Responsible pet owners know to look at the ingredients contained in the products they purchase to feed their four-legged best friends. Finding
healthy dog food
, though, can sometimes be a challenge. Have you read those long names of ingredients that read like a scientific journal? The problem of choosing the right food for your dog can be mind-boggling. Nevertheless, you owe it to your sidekick to do your very best to find the most nutritious and wholesome foods available.
The
ideal healthy dog foods
are those considered 100 percent human grade dog foods. Nutritious options exist within this category for all types of dogs (i.e., puppy, adult, senior) and throughout a variety of food versions (i.e., dry, canned, treats, sauces). There are also products specialized for dogs with medical conditions (especially important for them), such as kidney, joint, or intestinal issues.
Man’s best friend, it has been discovered, needs vitamins, minerals, and much of the same nutrition that humans need. It stands to reason, then, that you should look for a dog food with much of the same nourishing qualities as you would in your own food (notwithstanding, of course, the occasional junk food that you might indulge in). Some experts believe that one good standard of measure to look for in dog food ingredients is based on the ratio of 40 percent meat, 50 percent vegetables, and 10 percent grains.
Many pet owners believe that some of the illnesses that may plague dogs come from the kinds of foods they eat, just as is the case with humans. By avoiding the entrapment of chemically altered and processed manufactured foods, dog owners believe they can prevent at least some of the medical issues that would seek to interfere with their best friend’s enjoyment of life. Gourmet dog food that is healthy, wholesome, and nutritious for your pet can, literally, be a life saver. A variety of specialty
healthy dog food
and recipes that can be prepared by you are available to satisfy healthy dog food requirements.
The bulk of commercial dog food is created with low-quality fillers that enables the manufacturer to get more products for the dollar, but that doesn’t necessarily provide the best ingredients for your dog’s food. To give your dog the best quality of life, ensure that you make the best choices for foods that are healthy for your pet. Your dog will love you all the more for it.
There are many aspects involved with dog care and making sure you cover them all can be daunting. Dogs are subject to allergies but they catch them from the air. Proper allergy care involves not only treating the symptoms but also prevention. You should bath your dog regularly and rinse their feet after they have been outside to remove any allergens on your dog's skin.
Dog dental care can also be done at home and is very easy but also critical to your dogs health. Proper dental care provides for more than clean breath, it also keeps your dogs organs healthy as bacterial buildup on the teeth can spread throughout your pets whole system and cause illness and disease.
As with your own dental care you only need a few tools in order to care for your dog's teeth, these are dental clens solution, toothpaste, toothbrushes, dental treats or toys or a dental cleaning dog kit. It may take your dog a few days or even weeks to get used to the dental care procedure but their teeth and gums will be much healthier and not have as many problems as before.
Ear care is particularly important for dogs, especially during the summer. A build up of moisture in the ear canals can cause problems as well as favorable conditions for ear infections. There are many products that can be used to care for your dogs ears including ear powders to keep ears dry, ear miticide to kill ear mites and other ear cleaning solutions that rinse away dirt and loosens waxy build up.
Keeping your dogs eyes clean is also important as this can prevent infections. The most common eye infection for dogs is conjunctivitis. To prevent infections you should use eye cleaning solutions or protective ointments that protect eyes from irritation as well as killing bacteria. You can trim hair from around your pet's eyes to prevent infection, make sure the corners of their eyes are mucous free, and try to keep your pets away form activities or surroundings where they may get eye trauma. When doing any cleaning or cutting around your dogs eyes, you want to use the utmost care so as to avoid poking your dog in the eye!
As your dog ages there is some additional dog care needs that you should be aware of. Your dog should still exercise but at a lower intensity and for shorter periods of time. Older dogs should use a foam bed to protect their joints when sleeping. You should also take advantage of senior dog food as it will contain important vitamins and nutrients that older dogs may need more of. As dogs age you need to keep a closer eye out for changes in behavior as these can be signs of problems. You should take your dog to the vet as soon as you notice any changes.
