General Pet is your source for advice and information for a happy and healthy pet.
Author: Peter Calker Article source: http://www.articlealley.com/. Used with author's permission.
Dog Names
We all want to feed our dog with the best food available on market. But with so many variations of dog food, its not always easy to identify the best food for our dog.
What we can do, though, is to conduct a simple dog food comparison to determine which foods best fit our dogs requirements and our personal schedule. After all, some foods offer much greater convenience than the more natural, less processed types of food which may require freezing, thawing, cooking and preparation.
Convenience aside, the best food to give your dog depends not on the brand or the style, but rather on your dogs age and any special requirements he might have. For example, older dogs require food containing a careful balance of protein, fat and fiber. Most commercial dog food companies address this need with offerings such as senior dog food, containing about 18 % protein, and food for dogs diagnosed with renal failure, containing about 14% protein.
The vast majority of dog owners go for dry dog food. Between the supermarket and specialty pet stores, owners enjoy many brands to choose from. Dry dog food consists of kibble typically made from one primary ingredient such as chicken, beef or lamb. More specifically, the main ingredient is usually a meat byproduct that has been processed, dried and sold in packs or bags for easy dispensing. Needless to say, meat byproducts are far cheaper than meat, so this type of dog food is not only easy to store, it is much less expensive than other types.
Hard kibble comes with some advantages. For example, it gives your dogs mouth some exercise, and kibble is less likely to contribute to plaque than softer foods.
When comparing brands, it helps to remember that there are essentially two types of dry dog food on the market: premium dog food and economy dog food. A smart owner will avoid purchasing the economy food, which is made from lower grade ingredients (for example, economy dog food will often substitute cheap corn for the more expensive meat byproducts).
Other categories of dog food include the semi-moist type and canned food. Many owners like to mix in some canned food with dry food, to potentially cover more nutritional bases without taking too big a hit to the pocketbook.
Semi-moist food is attractively convenient to owners, and dogs love it. Unfortunately, it may cause dental problems in the mid-term and worse in the long term, because semi-moist food is loaded with corn syrup and other sugars, which dogs just arent designed to process.
Dog Names
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