Whether you are just starting out training your puppy or you have a long-standing relationship with your favorite canine of 15 years, there are plenty of things and issues to think about that all deal with the health and care of your dog. Many people think that taking care of their puppy or full-grown dog won’t be a lot of work. On the contrary, though, there is plenty of work to do, including regular trips to the vet, preventative health care that includes heartworm treatments, feeding your pet the right kind of food, as well as activities that should be done with your dog to encourage the bonding times with your beloved pet.
One of the most important things that needs to be considered, though, is the diet that your dog will be eating. From the time that he or she is a puppy a regular, steady diet of proper dog food is required. Some people choose to feed their dog the regular store and brand-name cooked pellets that are so common throughout the dog food industry. On the other hand, there are plenty of dog owners that insist on feeding their dogs a raw dog food diet. This often means that more care and guidelines need to be paid attention to. However, the benefits of a raw diet definitely outweigh the benefits of a processed pellet diet that dogs receive when brand-name packaged food is bought for them. A couple examples of these benefits include a shinier skin and fur, a lessening of the dog’s shedding, cleaner teeth, better breath, as well as an increase in the dog’s general health. If many more people knew the benefits of a raw diet, there would definitely be more people switching over. Still, the dog’s diet is an issue to be considered by the dog and the dog owner.
Another issue related to a dog’s diet is the different treats that one is able to give him. Many people mistakenly think that they can simply give their dog any type of sweet treat available; however, this is simply not true. Here are several sweet treats your dog may love.
However, he should never be allowed to eat them. These treats include chocolate, coffee, mushrooms, apples, cherries, peaches, and macadamia nuts. As mentioned, your dog may love the taste of these specific treats, but they are not safe at all. On the other hand, there are several completely safe dog treats, including wellness bars, dog biscuits, as well as jerky treats that can be bought in specialty dog food stores or the dog food section of a grocery store.
All things considered, the health of your dog is definitely related to the foods that he or she is allowed to eat, and the diet of your pet is also very important to creating a better lifestyle and overall better health. All of the issues discussed above are very important to your dog and only require a little bit of care for your beloved pet puppy or dog!
Chris
I couldn’t agree more with this article. My dog Abby’s skin allergies are completely gone because I switched her diet. Her improvement was what prompted me to start a blog on dog health and specifically on diet. In my opinion raw is the best, but does require some time if you make it yourself (which is the cheapest way to go) and treats are just as important as many commercial treats contain ingredients that aren’t good. I had never read about apples and cherries before being harmful. Thanks for the great information.
HART (1-800-HART)
Hi Chris 🙂 It’s interesting how healthy food really does help the dog. We also give our two Papillons lots of vegetables, red peppers, green peppers, cauliflower, broccoli stems, carrots, and the like.
Occassionally, they do like their “Denti-Bones” and “Denti-Stix” treats but, it’s still like sugar treats for them, regardless as how good it might be for their teeth!
Regarding treats that you make yourself .. I would be happy to post some recipes in this blog if you are interested! just give me an email shout back if you are