What’s The Best Food For My Puppy?

There is nothing like a new puppy is there? A clumsy, energetic little bundle of joy that will steal your heart in a moment and remind you of what ‘love at first sight’ is all about. That same little adorable puppy will create havoc in your life as it gnaws on everything in sight, (including any special shoes) and destroys your favourite garden patch with their love of digging. So whilst they are busy discovering their new home it will be up to you to be finding out what the best puppy food is to ensure you are giving them the nutrition they need to have the absolute best start in life.

Weaning Puppies
Puppies naturally wean off their mother’s milk around 2 – 3 months and from that point and against some popular belief, they become more of an omnivore rather than a carnivore. Which basically means that they will be largely meat eaters that will also eat some plant based foods. In terms of what you feed your puppy, the best rule of thumb for you to follow is to feed them high quality, balanced food that is designed for both their appropriate life stage and their health status. This will ensure that they are getting the nutrients that they need at this vital stage of growth.

But what is best for my puppy you ask?
Search the web and you will find numerous options out in the market place that you can choose from, ranging from home cooked diets through to popular commercially manufactured dog foods.

The main thing to consider is that like babies, puppies require great nutrition to enable to set a good foundation for the building blocks of their skeletal, brain and nervous system functions.

Home Cooked or Prepared Puppy Food
One choice is home cooked or raw prepared food. In an ideal world this is a wonderful idea but it would be very hard to ensure that you are providing the correct balance of nutrients that are needed by your puppy, let alone through their entire life stages. Too much raw meat in these early stages can have an adverse effect on your puppy. Not enough meat or too much of something else and your puppy may run the risk of  developing other health concerns.
With regards to meat and pet mince products available, these need to be checked very carefully due to a high level of preservatives which can be detrimental and in extreme cases fatal for your puppy. So unless you are absolutely sure where the ingredients are coming from, (and we don’t just mean the supermarket!), you could be contributing to long term health issues for your puppy with poor food choices. If you are looking for a raw diet for your dog, then look at Ziwi Peak which is a raw dog food with the convenience of a dried food, specially manufactured for dogs. It is all naturally air-dried  and is complete and balanced with a guaranteed analysis – just for your puppy’s meal time.

Commercial Puppy Food
Unfortunately and as a rule of thumb, the cheaper the dog food, the cheaper the ingredients contained in the food which ultimately means the worse the nutrition for your puppy.
All Cheap and no-name products are simply not in the best interests of your puppy, like meat for home cooked diets, contain unnatural preservatives and their labels can be very misleading with their list of ingredients due to the lack of labelling laws. Believe it or not but well known brands found in supermarkets fall in this category as well!
To give your puppy the best start in life and for ease of mind the only real choice for them is the balanced food that is available with Premium and Super Premium commercial puppy food. This type of dog food abides by strict quality standards set by AAFCO (Association of American Feed control Officials) to ensure the ingredients are of the highest quality and that there is consistency at all times with the nutritional benefits.
Once you have made this choice, the only decision you will then need to consider is whether to look at wet or dry food.

Wet & Dry Puppy Food
Both types of food have their pros and cons and ultimately the choice will be determined by what suits you and your puppy. According to many Veterinarians, dry puppy food tends to be all they need and is a little more convenient, easy to store and certainly less messy. No freezing, refrigerating or cooking!
It can also be a contributing factor in better oral health due to the chewing factor of the kibble. You just need to make sure there is plenty of water available for them to drink due to the low moisture content in dry food.
Alternatively if you are choosing canned food, generally there is higher moisture content assisting in keeping your puppy hydrated. Be aware that  canned food can be saltier and due to the additional moisture content, you may need to feed somewhere between 2 – 5 times as much to your puppy than the equivalent dry food depending upon their age and weight!

Although dry food is preferable and with a great variety of high quality food available out there for even the fussiest of eaters, it might be a case of trial and error as you find out what your puppy prefers (and what works best for you); often a combination of both types of food ensures your dog gets a variety as well as something that suits you as their owner. Just remember that by mixing wet and dry food, you need to keep an eye on the balance of nutrients to prevent any other issues that may arise.

The Best for your Puppy!
Ultimately what you feed your dog will be about the best choices you can make within your budget but what you will discover is the better the dog food, the more digestible it is, the more bio-available the nutrients are and the more economical it becomes because you don’t have to serve as much. Most importantly, the better the results towards your puppy’s health and development in the long run!

The correct nutrition is all about ensuring that your puppy has the best start and it can also alleviate the burden of some health issues at a later date so they enjoy a longer life with you.
Bringing a puppy into your home and life is one of the biggest choices you can make, once that decision is made, you want to ensure your puppy is given the best start in life making them a vital and loved member of the family. Providing the best nutrition with Premium and Super Premium dog food for your puppy is the first way you can shower love on your new charge.  They are part of your family now, and your first job is to ensure they have all the advantages that are provided by a well balanced and nutritionally rich diet.

Discover some of the best Premium and Super Premium puppy food brands available in Australia here

Advice and information provided in this article is intended to assist in keeping your dog happy and healthy.  Please always seek professional veterinarian advice or any specific concerns.