Different Types of Dog Foods: Which is the Best One for Your Dog?

In the life of pet parents, adopting a puppy is the most exciting time. How will you spend time with your new four-legged companion? How will you train your new pet? These questions add more excitement to the experience. Although it is exciting, it is also stressful as you have to decide various things including dog food. 

What type of food should you purchase? What food items should you include on the dog food list? What are the food names for dogs? There are some of the questions that come to mind when you think about feeding your dog.

With the availability of different types of dog foods in the market, choosing the best dog food for your pumpkin can feel like finding a needle in the haystack. There is a wide range of choices of dog foods, and on paper, they all sound perfect. 

Ultimately the choice is yours, but there are many factors to consider while purchasing the best dog food for your pet. Here is a guide to different types of dog foods for the new pet parents in order to help you in choosing the right food for your pooch. 

What is dog food? 

Dog food is the food that is specially made and formulated for dogs and intended for consumptions of canines like dogs. The composition of dog food varies depending on the manufacturers, but it is generally made of meat, grains, meat byproducts, minerals, and vitamins.

While choosing the best dog food, it is essential to consider variables like body composition, age, activity level, temperament, breed, and gender. In general, a diet with high-quality, healthy ingredients is the best for your dog. 

Types of Dog Foods

Dog food doesn’t come in different colors, shapes, and flavors like human food, but there are some varieties to choose from, in order to include in your dog food list. Below mentioned are the main four types of dog foods.

Homemade Dog Food

Some dog owners like to feed home-cooked food to their dogs. A homemade dog food allows the owners to be sure about what their dogs eat, and the nutritional needs of their dogs are being met. Although feeding homemade dog food is expensive and time-consuming, it is worth the effort. 

Cooking food for your dog requires complete knowledge regarding canine nutrition, so if you are a new pet parent, first familiarize yourself with the nutritional needs of your dogs. Below mentioned are some of the pros and cons of homemade dog foods.

Pros of Homemade Dog Food

• Homemade dog food is rich in a wide range of nutrients and healthful foods
• Dogs often prefer homemade foods rather than commercial foods due to taste
• Homemade dog foods make you sure about what your dog is eating
• Homemade dog foods help in health improvements in the case of many dogs
• In home-cooked foods, ingredients are fresh and minimally processed

Cons of Homemade Dog Food

• Homemade dog food is more expensive as compared to commercial foods
• Cooking food for dogs requires a time investment 
• Home Cooked dog foods require special attention so that required nutrient could be added properly
• It can be easy to neglect certain essential ingredients to the health of your dog, which can put the health of your dog at risk

Kibble (Dry Dog Food)

Dry dog food is the most popular type of commercial dog food, and due to this reason, most people choose kibble for their pets. Dry dog food is easy to serve to your dog. No unthawing, preparation, or cooking is involved in kibble. All you need to do is while serving the dry dog food is scooping it in the dish of your dog. It is the easiest way to serve food to your dog.

Dry dog food lasts for a longer time and is not needed to be refrigerated. Dry food also helps in keeping the teeth of your dog healthy, as chewing crunchy food helps in reducing the buildup of tartar. While choosing the dry dog food, read the ingredients carefully. 

Dry dog food is low in moisture content; therefore, your dog will require a fresh supply of water all the time as eating dry kibble will make your drink more water. Below mentioned are some of the pros and cons of kibble. 

Pros of Kibble

• Kibble is the most effective dog food that you can give to your dog
• It is easy to store dry dog foods
• A wide range of choices in cost, sourcing, and flavours is available in kibble
• Commercial kibble include all the nutrition, so you don’t need to worry about any deficiencies in your dog
• No preparation is required in kibbles

Cons of Kibble

• Dry dogs in heavy in carbs
• The expiration date of dr dog food matters as the preservation and vitamin levels diminishes by the time
• Quality of dry dog foods varies, and it is difficult to differentiate
• Dry dog foods include low-quality ingredients such as meat byproducts, preservatives, and sweeteners
• When feeding dry food to your dog be sure about the ingredient quality and process of the food manufacturer

Canned Dog Food (Moist Dog Food)

Canned food is also known as moist dog food, and it is totally opposite of the dry kibble. It is high in moisture content, which provides it with a different texture. Canned food is soggy and is easy to consume for the dogs with poor dental health and senior dogs, as it does not require chewing.

In order to sterilize, moist dog food is cooked at a high temperature. The food comes in the form of meatloaf, chunks in gravy, and chunks in jelly. Frozen or refrigerated moist food is also available in the market. 

Canned dog food is more expensive as compared to other dog foods as it fairly has a long shelf life. You need to be more careful while purchasing canned dog food. Before purchasing canned dog food, pay attention to the water and protein content. 

If the water content is high, there will be fewer nutrients, which means the dog will need to consume more food in order to meet the daily nutritional requirements. Most of the dogs love canned food. Moist dog food can be expensive, but it is worth the expense. Below mentioned are some of the pros and cons of canned dog foods.

Pros of Canned Dog Food

• Canned food is more appetizing as compared to the dry foods
• Dog wonders do not require to prepare the canned foods
• Most of the canned foods contain frozen or fresh meat and not the processed meat
• Wet dog foods are less carb-heavy as compared to dry food
• Commercially canned food comprise guarantee of nutritional 

Cons of Canned Dog Food

• Canned dog food is more expensive
• Canned dog food might contain higher fat quantity for some dogs
• Look at the cables of the moist dog food carefully as they might contain BPA
• The smell of canned foods is bad for humans
• Lower quality canned dog foods might contain meat byproducts

Freeze-Dried Dog Food

Freeze-dried food is also known by the name of raw foods. It comes in frozen form due to sanitary reasons. If raw food is not kept at a cold temperature, it becomes susceptible to bacteria.

This form of diet is very healthy and is recommended by pet food experts. It is the most expensive type of dog food diet. These foods do not last for a long time and can only be stored for 2-3 days in the refrigerator. When it comes to freeze-dried food, safe handling is a must. 

This type of food is best for many dogs as they have strong stomach acids and short intestinal tracts, which make it easy for the dogs to digest the food. Freeze-dried foods are nutritionally balanced, which makes them the best food to feed your dog.  

Always keep in mind to feed the freeze-dried food with fresh water to the pet or properly rehydrate the food before feeding it to the dog. Below mentioned are some of the pros and cons of freeze-dried food. 

Pros of Freeze-dried food

• Freeze-dried food is loaded with high-quality ingredients
• It is best for the dogs with a poor appetite as it is good in taste
• Freeze-dried food is raw or is minimally processed food which makes it the best choice for the dogs
• Freeze-dried food is lightweight, portable, and shelf-stable

Cons of Freeze-dried food

• Balanced freeze-dried dog food is not available easily on all the pet stores
• It is the most expensive kind of dog food which makes it unaffordable for many pet owners
• It is essential to check the label before buying freeze-dried food as some of these foods are utilised for intermittent-feeding only