How to Feed Your American Bully

American Bully Diet Plan

By Hungry Bark | October 17, 2021

The American Bully is a recently added companion dog that may come in one of four categories; pocket, standard, classic, and XL.

As a breed, the American Bully was created in the 1980s with the aesthetic and behaviors they've become known for in the 1990s. Being a cross between the American Pitbull Terrier, the English Bulldog, and American Bulldog gives the American Bully its muscular stance and attentive posture.

They are known to be loving and affectionate, making them a perfect family dog but require space to run around, so they are ideal for homes with yards versus urban apartment living.

Incredibly strong, the American Bully has a gentle temperament and is highly trainable, and the breed performs well with contests of strength and explosiveness.

Due to their various sizes, a uniform diet plan is complex, so you need to find a meal plan that suits your specific pup and not an overly generalized one.

Before we delve into the correct type of meal plan for your American Bully, you need to understand that as a breed, it requires a lot of regular exercise, routine visits to the veterinarian, and the proper meal plan.

Taken together, this approach is known as a holistic approach to your pet's overall health and is the best approach for a long, healthy life.

Having a holistic approach to health, consider your pup's overall activity level, age, and weight, as well as the type of foods they are eating.

Just keep in mind that dogs at different ages have different nutritional needs and tastes.

The Importance Of Getting Enough Exercise

Exercise is just one part of a holistic approach to wellness. Combine daily activity with the right meal plan and routine veterinarian visits is the best strategy for healthy living.

Regular, vigorous exercise will strengthen your American Bully while also aiding its physical and mental wellbeing.

Like people, exercise offers various benefits as it's one way to maintain a healthy body and mind balance.

Areas that exercise aids the body in digestion build and strengthen muscles and bones maintain weight, improve appetite, enhance mental function, and increase moods while alleviating anxiety.

Daily Benefits Of Exercise

Exercise provides a variety of benefits from weight management and digestive aid, improved cardiovascular function, strengthens bones and muscles, increases flexibility, enhances moods, and alleviates anxieties and stress.

• Aids With Digestion: Daily exercise benefits your American Bully's digestion and wastes production. This benefit is significant as a dog ages and its metabolism slows down.
• Bolsters Cardiovascular And Respiratory Systems: Regular exercise is necessary for respiratory and cardiovascular health. Taxing the body with vigorous activities makes your dog's body work harder, bolsters cardiovascular and respiratory systems.
• Maintain Bones And Skeletal-Muscle Strength: Putting positive stress on the bones, joints, and muscles of your American Bully will have long-term benefits. Daily activities will keep the body in balance, helping with respiratory and cardiovascular function and injury prevention, which is especially crucial as your dog ages.
• Improved Flexibility: An active dog is less prone to injury resulting from weakened muscles, bones, and joints. Moving vigorously will help maintain joint elasticity and keep the muscles flexible.
• Elevates Moods: As the saying goes, "a tired dog is a happy dog." Exercise releases neurochemicals such as endorphins and dopamine in the brain that balance and heightens moods. These neurochemicals also play a significant role in reducing stress and anxiety and creating a calmer mind for your dog, making it easier to train and interact with positive behaviors.

A bonus to regular exercise is that you begin to develop a routine with your companion, creating an opportunity to build upon the bonds between you both.

Finally, dogs are social animals that like to explore surroundings and discover the possibility of threats and food sources in the area.

Dogs rely on a sense of smell for much of the way they interact with their environment. For example, a daily walk or other outdoor activity allows them to sniff around and explore the area, stimulating their mind as a result.

If you need suggestions of ways to exercise your American Bully, we have a few suggestions to consider depending on where you live.

Walks: The most basic activity is taking daily walks. Taking a walk around the neighborhood allows for an excellent way to get low-impact exercise for your American Bully while also giving them an outlet for their curiosity. In addition, as discussed earlier, daily routines provide an incredible way for you to reinforce the bonds between pet and pet parent.

Hikes: Hikes are an excellent suggestion for those that have the ability to get out and about in nature. Depending on the city or town where you live, hikes are a chance for your American Bully to discover a new world around them. However, one caveat is to keep in mind the type of terrain and weather that you may be hiking through. If it's going to be over 85 degrees and rough terrain, it may be best to sit it out. Also, to determine if a hike is appropriate, you must factor in your dog's overall age and conditioning levels before heading off to the woods for a day.

