As a dachshund, one of my favorite things to talk about is food. I love everything about food.
Perhaps a little too much, as us dachshunds can be prone to putting on a bit of weight if we eat too much.
While I haven’t got a problem with that, my owner does. They want to ensure that I’m able to stay fit and healthy so that I can enjoy life to the fullest.
The key to that is finding the best dog food for dachshunds. The right kind of food will keep me full, and take care of my body so that I can stay in top shape.
However, with so many tasty choices to choose from, my owners had difficulty narrowing it down to the best food available. So on behalf of dachshunds everywhere I’ve taken one for the team and looked at which are the 5 best dog foods for dachshunds.
All of these foods are 100% dachshund approved, so you can rest assured that your dachsie will be smacking their lips when they tuck in.
To make sure you know exactly what to look for in the best dog food for dachshunds, I’ve noted down the key criteria you need to consider in the buyer’s guide down below.
Best Dog Food for Dachshunds
1. Hill’s Science Diet Perfect Weight Small & Mini Adult
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My favorite pick was the Hill’s Science Diet Perfect Weight Small & Mini Adult dry dog food. This one has a lovely dachshund on the packaging, so it was already off to a great start.
It’s even been designed with us smaller dogs in mind to help us maintain a healthy weight.
It’s been clinically proven to help with weight management. A whopping 70% of dogs fed this food managed to lose weight within 10 weeks.
The Perfect Weight Small & Mini Adult dog food has been designed to help little dogs like me get the weight support we need on a daily basis.
My favorite thing about this dog food is that it’s made from natural ingredients. You won’t find any nasty artificial ingredients in here! Chicken has been used as the main ingredient, which will give your dachshund all the lovely protein they need to maintain lean muscles.
We might not get to go down badger setts anymore, but we still need to look our best as we strut our stuff.
Hill’s Science Diet comes highly recommended by vets. While they might not be my favorite people to visit, even I have to admit they know their stuff.
Pros:
- Dachshund friendly – designed for little dogs like me
- Weight management – helps dachshunds maintain a healthy weight
- Natural ingredients – no artificial ingredients and will be healthier for us overall
- Chicken – used as the main ingredient to help us maintain lean muscle
- Vet approved – approved by people who know what they’re talking about
Cons:
- Pricey – one of the more expensive options
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2. Royal Canin Dachshund Adult Breed Specific Dry Dog Food
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Not only has this dog food got a dachshund on the packaging, it’s been specifically designed with us in mind. Marvelous! You can never have too many dachshunds, in my opinion.
The kibble has been designed with our little mouths in mind. They are smaller than the large kibble which we struggle to eat.
Royal Canin has designed this particular dog food with dachshunds in mind. As all food should be, but not everyone seems to understand the importance of dachshunds.
This dog food will give our bones and joints the proper support they need to stay healthy. It will also work to give us better muscle tone, and reduce the odor of our stools. A win-win for our owners.
This dog food includes a precise amount of protein, L-carnitine, calcium, phosphorus, fiber, and highly digestible proteins to help our bodies looking their best.
A very important factor for us dachshunds. If your dachshund is over 10 months old, this will be the perfect food for them.
An interesting thing for dachshund owners to note is that this dog food is available in two sizes. So you can choose the best sized dog food bag for your needs.
Pros:
- Dachshund specific – designed with dachshunds in mind as all food should be
- Kibble size – specially designed for dachshund’s little mouths
- Precise blends – includes a precise blend of vitamins and minerals to maintain our joints, bones, and muscle tone
- Reduces stool odor – includes a great fiber content and digestible proteins to be easier on our owner’s noses
- Multiple sizes – choose the right amount of food for your dachshund
Cons:
- Pricey – one of the more expensive options
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3. Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food
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Next up is the Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Adult Small Breed dry dog food. Despite the lack of dachshunds on the packaging, this is still a solid choice for us shorter dogs.
It’s been designed with smaller dogs in mind to give us the day to day support we need. It includes a larger amount of carbohydrates and proteins to give dachshunds the energy we need.
My favorite thing about this dog food is that it features all natural ingredients. It comes with all the vitamins and minerals we need for a healthy, balanced diet.
