Can anyone suggest the proper amount of protein a senior should be eating per serving?

Most of the foods I see list in their "GUARANTEED ANALYSIS" 18%-25% protein.

Thanks,
Tom

From what I've read, seniors (absent any kidney issues) require more or the same amount of protein as adult. It used to be conventional wisdom that you cut their protein levels, but this isn't the case. I'll probably keep Jes on an adult food when he gets older, but I definitely won't cut the protein levels.

How old is your senior? I have one that is almost 14 years old an my Vet suggested that I feed a food with less protein due to kidney issues...but I agree with Dad of Jes...I have read that seniors actually require more protein than adult dogs..but I am no expert, of course...

A little technical, but this article may be of some use to you. Our 1 year old was diagnosed with some kidney problems, and during the initial phase, we had to treat him as a geriatric dog (he is recovering now). Most of the articles I read stated that for older dogs, even with kidney issues, moderate protein that is highly bioavailable is the best.

http://www.advancepetfoods.com.au/speedyvet/library.asp?page=20

Thank you Shelly for the link to this artical...I just read it and it is very interesting to learn about protein levels and kidney disease...I have an senior, Bailey, that has chronic kidney disease..(which is due to normal aging) and my Vet advised a diet lower in protein...but I have heard contradicting reports on this...actually...I feed him a diet of 22 percent protein and he is doing really well...so far...by the way..I am very glad to hear that your sweet Winslow is doing much better.. :)

Thanks so much Lovemylabby. Winslow has glomerualnephritis (mild) caused by the RMSF. Vet thinks he could recover since we found what was causing it (the antigen). You may have already, but check out the dogaware.com site, and link to the kidney disease section. Lots of info and links to technical articles. All the best to precious Bailey.

Thank you so much. :) I will check out this site...definitely..I like to read up as much as I can on the subject...the more we know...the better we are able to care for our babies...

An important distinction needs to be made. Dogs with kidney issues do need to be on a lower protein diet, but high protein diets DO NOT cause kidney problems. There have been numerous studies that have shown that this is not the case.

Although it's debatable how much protein a healthy senior dog needs, I think it's fair to say that the traditional "Senior" lines of dog food that cut the protein levels aren't in their best interest.

The key is the ash content. Phosphorus has been shown to damage the kidneys, and often times high protein diets have excess phosphorus. I think it's more important to check out the phosphorus levels as opposed to the protein levels.

Thank you Dad of Jes for that important piece of information....I used to use one of those "Senior"diets and my Bailey started to have poor coat and skin issues...and yes...it is very important to keep the phosporus levels down as well...

Me too. We did that to our Sheltie because that was conventional wisdom up until lately.

I'm almost ashamed to admit all of the mistakes we made with previous dogs, but we never associated nutrition with many of their problems. We switched her to a senior food, her coat went to pot, he stools were never great, and we just chalked it up to old age. I guess we live and learn.