Making sense of all the available commercial dog food can be a job all unto itself. You have dry food options, canned food options, and then you have all the brands to figure out. Which choice is the best? Product packaging isn’t always the best way to find a healthy choice, since words like "premium" or "super premium" aren’t enforced guarantees of anything! Yes, the dog food industry follows standards, but only up to a point. There are plenty of loopholes that let dog food manufacturers claim things that aren’t necessarily true or even applicable – all in an effort to get the sale and reach a profitable bottom line. Here’s everything you need to know about dog food.  read more »

Dog food nutrition is just as important to dogs as human food nutrition is to us. In fact the principles are very much the same. All dogs need a well balanced diet of carbohydrates, fats, fiber, minerals, protein, vitamins, and water in addition to antioxidants, nutraceuticals, and probiotics. This article explains the what and the why behind dog nutrition.  read more »

People often disagree over whether human food is appropriate for canine consumption. Part of the argument states that dogs get all the nutrients they need from dog food and that adding more corrupts the balance infused into prepared dog food. From this point of view, human foods are dangerous foods for dogs . The other side of the argument states that human food supplements nutrients and enzymes that are lost in dog food processing. Holistic vets support this part of the argument while many traditional vets and canine experts support the other.  read more »

In the past, you would typically find an assortment of dog food available in three specific types: puppy, adult, and senior. Today, you'll find a wider assortment of the best dog food available addressing specific needs: ages, breeds, sizes, and health conditions. This is because of what we continue to learn about dogs every day. Dogs are about as individual as they can come, and it can be a health risk to feed them assuming otherwise.  read more »

The label on your dog’s food describes what’s inside, what’s in the food, its status as a complete and balanced meal, its target age, target size, its target breed, and its compliance with the AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials). It’s often the first thing we look at when we want to determine the best brand. Here’s what to look for when you want to make a few dog food comparisons of your own.  read more »

Most of us toy with the idea of taking supplemental vitamins once and a while, and many of us set out on a faithful vitamin consuming routine. When it comes to dogs, advocates claim that supplemental dog vitamins can only help. Proponents claim that they’re too dangerous or even unnecessary. Does this sound familiar? If you’ve done any research on nutritional supplements, then you can see that the arguments are essentially the same for both dogs and people.  read more »

A big question among vegetarian dog owners addresses whether a vegetarian diet is appropriate dogs. There is some commercial vegetarian dog food available that supply plant proteins instead of animal proteins. The problem is that humans are natural omnivores. Dogs are not. Most veterinarians in fact believe that animal protein is more befitting to canines since it’s what’s consumed in the wild. They also believe this because dogs are natural carnivores. (Just take a look at a dog’s teeth – they’re natural meat rippers!)  read more »

Perusing any shelf of dog food at the local grocer, you’re bound to find a nice selection of "organic dog food." While that sounds nice and healthy, and it looks like something we should feed a dog, some of us aren’t too confident in what "organic" really means. We might at first think it means "natural," or "holistic." Maybe we think it’s non-processed dog food. Here’s what "organic dog foods" really are and how they differ from "natural" dog foods.  read more »

Although some people advise against it, dog treats work wonders when they’re used as a training incentive. Dog training treats just have a way of making the impossible reaction almost instant. You won’t be able to treat your dog every time it does something that you want it to, and that’s what this article is about: weaning your dog of the tool that helped train it for so long.  read more »

Although it has been around for years, processed dog food is relatively new when you consider how long humans and dogs have shared a relationship. Prior to the industrial revolution and processed food, we fed our pets homemade dog food consisting of meat, vegetables, fruit and whole grains. It wasn’t a miracle that kept these dogs alive – it was good wholesome nutritious home-made dog food. Here’s how you can feed your dog the same.  read more »