Commercial Dog Food Types

Commercial dog food is a multi billion dollar industry with so many manufacturers of pet foods ready to "dish" out a whole variety of food for pets.

There are so many types of these foods. Let's have a look at what is what.

Types

Basically there are four types of commercial foods.

Complete: This can be given as a complete meal for the dog and claims to have all nutrients packed in one serving
Flaked: A dry food consisting of lakes made out of a combination of meat and cereals cooked separately
Extruded: Minerals, cereals, vitamins and meat are cooked in steam and cut to pieces, claiming to provide balanced nutrition i one serving
Complementary food: usually combined with another complementary food to make a complete meal for the dog

There are different forms in which this commercial food is made available.

Dry Dog Food: Not too expensive, this food is available in the dehydrated form. It can be fed as it is or can be mixed with water, vegetable or chicken stock before giving it to the pet.
Canned Dog Food: This contains 75% moisture. its concentration is less that that of dry food. It is usually added to the dry dog food as a supplement
Moist packed food: This contains 25 to 50% moisture and is a food made up of two chief ingredients, a protein and a sugar
Bicuits.Cookies, etc: A delicious treat for the dog that may or may not have a balanced nutrition for one full meal in one serving

When you buy the commercial food for the dog, read the list of ingredients on the label carefully to ensure nutrients are present in the right combination. You should also check for th AAFCO endorsement and Animal Feeding Trials details on the label. Follow feeding instructions as described on the label.

AAFCO

Ensuring quality and adequacy of pet food is the responsibility of the Association of American feed Control Officials (AAFCO). A pet food can be certified fit for consumption by a chemical analysis or animal feeding trials.

Animal feeding trials are conducted according to AAFCO guidelines, when the food to be certified is fed to a target group of animals. Only when found safe does the food receive the AAFCO endorsement.

Good or bad?

The safety and adequacy of pet Food is probably one of the most discussed topics. While pet food manufacturers claim that the food they manufacture adheres to all nutritional guidelines and is perfectly safe for the animals, there are alarming stories about the kind of ingredients that go to make the food.

It is claimed, for instance that the meat of euthanized animals is rendered as ingredients in pet food. there are also believed to be a whole list of ingredients, you would never want to feed your pet, that find their way (legally) into the pet food composition.

One way out of this quandary is to give your dog only home cooked food, prepared out of safe and fresh ingredients. When this is not practical, it makes sense to scan lists of safe pet foods compiled by experts.

http://dogcarereviews.com

This post was made using the Auto Blogging Software from WebMagnates.org This line will not appear when posts are made after activating the software to full version.