How Treats Affect Your Dog’s Diet

You know the importance of choosing a healthy diet for your pet. You have taken the time and effort to consult with the veterinarian about a healthy and nutritious dog food. Whether you choose dried food, canned dog food, or make it from scratch, you may be overlooking something extremely important in your dog's diet.

Do you occasionally give your best friend a treat from the table or a rawhide to chew? These treats may seem like a simple snack or tidbit, but they really can add up. You may not have considered it before, but any and all treats that you give your pet are a part of your dog's diet. The question now becomes, how significant are treats in your dog's diet? Do you give your dog a treat once a day in the evening while watching television, or do you scatter Milk Bones throughout the day for each cute look or adorable pet trick?

The type of treats you give your dog also makes a difference in your dog's diet. Do you pass out cookies and scraps from dinner, or maybe a piece of popcorn or two? Junk food for you becomes junk food for your pet. In fact, some healthy foods for you are not good for your dog. Raisins are a healthy snack for humans to munch on between meals, but they can be detrimental to the health of your dog. Keep your dog's diet healthy even during snack time with treats.

Rawhides are an area of controversy. Some pet owners and vets feel they do not make a good treat for your pet. Others feel that rawhides provide entertainment and good dental health for your dog. Find out what your vet recommends. If you decide to allow rawhides in your dog's diet, avoid them in excess. They can create thin stools and provide many empty calories.

Your dog views a treat as just that, a special treat between meals. For the most part, dog's don't care if you give them a baby carrot, rawhide chew, or Milk Bone. They are happy to get the snack. If you find you provide numerous treats during the course of the day, you may need to modify your dog's diet to avoid maintaining a healthy weight. Giving your pet a whole bunch of treats sure is fun for both you and your dog, but can lead to serious health troubles.

Consider altering your dog's diet by giving him or her less treats. Instead of a large Milk Bone, for example, break the treat into several smaller pieces and distribute them one at a time. This will have your dog eating less between meals.

Ice cubes, small bits of apple, and baby carrots are terrific healthy treat ideas to consider when choosing a healthy diet for your dog. Such treats make little difference overall and make monitoring your dog's daily intake much easier for you. This way, you can focus solely on the food consumed during mealtime. A dog's diet needs to be healthy to ensure a long and happy life for your pet.

What’s Natural Dog Food All About?

Holistic Dog Food

It isn't exactly common knowledge, but the dog food that's for sale at most supermarkets contains things like meat by-products, corn, soy, wheat, and artificial colors and preservatives. The manufacturer's of these dog foods are in business to make money after all, and they try to find the most cost-effective ways to mass produce these foods yet still meet the bare minimums for nutritional requirements. These items lead to digestive issues, intolerance to grains, and food related allergies. Corn, soy, and wheat are nothing but cheap fillers that make your dog feel full and promote allergies.

Holistic dog food is made with real meat, wholesome grains, fruits and vegetables. These foods are naturally allergen free, which promotes better skin and coat and greater overall health for your pet. If your pet prefers chicken, beef, bison, duck, fish, lamb, turkey, venison or vegetarian holistic food, you can find them all through DogFoodReport.com.

Grain Free Dog Food

Grain free dog food is becoming more popular among dog owners. According to many nutrition experts, the main reason for this is due to the harmful long term effects of feeding high volume grain diets. There are various formulas of grain free dog foods, each using different ingredients to make up for the lack of grains. In the wild, dogs do not eat a large amount of carbohydrates. Their diets mainly consist of meat proteins. However, they do eat plant proteins, but most of these come from the animals they consume.

The biggest benefit of feeding grain-free is because many dogs are allergic to grain. Grain allergies will often cause ear infections, excessive scratching, licking of paws and hot spots. Dogs with issues such as these will benefit greatly by eating grain free foods by eliminating grain allergens from their diet.

The transition time is one of the biggest things to remember when switching to a grain free dog food. Switching to a grain free food needs to be slow and done over 3 weeks. The first week should be 1/4 of the new food and 3/4 of the old food. The second week should be 1/2 of the new food and 1/2 the old food. The third week should be 3/4 of the new food and 1/4 old food before switching entirely to the new food on the forth week. A sudden food change may cause stomach aches or diarrhea.

Dehydrated Dog Food

Dehydrated dog food is made by slicing raw meats and vegetables and placing them in dehydration bins. All of the water will then be removed from the food using large fans and then it is packaged. This process allows the food to retain the beneficial nutrients, vitamins and enzymes, unlike what dry, processed foods contain.

Dehydrated dog food is the closest form to feeding raw food. The preparation for feeding dehydrated food is very easy and you can make several days worth of food at one time. Adding water is the only thing that's needed for this food's preparation. For best results, let the food and water mixture sit overnight in the refrigerator. Just pour the mixture in their bowl when you are ready to feed your pet. It's that simple.

One of the biggest questions people have about dehydrated foods is how long the bag will last. The bags are not very big, usually weighing around 4 to 10 pounds, but don't let the size of the bag fool you. A 10 pound bag of dehydrated dog food will generally last a 50 pound dog about one month….a lot of food in a small package.

