How to select good dog and cat food
What to look for and how to select good dog or cat food?
Many dog owners are puzzles as to what they should buy for their dogs or cats. Responsible owners should buy balanced and nutritious diet for their dogs.
The best way to look for the best food is to read the label carefully to know the ingredients of the food. The label will list all the ingredients of the food from the highest to the least weight. There are several points to be careful while choosing the dog food.
Meat content if it is whole meat before rendering is not the right measurement. Any by products present in dog food indicates the use of cheap alternatives. Moisture level above 11 indicates that the dog food is low quality.
There are some essential ingredients to look for in dog food:
Chicken or beef meal is a good indicator of proteins in dog food. Whole meat does not have required proteins.
The dog food should be void of animal by products. This is an indicator of good quality. Good quality dog food should contain less than 10% moisture, which is the ideal level.
Chicken meal is the best for its proteins. Chicken meal means baked chicken is mainly made up of water – 60% chicken means that chicken has been baked to remove the water content and hence knowledge of chicken present is essential. Remmber to use dog enzymes if needed.
Nutrition is the most important factor in a dog food. Never compromise this for size and shape of the food. There are various sizes and shapes of dog food available in the market.
Ensure that your dog is eating a healthy diet. It should contain all nutrients and ingredients to keep your dog very healthy.
A dog not fed on proper nutrients will be lethargic and have poor behavior. The coat and skin of such dogs do not have sheen or shine. A well-fed dog tends to have a thick, shiny coat. They also exhibit good behavior.
Cat pet food is also very hard to choose. The most basic question often asked by cat owners is whether the cats should be fed on wet or dry food. Cat foods should have 50% of moisture content in them to make them the most healthy diet for the cats. Cat foods, which are low in moisture and high in carbohydrates, are a big no for the cats. They need a lot of water in their diet. It is best not to mix any water content like broth, milk or water to dry cat food. This could be potentially dangerous as there is bacteria content in the foods which tend to grow more when water is added.
Though it is good to go for pet foods available on the shelves, as they are easy to use. The other healthy way is to add raw supplements to the diet of cats and dogs like raw meat, fish and vegetables. Supplements like vitamins are also available in the market that are easy to use.
