If you are a new dog owner, you may not know how to choose the right food for your dog. Not all dog foods are alike.

I always use Science Diet dog food. It is only available in pet stores (online stores also) and at veterinarian?s offices, not in the supermarket, and there is a reason for this. Vets carry it because it is far superior to the kind of dog food that you get in the supermarket.

The supermarket dog foods are full of fillers and non-nutritious ingredients. They may seem cheaper, but your dog will need to eat more of them to get the nutrition it needs. Eating more food also causes more poop to clean up! You might as well just buy the more expensive and better food. You will save on vet bills and since your dog eats less of it, it is really not that much more expensive.

If you are worried about expense, you can buy the larger size, which is cheaper, and store it in an airtight container if you are concerned that it might get stale. Or, you can search online for good deals.

I am sure there are other healthy foods, other than Science Diet, but I stick with that since I know it is good. (They are not paying me to say this either.)

They have a whole line of foods for different needs. For example, my dog often gets diarrhea when she is stressed. Of course, if your dog gets diarrhea, you should see the vet to make sure nothing serious is wrong. But I know Shelley well enough to know when her diarrhea is stress-related, and then I just feed her the Prescription Diet Canine i/d (which you need to get at the vet?s office). This is a lot easier than the alternative diet of boiled hamburger and rice that vets usually suggest for diarrhea.

In any case, dogs do well on a consistent diet. If you are going to change your dog?s food to a different brand, you should do it gradually. Introduce a little bit of the new food with the old. Every day, add a little more of the new food and a little less of the old, until you are feeding only the new food. It is hard on the dog?s system to switch suddenly.

For my experienced readers, do you agree, or do you have different recommendations? Feel free to leave your opinions in the comments.

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