subject: Healthy Dogs - Your Dogs Diet [print this page] Healthy Dogs - Your Dogs Diet Healthy Dogs - Your Dogs Diet
As a pet owner you are responsible for the care of your dog from training, trips to the vet for proper vaccinations and to tend to any problems, as well as their daily feeding and exercise. We can't forget to mention that showing your dog love and compassion is high on the list of things a pet owner must do too! While some treats are nice from time to time and perhaps a long afternoon nap, your dog does require proper nutrition and to stretch his or her legs and get some exercise. It's no different than a human in this respect. Someone who eats high fat, unhealthy food and does not exercise will likely be unhealthy themselves and rather, well, shall we say portly'.
A lot of us are guilty of feeding our dog scraps off the table. When you see that anxious face sniffing out what you are eating and watching the anxiety build it is hard not too. Remember their digestive system is quite different than ours and some of the foods we eat can be harmful to them or unhealthy. Yes, the things you have heard about chocolate are true, if a dog consumes quite a bit of chocolate they can actually die from it, or be extremely ill for days. In reading some information on people food for pets and some recipes for home made dog food, it is largely based on lean cuts of meat. If you notice in the pet food store there are several treats that are made from apples as well, a fussy pet may request you cut off the skin but will enjoy the fleshy part of the apple. Keep the pieces you do give them a digestible size because if you have watched some dogs, chewing properly is not something they seem to understand. With this in mind too, we should mention to watch out for bones, particularly bones that will splinter. Chicken and turkey bones are very harmful.
There are stores for gourmet treats for pets now. Assortments of fresh baked biscuits, tasty mint cookies or parsley based which both help with the dog breath' issue, treats from peanut butter and some rawhide chews which are great for a dog who loves to gnaw on things, and preferable not a pair of shoes! You can make your own treats too from recipes you can get easily online.
Aside from the treat factor, your dogs dry food will be the staple of their diet. One that has the first few ingredients listed that are fillers' won't work to fill your pet. They won't absorb the good stuff they need and will pass' it through often in a day. Look for the products that list some form of meat at the beginning, this is the protein your pet needs. Sometimes cheap dog food is just that, cheap dog food all filler. However some of the higher priced pet foods don't have great nutritional value either. You need to be aware and check the labels on what you're buying for your pets just like you would check what you buy for yourself.
