Puppy Care

There are a great many types and brands of dried Dog food on the market and it can be hard choosing the most suitable one. First we should discuss what dried food is and how it compares to other Dog foods.

Dried Dog food is simply Dog food that has been baked or cooked into small, hard biscuits. It provides a great source of nutrition and can help keep teeth and gums in good condition as the crunching and chewing of the dried food acts like an abrasive against the teeth, removing plaque and stimulating the gums. Complete dried Dog food is easy to serve because you simply pour the required measurement into the dog’s bowl and it tends not to smell like the wet, canned Dog foods.

Most leading Dog food manufacturers such as Royal Canin Dog Food develop many ranges of their dog food depending on whether your dog is Puppy, adult, senior, specific breed or even having a sensitive stomach. But which is really the best for your dog?

If your dog is aged up to 18 months look at the different brands of Puppy food. These are not breed specific usually because food developed for puppies and young dogs contains different types and quantities of ingredients. Puppies need different quantities of certain vitamins and nutrients, just like human babies. Puppy food can also be split by size of the breed i.e. small (e.g. Shih Tzu), medium (e.g. Border Collie) and large (e.g. Bull Mastiff). Now you should be able to narrow down your choice of Puppy food by size and age.

Choosing dog food for adult dogs may be easier because most of the dog food brands have ranges split by specific breed and size. Assuming there are no health considerations you may decide to choose by the dogs breed size which then just leaves the price, personal preference and flavours available when selecting the brand. Sample packs are great for finding out which flavour your dog likes best!). Or you can choose a range that has been developed specifically for certain breeds such as labrador food.

The other factors that can be considered in your choice include personal preference. Brands such as Skinners are animal friendly i.e. animals were not used during the development of the product in what some animal rights organisations consider to be cruel conditions. Price is also an important factor. Your dog could get an upset stomach or even go on ‘hunger strike’ if you were to switch brands due to cost. So do make sure you will be able to keep up the costs of the dog food on a regular and ongoing basis.

Handy hint: Many households have more than one dog so why not try to get them all on the same brand.