Which Type Of Food Is Best For My Dog?
Most dog owners are very conscientious about what they feed their dogs. Some only purchase the most expensive brands while others prefer to go all natural. For a dog to be healthy, they require a diet mixture of meats, fiber, and other nutrients. A normal adult dog will require around a 25% protein mixture and about 19% fat in their diets. However, if you have a puppy or a pregnant female, then they will require different percentages.
When looking to buy a commercial type of dog food, you must be sure to look at the ingredient percentages to see what they are. A good rule of thumb is that the more high quality dog foods will be healthier for your dog. And what you are looking for is to see that there are good quality proteins like lamb, turkey, or chicken meal in the first spot of the ingredients list. However, if you see grains in that top spot then you will need to search elsewhere.
The alternative method is to feed dogs raw foods that they prepare themselves. They feel this is much healthier as they can better guarantee the ingredients. This is often referred to as Biologically Appropriate Raw Food, or BARF. These people use such ingredients as raw bones with meat left on them, other proteins like cottage cheese, and egg shells for its vitamins like calcium, as well as vegetables. Both groups of people feel that they are doing what's best for their dog.
Pro's and Cons - For the first category we will look at what each side claims to be test worthy. Those that feed their dogs raw foods say that dogs have been surviving and thriving off raw foods like these for centuries while living out in the wild. They further their testing argument by saying that commercial dog foods are relatively new and therefore not enough time has passed to accurately test the effects of the food on dogs. And what's more, they say that it is the commercial dog food products that cause many health problems because of the additives including damaging their immune systems.
However, the commercial dog food feeders claim that major food brand companies like Purina have spent a lot of time and money on product testing of dog food. They feel that this type of dog food has all the healthy ingredients that their dogs need to be fit. And they further go on to state that feeding dogs the BARF way is too expensive, hard to make, and that most people do not know what they are doing and end up putting their dogs health at risk because of it. What's more, they support the fact that additives like omega 3 and 6 fatty acids are needed to promote healthy diets.
And finally, another argument is that raw dog food supporters feel dogs cannot digest the grains found in commercial products and that they are only used as fillers. Those that disagree say that dogs are omnivorous, they need grains in their diet and raw food only deprives them of that grain. Although each side has their strong arguments, in the end it is up to you to choose which is best for your dog.