Do you know what you're putting into your dog's dish every day? Here you'll learn about some of the most important things to consider when feeding a dog.
Your dog is a cherished member of your family, so you need to give serious thought to feeding your dog the same quality of food that you would actually eat yourself and feed to your kids.
Feeding a dog the right foods with all of the nutritional value a dog requires to keep him or her in optimal health throughout life is a vital component in determining a dog's behavior and is even instrumental in prolonging it's life.
There are certain things that dogs just shouldn't eat, some of which can make them very sick or even kill them. Eliminating the bad foods and selecting the best foods can be a real challenge, especially with all of the inconsistent information and blatant lies being circulated by pet food manufacturers and their agents.
We hope that providing you with enough valuable information, tips and suggestions on feeding a dog a nutritious diet will make those selections easier for you and the everyday routine of feeding a dog an enjoyable experience for both you and your dog.
There are now so many choices available when you shop for dog food it's mind-boggling, so it's perfectly understandable why finding the best ones to buy can be extremely confusing. Should you buy canned food, dry food or semi-moist food? Should you spend a lot of money for premium dog food, or is the cheapest brand okay? Should you buy holistic/organic dog food or should you even make your dog's food yourself. What about the possibility of getting creative with the choices and feeding a dog some combination?
What we just mentioned is only a sample of the many questions and challenges you may encounter when deciding what you should be feeding a dog. If you'd like greater detail and, hopefully, some answers to those questions, stay with us through this article. Also, watch for additional articles, in the near future, where we'll be providing you with much more detailed information on every aspect of providing a healthy and nutritious diet for your dog.
We are not attempting to tell you what the best food choices are for your dog, we are simply offering as much information as we can and listing various options so that you can make your own informed decisions on what foods will provide the highest level of nutrition for your dog. We realize dog nutrition can be a complex topic, so we'll try to break it all down and simplify it for you as much as possible.
Below, we list some important basics you should know if you feed any commercial dog food to your dog. We'll get into greater detail about each of them on our website and blog and in the articles to follow.
So,what's the most important thing?
Quality: You might think selecting a brand of dog food should be as easy as finding one that fits within your budget and one your dog likes. But you need to very careful; there are a great many brands on the market that are made almost entirely of filler and don't have many of the nutrients dogs need. In addition, some of them contain toxic ingredients that can seriously harm your dog.
We realize convenience can be one of the biggest factors in feeding a dog commercial dog foods. If store bought dog food is the primary source of nutrition for your dog, it's very important that it contain all the vitamins and minerals needed by your dog everyday for it's optimal health and longevity.
The biggest difference in all dog foods is in their source of protein. Cheaper dog foods use the very least expensive sources of protein available, some of which will shock and utterly disgust you. Therefore, the quality of the protein in less expensive dog foods, like generic or grocery store labeled brands, is vastly inferior. Even some of the name brands use inferior ingredients...you really need to know what to look for.
There are so many disgusting "protein" ingredients that some commercial dog food manufacturers use, it's not only repulsive, it's outright criminal! Please be sure you know exactly "what" the protein consists of when you're feeding a dog.
Avoid getting inexpensive no-name or store brand dog foods because they are most often produced by bulk manufacturers who use the worst forms of ingredients, and whose actions and lack of ethics are just plain loathsome. Do your best to find a quality dog food to give to your dog.
Be aware that you can be seriously mislead if you only consider the "percentage" of protein that's listed on the label. This does not tell you anything about it's quality, what that protein source is or how well your dog will absorb it. Some dog food manufacturers are very cagey when it comes to listing "percentages"
There are a number of different things you should be looking for if you want to choose high quality food for your dog. You may want to start by comparing the prices and ingredients of various brands of commercial dog food. Start with the premium brands first and then move into the lower quality products. Look for significant differences in where each of the ingredients are listed and what nutritional values each brand contains.
The very best dog foods will list some form of animal meat as their main ingredient on the label or bag. Look for brands that give only the kind of meat used (like chicken, beef, lamb, etc) without adding "by-products", or anything else along with it. This means that the product contains choice pieces of meat and not low quality slaughterhouse waste, known as "4D Meat" or "Downer Meat" (just awful!!!).
What's the next most important thing?
Filler: Corn and wheat (not the kind we eat) are used as filler products and make up a large percentage of the ingredients in many commercial brands of dog food. They provide bulk with hardly any useful nutrients for your dog and are also quite difficult for them to digest.
The brands that utilize fillers as their main ingredient will certainly be a lot cheaper than the higher quality dog foods, but your dog won't get sufficient amounts of the nutrients needed in its daily diet, and that could eventually show up as serious behavioral or health problems.
It could ultimately cost you a lot more, in the long run, because you'll end up with either high dog behaviorist fees or high veterinary bills, or both...so please beware of filler!
What's next?
Variety: Alternating between brands is crucial to your pet's health! (this applies to any and all commercial or homemade diets and recipes!) Do not get in the habit of feeding just one or two dry foods or mixtures of ingredients all the time, day in and day out.
