Dog Diet & Nutrition Advice in Germantown

One of the most important factors of your dog’s health is his or her diet and nutrition. It should be given as much thought and care as picking a top-quality professional veterinarian and creating an exercise and play schedule for your pet. When your dog has a healthy, fulfilling diet, it will be getting the right amounts of all the essential nutrients, such as proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water.

Unfortunately, with so many dog food options available on the market today, it’s difficult to know which one is right for your pet. The experienced veterinarians at Germantown Vet can help you select the best food to improve your dog’s diet and nutrition. Call us today at 240-252-7467240-252-7467 to learn more about choosing a dog food.

How to Pick the Right Dog Food

Here are some good tips on picking the right dog food to improve your pet’s health and wellbeing:

1. Buy quality dog food – The best thing you can do for your dog’s diet and nutrition is to select the highest quality dog food you can afford in your budget. Many inexpensive dog foods are chock full of grains and wheat that are difficult for your pup to digest. When choosing a dog food, scan the ingredients on the bag—you want the first ingredient and the next five or more after it to either be meat or meat meal. Your dog is naturally a carnivore, so you want to make sure you’re feeding him or her what the body needs!
2. Choose dry dog food – Dry dog food is good for your pet for two reasons. The first is that crunching on the dry food helps keep their teeth clean and exercises the jaw muscles. The second is that the dry food makes your dog’s stools more compact and firm, making clean up much easier. If your dog prefers soft food, you can try mixing a little bit of soft food in with the dry kibble.
3. Avoid chemical preservatives – Many times, preservatives are necessary to  keep the food edible, however you want to avoid any chemical preservatives such as BHA, BHT, and Ethoxyquin as they can be harmful to your pet’s health. Vitamins E and C are great preservatives that are a lot healthier.

If you have any questions about selecting a quality dog food for your furry friend, just give us a call. The experienced veterinarians at Germantown Vet know what your dog needs to live a happy, healthy life and get the proper nutrition.

Nutrition and Feeding

Picking the right dog food is only part of the battle, you also need to know how to feed your dog. Every food should have information explaining the serving sizes for your dog’s size and age, and you should start out following these guidelines. However, depending on the activity level of your dog, he or she may require more calories than the set amount for his or her size. For instance, if you have a dog that you take running every day for an hour, he or she is going to need to take in more calories than a dog who runs around in the back yard for 30 minutes.

You’ll need to adjust the portions you feed your dog according to his or her activity level—if you need help determining whether your dog is taking in enough calories (or too many), visit Germantown Vet. We can determine if your dog is underweight, overweight, or right on track for his or her size and help you create a good dog diet and nutrition plan.

Contact Us for Dog Diet & Nutrition Information in Germantown, MD

If you want to learn more about your dog’s diet and nutrition in the Germantown, MD area, contact us today! We’re here to help you understand your pet’s health needs, so you can both be happy! Call us to schedule your appointment!

If you’re a new patient, skip the paperwork and pre-register online or learn more about our pet wellness packages!