Proper dog care also constitutes regular veterinary visits. This way you can be assured that you are providing your pet with everything he needs to be happy, healthy and long lived.
Dogs are the most popular pets in America. After all, they’re not “man’s best friend” for nothing. Dogs are loyal, enthusiastic, loving, friendly, attentive, playful and often amusing, making them suitable pets for owners and families.
Being a responsible dog owner requires providing your pet with proper shelter, the space and the attention that it needs (depending on the breed) and a suitable diet.
Sounds easy? Taking care of a dog is rewarding but it’s no mean feat. You may think that you know everything there is to know about caring for your dog, like what to feed it and what to do when it gets sick, but what you may not know is that what you're doing with your pet may be doing more harm than good.
Take for instance, the type of dog food you give your pet. Pet foods are a relatively new addition to pet healthcare, and have only been around for about the last 100 years. The problem with conventional pet foods, including those which veterinarians recommend, is that they are not biologically balanced for dogs, which are scavenging carnivores, and cats, which are domesticated carnivores.
Many cat and dog food brands also do not use clean, inspected ingredients, thus the regular consumption of commercial pet foods results in a dull coat and causes diarrhea, increased flatulence, intermittent vomiting and prolonged scratching.
A growing number of veterinarians believe that processed pet food is the main cause of illness and premature death in dogs and cats. Studies show that processed dog food is harmful to your pet’s immune system and causes liver, kidney and heart diseases, as well as other degenerative conditions.
Raw Food is Healthy Dog Food
As mentioned above, dogs are scavenging carnivores and eat almost any food that provided calories – but rarely grains. The natural diet of both dogs and cats contain high levels of protein, fats and water, with very little carbohydrates – which is the exact opposite of the dry food diet consumed by most dogs and cats nowadays, which is high in carbohydrates, low in protein and fat, with almost no water.
Majority of the commercial pet foods being sold today are using poor quality meats that have not been approved for human consumption, and are difficult for a dog to digest and assimilate, which can lead to metabolic stress and kidney and liver problems.
Dogs and cats have thrived hunting and eating a variety of small prey for thousands of years; it would be pointless to argue whether or not a raw food diet is suitable for pets. Wild animals also avoid many of the degenerative diseases plaguing domestic pets.
The best dog food is one that is composed of fresh, raw meat, bones and vegetables. Due to financial constraints, we may not always be able to provide that type of diet.
If you are unable or not yet ready to give your dog raw foods, you can compromise with the next best thing: USDA approved canned foods. Quality canned dog food should be complete and balanced, does not contain grains, and contains more protein and fat than dry dog food.
If you can’t avoid not feeding your dog dry food, do your homework and research the best brands. Add up to 15 percent fresh meat to the dry food.
Your last choice should be kibble made with human-grade ingredients containing minimal or no grains. Be sure to give your dog plenty of water if you’re giving it kibble.
A healthy diet gives your dog more chances to live a long, healthy life, and more time to give you happy experiences and memories.
Let's face it, these are some of the harsh realities:
* Toxic pet food has claimed the lives of countless cats and dogs
* Routine vaccination triggers all sorts of diseases, from allergies to vaccinosis and cancer
It also doesn't help that most veterinarians adhere to the "reactive approach" in their practice of veterinary medicine, meaning they wait for symptoms of disease to occur rather than address the root cause.
Animals and humans are very different yet very alike in many different ways. But one important similarity is that what's healthy and not healthy for you goes the same with your pet.
You will be doing your pets a great favor if you follow the principles of natural health and holistic medicine while caring for them. However, finding reliable information about natural and holistic pet care is easier said than done. Finding natural health information for yourself is hard enough.
Dr. Joseph Mercola, founder of Mercola.com, the world's leading natural health website, knows how difficult it is to find a holistic veterinarian. That is why he called on Dr. Karen Becker, one of the leading holistic veterinarians in the United States, and joined hands to launch MercolaHealthyPets.com.
