1. Home
  2. Dogs

PawTracks may earn a commission when you buy through links on our site.

The best dog food for dachshunds: 5 healthy choices for your pup

By

Whether you’re bringing home a spunky, short-legged Dachshund for the first time or are simply thinking about changing up your pup’s diet, you’ve come to the right place. We’ve gathered some of the most important facts about the sausage dog diet, including what to look for, what to avoid, and a few of our favorite recommendations.

Remember to buy kibble or wet food that’s appropriate for your dog’s age. Puppies, adults, and seniors all have different nutritional needs, and the last thing you would want is to prevent your pup from getting a complete, balanced diet. Keeping that in mind, there are many trusted dog food brands that make a great choice for adult sausage dogs, and these are the best dog foods for Dachshunds.

Recommended Videos

What dog food is good for Dachshunds?

Keeping all of this in mind, it’s time to make your choice. There are many healthy foods for Doxies available at your local pet store, but these are some of the best.

Wellness Small Breed Complete Health Adult Healthy Weight Turkey & Brown Rice Recipe Dry Dog Food

Keeping your Dachshund healthy begins with what you put in their bowl, so it’s important to feed them something meant for their breed or size. This small breed dog food is made with bite-sized pieces for easier chewing — even smaller than most kibbles — and expertly chosen ingredients to support your dog’s health. Each piece is fortified with omega fatty acids, antioxidants, glucosamine, probiotics, and taurine to promote whole-body health, but you’ll love the high-quality ingredients, too.

Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Natural Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food

With two delicious, meaty flavors to choose from, any Doxie will love this healthy kibble from Blue Buffalo. It’s designed with small dogs in mind, so every bite is packed with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and high-quality lamb as its first ingredient.

This formula provides a nutritious, balanced meal with real fruits, vegetables, and complex carbohydrates to keep their little bodies running. You won’t find any poultry by-product meals, corn, wheat, soy, artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives in this food!

Hill’s Science Diet Adult Perfect Weight Hearty Vegetable & Chicken Stew Canned Dog Food

If your little Weenie prefers wet food, you’ll want to make sure it contains ingredients just as wholesome as a kibble — just like this! Hill’s Science is known for its nutritionally wholesome meals for dogs of all ages and sizes, and with ingredients like chicken, carrots, and pork liver, you truly know you’re giving your dog the best.

Since Dachshunds tend to suffer from obesity, a weight-mindful diet might be a smart plan. Specially formulated foods like this are designed to protect heart health, encourage lean muscle formation, and support a healthy weight.

Royal Canin Breed Health Nutrition Dachshund Adult Dry Dog Food

Royal Canin is renowned for its breed and health-specific formulas, including this one for adult Dachshunds. Everything from the ingredient list to the shape of the kibble is designed especially for your Weenie, so you truly know you’re getting the best.

This formula helps provide complete nutritional support, bone and joint health, and more. Lean protein sources and L-carnitine help your dog build healthy muscle, while highly digestible protein and fiber reduce stool content and odor.

NUTRO NATURAL CHOICE Small Breed Adult Dry Dog Food

With high-quality protein and non-GMO ingredients, this small breed dog food will help your sausage dog look and feel its very best. Every bite contains antioxidants for immune support, fiber for digestive health, and 100 percent natural chicken. It also has a crunchy texture that helps clean your dog’s teeth as they chew, so there are an endless amount of reasons you’ll want your dog to munch on Nutro Natural Choice.

Just like other top-quality dog foods, you won’t find chicken by-product meal, corn, wheat, or soy anywhere on the ingredients list.

Gray / Adobe Stock

What should I not feed my Dachshund?

Since there are no official nutritional standards based on the breed of dog, every pet parent needs to use their best judgment when deciding what to feed their fur baby. Dachshunds have health concerns like Intervertebral Disc Disease, obesity, and hip dysplasia to consider, so you could consider finding a food with ingredients that promote joint health and slow weight gain.

That could make some “normally” formulated dog foods too fattening to feed a Dachshund long term, which is another reason why buying a small breed dog food can help. If you’re concerned that your buddy is getting the nutrition they need, you can always add a vet-recommended dietary supplement to their meals. But talk to your vet first!

