Marketing traps to avoid
Box store marketing is a curious thing. There is a correlation between the amount of space your brand takes up on the shelf and the amount of product you sell. If you take up more space then your competitor you will sell more product then they do. In pet food this has created a race to see who can pump out the most formulas to take up the most space. In truth there is probably very little difference between these formulas. AAFCO (the governing body over pet food) regulates 2 different kinds of pet food: Growth and Maintenance. Puppy and adult. That is all they care about. Small breed, large breed, senior, weight control, indoor/outdoor, natural, and holistic are all words that are relatively meaningless.
Your dog/cat should eat puppy/kitten food it's entire life - The puppy standard is a higher standard then the maintenance standard. All the best foods qualify for the "growth" profile and are often stamped "Complete and Balanced for All Life Stages."
Small Breed - Every manufacture does small breed foods differently. I can't find a common thread other then a small kibble size. It's true that small dogs require more calories per lb of body weight each day but that's not a reason for a completely different food! There are some toy breeds that have copper deficiencies but any good quality food should take care of that and in extreme cases a supplement is a great option.
Large Breed - Large breed dog foods claim to have glucosamine for joints but the truth is none of them contain enough glucosamine to do any good. A dog needs 10-15 mg of glucosamine per lb of body weight each day. Even if a food has 1200mg/kg of glucosamine (very high) a 60lb dog would have to eat over 5 cups of food a day. That dog isn't going to weight 60lbs for long! Again a supplement is a great option.
Senior - Senior dogs insides don't work as well as they used to. They don't absorb the nutrition like they used to. And because they are less active they burn less calories. However in order for their bodies to function they still need just as much protein and fat as they did before. Many of the senior foods on the market lower the protein and fat percentages on the food because that is what the consumer sees. When this happens the carbohydrate content usually goes up. Senior dogs already struggle with regulating blood sugar levels. Senior dogs should be on a high meat content diet with low carbohydrates. You may have to feed them less because of their inactivity. But don't forget about ageing intestines and carbohydrate content.
Weight Control - Weight loss foods usually take the same rout senior foods do. Lower the protein and fat content because that is what the consumer sees on the bag when the fact is the carbohydrates are the calories causing the problem. A good quality food with plenty of meat based protein and lower fat content will help you pooch shed the pounds. A food with a higher fiber content will also help. I have had a lot of success with Wellness Core Reduced Fat formula.
Your dog/cat should eat puppy/kitten food it's entire life - The puppy standard is a higher standard then the maintenance standard. All the best foods qualify for the "growth" profile and are often stamped "Complete and Balanced for All Life Stages."
Small Breed - Every manufacture does small breed foods differently. I can't find a common thread other then a small kibble size. It's true that small dogs require more calories per lb of body weight each day but that's not a reason for a completely different food! There are some toy breeds that have copper deficiencies but any good quality food should take care of that and in extreme cases a supplement is a great option.
Large Breed - Large breed dog foods claim to have glucosamine for joints but the truth is none of them contain enough glucosamine to do any good. A dog needs 10-15 mg of glucosamine per lb of body weight each day. Even if a food has 1200mg/kg of glucosamine (very high) a 60lb dog would have to eat over 5 cups of food a day. That dog isn't going to weight 60lbs for long! Again a supplement is a great option.
Senior - Senior dogs insides don't work as well as they used to. They don't absorb the nutrition like they used to. And because they are less active they burn less calories. However in order for their bodies to function they still need just as much protein and fat as they did before. Many of the senior foods on the market lower the protein and fat percentages on the food because that is what the consumer sees. When this happens the carbohydrate content usually goes up. Senior dogs already struggle with regulating blood sugar levels. Senior dogs should be on a high meat content diet with low carbohydrates. You may have to feed them less because of their inactivity. But don't forget about ageing intestines and carbohydrate content.
Weight Control - Weight loss foods usually take the same rout senior foods do. Lower the protein and fat content because that is what the consumer sees on the bag when the fact is the carbohydrates are the calories causing the problem. A good quality food with plenty of meat based protein and lower fat content will help you pooch shed the pounds. A food with a higher fiber content will also help. I have had a lot of success with Wellness Core Reduced Fat formula.