Dog nutrition experts advise dog owners to purchase, or preferably prepare, several different types of high quality foods. They suggest you alternate the foods, giving each one of them to your dog for a given period of time (say for one to three months), so that if one lacks in certain nutrients, the other may make up for it.
If you feed only dry food, you should also consider occasionally feeding wet food to your dog. It's usually much higher in protein than dry food and doesn't contain as much filler. Try mixing some wet food in with the dry food but, be careful not to leave it sit too long because there's a risk of bacteria contamination.
Alternating foods can have valuable health benefits and your dog will probably thank you for it...they love the smell and flavor of wet foods. Just be sure not to overdo it as too much protein can be harmful to dogs...just like "too much of a good thing" can be bad for us!
If you do alternate different foods, be sure keep an eye on your dog's coat, energy level, eating habits, stool, etc. If there are any noticeable changes, it might indicate an allergic reaction to the new food, or it could mean that the food doesn't contain enough protein for your dog's needs.
Every dog has it's own unique energy level and each also gets varying amounts of exercise each day. A good rule of thumb is that the more exercise your dog gets, the more protein it needs to be fit and healthy.
You get what you pay for...
Price: The quality of any dog food is reflected directly in the price you pay. Remember, like everything else in life, you get what you pay for!
Stay away from brands of dog food that are sold exclusively by groomers, veterinarians or pet stores. They tend to be grossly overpriced and the quality can vary greatly because they're manufactured by small companies that do not have the resources to monitor the quality of their ingredients. Lots of harmful things can "slip through the cracks".
They also make hugely exaggerated claims about the ability of their products to cure or prevent every conceivable disease known to dog. They're just not worth the money...there are better and less expensive alternatives to choose from.
If you prefer to feed your dog a commercial dog food, stick with products that meet high nutritional standards and are produced by large companies that you know and can trust. This suggestion does not apply to the special diet dog foods needed to manage specific diseases and sold by veterinarians. Just make sure you know exactly what's in those special diet foods, the same as you would any store bought dog food.
Should I Read Labels?
Labels: The first three ingredients on the label are the most important! A number of experts have offered tips on what to look for on the label of any dog food you consider purchasing when feeding a dog.
The three initial ingredients (the ones listed first) need to be some form of protein, containing one word each like, chicken, turkey or beef (and not "protein by-products" or other plural names!). High protein content is considered to be the most essential ingredient in a healthy dog food product. Again, don't go by just percentages alone, they can be very deceiving!
Those experts also say that you must never purchase dog food that doesn't clearly display the manufacturer's name on the packaging, along with contact information, such as website address and phone number. There should always be a way to contact someone in case anything goes wrong...if not, pass!
Some commercial dog food brands are usually safe for feeding a dog and can offer decent nutritional value, but you need to stay on top of things to make certain your dog is consuming a healthy product. Study labels to ensure the ingredients in any brand you choose are high quality, this will help you avoid any health or behavioral issues. You also need to watch for any recalls, which do happen occasionally.
Also, keep an eye on your dog to make sure the food you're feeding a dog agrees with it and is providing health benefits for it's overall wellness.
What About Homemade Dog Food?
Cooking For Dogs: Homemade diets can be a wonderful choice for feeding a dog, especially after the latest commercial pet foods scare. When you're home-cooking your dog's food you can control the quality of the ingredients that go into each meal, and completely eliminate all of those harmful commercial food additives, colorings and preservatives.
If you think you may want to prepare homemade food for your dog please come back soon and read our forthcoming article on homemade dog food (or visit our website). We will offer loads of information on what's involved in feeding a dog nutritious home cooked food plus some great recipes that are easy to make and will delight your dog.
*Remember to have fresh water available for your dog, at all times! This is especially critical during the summer months when it's hot and your dog can become dehydrated.
Important Notice! Although we are long time dog enthusiasts and dog advocates, we are not veterinarians or professional animal nutritionists. Our purpose is strictly to provide you with information, so that you can make your own decisions. Any and all of the information contained or stated in this article is provided for general information purposes. The information provided is not direct veterinary advice for your dog and should not be construed as such nor substituted for a consultation with a veterinarian or dog nutrition professional. Every dog and situation is different. If you have any concerns about your dog's health, please contact your veterinarian's office immediately. We all love our dogs and want only the very best for them! "In Dogs We Trust"
Anita Boyd has been a "dog person" her entire life and just recently learned that she's been feeding toxic ingredients to her dogs over many years through a commercial dog food that she trusted would nourish them. One of her dogs suffered from severe bladder issues and died at a very early age and the others died far too soon from cancer.
Now that she's learned the awful truth about what's really in some commercial dog foods, she feels compelled to expose the blatant lies that are being perpetuated by pet food companies. She's decided to publicize everything she now knows or will still learn about the disgusting, toxic ingredients we're unknowingly feeding to our trusting dogs.
Here in these articles, on the Dogliciousblogs and Website: http://feedingadog.yolasite.com you'll be provided with some extremely important and highly detailed information related to this subject. She hopes you'll visit her Website: http://www.feedingadog.yolasite.com and Dogliciousblogs. And, please come back here often to read new and informative articles, all about feeding a dog.
"In Dogs We Trust"!