There’s no nasty ingredients such as chicken by-product meals, artificial flavors or preservatives, corn, soy, or wheat. It has been designed with the help of holistic vets to give us a balanced diet.
What’s really great about this dog food is that it comes in 3 different flavors. Choose between chicken and brown rice, lamb and brown rice, and fish and brown rice. Scrummy!
So if you really wanted to treat your dachshund, you’d buy all 3 flavors to mix things up a bit. This food is also available in 2 different sizes: 6 pounds or 15 pounds.
Blue Buffalo uses their special Lifesource Bits formula to give us dachshunds the proper immune support we need. This makes sure that every bite of Blue Buffalo contains a careful blend of essential vitamins, antioxidant-rich ingredients, and vital minerals.
Pros:
- Small breed specific – designed with smaller dogs like dachshunds in mind
- Natural – contains only natural ingredients
- 3 flavors – choose between 3 great flavors for your dachshund
- Lifesource Bits formula – contains a careful blend for a healthy, balanced diet
- Real meat – uses real meat as the main ingredient for added protein
Cons:
- Packaging – there aren’t enough dachshunds on the packaging
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4. Purina ONE SmartBlend Healthy Weight Formula Adult Dry Dog Food & Wet Dog Food
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The Purina ONE SmartBlend Healthy Weight adult dog food is another great choice if you’re wanting a food to help your dachshund maintain a healthy weight.
This food contains high quality protein to keep your dachshund fit and healthy!
A great thing about this dog food is that you can choose between the dry or wet foods. Or get both – your dachshund will never complain about having more choice.
You can choose between 2 different flavors: turkey or lamb and rice. You can also choose the best sized packaging for your dachshund’s needs.
What I really love about this food is that meat is used as the main ingredient. That makes for tastier food, and an even greater source of protein. The food also contains 25% less fat than the regular Purina ONE SmartBlend.
Your dachshund will get a fully balanced diet with this food. Purina ONE SmartBlend contains a precise antioxidant blend for a stronger immune system, as well as natural sources of glucosamine to help support our joint health.
Pros:
- Healthy weight formula – designed to help maintain a healthy weight
- Dry or wet food – choose the best one for your dachshund’s food preferences
- Real meat – used as the main ingredient for a greater source of protein
- Balanced diet – contains all the essential vitamins and minerals your dachshund needs
- 2 flavors – choose between turkey or lamb and rice
Cons:
- Packaging – where are the dachshunds?
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5. Hill’s Science Diet Small Bites Adult Dry Dog Food
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Another great choice is the Hill’s Science Diet Small Bites adult dry dog food.
While there’s no dachshund on the packaging, it has still been designed with smaller dogs in mind. The kibble has been formulated for our smaller muzzles to make it easier to eat.
This food features easy-to-digest ingredients. This not only helps our digestive system, but it also gives us all the energy we need to live happy, fulfilling lives.
Small Bites will give us dachshunds all the omega 6s and vitamin E we need for a super shiny coat and healthy skin, too. So we can look as good as we feel!
There’s also a great source of protein in the Small Bites food. This helps dachshunds to maintain lean muscle, and will help us keep our weight under control. Us dachshunds have to always look our best, you know.
Similar to the Hill’s Science Diet Perfect Weight, Small Bites also comes highly recommended by vets. They do know what they’re talking about, so if they’re happy to recommend me this food too, I’m not going to complain!
Pros:
- Smaller dogs – designed with smaller dogs like dachshunds in mind
- Balanced diet – contains all the essential vitamins and minerals dachshunds need
- Omega 6 and vitamin E – contains everything we need for healthy skin and a shiny coat
- High quality protein – helps dachshunds maintain lean muscle and a healthy weight
- Vet recommended – recommended by people who know what they’re talking about
Cons:
- Packaging – not enough dachshunds on the packaging
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Best Dog Food for Dachshunds Buyer’s Guide
Now we’re on to my favorite bit – I get to talk about food! And how to choose the right tasty food for your dachshund! They can thank me later.
It’s an intimidating task choosing the best dog food for your dachshund, but don’t worry. As a dachshund, I can talk you through everything you need to be thinking about.
