Many people don't put a lot of thought into the food they feed their pets. But go to any store and there are so many choices, and many that advertise to be premium dog food and very healthy for your pet actually aren't.
Here's a couple things to keep in mind when looking at dog food. After these considerations I will go more into depth about which is better for your animal.
Most dog foods are made of fillers and by-products. Neither one is healthy for your pet.
Secondly, dogs are not vegetarians, they are omnivores, meaning they eat meat and vegetables. Just because you are a vegetarian, doesn't mean your animal is.
If there is an ingredient on the list that you wouldn't eat - don't buy it.
Now with those things in mind - let's get down to business.
How to read the ingredient label:
Ingredients are listed in order. The first ingredient makes up most of the food. Dogs do not need a lot of carbohydrates or fillers such as flour, wheat or corn. Some of your cheaper brands of dog food the first ingredient listed may be corn meal. THIS IS BAD. Whether buying canned or dry - the first listed ingredient should be a meat.
By-products.
Look for food that does not include by-product. This is another ingredient that isn't healthy. Again some of the cheaper brands, in the list of ingredients it may say 'chicken by-product.' Again, this is bad. By-products are things such as ears, hooves, and other parts of the animals that humans don't eat. You want something that says 'meal' with it. Whether it be 'chicken meal' or 'beef meal'. This is a healthy ingredient.
Type of Food
There is no need for puppy food or senior food. Find a food that has an 'All Life Stages' line. Then you can continue to feed it to the dog when it is a puppy and as it ages into senior-hood.
Size of Dog
If you own what is considered a 'large breed dog' you will want to find a dog food that is geared toward them, same can be said for 'small breed dogs'. These food have extra minerals and vitamins in them geared toward joint health for large breeds.
Kibble Color
Here is the reason I bring this up. Many mainstream brands on the market have pieces that are different colors. Here is the problem with that - food coloring has been added to the food to make it that color. Again - THIS IS BAD.
That being said - stay away from brands that have colored kibble. I won't name names, but you can look on the bag or watch the commercials and know which brands I am talking about.
Good kibble will be all one color - which usually means no additives.
Most good dog foods can cost a decent amount of money. However, the more expensive brands that you DON'T see in commercials, the dog will eat less of. Which means the bag of food will last longer.
I also recommend going to smaller pet stores or feed stores in your area to find a good brand of dog food.
Most vet's offices promote a couple of brands - which can now be found in chain grocery stores. I do not recommend these brands. Again look at the ingredients.
A good ingredient list should read something like this
Chicken Meal, Chicken, Herring Meal, Potatoes, Chicken Fat, Dried Chicken Liver, Sweet Potatoes, Herring Oil, Eggs, Kelp, Alfalfa Sprouts, Saccharomyces Cerevisiae, Carrots, Celery, Beets, Dried Whey, Casein, DL-Methionine, Sea Salt, Taurine, Carnitine, Glucosamine, Lecithin, Lactobacillus Acidophilus, Lactobacillus Casei, Lactobacillus Lactis, Bacillus Bifidum, Bacillus Subtillus, Zinc Amino Acid Complex, Choline Chloride, Iron Amino Acid Complex, Vitamin E Supplement, Manganese Amino Acid Complex, Copper Amino Acid Complex, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Vitamin A Acetate, Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Thiamine Hydrochloride, Biotin, Cobalt Proteinate, Potassium Iodide, Sodium Selenite, Mixed Tocopherols (a natural preservative), Citric Acid, Yucca Schidigera, Rosemary Extract.
Notice that many of the top 20 or so ingredients are good for human consumption.
Here is an example of a BAD ingredient list
corn, soybean meal, beef and bone meal, ground wheat flour, animal fat (bha used as preservative), corn syrup, wheat middlings, water sufficient for processing, animal digest (source of chicken flavor), propylene glycol, salt, hydrochloric acid, potassium chloride, caramel color, sorbic acid (used as a preservative), sodium carbonate, minerals (ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, manganous oxide, copper sulfate, calcium iodate, sodium selenite), choline chloride, vitamins (vitamin E supplement, vitamin A supplement, niacin supplement, D-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement), calcium sulfate, titanium dioxide, yellow 5, yellow 6, red 40, BHA (used as a preservative), dl methionine.
Notice that the first two ingredients are fillers. Not only that this particular food has corn syrup in it. Dogs do not need corn syrup. If you look at the bottom of the list it has food coloring - again bad.
Many premium dog foods do not advertise with commercials or even on the internet. You have to do your research in the store.
I don't name actual brands of dog food on this blog entry to avoid the legality. But if you would like to know recommendations for which brand to purchase, send me a comment or message and I will give you recommendations that way.
Another alternative which can take some time is actually cooking for your dog. You can cook meat and vegetables just like you would for yourself but without any seasonings. I will be making a blog entry later about the RAW diet.
Up Next: Things that are Poisonous to Dogs
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