Choosing the best food to feed your dog

Ensure your dog’s overall good health by only feeding it quality and nutritious dog food. But what exactly makes for the best dog food? The market is flooded with many products promising many different benefits. Which one should you trust?
Here are a few guidelines to help you in choosing the best dog food to feed your dog.

Dry vs. wet dog food
The dry dog food variety is the more widely available and affordable type of food that you can buy commercially. They’re convenient as they won’t need refrigeration to keep from spoiling. Being dry, they’re also very easy to store. Dry dog food is made from combining and cooking food like meat and grains. A downside however is that the food that goes in dry dog food are heavily-processed and have therefore might have lost a great part of their nutritional value. Be sure to check the label for possible harmful substances before buying dry dog food.

Meanwhile, wet dog food or canned dog food is the more expensive and relatively more nutritional choice. Given its fresher conditions but almost similar ingredients, wet dog food tend to be more palatable for dog to eat that dry dog food. The downside of exclusively feeding your dog wet dog food is the steeper price and the amount of preservatives.

Consider your dog’s food preferences, age, activity and breed.
You should primarily base your choice of dog food on factors such as your dog’s age, activity and breed. Also consider their food preferences but be sure to prioritize the former characteristics first.

There are different formulas of dog food in the market targeted for certain dog sizes and even ages as different dogs will have different nutritional needs. Of course, larger and adult dogs will have dog food with denser nutrition and kibble size than their small dog counterpart.

Check the label and ingredient list.
Make sure that your dog isn’t allergic to any of the ingredients listed in the label of your chosen dog food. You should also judge dog food based on its nutritional info. Look for foods with high protein percentages as this is the primary fuel of your dog’s health. Next, make sure that there isn’t too much sodium in the formulation as regular high sodium intake can contribute to your dog developing kidney stones.

When checking the ingredient list, make sure that ingredients labeled as by-products only include digestible and nutritious animal organs like lungs and livers.

Ask recommendations from your vet.
Don’t be afraid to ask for dog food recommendations from your vet as they will surely provide trustworthy advice when choosing your dog’s food. They could make educated guesses based on your dog’s genetics, lifestyle and current health condition to make sure that will get their much needed nutrients.
Vets could also help you in tracking your dog’s weight so as to prevent it from crossing over to an unhealthy weight range. A rule of thumb is that you should be able to feel your dogs ribs when you touch them. If not, then you might want to lessen their portions or switch to other dog foods.

A healthy dog is one that has a shiny and smooth coat, a sunny disposition, and a strong immune system. These could be achieved by feeding your dog the best food that will correspond to his or her needs based on age, breed, size and lifestyle.