Diet Counts In The Life Of A Dog

Often times people feel free to feed their pet
dogs right off the table. What's better than a
slab of meatloaf, a mound of mashed potatoes,
mixed with a splattering of baked beans?
Everything, because a dog's diet is quite
different than that of his owners, and by
feeding a dog leftovers is just as harmful or
distaining as feeding his owner dog food.

A dog's diet begins with purchasing a quality
dry dog food mix, which can be supplemented with
saltless broth, vegetables or leftover lean meat.
A dog owner should use the same reasoning when
feeding a dog, as he would when feeding his
family. If one of your family members had an
allergy, you would naturally avoid those types
of foods that aggravated the allergy.

The same same goes for dogs with allergies. Dry
skin on a dog's coat means that a supplement
with omega fatty acid should be added to the
diet. When rounding out a dog's diet, an owner
should use practical thinking to make sure that
just like any living being,; a dog needs water,
vitamins, proteins, carbohydrates and mineral to
ensure that it is receiving the necessary
calories to sustain the daily activities, growth
and abilility to mend should an illness or
accident occur.

An owner purchasing a dry dog food should
carefuly peruse the contents of the dog food to
make sure that the contents are well balanced.
Too much of one mineral or too little could
create an imbalance with other contents like
vitamins or proteins. It could also create an
embalance problem; whereby, one supplement
overcedes the ability of another to create a
balanced mix.

An owner should be conscious of the breed of
dog he owns in order to assure the dog is
receiving the proper ingredients are being
supplied for that particular breed. For example
there are some breeds that require little or no
meat; rather, they prefer chicken, veal or
venison. Other dog breeds thrive on a strictly
vegetarian diet. An important point when
selecting dry dog food is to look at the by
product information regarding ingredients, you
would be surprised to note that they can include
feathers, beaks, feet and even in the past wool.

There are some acceptable by-products that can
enhance a dog's diet if added at the proper
concentration and with the appropriate
processing methods. As an example, with proper
processing, beaks and feathers can add protein
to a dog's diet. Some dog owners shy away from
any dry dog food that contains chemical
additives. This is all well and good, but keep
in mind that these chemical free products have a
tendency to spoil faster than those that have
some sort of chemical perservative, so check the
date of expiration carefully. This rule of thumb
applies to dog foods that contain meats from
animals raised free of antibiotic, hormones or
pesticides. If an owner favors canned dog food
over dry dog food, he must be aware that canned
food is generally at least 75% water, and can
contain things like iron oxide and sodium
nitrate to add color.

Canned goods, foods, contain chemicals like
sugar, and propylene. All of these added
ingredients do not help in making an acceptable
diet for a dog. Chemicals and enhancing agents
can have an adverse reaction in your animal,
making your desire to raise a healthy and happy
dog a liitle more difficult. To find the best
dog food for a dog, it is advisable to speak
with a veterinarian or an expert in the field.

A dog food should be chosen based on the
weight, size, age and activity of the dog and
nutritional facts should always be readily
available. Keep in mind, by taking the time to
find out what your particular breed needs to
thrive, can increase his lifespan by 130% or
more, adding over eight plus years to his life

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Founded in Ringstead, Northamptonshire in 1939,
Dodson and Horrell has grown to become a
respected authority on animal nutrition and
Europe's leading horse feed manufacturer
http://www.chudleys.com

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