Well, there’s no simple answer.
The central principle: a dog’s health depends on a balanced diet based on his/her needs at a given age and health status, and well-digested food.
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An unbiased approach is this: both store-bought and homecooked food (that is, well-balanced food) are good.
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STORE-BOUGHT FOOD
Ingredient control is in the hands of the producer.
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HOMECOOKED FOOD
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Homemade food has its benefits: the ability to choose the components of the diet, control the quality of products and introduce more variety.
Homecooked food helps you achieve many feeding goals easily, sometimes even more efficiently, making it tasty for the “patient”.
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BUT: such a diet should be organized by a professional, otherwise, a lot of feeding mistakes can occur. They can cause imbalances, and illnesses, which are not always possible to correct on time.
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MIXED FOOD
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Complicated, but has its perks.
Mixed feeding fulfills your dog’s needs in minerals and vitamins, since store-bought food often contains a bit more of them than the daily norm.
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This allows you to add homemade products to your dog’s diet – to stimulate appetite, as treats during training and as a way to boost the connection with owner – there are all kinds of goals that this helps achieve.
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Only a nutritionist can evaluate if a feeding type serves your dog’s needs.
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Not all store-bought food can be combined with homecooked food. Sometimes, there is a need of supplements or correction of component proportion. Mixed feeding is not an option for everybody!
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Remember:
1️⃣The diet must be balanced;
2️⃣The diet must suit your dog well and not cause digestive problems;
3️⃣The diet must be consistent – this means that both commercial and homemade food are in the dog’s meals on a daily basis.
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SO, WHAT TYPE IS BEST?
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Individual approach is required, and the choice should be made on the basis of:
1️⃣Your pet’s personal preferences and individual product tolerance;
2️⃣Peculiarities connected to health;
3️⃣ Owner’s abilities and willingness.
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All three, store-bought food, homemade food and mixed feeding, can be balanced.
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Stay tuned for our future posts, where we will talk more about food and treats!