Mercola Healthy Pets is a dedicated towards providing information and solutions to pet owners that will allow their pets to live longer and healthier lives, including the latest news and tips on holistic pet care, nutrition, exercise, behavior, grooming and more.
Dr. Becker has over a decade of experience as a veterinarian and describes her practice as "lifestyle medicine" for pets, as she combines the proactive, integrative and wellness approach in veterinary medicine.
She explains that as a proactive integrative wellness vet, her job is to identify and remove the lifestyle and health obstacles that pets face before disease occurs and recognize that there are multiple ways to unlock the healing potential of pets.
Dr. Becker adds that wellness medicine is a new concept in veterinary medicine which advocates intentional lifestyle choices that transforms your pet from a "surviving" pet into a thriving and vibrant pet.
Under Dr. Mercola and Dr. Becker, MercolaHealthyPets.com aims to become a one-stop resource for natural and holistic pet healthcare. Become part of this new community of pet lovers and guide your pet to a longer and healthier life!
The best healthy dog food is the key to your dog's long term good health.
You may be aware of this. Most food that we buy to feed our dogs is extremely low in nutritional value. If you are buying your dog's food in a grocery store or a pet supermarket, you may be slowly killing your dog.
Think about human nutrition. If we feed ourselves unhealthy food over a period of years, our bodies will begin to deteriorate. We suffer from a higher incidence of degenerative diseases.
The same thing is true for our dogs. An unhealthy diet (one lacking in good nutrition) results in gradual deterioration and increased disease in our beloved companions.
Why do you think that so many of our dogs are dying from kidney failure, cancer, heart failure, and other degenerative diseases? These diseases in our pets were almost non-existent before the advent of commercial dog food.
You are probably like me. I want my dog to live a long, happy, and healthy life.
He gives me unconditional love. He is completely dependent on me. I owe him the very best nutrition.
You can see a picture of my dog, Romeo at the bottom of the page. Romeo is the one with the beautiful hair. I'm the one who doesn't have much. Romeo is a 6 year-old mutt. He has been fed the best healthy dog food for 5 years now. He is the healthiest, sweetest, happiest dog we have ever owned.
Even when a company puts out a dog food product that is somewhat nutritious, it is probably 6-18 months old if it is sold in a grocery store or pet supermarket.
If you are told by a pet product store owner or employee that the food is fresh, they are probably being dishonest or don't know what they are talking about.
A pet supermarket may or may not sell its dog food fairly soon after it is received. But they don't know how long it has remained in a warehouse before shipment to the retailer. As it ages, the food and its nutritional content deteriorate because of mold, bacteria, heat, and other reasons.
Another major factor in determining a good dog food is the cooking method. It is best that the food is cooked at a low temperature and for a short period of time. If you find a food that that claims it is high in nutrition but is cooked at a high temperature or for a long period of time, most of the nutrition has been destroyed.
You possibly don't believe me when I say that, "you may be slowly killing your dog."
I encourage you to read the article, "What's Really in Pet Food" which has been prepared by the Animal Protection Institute. You will find some "eye opening" information.
As the article states, most of the food we provide our dogs is "unfit for human consumption." This includes both meat and grains. Is that what we want to feed our dogs - food that is unfit for human consumption?
You can't properly evaluate the quality of a dog food by simply reading an ingredient label. The label may say it is a "premium" or "top quality" food, but it may be far from that.
So here is what I recommend in finding a good dog food:
1. The food should contain a high percentage of meat. Completely disregard any product that includes by-products.
Don't be concerned if you see chicken "meal" or fish "meal" as one of the ingredients. Chicken meal and fish meal are great ingredients as long as they comes from high quality chicken or fish.
For example, water is removed from the chicken to form chicken meal. So if you see "chicken meal" as the first item on the ingredient label, you know that there is a lot of chicken in the product. If "chicken" is listed as one of the top ingredients, it may be much lower on the list of ingredients when the water is removed. The manufacturer may be trying to mislead the consumer to think that chicken is one of the top ingredients.
