There are so many different choices when it comes to dog food that it is often difficult if not downright overwhelming to try to pick the best dog foods. While each breeder, vet and owner has their own particular brand and method of dog feeding that they recommend, there are a few simple guidelines that owners can follow. Picking the best dog food is a combination of knowing what is in the dog food as well as what are the overall dog feeding practices that work best with the particular type of food.

Types of Dog Food

There are actually four different types of dog food and they include canned, semi-moist, kibble and raw foods. Each has its own pros and cons however generally canned and semi-moist foods should not be the main source of nutrition for a dog. This is because these products are mostly water and do not add to the dietary fiber, dental health or digestive functioning of dogs. Canned and semi-moist foods are also more likely to have greater additives and preservatives, especially the lower cost foods found at pet stores and grocery stores.

Dry kibble or raw diets are the most strongly recommended by vets and breeders as the best dog food. Raw diets, also known as BARF (bones and raw foods or biologically appropriate raw foods) include lean meats, vegetables, fruits and whole grains. High quality dry kibble is also very popular as a nutritionally balanced and easy way for managing good dog feeding practices.

What's In The Bag?

Not all dog foods, regardless of what they may advertise, are created equal. While in most countries dog food has to meet certain standards to be sold, there are a lot of cheap, low nutrition dog food brands around. Owners need to know to read the label, both the guaranteed analysis and the ingredient list, to find out what they are really buying as well as what the right dog feeding program is for the food.

• Guaranteed Analysis
  This will list at least the crude protein, fat, fiber and moisture in the product. This is important since dogs need specific protein and fat amounts to maintain health, which will vary based on your dogs age, gender and activity level. Moisture is important since dog food is sold by weight, products with more moisture will be more costly per unit.
• Ingredients
  This can be very misleading as ingredients are listed by weight in their pre-processed state. Meat (or some variation of the word) is usually the first ingredient, but keep in mind this is by natural state weight. Since meat has a lot of water in it, there may be more meat by weight but once it is processed it will be less than the grains and fillers used. Plus if the grain is listed as "meal" it has already been processed so it is very dry and light. So by proportion you would have huge quantities of the dry ingredients and just a small amount of the very high water content meat, but the meat would end up at the front of the list.

When in doubt about dog feeding and the best dog food for your pet, talk to your vet, your breeder and even other owners. Finding the best dog foods shouldn't be hard if you consider the ingredients and stay away from bargain types of dog food.