My sister recently adopted a new dog. For those of you keeping dog score that is Sister: 3, Me: 1. I’ve had the pleasure of letting her out during the day, she isn’t quite housebroken yet. After our meet and greet one weekend my sister and I were discussing all things dog, training, toys, reactivity, and then she asked a very poignant question: How many calories is a dog supposed to eat in a day?
Phew! It seems like a simple question, but it is much more complicated. I could’ve made up a number, or just shrugged. I, however, had a good answer! There is no one answer!
There are too many factors to give a simple number.
What breed of dog?
What is the dog’s activity level?
Does the dog have any special diet needs?
What kind of food do you are you going to feed?
The last question is the most complicated, at least to me. Different types of food provide different nutritional needs for dogs. If you feed inexpensive food you’ll have to feed the dog more. “Cheap” food has lots of filler in it, so in order to meet the dog’s needs you’ll have to compensate.
There are so many differing opinions on dog nutrition it is hard to know who to listen to. Some people say dogs should only eat meat, some say raw, some talk supplements. It is a confusing world out there! Dog food labels only make it more confusing.
Dog food is a big and strange business, so what do you feed your dog? I, personally, am of the “what works for you” camp. In an ideal world, all dogs would get the nutrition they need. It wouldn’t be so complicated.
Welcome to the family, Chupa!
Well, IMO what makes it so complicated is business. Because the dog food companies want our money. They want to keep the food cheap and they want us to keep buying it. So they are trying to adjust the food to meet the dogs’ needs, while still keeping an eye on the price. What it mostly boils down to is a bit compromise. Can dogs still survive on this? How can we tweak this grain product concoction to actually make it at least minimally good for the dogs?
I think that the scientists in some of the food companies really work hard on their research of what is good and what is not. But then, they have these guidelines what they HAVE TO use, and what is their “wiggle room.” That is my impression of the situation, anyway.
This is true. Regulations are important but then I start to wonder if dogs keep getting sick are the regulations working? Or are they in our dog’s best interest? More pet owners are going to have to get on board and start speaking up for things to change.