2. Make sure that the food is very fresh. I have found that the best and freshest dog food comes from an online source that delivers a very fresh, nutritious food to your doorstep.
3. Check out the cooking methods. The food should not be cooked at a high temperature or for a long period of time.
4. The food should contain no corn, no wheat, no dairy, no artificial colors, no artificial preservatives, no steroids, and no hormones.
Feeding your dog the best healthy dog food will enable your pet to have a healthy, happy, and longer life. I personally feel that I owe that much to my little guy.
Dog owners love their dogs to be healthy and full of energy. One way you, as a pet owner, can tell if your dog is in good health is just by looking at the condition of his coat. A bright shiny coat means your dog is being fed the correct pet food, food that is required for good dog nutrition.
Grooming a puppy or a dog daily, or at least two or three times a week, and feeding him quality dog food will help to keep him healthy and maintain a long lasting healthy lifestyle.
‘Beauty is only skin deep' is a well known saying that we humans use to explain our own grooming regime. It can be just the same for your beloved pet. Brushing your dog's coat is an important part of establishing your dog's beauty routine. When you brush your pet's coat it removes dead hair, dirt and food particles that may linger on his face, usually around his mouth. Brushing your dogs coat regularly also stimulates your pet's blood, which in turn turns a dull coat into a shiny and healthy one.
If your dog decides he is not in favour of this ‘grooming lark' then persevere as he will soon realise you are giving him individual attention and will enjoy the time spent with you. Whatever breed of dog you have, short or long hair, it is essential that you feed your pet quality dog food, backed up with plenty of fresh water and daily exercise.
A good pet diet started from the puppy stage has to come from quality pet food with a balance of proteins, carbohydrates, minerals and certain groups of vitamins. Some brands of pet food will add poor quality meat, which can be high in salt. At Hills Pets we stock only high quality balanced pet food for all breeds of dogs.
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Dog Dental Care Keeps Your Dog Healthy
By: Lyn Rayner
Posted: Mar 21, 2011
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The grooming part of your dog's care is most often a most enjoyable one even for both you and your dog, but what happens when it comes to dog dental care? Some canines are not too keen on this and put up a bit of a struggle.
Dog oral hygiene is very important to the overall health of your dog. Most dog owners believe that this is only necessary to ward off cavities but this is low on the list of reasons for looking after your pooch's teeth. These pets of ours can run into serious problems with gum and mouth disease. If we don't practice dog dentistry care then these problems can go without being detected, and then once they are they have developed into far more serious problems than what a dog cavity would present.
You may be a bit nervous about working around your dog's mouth. If you include this as part of the grooming regime right from the age they are a pup, then they soon become used to it and will readily accept it. If you have an older dog or one that you have never tried dog oral hygiene on before, then you will have to ease them into this procedure by first getting them used to your working around their mouth area. Once they get used to this, then you can go onto the next step of using a dog tooth brush, and dog teeth cleaning products to maintain their oral health.
It is also important that you use the proper dog dental care products. Items that humans use should not be used for your dog teeth cleaning. These products that are made for the dog contain no harmful ingredients or at least they shouldn't.
If you purchase these dog oral hygiene products that have natural flavoring to them you will find your pet doesn't mind having this procedure performed. How often you do this should be done according to the type of dog toothpaste you have chosen. Also if you purchase the non foaming type of doggie toothpaste, then you don't have the extra step of having to rinse the dog's mouth. This is perfect for those dogs who insist that they don't like having their teeth done no matter how pleasant the products taste.
The most common problem when it comes to your dog's mouth that you need to be concerned about is gingivitis. If this is left unattended to it can cause their gums to recede which then can lead to other problems.
Once you have set your mind to this, you will find that dog dental care is not all that difficult of a process, but most certainly and important one.
Lyn Rayner - About the Author:
If you are interested in finding out some great things about dogs then be sure to visit www.livinglifearticles.com. Here there is tons of information and resources.
