet) climb up across the pregnancy period.
For a pregnant Pomeranian, her food should be easily digestible. These foods should have the right phosphorus-calcium balance. Should the nutritional value of the food suffice, you may not need to supplement the pregnant dog’s food.
What more, you have to be mindful of the supplement content you introduce into your pregnant Pomeranian’s diet. In the case of excessive intake, an overreaching buildup of calcium or phosphorus can trigger defects, especially the risk of calcifying the fetus’ soft tissues.
If you are feeding your pregnant Pomeranian a balanced diet, its food intake should only increase by a maximum of 10% (compared to its regular meals when it wasn’t pregnant) within the first 6 weeks of the pregnancy.
This is because, within that span, the fetus isn’t going to grow by more than 30%. The food must have a premium puppy/lactation balance. Within the last 4 weeks of the pregnancy, the fetus experiences a huge surge in growth. This is when the food intake of your pregnant Pom should be raised above 30% of its regular intake.
Why Your Pomeranian Won’t Eat
No doubt, it is worrisome noticing a decline in your Pomeranian’s appetite. Several reasons could be responsible for this drop in eating.
Naturally, your Pomeranian’s food intake may drop within the hottest months of summer. This is not particular to Pomeranians. Dogs generally eat about 15% less when summer sets in fiercely.
Also, it is normal for senior Pomeranians to eat less as they become less active. This can be attributed to their slowing metabolic rate.
If your Pomeranian is refusing to eat, there could be an underlying problem with its teeth. It may be that it is experiencing oral discomfort or even tooth infection. In this scenario, your Pomeranian would generally be unwilling to chew (or eat) due to the consequent pains.
Stress can also cause your Pomeranian not to eat. Significant anxiety can be triggered in your Pomeranian, especially when you move to a new home or make notable changes to its regular routine.
This will cause it to eat less – and in some cases – not eat at all.
Illness could also cause your beloved Pomeranian to stop eating. It is natural for dogs – even humans – to lose appetite when ill. If your Pomeranian’s lack of appetite stretches for long, check it for some illness symptoms like skins sores, limping, eye and nasal discharges, or even itching.