Protein and Muscle Maintenance in Ageing Dogs

The quiet loss

Dogs lose lean mass with age. Because coat hides topline changes and because weight can stay flat while muscle is replaced by fat, the loss is often noticed only when a dog struggles to jump into a car.

Lean mass matters for more than movement. It is metabolic reserve — the thing a dog draws on during illness, surgery or hospitalisation.

The protein question

The long-standing habit of reducing protein for all older dogs does not hold up as a blanket rule. Current thinking in canine nutrition is that healthy senior dogs generally need adequate high-quality protein, and that restriction is a targeted clinical intervention for specific diagnoses rather than a default for age.

We classify this as emerging rather than established: the direction of evidence is consistent, but optimal intakes by breed, size and life stage are not settled.

Important: protein restriction is genuinely indicated in some conditions, notably certain stages of kidney and liver disease, so the general rule does not apply to every dog.

Loading, not just feeding

Intake without stimulus does little. Practical loading for a pet dog looks like gentle hill walking, controlled stair work where joints allow, sand or shallow-water walking, and slow, deliberate sit-to-stand repetitions. Short and frequent beats long and occasional.