Article Tags:
dog dental care, dog breath, dog teeth care, plaque on dogs teeth, dog bad breath, oral hygene for dogs, cleaning dogs teeth, cleaning canine teeth
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Why should you consider making homemade healthy dog food? For your dog’s health and well-being. We've trusted the commercial dog food companies for decades, only to find out they've been using 1) substandard ingredients and 2) preservatives that have been linked to liver and kidney damage.
So let's look at some definitive ways homemade healthy dog food can help your dog:
1) No more deadly toxins!
Most commercial dog food companies use preservatives such as BHA & BHT (known to cause liver and kidney damage) and Ethoxyquin (banned from human use) to keep the fat in the dog food from going rancid -- for a longer shelf life. No need for any preservatives with your homemade healthy dog food.
2) No more mystery meat!
Have you ever looked at the ingredient label of dog food? What is "meat meal" or “chicken by-product”? By-products are the rest of the animal that isn’t fit for human consumption. If the type of animal is not listed, then it could be anything - euthanized dogs & cats, diseased cows/pigs/chickens unfit for human consumption - the disgusting list goes on. The problem with this type of "meat" is that it can contain chemicals and poisons that are not eliminated through the processing. This means your dog will also ingest these chemicals. With homemade healthy dog food you buy the meat that you feed your family and your dog.
3) Improved digestion and absorption of necessary nutrients.
This can be seen by the size of the stool. You'll see less waste because the body is able to utilize more of the food from your homemade healthy dog food. The commercial dog food has so much filler to add bulk, to make your dog feel full. But it lacks the nutrients necessary for the dog, so it just goes right through them.
4) Improved immune system in your dog.
Your dog's body has been living in a state of stress. He has not been getting all the nutrients he needs for optimal function. Once he starts getting the necessary nutrients from your homemade healthy dog food, your dog’s immune system will be able to perform better. This means he will be less susceptible to illness and diseases.
5) Decrease of your dog's "allergy" symptoms.
A lot of your dog's "allergy" symptoms will start disappearing - itchy skin, gas, diarrhea, smelly stools, bad breath. A study by William Pollak, DMV, with over 500 dogs of 30+ breeds, showed that a change to a healthy diet, within 12 months, almost entirely eliminated the allergy symptoms in over 90% of the dogs. Start feeding your dog homemade healthy dog food now and watch his symptoms disappear.
Are dog food supplements really required, or should your dog food provide all the nutrients? Being a pet owner you must certainly consider buying pet supplements and wonder if they are necessary. Even if you carefully examine the pet nutrition labeling on the packages you are buying, it may not be enough. For example, few of us are aware that toxic substance found in nature can cause liver disease in animals and there are natural products that are helpful in removing these toxins.
To help your pet cope with the painful disease of arthritis, you can use Glucosamine as a supplement. A regular intake of Glucosamine, prescribed by your Vet, can help with this problem. Calcium, phosphorous and vitamin B2 supplements are also effective additions to Glucosamine. If your pet suffers from joint pain, serving dog food supplements will help.
One thing to be taken care of is serving your pet with supplements which are rich in calcium. It is recommended that dog gets their calcium need fulfilled from the eatables rather than supplements. A bulk amount of calcium can lead your dog to form calcium deposits and which results in dysplasia. There are cases when the calcium intake for pet is necessary but buy the your vet has recommended. An itching problem of pets can also be eased and even cured with dog supplements blended with good dosage of flaxseed oil.
Fat is not always bad. There are fat varieties which can be found in healthy food. Fat can make your pet's skin healthy and it is a good tool to fight against problems like inflammation, blood clotting etc.
No doubt antioxidants contribute in building a healthy immune system and helping to prevent heart disease. Vitamin C and E in your pet's diet offers protection against allergies and helps prevent all forms of cancer.
Before purchasing any dog supplements make sure you have taken a good look at the ingredients list. Control everything that goes into your dog's meals yourself so that you are able to see the improvement and make further change in the diet if required.