A little trial and error may be necessary to find the best food for your Weenie. That’s okay! Remember to introduce new foods into your pup’s diet gradually to avoid any digestive upset or confusion on your dog’s end. Too much too fast can discourage your dog from getting the most out of the new diet.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Gabrielle LaFrank
Contributor
Gabrielle LaFrank has written for sites such as Psych2Go, Elite Daily, and, currently, PawTracks. When she's not writing, you…
Can dogs eat strawberries? Everything you need to know
Yes, you can feed strawberries to Fido. Here's how

Sharing food with our dogs is one of the most fun parts of pet ownership. But animals can't always eat the same stuff as humans (and we certainly don't want to chew on their chow, either). It's important to keep a restriction list in mind when you go to get your buddy a snack from the kitchen. Pups shouldn't eat everything in our pantry, but can dogs eat strawberries? The answer is: Yes, they can and will enjoy them. We'll walk you through how to feed strawberries to dogs and what other fruits they can gnaw on.
Are strawberries toxic for dogs?
No, not at all, and in fact, many dogs love strawberries. Like so many other fruits, strawberries have a lot of nutrients and tons of water, making them a good and reasonably low-calorie snack. However, the drawback is that they're very sweet. That's probably half the reason that Fido likes them!

Because of their high sugar content, though, you should limit how many strawberries — or any berries — you give your pooch per day. The exact number you give depends on the size of your pup pup, with the littlest breeds only needing one per day. A large beastie can have as many as four, and you should scale up or down for all sizes in between.
How should I prepare strawberries for my dog?
Before passing this treat to your animal, make sure to remove the green bits, though a tiny bit of leftover leaf won't hurt. The biggest issue with this fruit is the size — strawberries are a choking hazard. If you have a little guy that takes big bites, you'll want to chop these up small first before doling them out. Lastly, remember that we're talking about fresh strawberries, not canned or jammed or anything like that.
What fruits are not good for dogs?
You should certainly make your buddy avoid all the fruits you don't eat either like red berries he might find growing in the wild. However, the biggest fruits your dog can never eat are grapes and raisins. Science hasn't quite figured out why, but these delectables don't do well for our hounds, and even just one grape can turn deadly. Lastly, stay away from the following just to be safe: green tomatoes, cherries, limes, lemons, and avocado (technically a fruit and bad for dogs in large quantities).

Read more
The best medium-sized dog breeds for your family
These dogs are the perfect size — and temperament — for families with kids

Whether you're a veteran dog owner or are new to the canine world, it can be immensely helpful to do your research before adopting the dog of your dreams. After all, step one is to figure out what your ideal four-legged friend might be like.
Will they cuddle up with you at the end of the day, or will they sleep in a dog bed all their own? Would you like a high-energy friend or a canine buddy that can binge-watch your favorite Netflix show at all hours of the day with you? Perhaps even more importantly, what size dog can you handle in your home?
Medium-sized dogs are a perfect fit for those who may want the activity of a larger dog without the massive size. Many families prefer mid-sized canines because they're large enough to play with children without getting hurt, but they're not too large to spook or knock over a child (most of the time, anyway). There can be many reasons why a medium-sized dog breed is your perfect fit, but how do you know what breed to look into? Let us help you decide.

Medium-sized dogs for families with children

Read more
Can dogs eat pineapple? What you need to know
Read this before feeding your dog this tropical fruit

Whether you're indulging in a summertime treat or creating the ultimate tropical fruit salad, pineapple is never a bad idea. Its tangy, refreshing taste complements many other flavors, and you can prepare it in a number of different ways. But while you're chopping up your pineapple, there's a good chance your food-motivated dog isn't far away. After all, they may be hoping you're cooking them a chicken dinner!
Before you toss your pup a piece of delicious pineapple, it's only natural to wonder whether dogs can have this fruit to begin with. A few fruits are downright dangerous for dogs, including grapes, avocados, and pitted fruits, but can dogs have pineapple? Let's find out.

Can dogs have pineapple?

Read more