Dog Park: As dogs are social by nature, a dog park offers multiple benefits. First, they are an excellent way to learn social skills and pack hierarchy. Dogs instinctively create packs with other dogs, so letting them run, interact, and wrestle with other dogs is excellent for exercise and socialization. Second, you'll be amazed at how much energy your American Bully will expend in a short 30-minute dog park adventure. Be aware that the muscular stature and the breed's genetic makeup may make some pet owners wary at first, so be conscious of how your American Bully may interact and play with others at the park.

Tug-Of-War: One way to bond with your American Bully is to play tug-of-war with them. This activity requires you to be strong enough to resist, but it will help develop its strength and stamina. This activity is a great way to play and build on the bond between you and have fun in the process.

Training Drills: The American Bully is known for its strength and gentle demeanor, but it's also highly trainable. Setting up a training drill that includes short, explosive movements, such as working on the command "stay" when throwing a ball then telling your pup to "fetch" is an excellent way to work on behaviors and exercise at the same time. It's both an engaging training and exercise opportunity at the same time.

Swimming: Swimming isn't a universal exercise for dogs. Some prefer it, while others are terrified of the water. But for older animals, especially those with hip or joint issues, swimming is an opportunity for low-impact activity offering excellent cardiovascular exercise.

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The Type Of Nutrition Your American Bully Needs

Every dog is unique, and the type of nutritional requirements will vary even between animals of the same breed. Therefore, it's a good idea to discuss your American Bully's dietary needs with its veterinarian before making any decisions on a meal plan. Still, there are some things to consider when making your selection.

At different ages, there are different nutritional needs for your dog. For example, a puppy needs different nutrients, vitamins, and minerals than a fully grown adult, so that is one consideration. Also, know that taste preferences will change over time, so finding an adaptable meal plan is crucial.

In general, a dog's meal plan should consist of proteins, carbohydrates, and fats in order of importance. Subpar meal plans will include these macronutrients but will do so from less pure sources, often using fillers and additives that can cause digestive issues with your dog.

A macronutrient is the primary energy source in foods, and ideally, a meal plan should prioritize good, clean animal proteins from a single source, carbohydrates, and fats before any additives. Not all additives are negative things. Some may enhance the nutritional value of the meal plan rather than using it as fillers like in some subpar meal plans.

Active dogs require a higher calorie count and more protein than sedentary ones and w hen you're trying to decide upon the proper meal plan for your American Bully, you also should factor in its overall fitness and activity levels, whether there are known food allergies, and your dog's weight and age.

How Active Is Your American Bully

Like people, exercise is crucial to the overall health of your American Bully.

Dogs need daily exercise to aid in weight management, assist with digestion, and improve the skeletal muscle and cardiovascular systems. Factoring in how active your dog is daily will help you decide on portion size and the makeup of the ingredients with your meal plan.

Daily activity aids with appetite control and digestion, so understanding your dog's activity level will help guide your decision when selecting a proper meal plan.

In general, an active dog needs more protein than a sedentary one, and choosing the right meal plan will consider that. However, while exercise is essential, doing too much activity can lead to potential injury and health concerns.

Is Your Dog Allergic Or Intolerant To Types Of Foods

Dogs can develop food-borne allergies that can lead to a variety of health concerns. Unfortunately, too often, an unlisted ingredient is the cause of the food allergy, which is more common in subpar meal plans. Therefore, learning to read the ingredient label is essential to guarantee the safety and health of your dog.

Food allergies can cause the immune system to become over-agitated and lead to various other issues, from digestive problems to excessive itching. Once the immune system gets triggered, it can cause a lot of discomfort and lower the quality of life for your dog.

One of the most common symptoms of food-borne allergies is excessive itching. The problem with excessive itching is that once the irritation has occurred, a dog's nails can scratch the skin, allowing bacteria to get into the skin, further irritating the itch response.

A more severe issue with food-borne allergies is known as food intolerance. With food intolerance, a type of food can cause severe issues with your dog.

It's a similar process as with people who have a peanut allergy. Even a trace amount of the allergen can cause a severe reaction, so it's best to find a wholly transparent ingredient list.

By selecting a high-quality meal plan that focuses on single-source ingredients and avoids unnecessary fillers, you're giving your American Bully the best chance to avert food-borne allergies.

Your Dog's Age And Weight

Take into consideration your dog's age and weight before selecting your meal plan. As discussed, dogs at different ages have different nutritional needs, so choosing an age-specific meal plan is crucial for overall health.

Another factor to consider is the ideal weight for your American Bully. Check with your veterinarian to get advice on portion control and other weight-related issues to guide you in your meal plan selection.

