Healthy Dogs and Nutrition

Your dogs can never be truly healthy if you cannot give them the right type of food. You need to understand that nutrition will always play a big part in the growth and development of your dog.

There are nutrients that should always be present in the food that you give. The first and most important of all of them is protein. This should be in their food most of the time, if not always. The fat content should also be based on the amount of activity that your dog has. Some will require normal fat contents some will require something lower. Then, carbohydrates will also be important for supplementation and support for nutrition.

All in all, these nutrients can be found in different types of food and in different proportions for them to be considered healthy. A dog’s should contain 50% vegetables, 40% meat and the rest can contain grains.
The vegetables that you will be feeding your dog should contain high levels of nutrients and minerals. This can add to the nourishment that your dog is receiving.

Meat as another important component should be cooked. It can be from chicken, fish, lamb, or turkey. There may be other types of meat sources. But, these four are the most commonly used because of their protein content and their availability. The choice of meat to feed your dog will be up to you. There are products like Blue Buffalo brand dog food which can give you the choices of different meats.

By-products can also be present in some commercial food products. These come other parts of the animal where the meat is taken from but the meat is not included. By-products can be from bones, feet, intestines, and many other things. This adds to the bulk of the product. A sad part of all of this is that by-products do not have any good nutritional values.

Grains are also contained in some products. These can be in the form of corn, rice, or wheat. You should be careful about buying dog food with grains in their components. There are some dogs which develop sensitivities after they have ingested the grains. This can be manifested by hot spots on the skin of your pet. The most common grain that dogs are sensitive to is corn. It is better if the food has rice or wheat in them.

You should also check the food product if it has preservatives in them. This is a necessary component as the meat will not last for long if it is not preserved. However, there may be components which are toxic to your dogs. Chemical preservatives are the ones that you should generally avoid. The safest to use are Vitamin C or Vitamin E.

Aside from their main meals, dogs also enjoy it if they are given small treats from time to time. Merrick brand dog food can be one brand where you can find different kinds of dog treats and dog chews.A healthy dog will be the one that also eats a healthy diet. Therefore, it is paramount that you give attention to feeding them right.