How To Compare Dog Foods – What To Look For

We all love our dogs and want to give them the best life has to offer. But with so many variations of dog food in the market, it is hard to compare dog foods to identify the healthiest dog food . And the dog food packaging makes us even more nervous about buying with enticing adverts like: “rich in antioxidants,” “highly digestible,” “Omega-3 fatty acids” and “Ultra Premium Formula”. Does our dog need these?

The best thing to do is to conduct a simple dog food comparison to determine which foods best fit our dog’s requirements and our personal budget. 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. Other foods that are nutritionally supreme may just be completely unrealistic for our budget.

Convenience aside, the best food to give your dog depends not on the brand or the style, but rather on your dog’s 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. (See post on How to Choose the Healthiest Dog Food for more info).

Dry Dog Food or Moist?
The majority of the dog foods out there are dry. The main advantage of dry dog food (for the dog food companies) is the shelf-life of the product. The main advantage of dry dog food for your dog is the chewing helps remove plaque build up on his teeth. If you do opt for moist dog food, just make sure your dog has something to chew on (hard rubber toy or nylabone) to help remove the plaque. It is really a personal, and dog, preference, nutritionally speaking. The vast majority of dog owners go for dry dog food.

Meat, Meal, By-Products
Now here is where is starts to get complicated. Look at the first ingredient on several dog foods. You’ll probably see: chicken, chicken meal, or chicken by-product (substitute in any meat type – beef, lamb, fish, etc). What is the difference? Typically the price of the food, along with the quality of the food.

A meat or meat meal, as the first ingredient, is most desirable because that means the main source of protein is pure meat – meal is just ground up dehydrated meat. A by-product is what is left after all the useable meat is removed. This is not necessarily bad for your dog, but it should not be listed as a top 3 ingredient, especially if it is claiming to be a premium dog food.

Premium, Economy, or Super-Premium?
When comparing brands, it helps to remember that there are essentially two types of dry dog food on the market: premium dog foods and economy dog foods. Economy dog food is cheap because the ingredients used are cheaper and usually don’t have much nutrition left in them. If economy is all you can afford, look at dog vitamin supplements or even some human-grade food to add to the dog food to provide nutrients that just aren’t in there – there are a lot out there that won’t break your budget. Pureeing frozen vegetables and adding them to your dog’s food are a great way to add in nutrients cheaply.

Recently, more natural, super premium dog food has been introduced to the market. These types of healthy dog food have higher quantities of quality, nutritious ingredients used the food — often human-grade, in fact. Since vegetables, fruits, real meat and quality grains are used, these foods are a fast route to healthy skin and beautiful coat. For the most part, they contain no artificial coloring and preservatives, but are chock-full of vitamins and minerals instead.

Although this food costs more, you can feed your dog less of it, because it’s more nutritionally dense. So in terms of both convenience and nutrition, a premium or super premium, natural dog food is one of the best choices available to your dog.

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