When looking for good dog food for your pet the most important factor is nutrition. Whether you are shopping for an older dog, a large breed animal or a new puppy, commercial dog food labels can be misleading about nutrients and ingredients. By getting to know the best components of a great dog diet, owners can understand the labels and choose the perfect diet for their pet.
You Get What You Pay For
Cheap dog food has that low price for a reason. Inexpensive and unhealthy fillers and ingredients are the main components of cheap commercial dog foods and offer little nutritional benefits and may even harm your dog. Check the labels to make sure the first ingredients listed include a good meat source like chicken, beef or lamb, and not generic animal meat or bone meal or meat and poultry by-products.
Also look out for a combination of the following ingredients:
- Corn meal
- Corn cellulose
- Corn bran
- Brewer's rice
- Wheat millings
- Wheat gluten
When added together, these ingredients amount to a large portion of grains that offer little to no nutritional value and are not easily digested by dogs.
Paying more for premium dog food is not only better for your pet, but will also require smaller portions as your dog receives more of the nutrients he needs to stay active and healthy with less food.