Although humans don’t feed other animals as well as they feed themselves, human society has gone as far as developing food designed just for being consumed by dogs and other canines. Dogs’ dietary needs are largely different from what humans eat.
For example, dog teeth are entirely sharp and pointy, indicating that dogs evolved primarily as carnivores. Further, dogs have relatively short digestive tracts; plants are not processed anywhere as near as effective as meat is in these species-wide specialized gastrointestinal systems. Dry, crunchy, roughly round bits of healthy dog food known as kibble were initially invented some 160 years ago in England, which doubled as a way of cleaning dogs’ teeth. Are dog foods that different from one another, anyway?
Dry dog food. This type of healthy dog food – again, it is referred to as kibble – is the most popular type of manufactured food designed intently for consumption by canines. One of the benefits of using dry dog food is that it stays good for days or weeks at a time after leaving it in dog bowls, something that wet dog food simply can’t do. Kibble also lasts longer on shelves than wet dog food does, even if that wet dog food is stored in a refrigerator or other cool place above freezing temperature. People who regularly enter their dogs into agility, jumping, or skill competitions typically travel with dry dog food instead of its wet counterpart because kibble is infinitely easier to travel with.
Wet dog food. The available quality of dog food has changed for the better in recent years thanks to several companies’ entries of high quality wet dog foods to the gourmet market. This type of dog food is either canned until pet owners are ready to feed their pups or stored in a refrigerator or freezer to prevent spoilage. Although most dogs don’t have this problem, some fail to drink enough water. People whose dogs simply don’t drink as much water as they should be are sometimes fed wet dog food as a means of increasing the water they take in on a regular basis. Wet dog food has gone through fewer food processing procedures, making this type of food better for owners who are concerned with the quality of food that their pets eat. Lastly, veterinarians often urge dog owners whose canine friends have food allergies or sensitivities to feed them wet dog food, as it often causes fewer problems for such dogs.
Grain free dog food. Grains have long been one of the most prevalent ingredients in dog foods of all kinds. Although dogs can digest, process, and make nutritional use of grains, some believe that dogs are less healthy when they regularly consume grains. Official, peer-reviewed studies have shown that dogs are not harmed by the consumption of grains. As a matter of fact, grains only pose issues to canines if they are known to have existing allergies to grains. Some dog owners think that grains even go as far as causing allergies, something that isn’t true at all. Dogs that are known to have digestion issues may be best served by eating grain-free dog foods, though virtually all other kinds of dogs, outside of those who have specific grain allergies, should regularly eat grains.
Best healthy dog foods. Although some dog foods are objectively better than others, there is no such thing as the best healthy dog food in an objective sense. Rather, some brands of feed will serve particular dogs’ interests better than other varieties will. Further, dogs sometimes refuse to eat various kinds of dog foods due to them personally not enjoying the taste. To get them to remain healthy, owners need to expose them to other dog foods that they actually enjoy consuming.
Dog food delivery and purchase options. One of the most common places where people buy dog food is in supermarkets such as Walmart. However, more and more dog owners are turning to the World Wide Web to find customized dog foods that meet their very own pets’ specific needs and niche brands of wet, dry, and grain-free dog foods to keep their pups in working order. Dog food is heavy, so if you can order it online, or set up a subscription for it, then it’s perfect.