Dog Food and Supplements

Dog Food & Supplements – A Look At Nutrition For Your Pets

According to the canine nutritional professionals, a 90 pound adultGerman Shepherd actually needs up to seven cans of dog food on a daily basis. A 60 pound Collie can needs five cans per day. For the average household, this can become a very expensive ritual.

Dry dog foods, in contrast, contain only about 10% moisture - the other 65% having been taken away on purpose during the dehydration process. So, the dog owner is expected to replace the moisture either by providing the dog with plenty amounts of water alongside the meal dish, or by adding it directly to the dry dog food. Feeding directions on labels of dry dog food are very clear about this.

The drawback in feeding dry dog food is often caused by the dog owner having allowed the family pet to consume table scraps and meal leftovers. Eating human food accomplishes absolutely nothing for your pet’s nutritional needs, and it just creates the problem of the fussy eater.

Under the incorrect belief that they’re doing the dog this great big favor, the dog owner is really depriving the dog of its nutrients that rightfully belongs to him. This is literally taking food right out of your pet’s mouth, so-to-speak.

In the middle of the scale are the "soft-moist" products available on the market that contain more moisture content than dry foods, but significantly less than the canned foods. They are the easiest of all three types to make for your dog, but are far and away the most expensive. Perhaps, they are economically most suitable for the small dog.

A compromise solution for the family with the fussy eater as well as the family with a limited pet food budget might be a mixture of both canned and dry. Mixing two kinds – each balanced nutritionally – does nothing to upset the interrelationships of the nutrients.

It's much easier to monitor the weight of the family dog when this mixture is used. Instead of reducing the volume intake of the obese dog, a reduction in the amount of dry food, with equivalent increase in canned food will carry out this without having a dog that is always hungry and begging for scraps from the table.

On the opposite end of the scope, increasing the amount of dry food, with a equivalent decrease in canned, may help to bring the weight up on the dog that has a tendency to be skinny.

The diet of today's healthy dog has come quite a long way from the old days of being fed whale blubber and table scrapes such as mashed potatoes (with gravy) and cornbread. If manufacturers would take just as much interest in our foods... but for now, if your dog's preference between caviar or a commercially prepared, balanced pet food, he'd be wise to chose the dog food. So, pound for pound – and dollar for dollar – the canine and his owner would be way ahead.

Article by Amy Christianson of Oh My Dog Supplies, your top spot to buy dog sweaters & sweatshirts online.