How to Take Care of Your Dog's Basic Needs - Choosing Food for Your Dog

Like any other living thing, a dog has some basic needs that will have to be provided in order for it to be healthy, happy and an overall good canine citizen. As your dog’s owner, you have the responsibility to provide for your dog’s needs. Don’t worry; it isn’t too difficult to provide for these needs. But you do need to put in some effort and time. The payoff will be fantastic, as you’ll get a loyal friend in return.

1. Try out dry food on your dog. Dry foods are generally cheaper to feed in the long run, have some benefit on dental health due to the “scraping” of plaque off of teeth by the dry kibble and are easier to store due to their dry form. However, dry food isn’t as tasty as wet food so some dogs reject them or don’t eat as well. Make sure the dog has access to fresh water, as he won't derive any moisture from the food.

2. See if your dog prefers canned food. Canned food are much tastier for dogs to eat and have the added benefit of adding extra moisture to the diet. However, owners that feed canned food have to be vigilant with their dog’s teeth as these types of food tend to lead to an increase in plaque and dental tartar build up.
- Canned food tends to be a bit more expensive than dry foods.
- You will have the added mess of disposing of the can.

3. Try semi-moist foods. Semi-moist foods aren’t as prevalent as canned and dry foods. They are a little easier to store and clean up after than canned foods, but liked canned foods they can lead to plaque and tartar build up on the teeth. They can also be more expensive to feed as dry foods.

4. Talk to an animal nutritionist about a raw food diet. Raw diets are fine for dogs as well, although a bit more time consuming to prepare and store correctly. If you want to feed a raw food diet for your dog, it is absolutely vital to contact an animal nutritionist. Make sure your dog is receiving all the nutrients he or she needs.[1] Dogs do have different nutritional requirements than humans.

5. Never feed your dog certain human foods. There are many kinds of foods suitable for humans that should never be fed to your dog, since they are toxic for dogs. These include:
- Alcohol
- Avocados
- Grapes and raisins
- Chocolate
- Any food containing the sweetener Xylitol
- Coffee and tea
- Fruit pits or apple seeds
- Garlic and onions
- Walnuts and macadamia nuts
- Dough made with yeast

6. Read the ingredients of dog food. The most important factor is that the food is high quality. This means being able to read and understand the label. Most dogs will do just fine on a commercial dog food as long as you remember to read the ingredient list on the can or bag to ensure the food is healthy. These are listed in order of the most prevalent food in the food.
- Meat should be the number one (and preferably the second) ingredient on the list, followed by a grain. By-products are fine but they should be far down the list.
- You can always ask your veterinarian for advice in choosing food for your dog.