Let‘s face it – all dog foods are not created equal, and some are healthier and much better for your dog than others. Here are five things you should look for in high-quality dog food when the almighty “What should I feed my dog?” question comes up:
Dogs are individuals and have different nutritional needs depending on their age, breed, gender, weight, physical activity, and reproduction status (whether they’re castrated, pregnant or lactating). Ideally, dogs should receive a specific daily food ration that caters to those needs, including:
The BMR of a 1-month old Dachshund puppy per kg body weight is considerably higher than that of a 3-year-old Dachshund adult. This means puppies have higher nutritional requirements (including the need for more calories) than adults.
The BMR of a 3-year-old Dachshund per kg body weight is considerably higher than that of a 12-year-old senior Dachshund.
This means the nutritional and calorie requirements of an adult dog are higher than those of a senior dog. Most dog food producers focus only on age and weight when formulating diets for dogs. This is why you see lots of commercial foods labelled as „puppies“ or „adult dog, “ but you rarely see a focus on some of the other factors that affect nutrition, such as body condition (whether the dog is over or underweight), reproduction status (whether they’re castrated, pregnant or lactating), breed or physical activity level. These needs are equally important, as they affect the BMR and the kind of nutrition a dog needs to thrive.
A dog’s nutritional requirements change based on his breed and age, among other factors.
Dogs become seniors at different ages, depending on breed size. Most large-sized dogs are considered seniors when they turn 8 years old, but small breeds won‘t reach their golden years until they are 10 or 11.
Personalized, customized dog food should be formulated in a way that meets all the nutritional requirements of your dog. To do that, an expert like a veterinarian/animal nutritionist should:
The final food mix for your dog MUST contain all the required nutrients, such as energy (carbohydrates and oils), vitamins (A, D, E and Bs), macro minerals (such as calcium and phosphorus ) and micro minerals (including iron, selenium, and copper, among others), essential fatty acids (from animal fats and plant oils), proteins and amino acids (from human-grade animal-derived proteins and amino acids). These nutrients must be provided in the correct quantities that aren‘t too high or too low for your dog‘s needs.
Certain nutrients negatively interact with one another, so they must be provided in the right quantity, so all are appropriately absorbed. For example, if the food is high in calcium, the dog will also need to consume higher levels of iron, zinc, manganese and copper to meet all his nutritional requirements. On the other hand, too much iron, zinc, manganese and copper can impair absorption of other trace elements like selenium.
To avoid a negative interaction between nutrients, they must be provided in the right proportions and ratios. For example, the right protein to calorie ratio, the right calcium and phosphorus balance, the right ratio of calcium and trace elements, etc.
The dog food industry relies on extrusion to produce commercial food. This is a process that grinds, mixes and then heat-treats ingredients. Unfortunately, the method also degrades vitamins and amino acids, so you end up with food that‘s lower in quality and harder to digest. For the food to be the optimal quality and as healthy as possible, it should be made up of fresh ingredients that haven‘t been extensively processed.
Despite what it might look like, dogs aren‘t technically carnivorous animals. They are omnivorous. This means they need a diet that‘s more than just meat to fulfill all their nutritional needs. This doesn‘t mean meat is less important, and any source will do – in fact, dogs will thrive when fed human-grade meat that supplies quality protein and amino acids with additional nutrients added in.
The ingredients in your dog‘s food must be from safe and reliable sources to ensure the final mix is safe as well.
Cola’s Kitchen is the first and only pet food company that creates individually balanced recipes tailored to your dog’s specific needs, at no extra cost. We do so in a way that provides your dog all the required nutrients through Complete and Well-Balanced Natural Fresh Food. At Cola’s Kitchen, we’ll design and produce every dog’s meal based on the individual needs of each dog and any unique conditions that might apply.
Our recipes are designed based on the profile our customers make for their dogs. These choices then allow our AI system to formulate and individually balance recipes. The concentration of each ingredient in each recipe changes from one dog to another based on the individual characteristics of each dog and their unique requirements.
Our AI formulates each diet in a way that allows all the nutrients, including vitamins and minerals, to be supplied from natural sources. This means that, in contrast to other fresh food producers, we do not need to add synthetic vitamins or minerals to our food.
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