Vitalin Small Breed dog food
Vitalin makes a small breed line within its adult dry dog food range, built around a smaller kibble and a higher calorie density than its standard recipes. It suits toy and small breeds such as chihuahuas, Yorkshire terriers, pugs and miniature dachshunds, who need more energy packed into a smaller meal than a labrador does.
Why small breeds get their own recipe
A small dog has a faster metabolism relative to its size than a large one, and a smaller stomach to match. Standard adult kibble sized for a bigger mouth is harder for a toy breed to pick up and chew properly, and a bowl of food built for a labrador's energy needs is often more calorie-dense than a five-kilogram dog actually wants in one sitting.
Vitalin's small breed recipes use a smaller kibble shape and a higher calorie density per gram than its standard adult formula, so a small dog can get what it needs from a smaller, easier-to-manage portion rather than a large bowl of a lower-density food.
What we stock
We carry Vitalin's small breed adult dry food in a couple of recipes, including chicken with thyme and root vegetables and lamb with mint, alongside the brand's wider adult and puppy dry food range for dogs of any size. All of it is grain-free, which suits owners avoiding cereal fillers, though grain-free is a preference rather than a health requirement for most dogs.
If your dog is still a puppy rather than an adult, Vitalin's puppy formula is the one to look at instead, and moves onto the adult small breed recipe once your vet or the pack guidance says your dog has reached adult size.
Switching a small dog onto it
Change any dog's food gradually rather than all at once, mixing a little more of the new food in with the old over a week to ten days. Small dogs can be more prone to a wobbly stomach during a fast diet change than bigger breeds, simply because there is less digestive system to absorb the shock.
Watch your dog's weight and coat over the following few weeks rather than judging the switch on the first couple of days, and speak to your vet if your dog loses interest in the new food or their stools do not settle within that transition period.
For this need
Everything below is in stock with us, priced with delivery worked out, and packed and posted by hand in the UK.
Vitalin Adult Dog Small Breed Lamb with Mint
A single-protein lamb kibble for small adult and senior dogs, without chicken or grain
£13.99
Vitalin Adult Dog Small Breed Chicken with Thyme & Root Veg
A chicken kibble for small adult and senior dogs, with citrus extract for dental support
£13.99
Vitalin Adult Dog Pork with Apple
Complete dry food for adult dogs of any age, led by pork, with citrus extract for dental support
From£11.99
Vitalin Adult Dog Farmhouse Chicken
Complete dry dog food for adult and senior dogs, chicken and vegetable based
From£11.99
Vitalin Puppy Chicken with Thyme & Root Veg
A complete dry puppy food with chicken, thyme and root vegetables, in a 2kg bag
£13.99
Vitalin Farmhouse Supper with Beef Veg
Complete dry food for adult dogs of all ages, though chicken outweighs the named beef
From£11.99
Vitalin Adult Dog Lamb with Mint
A grain-inclusive single-protein lamb and mint dry food for adult dogs of any age
From£14.00
Vitalin Adult Dog Chicken with Thyme Root Veg
A grain-inclusive complete dry food for adult dogs of any age, with chicken, thyme and root vegetables
From£13.99
James Wellbeloved Adult Breed Dry Dog Food Turkey Rice
A hypoallergenic dry food for adult dogs, in small and large breed versions, built around single-source turkey protein
From£45.75
Iams Adult Dog Advanced Nutrition Small Medium Breed Chicken
Complete chicken dry food for small and medium adult dogs, 2.5KG
£8.05
James Wellbeloved Grain Free Adult Small Breed Turkey & Veg
Grain-free turkey kibble sized for small breeds, with the highest turkey content in the range
£13.85
James Wellbeloved Adult Breed Dry Dog Food Lamb Rice
A hypoallergenic dry food for adult dogs, built around single-source lamb protein
From£45.75
Common questions
- Is Vitalin Small Breed grain-free?
- Yes, the small breed adult recipes we stock are grain-free, using vegetables and other carbohydrate sources instead of wheat or cereal. That suits dogs on a grain-free diet by choice, but it is not something every small dog needs medically.
- What size dog is the small breed range for?
- It is aimed at toy and small breeds roughly under ten kilograms as adults, such as chihuahuas, Yorkshire terriers, pugs, miniature dachshunds and similarly sized crossbreeds. A medium or large breed does better on Vitalin's standard adult recipe instead.
- Does Vitalin do a puppy version for small breeds?
- Vitalin's puppy dry food is formulated for growing dogs generally rather than as a separate small breed puppy line. Check the kibble size and your vet's guidance on portioning while your dog is still growing, then move onto the small breed adult recipe once they reach adult size.
- How do I switch my dog from another brand onto Vitalin?
- Introduce it gradually over seven to ten days, replacing a little more of the old food with the new each day rather than swapping bowls outright. That gives your dog's digestion time to adjust and makes it easier to spot whether the new food agrees with them.
Related
Written by Matt Garnett, who runs Giddy Pets and is a lifelong pet owner — not a vet. This is general information, not veterinary advice, and it cannot replace an examination by the vet who knows your animal. How we write these guides.