Should I switch my dogs to senior dog food?

I have 2, 7y/o dogs, a GSD and a border collie mix. They both are in great health and have lots of vitality. Should I switch them to senior food? And what is it about senior dog food that makes it senior?I have been feeding Science Diet Adult, but the senior bag of food says for dogs 7+ y/o.

There is NO need to switch to a senior food. You can feed Canidae For All Life Stages, a very high quality dog food.

There is no need to switch your dogs' food, period. If they are doing fine on what they are eating now, that is all you need to know - the proof is at the back end, so to speak. I have dogs that have been born and bred on Science Diet maintenance, and are in the pink of health - two are 10 and 14 years old. Every day of their lives, Science Diet maintenance. While it is good to have choices, and some dogs do in fact need a change in diet, I wouldn't do it just because the label says 'senior'. You are much more apt to lose a dog to bloat by upsetting their digestive tract during a change than to anything else that could happen by staying with what works.

That depends on your dogs activity levels. Some dogs get lazy after a certain age so the need for them to be changed to a lower calorie/lower fat food is important.You need to weigh your dogs activity levels. Are they as active as they were a couple years ago? Could they lose a few pounds? If the answer is yes to those 2 questions then a switch would be good. If the answer is no then they are fine with what your feeding until you can answer yes to those questions anyway

Personally I have never put any of my dogs on senior dog food. Talk it over with your vet and he can tell you which is best or if he thanks he is doing okay on the food you have him on. My Duke is going on 8 in Sept and I give him Pedigree adult small bites

Well, get 'em off Science Diet. It's crap. Not even worth it.Change to a high quality adult food. Look at http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/ & http://www.dogfoodproject.com/ I would only feed senior food if they are actually showing their age. Even then, you don't have to- you could feed adult food with glucosamine supplements instead of senior food.

There is less calorie density in senior food so if you have less active dogs, you should switch, otherwise, I'd keep them on the regular adult food til they slow down or start to gain weight. I'm not crazy about Science Diet anyway. It's mostly corn and it's overpriced by-product meal with gleutens and other junk in it.

Senior dog food has a lower protein content among other things. As long as your dogs are healthy, there is no need to switch to the senior food. If in doubt, check with your vet. As dogs age, their kidneys do start to deteriorate, and that is why older dogs need lower protein content. Your vet will be able to tell you (through annual blood work results) if there is any signs of problems with the kidneys.

Truly? The only time I'd put an older (otherwise fit) dog onto a so-called Senior feed is when there's a weight issue. I am suspicious about these 'aged' feeds (Puppy Food excepting) and tend to go with the 'if it ain't broke' philosophy. The contents on the bags will tell you what the difference is supposed to be, but I'd suggest, for the time being, you leave their diets well alone.... after all 7 might be 'veteran' in dogs shows, but I don't look on mine as being seniors until they are well into double figures.

I use organic food, all type of food should be good, but do watch out for fleas. My puppy really hates those and his health improved once I used http://bit.ly/ybJlb (the fuminator), works wonders!

The ultimate judge of if a food needs switching, is the dog in front of you. If your dog is otherwise healthy (might be time for some senior wellness testing at the vet...), with no liver or kidney issues, and isn't overweight, then my feeling is, why bother. The food is working for him. What often happens in older dogs, is they don't have as high an activity level as they did when younger, and the owners will continue to feed them the same amount as they did before. The dog gets fat as a result, which can lead to a whole host of problems. Also, some older dogs will develop kidney problems, which can be aggravated by a high protein food regardless of energy level etc.I'm currently in the process of switching my nearly 14 year old lab on to a senior food. I have a feeling his old GI tract just can't handle the maintenance diet any more, I'm hoping the senior food will be a bit easier on him. I kept him on the maintenance diet until now, as there was no particular reason to switch and he was doing well on the other food.

I think they are fine on adult science diet, unless your vet says so.....

That's no more true than a deodorant saying it works for 24 hours. Use your own wisdom, and think: Okay, my Border Collie comes from Great Britain and my German Shepherd, Germany. In Germany they like peas, cheese, beef, a little tomato, potatoes, and in Great Britain, they also like that stuff with fish and corn. Then you must figure out if say: beet pulp, barley or animal fat or by products are good for them or if they need glucosamine or chondroitin sulfate (yet). When you realize that they are healthy, you could make them healthier, they wouldn't like some of those ingredients and some are dangerous, and that the expiration date is a couple years away or more, time to find another kind. No good.