ok. I have struggled with this for a LONG time! I love my dogs, and i want to give them the very best i can,
BUT i don't know what that is. so i want to hear from you guys. i have done some research on what is the best diet for dogs, but one thing i don't appreciate is the fact that most dog nutrition articles seems to be biased, and i don't know what to trust because no one seems to be addressing their own biases and i just don't find it convincing enough if they don't point out all sides of the story and address possible weaknesses of their own side.
i also find the subject a little overwhelming in general just because i wish it was easier, and that someone can just tell me "this is the best thing for your dog's health, feed it, have no worries and feel great about it."
here is what i have learned, I hope you will help me by sharing with me your opinions on dog nutrition.
things to consider:
What is the healthiest diet for the dog?
what is safest diet for the dog?
Time commitment
Ease - is it easy to prepare and feed?
Does your dog like eating this diet?
i have fed kibbles, premade raw, and homecook, and here is what i have observed:
kibbles:
my dogs have stinky poop, and lots of it (consistency of poop: soggy?)
they like eating kibbles the least.
this is probably the easiest on the dog owners to feed their dogs, but the quality control (from the dog food companies) and the quality/freshness of ingredients used is questionable.
pre-made raw:
hard, small, not very stinky poop, less poop.
my dogs only like this the first or second time they ate it, they don't like it after eating it for two meals. if i feed this to them, they lose weight because they don't eat very much.
again, quality control and quality of ingredients used is questionable.
home cooked meals:
my dogs love eating home cooked meals, but
lots of poop, and stinky poop. consistency is a little firmer than kibbles, but still not as hard as raw.
this is the safest diet in my opinion, you ARE the quality control. i enjoy being able to be the guinea pig for my dogs, i like being able to eat it first to make sure it taste ok before i give it to them because they can't tell me if their food taste like crap.
but i am not convinced that this is the healthiest diet for dogs.
what i prefer to feed them = pre-made raw
reason: because i just really love that their poop is so firm and it doesn't smell bad, and with firm poop, it helps them express their anal glands, which i think is a VERY good thing!
what they prefer = home cooking
i like feeding this to them because my dogs are so picky, and it makes me really happy as a mom to see them actually enjoy eating their food, however, i don't like their poop as much when they eat home cooking, because they poop more.
kibbles = nobody in my house likes this one. LOL
i don't like this because they don't enjoy eating it, and i also really don't trust ANY dog food company. (obviously this argument goes for pre-made raw as well)
i am sorry this is so long! please tell me your thought on what the best dog diet is for you and your dog, and tell me why you made your decision.
i am currently feeding all three. i feed them kibbles, i feed them home cooked, and i feed them pre-made raw. i am doing this because i am TRULY confused what the best thing is for my dogs. so i thought if i do everything, then they will get the advantage of each diet. (of course the disadvantage of each as well) but at least it's lots of varieties for them, and they seem to appreciate having the variety.
i would like to point out my own personal bias though, i like kibbles the least. i just don't trust it, what is really in it? what quality controls are in place? i think ALL pet food companies have had problems with their kibbles, and I feel uneasy feeding it to my dogs. so that's my bias.
(again, this argument also applies to pre-made raw, which is my favorite diet for my dogs, because the quality control is just not good enough in my opinion)