What is a Healthy diet for a dog?- Review and Compare food types

Healthy Diet

Regardless of breed or age, your dogs diet will often come under scrutiny by you the owners. Your dog may have slowly gained a few extra pounds or indeed may have lost weight, she may be pregnant or could be he or she is sedentary due to old age. Whatever has made you read this post it’s likely you are wondering what is a healthy diet for a dog, more importantly what’s a healthy diet for your dog. It can seem bewildering and often expensive and you may feel its possibly biased.

Fundamentally it comes down to three types

 

  • Raw
  • Wet
  • Kibble

Raw Food,

At this point and if you are new to raw food you may not be thinking much beyond the butcher or the packaged frozen food in Pet Stores. But over the last few years this is a changed and whole new market, with complex and nutrient rich foods which can give your dog a balanced diet.

PROS:

By choosing your brand carefully will ensure it’s healthy with all the right mix of vitamins and minerals.

Dogs health and weight are much easier to manage. Once you have made the change

Will look at brands with a good reviews and those approved and trusted by dog owners later.

CONS:

Freezer space, weening your dog slowly to an only raw diet, it’s not sensible to mix raw and processed food. It can cause Upset tummies.

Not all brands are equal and the ingredients may include bulking agents

Can be expensive,

Not all dogs are happy with a raw diet, it’s worth noting that if there are other pets/Dogs/cats In the house you need to be mindful of what they too are eating as your hound maybe a stealth thief and end up eating another’s dinner. (Including the cats) This is a change of life for you and your dog and he can not eat your left overs – nor should he.

WET OR PROCESSED DOG FOOD

There are some new kids on the block and these are the culinary equivalent of Gousto or Hello Fresh, (A British human high end tailor made diet delivered to your door)

The Tailor made dog variety allegedly tailor make for your breed, dog wight and preferences. Whilst more expensive they are without a doubt yours and your dogs new best friend

PROS for both WET & TINNED/CANNED DOG FOOD

Easy to serve, most popular therefore most competitive.

CONS:

Just like any processed foods there are some which offer excellence and some which are downright awful. Some add carb rich additives also some include, sweeteners and bulking agents to the ingredients. Tinned dog food is not bound by the same guidelines or ethics as human food therefore you have to trust the manufacturer and you need to be mindful of all the additives. Reading reviews of the manufacturer is a worthwhile investment.

KIBBLE/ DRY DOG FOOD

Pros for Kibble Dog Food:

Convenient….is most definitely right up there as one of the first pros of Kibble and the good quality brands offer nutrient rich and good diet control. Good for teeth as it provides something to chew on which assists with plaque control

So what’s not to like

Cons:

Like processed food, there is good and bad and like processed food you have to trust the manufacturer not to add, not to dilute, not to bulk or indeed not to add sweeteners, of which many include. Often Kibble is carb heavy, Dogs can become bored with the same food and may resort to scrounging simply for a bit of diversity. Not all dogs are happy on a biscuit only diet, some are perpetually thirsty. Many owners think that the idea of serving the same dried food day in and day out is too repetitive for their dog and therefore have a mindset against Kibble

 

Scrounger
Always on the Hunt

There is s 4th option

 

HOMEMADE BY YOU

 

PROS

Homemade dog food diets provide a wider variety of healthful foods and nutrients

CONS

It can be easy to neglect certain necessary ingredients to your dog’s health when making his food at home – putting him at risk of nutritional deficiency if you’re not vigilant

Homemade dog food puts you in control – you know exactly what your dog is eating. Equally you need to be aware that home prepped dog food requires attention to dietary needs; you will need to use dog vitamin supplements
Dogs often prefer the taste of homemade meals to commercial dog food Cooking for your dogs takes considerable time
When you make your dog’s food from scratch, ingredients are minimally processed and fresh Feeding homemade dog food is potentially more costly than buying commercial food
Homecooked meals result in marked health improvements for many dogs Be aware you are not over or under feeding

CONCLUSION: The Best Diet For Your Dog

Whilst there is no definitive answer to this question, there is without a doubt the wrong diet.

No one diet suits all dogs, in fact you may have more than one dog in your house and each like different things. Do not feel pressured to purchase the expensive diet foods sold in the Vets, but equally try not to be driven by cost. You will hopefully have your dog for many years; so take some time to look at what you are giving your dog in terms of added ingredients.

Recapping

At risk of stating the obvious, never give your dog your left overs, all sorts of nasties which your dog is unable to digest creep in, like onions, powdered gravy, and even some of the nightshade family.

Raw Food, do not mix and choose carefully.

Wet food, the best you can afford and ensure they have something additional to chew and nibble or manually clean their teeth, this to enable plaque to be removed as a diet of Wet food can cause a build up of plaque, common concern. You could add mixer biscuits but ensure you don’t over feed

Kibble. Not all are equal some have added carbs, and additional unwanted ingredients,

Homemade, ensure all nutrients are met, so a bit of research is required before you serve up a culinary masterpiece. Be realistic about the time it will take to research, shop and prepare.

I am adding reviews of the most popular in each of the category on the next post. We will look at trusted review sites and I will give you the benefit of my own research.

But for now if you have any comments on the above or indeed you have any pictures of your pet I would love to see them.

Thank your for reading my blog

CordeliaN

NB. ”Medical Disclaimer. Please do not rely on our website for medical or veterinary care, please speak to the professionals should you have concerns.”

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