It might be tempting to opt for the first food that you stumble across in your search. However, can you be sure that your dachshund will love it? If you make sure it follows my criteria below, you’ll know you’re on to a winner.
Take a look at everything you need to consider when choosing the best dog food for dachshunds!
Protein
One of the key things to look for in a dog food is that it has a high quality source of protein. Protein is important for dachshunds for several reasons.
One of the main reasons is that it helps us maintain lean muscle. This keeps us fit and strong. We also need a portion of protein in our diet to stay healthy.
Make sure that real meat is used as the main ingredient. This means that the dog food has a good source of protein.
Some cheaper manufacturers use protein from other sources, and these aren’t nearly as beneficial for dachshunds. Plus they’re not as tasty!
Healthy Skin and Coat
I’m sure that you want your dachshund to look as good as they feel. I may be very biased, but dachshunds are the best looking dogs out there.
We need the right food to help us maintain our good looks so we can show off on our daily walks.
For healthy skin and a shiny coat we need the right blend of omega 3, omega 6, and vitamin E. These vitamins and minerals help us to look great and maintain our shiny coats.
If you want your dachshund to look their best then look for a dog food that contains these.
Digestible Proteins and Fiber
To keep your dachshund’s body healthy, they will need a dog food that contains the right blend of digestible proteins and fiber.
These combine to help our digestive system out so that we’re able to do our business comfortably in the backyard. They also make for a healthier gut, which contributes to our overall health.
Weight Management
As I’ve mentioned briefly above, us dachshunds can be prone to being on the chonky side if we’re fed too much food.
We’ll never complain about eating more food, of course. However, this will impact on our overall health. The more overweight we are, the more likely we are to encounter other health issues. Seeing as we’re very prone to back problems, you should aim to keep us at a healthy weight.
Look for a dog food that specifically mentions weight management or a food that contains a high protein content. This should give your dachshund all they need to maintain a healthy weight.
A good indicator that my vet gave my owner is that you should be able to feel between my ribs. If you’re having to really prod my ribcage to try and feel between them, then I could probably do with cutting back on some food.
I won’t be happy about it, but I’ll be much happier in the long term when I’m able to run around without any problems.
Small breed specific
Smaller dogs like dachshunds will have different needs to that of a doberman.
So even though we sometimes like to think we’re bigger than we actually are, we should have food that best fits our body’s needs. We’ll need a food that gives us a healthy, balanced diet, so we can stay fit and strong.
Some small breed specific dog foods will also come with kibble that’s smaller for our petite muzzles. As much as dachshunds try to wolf down whatever you give us, we’re less likely to choke if the kibble is smaller.
Natural ingredients
Dog foods containing natural ingredients will be very beneficial for your dachshund. And that’s not just because they taste better!
Natural ingredients will have more essential vitamins and minerals that your dachshund needs to stay fit and healthy.
While this might mean you have to choose pricier foods, it will be worth it. Cheaper foods use ingredients such as chicken by-product meal, wheat, soy, corn, and artificial flavors and preservatives.
These aren’t great for little dachshunds to eat, and aren’t healthy. Some of these could even impact on your dachshund’s health.
Vet approved
Vets might not be a dachshund’s favorite person to visit, but even I have to admit they know what they’re doing.
If a dog food comes highly recommended by vets, then you can rest assured that it will have all of your dachshund’s needs covered.
If you’re looking to change your dachshund’s diet because of health concerns or something similar, you should always consult with your vet beforehand.
Chances are they’ll be able to help you get to the bottom of the problem and will be able to solve any issues!
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best dog food for dachshunds?
The best dog foods for dachshunds are:
- Hill’s Science Diet Perfect Weight Small & Mini Adult
- Royal Canin Dachshund Adult Breed Specific Dry Dog Food
- Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Adult Small Breed Dry Dog Food
- Purina ONE SmartBlend Healthy Weight Formula Adult Dry Dog Food & Wet Dog Food
- Hill’s Science Diet Small Bites Adult Dry Dog Food
What should I not feed my dachshund?
Foods that you shouldn’t feed your dachshund are:
- Chocolate
- Grapes
- Raisins
- Macadamia nuts
- Foods with high salt content
- Onions
- Avocado
- Coffee and tea (caffeine)
