Puppy Education

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A dog’s food is just as important to them as a human’s food is to us. It gives them all the sustenance, nourishment and energy that they need to keep bounding around and wagging that tail.

There are so many brands of dog food out there that it can be hard to choose which is best for your four legged friend. So, how can you tell the difference between a good brand and a not so good brand?

Well, generally speaking, a dog food should be made up of 50% meat and 50% vegetables, with little or no grain or wheat, as they usually thrown into dog food as cheap fillers.

If you can spare the extra money, go for premium brands or, better yet, holistic brands as they are 100% natural. It may seem odd, but think of it like this – if you wouldn’t eat it, your dog shouldn’t eat it either.

When you are examining the ingredients, try and look for the following five ingredients – as they are the most important:

Water

This is probably the most important thing that your dog requires. In fact, an adult dog’s body is 60% water and puppies are 84%! Therefore a loss of even 10% body water can cause serious problems. A dog should consume 2.5 times the amount of food as water, but often it is best to just have a bowl of water that the dog can go to when they like, to ensure he doesn’t get dehydrated.

Protein

Just like humans, dogs require protein in order to maintain a balanced diet. However, because a dog is mostly carnivorous, they require a much higher level of meat than we do for example. Therefore, it is best to ensure that your dog’s food contains at least 50% animal protein.

Fats

Fats aren’t just from meats, your dog needs fats from both plants and animal products. Again, your dog is much like you in that their level of fat shouldn’t be too high and they should have a balanced diet that it suitable for them.

Minerals and vitamins

Your dog requires vitamins in order to process bio-chemicals. Avoid dog foods that use chemicals such as BHA, BHT or Ethoxyquin, but opt for ones that include Vitamin E and Vitamin C.

Carbohydrates

Normal dry pet food contains between 30-70% carbohydrates, as they are a cheaper form of nutrition. Carbohydrates are the easiest form of nutrition to provide in excess to your dog, this can then lead to fat and cause obesity. Take care not to let it get to this point.

Foods to avoid

Chocolate, coffee, tea, citrus extracts, dairy products, onions, garlic, sugar, table scraps and greasy foods.