Why Your American Bully's Food Ingredients Are Important

High-quality food sources provide the essential macronutrients needed for overall wellness and enhance the immune system as well. Your selection of a meal plan will also minimize the potential of severe health issues that arise from food-borne allergies and food intolerance.

Again, the problem with food-borne allergies is once there is a reaction to allergens, the immune system goes into overdrive against any possible allergens, making the quality of life difficult.

Food intolerance, on the other hand, is much more severe. Food intolerance is something that cannot be digested. To avoid food-borne allergies and intolerances, select a meal plan that clearly states ingredients and sources of nutrition to eliminate any unwanted elements.

The best meal plans will provide macronutrients derived from a single source, whether animal protein, carbohydrates, and fats. These macronutrients will provide your American Bully with the most energy, and a good meal plan will exclude obscure terms like "meat meal."

Instead, a good meal plan will list proteins as "chicken" with "brown rice" rather than some obscure terms that don't detail the source of carbs and proteins.

How To Read The Ingredients Label

When reading the food label, we know it can be challenging to understand the label at times.

Choosing the best meal plan shouldn't be overwhelming and isn't if you know how to read the ingredient list.

To begin with, understand that the FDA highly regulates that dog food. There are quality standards and labeling standards that manufacturers must adhere to, and learning to read these labels is the first step in having confidence in selecting your meal plan.

The FDA requires the food label to list ingredients in order of priority determined by weight. Due to that fact, protein should be the first ingredient listed, so when you read a meal plan that has "chicken" listed first, rest assured the recipe has protein as the most prominent ingredient.

There is another way the FDA dictates standards and practices regarding food labels, and you need to understand what those terms mean.

There are terms that manufacturers use to imply the quality and standards of ingredients, and these fall under four categories better known as "the 95% rule, "the 25% rule," "the 'with' rule," and "the flavor rule."

To understand what these terms mean on a product label, let's explore how these terms are used in food labels.

The 95% Rule

A food label that includes a specific animal protein such as salmon must have included in the recipe, at least 95% of that protein in the final product. The better meal plans will focus on single-source animal protein and eschew obscure or misleading terms such as "meat meal," which tells you nothing about the source of protein or percentage.

The 25% Rule

A category below the "95% rule" is the "25% rule." When you see terms such as "entree, platter, or dinner," it means that only 25% of the protein needs to be included in the final recipe. These can be misleading and obscure terms that make the meal plan seem healthier and more flavorful if you don't understand how the FDA regulates these terms.

The "With" Rule

When reading the product label, understanding the term "with" details even a smaller amount of the ingredient listed in the final product. For example, if a product label uses "dog food with chicken," it means that it only needs to include at minimum 3% of turkey. This descriptor can be tricky and deceptive if you don't understand how to read the label!

The "Flavor" Rule

With the "flavor rule," manufacturers are only required to provide a trace amount of the ingredient detailed. So, for example, if you see a meal plan with the term, "chicken dinner for dogs, with beef flavor!" you know that a) the percentage of chicken is only required to be more than 25% of the final recipe.

The term "with beef flavor" means that the recipe only needs enough flavor to be traceable. That means the ingredients from chicken and beef can be minimal and that the kibble will be loaded with additives and fillers to make up for the lack of pure nutrition.

Selecting The Right Meal Plan For Your American Bully

Selecting the right meal plan for your American Bully, look for an ingredient list that balances macronutrients with serving size as a general rule.

For example, it's a generalism to say that you want to feed your dog 1-ounce of food for every pound that it weighs.

The ideal meal plan will clearly label the ingredients and should avoid obscure or misleading terms.

Subpar manufacturers will use deceptive words like "flavor or with" to make their product seem more nutritious than it is, and as you've learned how to read a product label, you're better equipped to select the best meal plan for optimal health.

Keep in mind as well that taste buds and preferences will change over time as well.

Clear labeling of pure protein sources is crucial for determining the type of food to provide your pup. In addition, balancing the holistic approach for your American Bully's health requires a combination of nutrition, exercise, and regular veterinary visits.

If you're still uncertain about the type of food your American Bully needs, the Hungry Bark Custom Meal Planner is a great place to start! In as little as 1-2 minutes, you'll receive a Custom Meal Plan designed just for your unique dog, taking into account characteristics such as breed, age, weight, and activity level.

By taking a holistic approach, one that includes regular exercise, routine checkups from its veterinarian, and a great meal plan, you're providing the best opportunity for a long, fruitful life together.

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Source: https://hungrybark.com/blogs/nutrition/american-bully-diet-plan

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