My dog Emily is 10 years old. Her doctor advised switching her to a senior diet, but she really loves her food. Is it necessary to change her diet just because she’s an older pet?

While senior diets have become big business for some pet food companies, I don’t know that there are any major differences to justify using them if Emily is in good health and doing well on her current diet.

In the past, restricted protein diets were recommended for older pets, but this idea has fallen out of favor.

I only restrict protein when kidney failure is present, as protein restriction in the normal pet will not prevent damage to the kidneys.

If you want to do anything different for Emily’s diet, now that she is older, consider the following tips:

Add enzymes to her food. Older people and pets have reduced amounts of digestive enzymes, and adding enzymes will increase the digestion and absorption of nutrients from the diet.

Omega-3 fatty acids, especially those in fish oil, are anti-inflammatory and may be beneficial as inflammatory conditions do increase in older pets.

A good vitamin supplement, especially one containing choline (my favorite is Cholodin) may help prevent cognitive disorder.

Feeding a high-quality natural holistic diet is my preferred diet for pets of any age. Many processed foods contain too many byproducts and chemicals and may cause health problems.

Older pets have less ability to detoxify poisons, so I believe reducing the toxic load on the aging immune systems of our senior citizen pets is very important.

Along the same lines, adding a good-quality pet antioxidant will help reduce oxidative damage to Emily’s tissues; oxidative damage is the leading cause of inflammation, degenerative diseases and cancer.