Dry Dog
What is the healthiest kind of dry dog food for small dogs?
I have heard that you should feed your dog dry food, because it keeps their teeth strong (not sure if this is true). My dog really loves the wet, meat with gravy kind of food, but he will also eat dry dog food. I usually put a little bit of beef stock over it to flavor it up a little though. Any suggestions on a certain food? My dog is a 9 month old Maltese.
There are some great brands out there like Nutro Natural Choice, Natural Balance, Castor and Pollux... ect...
Many will suit your dog just fine, but let's look at how to buy dog food.
1.) Check the ingredients which are listed by weight. You want ingredients like chicken, duck, and salmon listed as the first few ingredients. Ingredients you don't want too much of are kinda obvious like meat byproduct, rice, chicken meal.
2.) Check the guaranteed analysis. Puppies need around 25% protein and 16% fat, adults need around 21% protein and 14% fat, senior dogs need even less. Best thing to do is compare the puppy, adult and senior foods all from the same brand and then grab a lesser brand to compare as well.
3.) You might also want to look at the company's practices. Does this brand make a premium *and* grocery brand as well? Do they have corporate responsibility? Were they affected by the mass recall of a few years back? Do they own their own factory?
I like Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance. They have an organic food and great options for dogs with food allergies. They do not have a solely "puppy" option though, their food is designed for dogs of all ages. Small dogs tend to mature faster than older dogs, so Natural Balance is still a great option for you.
And you're right, dry food is great for helping to keep your dog's teeth clean from tartar. But it's not the only thing they need for dental health. Regular vet checks are required and teeth brushing can help. Another option to ensure dental health are greenies and dental chews appropriate for your dog's size. Just remember to never feed anything new to your dog without supervision.
I think it's great you want to feed him primarily dry! It's best since wet canned food only has about 8% protein, 4% fat and around 85% moisture, so it's essentially feeding your dog more expensive water.
When you do switch over, follow the feeding guidelines on the back of that particular bag or do what your vet recommends.
Good luck!
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