As with any other dog food, it's very important to slowly introduce a new food to your pet's diet. The transition time will generally take about two to three weeks. It's important to remember that all pets are different and some take longer to transition than others. If you're unsure about feeding your pet a totally raw diet, dehydrated food is a great alternative.

Raw Dog Food

Raw dog food is a popular way to feed dogs over the last few years because of the recent dog food recalls. By feeding raw meat, you will eliminate these worries. One of the most popular reasons people transition to feeding raw is because they have a dog with dog food allergies. It's also the closest form to the way an animal would eat in the wild.

Our dog food partners offer different types of raw dog food and raw, uncooked bones. These foods come in many different proteins such as beef, chicken, turkey, bison, venison and rabbit. Many people who feed their pet raw meat will also give raw bones for the added calcium and phosphorus. Raw bones are also a great way to clean teeth and exercise their chewing muscles. Raw bones make a great dog treat and keep your pet busy in trying to get the marrow out.

There are some precautions that need to be taken when feeding raw. You should always make sure you wash your hands thoroughly after handling the raw meat. Another precaution is when introducing dogs to raw dog food and raw bones they may experience constipation, diarrhea, or both. Just like when transitioning a dog from any other food its very important to go slowly and feed small amounts at first.

Natural Dog Food

Some of the natural foods contain manganese, phosphorous, calcium and potassium. All of these vitamins and minerals are very necessary in a dog's diet. There are many vegetables rich in antioxidants such as leafy vegetables. Feeding all natural food in their meal is just like getting an insurance policy for your loving pet. There are lots of branded natural foods available in the market for your pet. However, it is better to consult with a veterinary doctor before feeding canned natural food.

There are certain natural dog food products which are highly pure. It is very important not to mix any artificial ingredients in the food. Therefore, the natural should be original to prevent any food poisoning. Natural food must not consist of wheat, corn or soy and it's important to have herbal ingredients to maximize the amount of protein and fiber. Pets are members of our family and they need a special attention, especially where good food and a proper diet are concerned.

There are many advantages of feeding natural food to dogs. All natural dog food is very rich in vitamin E and C, which is very important for their body. Vitamin E keeps their skin glowing and Vitamin C is good for their bones. All of these vitamins affect their body in the same manner that they affect the human body. Vitamins such as Beta-Carotene are helpful in removing toxins from the body which are commonly known as free radicals.

Animals normally eat meat. Therefore, their bodies can gain a lot of toxic materials. If toxic material is not removed from their body, they are at higher risk to get infected with diseases such as lung and heart disease. It is always good to give a supplement of all natural food daily to keep their metabolic system free from infection and disease.

There are certain foods that should not be given to a dog such as oily food, rack pork or cured meat and is better not to give any pasteurized milk products like ice cream. White bread, raisins, onions, milk, grapes and sugary food must also not be given and always keep them away from junk food and fast food. The category of dog natural food includes cooked grain, unless feeding "grain-free", and lean cuts of meat such as beef, lamb, poultry, white fish, fatty fish or raw meat. Eggs are also considered as good, healthy food for dogs.

All natural dog food has various benefits and veterinarians suggest it is better to feed natural food to dogs. Natural food also affects the behavior of a pet, making them more active and playful and can also make changes in their ferocious attitude. Feeding your dog all natural food will keep them healthier in the course of their life.

Nutrition for Puppies

When you bring a new puppy home, the first thing you will want to do is feed him. What kind of food do you use? What are his nutritional requirements? Will he like what you give him? Make sure your vet is involved in his diet planning. Make sure the dog's food is healthy and tasty. Try to find something for the stage of life he is in. For example, if he is a puppy, buy him puppy food. Decide on what you are going to feed him before you bring him home. This prevents last minute decisions that might not be healthy for your pet.

Dry food is quite popular. It is easy to store and usually tastes great. It is also good for helping keep their teeth clean. Soft and moist food are great for your dog to eat because he will eat most of the food and get the added nutrition. Canned food has the highest water content. They also contain less nutrition, so you may need to feed your dog more than usual to equal out the nutrition they may need. Look at the levels of vitamins and crude materials on the label. Is there enough fat, protein, calories and other nutrients? Is the food tasty and is the price too high? These are things to consider when buying puppy food.

If your dog becomes finicky and will only eat certain things, it can often times be due to a change in diet. Allow the dog time to adjust. If he still won't eat, try a new food. If he still doesn't cooperate, you may need to take him to the vet for a checkup to make sure nothing is wrong.

Some people feed their dog from the table. This is the same as snacking between meals and will ruin the dog's appetite when it is time for him to eat his food. Always avoid feeding the dog off the table. Not only is it unhealthy, but they are at greater risk for being overweight causing further health issues.

Accessories

Below are some of the coolest and best dog accessories you can find on the market right now. We also highly recommend you check out Cesar Milan's website for some other great finds for your dog! Buy your Dog Supplies and more from CesarsWay.com