Rules for choosing dry dog ​​food

How to choose a dry dog ​​food manufacturer?

When choosing a product, we first of all pay attention to the packaging, and the hand itself reaches for the product that attracted us outwardly, and then we figure out whether it suits us or not. In dog and cat food, the same system of influencing the buyer. Marketers put a lot of effort into getting our attention. And just like in goods for people, sometimes reality is embellished. You can often see the image of meat on the packaging, which gives us a false confidence that it was such a beautiful fillet that was used in production. Or the image of dogs and cats that remind us of our pets: it is doubly pleasant to buy food and admire a cute face. Also, manufacturers want to attract your attention with marketing inscriptions. You need to be careful with them, for example, the term “natural” is not legally supported in any way, that is, the manufacturer can use any products for manufacturing and write on the packaging that the food is “natural”. Usually, using this term, manufacturers mean that the feed does not contain artificial colors, flavors and synthetic substances. In fact, it does not matter what is shown on the package. You, as a careful buyer, need to pay attention to the labeling of the classification, the composition, the expiration date, how the quality is controlled (the most famous organizations: AAFCO, PEDIAF), then without the help of the seller and without feeding experience you will not be able to choose the right food . It is worth trusting a person who works with feed and has relevant experience.

It is sad that veterinarians are also not always able to choose the right food, limiting themselves to narrow knowledge of commercial feed products, and advise everyone the same thing, or have little experience in selecting food, as they specialize in something else.

 To make sure that you are offered good food, ask the seller why he is offering you this particular company, what his choice is based on. If you are satisfied with what you hear, and it will be specific arguments regarding your dog, and not advertising phrases about ratings, popularity and accessibility, then you can trust and start feeding your pet with this product.

Specialist’s opinion: At the moment, in our country, high-quality food has not yet been advertised on TV. My opinion is that good food does not need such advertising.

 If you have any doubts about the quality of the company and you want to make sure that you made the right choice, you should visit the official website of the manufacturer or official representative in your country and read about how feed is produced, where the company purchases raw materials for production, how it processes it, which organization controls quality, what their concept is based on and how they developed it. This will allow you to find out a little whether or not you should trust this company.

Poor quality food is found in any class. More often, start-up manufacturers or small firms, but even market leaders, can encounter failures when reconfiguring a production line or receiving a new batch of raw materials. In such cases, the characteristics of the food change, to which the dog’s body immediately reacts, these problems can be solved by food from a new batch or by changing the company to a more stable one, in which the production and quality of raw materials are strictly monitored.

Rules for buying dry dog ​​food

So, you are ready to buy food, you have found a store where it is sold, you have received competent advice, you have been helped to choose a suitable position in the assortment of the brand you have chosen. The unresolved question remains: how much to buy? You should start by calculating the daily allowance, you must immediately take food for at least a week, and preferably for 10-14 days. During this time, the dog’s body will be able to adjust to the composition, and you will determine whether it suits your pet. In some cases, the adaptation time takes more than 3 weeks (for hypoallergenic feeds, medicinal or with a very sensitive stomach of your pet). Ideally, when there is an opportunity to buy a small package. But if you have chosen food that is available by weight, then you should pay attention to the storage conditions in the store. Food bags must be carefully covered to reduce contact with air, otherwise the food will lose its properties before it reaches the bowl. Pay attention to the granules, they should all be of the same type. Stores that specialize in pet food that value their customers strictly monitor the storage conditions of the feed so that you get a quality product. It is better to buy feed by weight in the same store, you will be sure that you will not be deceived. 

There is no point in buying 50g of dog food “to try”! This can only hurt, even if you have chosen a quality company. You either buy for a few days and smoothly transfer your pet to a new food, or do not buy at all. Also, there is no need to stock up for future use, the food has expiration dates, it is very important to observe them, besides, open food is stored less than in closed original packaging.

 Dry food must be stored properly, this is very important, because if the recommendations are not followed, the food loses its properties, and sometimes it can be harmful. Always keep food in sealed containers. If you buy by weight, then pour the food from the bag into a plastic jar and close it tightly with a lid (you can use both glass and iron, but this can be impractical). When you want to save money and you buy a large package of food that your pet will eat for more than a month, then for better preservation, you should pour out a small amount of food, for about a week, so as not to open the bag every feeding. So contact with air will be less. Avoid storage in the sun, near a battery, etc. An increase in temperature leads to the fact that the food releases fat, it becomes rancid, it is harmful to feed such food. If you bought a package, opened it, and in your opinion the food is more greasy and stuck together, with a strange smell, not the same as usual, then you can dispute its quality with the supplier: no one excludes the possibility of damage during transportation, especially in summer. Most often, economy-class feed deteriorates; the cheapest antioxidants are used to preserve them. Food should not be stored in a cold place, it should not be put in the refrigerator, and in winter it should not be allowed to freeze. Condensation can collect in the bag with constant temperature fluctuations, which leads to the formation of mold. Do not leave wet and dry food soaked in a bowl for the whole day: it can turn sour. Dogs should not leave food on a permanent basis. It is better to feed them 1 – 2 times a day (adults) after a walk.  

Is it possible to determine the quality of dry dog ​​food by its composition?

By the composition of the food, we can only determine what ingredients it contains, how nutritious it is, and how much vitamins and minerals it contains. But we will not be able to find out what quality components the manufacturer used. In good feed, manufacturers write the composition so that the average person understands what ingredients are contained and what is the percentage. This should be confirmed by the fact that the feed is well digested and eaten. In terms of global sales, those firms that invested in their promotion – advertising are in the lead, they were among the first manufacturers that entered the world market and appeared in our country. And therefore, it is difficult for more worthy firms to compete, but over the past few years, people’s opinion has been slowly changing and buyers are starting to think about what they take for their pet. But if we compare the compositions of feeds, it becomes completely incomprehensible how these products have become so popular? The answer is very simple – vitamin and mineral supplements. They complement the poor composition of the feed, their amount in the composition is an order of magnitude greater than in the feed, where high-quality ingredients are present. Feed production is a business that is aimed at people, and then at animals. Reading the composition, you need to remember this. For us, the main thing is that the composition is clear, without further ado, indicating the percentage of ingredients, and with the exact analytical composition (proteins, fats, carbohydrates, etc.) By the analytical composition, you can understand how true what is written in ingredients.

If the composition indicates that 20% of fresh meat was put in, then after processing about ⅕ was left of it. When there are few meat ingredients in the feed, but high protein, it means that the feed contains more plant components.

 The use of dried products guarantees the stability of production. And in the composition it is more honest to indicate the ingredients in dry matter. Dehydrated, dried, dehydrated meat, fresh meat flour have the same meaning. There is a lot of competition and struggle for the buyer, each company praises its products, it cannot be otherwise . Therefore, when you find the food that suits you in all respects, buy it and do not hesitate. Good is not sought from good.

Is it possible to feed a pet dry food all his life?

Over the past decades, the pet food industry has grown so much that we are allowed to choose food for any occasion. Starting from the first feeding and until old age. Feeds are divided by age:

• from 3 weeks to 2 – 4 months,
• from 2 months up to 6 – 12 months,
• from 6 months up to 12 – 18 months,
• from 1 year to 7 years,
• from 7 years.

 These are only age parameters, and there are also food for the beauty of wool, for thick and thin, for fastidious, for animals with sensitive digestion, etc. Nutrition must also be adjusted according to your pet’s lifestyle, without losing sight of anything, periodically undergo medical examinations, take tests, do an abdominal ultrasound. And if you follow all the rules of feeding and take into account health parameters, you will be able to feed the dog food all his life.