Dog food nowadays is a complicated chemical science.
Here are some helpful tips for trouble shooting any potential issues you may be having.
1.
The first three items should be something normal, and they should be something you recognize.
If you see Cellulose Fibers right up there at the top, you are feeding your dog filler that is basically just a wood product.
These items are listed by amount; the biggest amount of an ingredient is always listed first.
I want to see Chicken, Beef, Lamb, some kind of meat generally speaking, and I really hate seeing a ton of preservatives in any dog food.
They are a know dog skin allergen producer, and can be really tricky to diagnose and treat as a problem because they are in so many lower quality dog food products.
2.
Wet is not necessarily great food for your dog.
It can in fact be extremely harsh on the teeth and digestive system.
Wet dog food is really more of a treat than a diet, and I will absolutely not feed an overweight dog wet dog food.
This is mostly due to the amount of sugars and preservatives in the canned foods.
I like it for nursing mothers and growing puppies and that is about all, maybe an underweight dog needing to bounce back weight wise.
Certain breeds prone to both obesity as well as tooth decay (like the Shih Tzu or Pug) can get slammed on both ends in this case, and you really have to ask yourself, am I acting in the dog's best interests, or am I just buying love with food? 3.
How much is too much? The vast majority of pets in this country are overweight, not under weight.
Food is not love people, and these chubby puppies suffer a plethora of issues, many of them the same as what the human community faces.
Only they don't get Medicare plans when they are old and diabetic.
We have all been in the mall or grocery store and seen the six hundred pound person trying to get around in the little power chair.
Their knees hurt, that is a fact.
We don't want that for our pets, so use your dog's weight as a guide and know your body score.
It is up to you to make sure they get what they need and they will not necessarily stop eating when they are full.
Try to remember, dog's don't have a concept for amount, and don't really think about it if you feed them a brick of cheese or a crumb, they are just happy they got a treat.