Choosing healthy dog food brand is critical your pet’s health. Why? They rely almost solely on us to give them what they need, and malnourishment isn’t just an overtly skinny dog. She could look healthy, but still have a nutrition deficiency. Or perhaps your dog is obese, this too is a major cause for concern.
Here’s some info about dog nourishment and dog food brands that will help you give him the best nutrition you can.
How It Starts:
For many pet parents, the biggest decision in buying dog food has to do with price. This is especially prevalent in multiple pet households. You may decide to give your buddy whatever brand you can afford. Unfortunately, cheap brands can also lead to allergies, malnourishment or obesity.
Obesity:
Let’s start with the last thing on that list. You’re feeding your dog the same food he’s always had but he seems to be getting a middle age paunch.
If you have a dog that’s getting older … and they all do … the food you have been feeding him may have worked well when his metabolism was higher but now just packs on the pounds. Some brands, like Beneful, can lack in nutrition for your dog because of the amount of fat and sugar included to make it tasty. The Taste of Wild offers a wide variety of grain free dog food with high protein, omega 3, omega 6 and antioxidants.
If your dog has gained weight, talk to your vet about switching dog foods and getting his/her recommendation for the best brand suitable for your pup.
A note about food switching: Do it gradually to avoid an upset stomach. A little at a time over the course of a week or two will help you avoid this problem.
Allergies:
Food can easily cause skin allergies and when your dog is miserable, you will be too. How can you tell if your dog has some allergies, but isn’t scratching constantly?
<READ: Natural Herbal Remedies For Skin Allergies In Dogs>
Brands
The big question we had when we started this post was what brands are good and which are the ones to avoid?
Going through all the brands would be a novella and there’s also the dry versus wet food debate. We looked specifically for some reviews of commercially available dog foods, and found one site, Dog Food Advisor, that offers some very simplistic guidance on the numerous brands. They rank the different brands on their nutritional value. Additionally, they have a large following so it’s easy to get answers for questions through their community forums.
Recalls
It’s easy to feel panicky when you hear about a dog food recall. You can also register for instance alerts through Dog Food Advisor for recalls.
Also See – Healthy Freeze Dried Dog Food
What type of dog food are you feeding your pup?