4 Ingredients You Should Pay Attention To When Choosing Dry Food For Your Dog

Without a doubt, food (among exercise) is the most important factor in your dog's life. Through diet, he has to get everything his body needs and therefore it�s important you educate yourself about ingredients to choose the right food for your dog.�Unfortunately, there is no one answer

to �What is the right food?�.We can help you pick out the foods with the best ingredients but no food suits every dog. Different dogs do better on different diets, so choosing a food will always entail a certain amount of trial and error. When looking at ingredients, remember that they are listed in the order of quantity, meaning the food contains the highest amount of the 1st listed ingredient and the lowest of the last listed one. While quality has it's price, so has the vet and we recommend you to rather save on other ends of your dogs "budget" than food, as it is so crucial to their health.

To guide you in choosing good food, in this article we take a closer look at the dog food ingredients that matter:

Meat

As you might have suspected, meat is the most important ingredient in dry dog food and should be listed first. You should look for recognizable meats like chicken, turkey, duck, or fish. But beware: Meats without the word "meal" behind them have been weighed prior to the dehydration process that is necessary for creating dry foods. There might be less of it in your best dry dog food than you think. If you see a specific meal (e.g �chicken meal�) �at the top of an ingredient list it means the amount of a specific meat in your dry dog food is high. Avoid �meat meal� as it could be just ground-up animal parts, such as hearts, livers, bones and feet but also other parts of dubious origin.

 

Grains

Dry dog foods are usually going to have some kind of grain in order to hold the food together and to make the dog full faster. While�dogs do not have any biological need for grain, many dogs don't react badly to it. However some grains are better than others. Try to avoid corn and soy and look for whole grains like brown rice, as will at least provide some nutritional value to your dog. Our favorite whole-grain foods are:

Nutrience Medium Adult Chicken Meal with Brown Rice (avaiable for all ages and sizes)

Nutragold Lamb and Rice Adult Dog (contains mainly but not only whole grains)

Grain Free Food?

If you are worried about the effect of grains on your dog or

dog reacts allergic to food containing grains, you can always choose a grain-free diet. There are several high-quality options available in Lebanon containing sweet potato, lentils and peas. Our favorite high-quality grain-free foods are:

Taste of the Wild ( all kinds are grain-free)

Nutra Gold Whitefish & Sweet Potato

Nutrience Turkey, Chicken & Herring�

 

Vegetables & Fruits

It is important for essential vitamins and minerals to be included in a dog food to maintain good health. Vitamin E helps support your dog�s immune system, while Vitamin A is important for maintaining healthy skin and hair. Vitamins are found in many common foods, including fruits and vegetables. Great nutritious choices found in high quality dog food are for example carrots, broccoli, spinach, pumpkin as well as apples, pears and blueberries. Our favorite dry foods full of veggies and fruits are:

Nutrience Infusion Healthy Adult Beef �

Taste of the Wild High Prairie Adult�

 

Fats & Oils

While some unhealthy animal fats can be used as filler in meats and lead to health problems for a dog, there are good fats you should look for like chicken fat, canola oil,coconut oil and olive oils. It is also great if you find omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. These are the fats that come primarily from fish and vegetables and are good for both humans and canines. Just remember to store your food in a dry and cool place, especially if it contains fish oil. Our favorite dry foods with healthy fats are:

Nutrience Infusion Healthy Adult Beef

Taste of the Wild Pacific Stream Adult�

Dr. Clauders Junior Salmon & Rice

   

If you need any further help with selecting the right dog food for your furry one according to your individual budget, don't hesitate to contact us and we will do our best to make sure your dog is happy and healthy!