Purchasing dog food can be surprisingly complicated. But, it is so essential to your pet’s health. After all, we are what we eat.
There are quite a few things you’ll need to keep in mind in order to choose the perfect dog food for your pet.
To help you out, we have a few tips for you to keep in mind:
No Fillers
Foods should be as nutritious as possible. If it is full of fillers, this isn’t going to be the case.
Often, grains are used as fillers. Usually, these grains are cheap, processed grains like white rice. These add little nutritional value, but they bulk up the food. This cuts costs for the company but is the opposite of what you want for your canine.
Keep in mind: whole grains are not necessarily always used as fillers. Often, they can be decently nutritious and are a good choice in moderation.
Fillers can also be vegetables. Often, the vegetables used are cheap and high in protein, like peas. These veggies do have some nutritional value, but they are often overused. There is such a thing as too much of a good thing.
High Meat Content
Our dogs evolved to eat mostly meat. Because of this, it is often best that their food contains mostly meat too.
Meat has most of the nutrients our dogs need, such as high amounts of fat and protein.
You should choose whole meat when possible. Typically, this meat is going to be high-quality than other types of meat. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean all by-products and meal are bad.
If a meal or by-product is labeled, it is likely decently high quality. Meals can actually be more nutritious than whole meat in some cases, simply because they tend to be denser.
Good Price
Dog foods vary a lot in price. You can get some dog food for extremely cheap, but you can also find some that are insanely expensive.
A good price for you is probably going to be different than a good price for someone else. It really depends on your budget, as well as the number of dogs you have.
When comparing dog food, aim to get the best one in your price range. Obviously, you’re going to have more great options if your budget is higher. But, you can find some great dog foods for decently inexpensive as well.
Use Doggypedia
An easy way to pick the best food for your dog is to look at Doggypedia. They have a scientific approach to review tons of different dog foods, making it easy for you to choose the best option for your pooch.
They also have articles on specific types of dog food, such as rabbit dog food or dog food for those on a budget.
While it is still important to judge each food yourself, they do a great job of laying out the pros and cons of each dog food – making it much easier for the average dog owner to make a decision.