Buying dog food is starting to feel a lot like buying toothpaste: Whitening? Brightening? Fluoride? Wholecare? Sensitive? Advanced Care?
How’s a person to choose?
If you’re trying to decide what to feed your dog, you may find yourself equally confused. Gone are the days when you simply went to the store to pick up a bag of dog food!
Are the ones that say “complete and balanced” really complete and balanced? And what if your dog has kidney or thyroid problems, or food allergies? Are raw dog foods safe? Is grain-free a good idea? Should your dog be eating fruits and vegetables? Should his diet be heavy on the protein and light on the carbs — or vice versa? How does kibble compare with wet food?
Whole Dog Journal gives a great explanation of what you want to look for in your dog’s food and what you want to avoid. Here it is in a nutshell:
What to look for:
- When you look at the list of ingredients, you want to see a lot of animal protein at the top.
- Look for specific proteins, such as chicken, beef and lamb. The words “meat” and “poultry” aren’t specific enough.
- If you’re buying food that lists “chicken” first on the list, look for “chicken meal” to come right after it. Same with beef, lamb, etc. The animal-protein meal helps support the protein.
- Think whole foods, such as specific vegetables and fruits as well as good carbs like potatoes, peas and chickpeas.
What to avoid:
- The words you don’t want to see are “meat byproducts,” “poultry byproducts,” “meat byproduct meal,” etc.
- Generic words are red flags. You want to see “chicken fat” and not “animal fat” or even “poultry fat.”
- Dogs don’t need sweeteners in their food any more than humans do. There’s no need for sugar, corn syrup, etc.
- Watch out for artificial colors and flavorings, along with preservatives such as BHA and BHT.
There’s a lot to think about when selecting a dog food — not the least of which is the individual needs of your own dog! A food that’s good for one dog may not meet the dietary needs of another. We highly recommend discussing what your dog is eating with your vet (especially if you plan on switching foods).
DogsHome will be sponsoring a free vaccine clinic for pets and their parents in Hibernia Park, Coatesville on Saturday, Sept. 26 from 10-2. We’d like to hand out a small bag of dog food or a couple cans of cat food to everyone who attends the clinic.
We can’t do this without you! Just $10 can feed a dog for a week or a cat for a month. Please donate now by clicking here.
(DogsHome is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.)
Let us know in the comments section below what kind of food your dog eats and whether you’re happy with it.
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