Questions About Food

It's really hard to find decent dog foods. There is so much advertising going on that it's hard to know who's being honest vs those that were bought out. I suggest reading the ingredients and before buying, look into dog nutrition
From what I know;
>Do not buy dog food that doesn't specify the type of meat/fat
Dog food companies are allowed to use cat and dog in their food, and cannibalism is actually very unhealthy especially if it's the main diet. Meats and fats should be labeled cow, pig, etc.
>Needs a good amount of protein
Dogs can get all of the energy they need from protein, although they can also break down and use carbs too. Make sure at least the first ingredient is a meat
>Avoid corn
Corn is most often the culprit behind grain related allergies in dogs. Easier to just avoid it
>Avoid by-products
By products is pretty much the parts of an animal or grain you'd never think was possible to eat
>Avoid sweeteners
Usually labled as grain fragments
>Whole Fruit, Veggies and Grains
If it's going to have them, make sure they are whole (keeps more vitamin) and not refined.
>Stay away from recalled foods
Any company that is known for recalls or recalled recently you should try to avoid. Besides the obvious potential to kill your dog, it's also not fun having to make a 100% instant dietary change to a dog.

Things I have no clue about;
>Is there an advantage of feeding wet vs dry or vice versa?
>Is there a difference to look out for in ingredients of wet and dry?
>I have no fucking clue about the legitimacy of store brand raw dog food
>Is there a kind of meat to stay away from? Should fish be avoided because of potential Mercury poisoning?
>How much non meat and fat should make up the ingredients?

Taste of the wild is pretty good when you're on a budget. I use it. The duck (grey bag), bison (yellow), and boar (red) flavors are the best in terms of nutrition. The boar is a little too rich for my dog though, gives him the protein shits no matter how slowly I transition. The other flavors are okay nutritionally, but those are the best three.

When I start making better money I'm going to buy merrick or natures logic though.

>>2431628
Also, taste of the wild has a puppy version of the bison and fish flavors, I think. Bison would be the way to go.

Wet v dry: wet is more expensive but will have better macro ratios. People will tell you dry kibble cleans teeth, but it's simply not true and if you want clean teeth brush them.

Mercury poisoning will never be a problem with dry food that had fish in it. I doubt it'll be that way for wet food either, but you should regularly rotate flavors anyway.

Also, OP, don't invest too much time in toys right now if you're getting a puppy. They'll destroy them and you'll go through a lot. The best toy for teething I had for my puppy was a collection of frozen washcloths. Have three or four in the freezer and rotate them out.

Same for a bed. My puppy went through three beds before I finally plopped his ass on a foam bathmat and told him that was it until his adult teeth were in. They're little and don't weigh much so while a big fluffy bed is obviously more comfy, a foam bath mat won't put too much stress on their joints when they're laying down.

>>2431585
Feed the dog what you eat.
Meat.
Not that hard...maybe some vitamins.

>>2431632
frozen washcloths sound like a good idea but shouldn't i get some type of toy for the dog to have fun and not only for teething?

>>2431658
sure, but make it cheap at first. you'll get a feel for what kind of toys your dog does best with. don't spend $50 on toys and then find out he either hates them or can eviscerate them in a few seconds.

if I had to pick one toy for a puppy, I think it'd be a rope. it can be thrown, chewed on, and you can play tug of war. you can freeze it too and it'll come out fine.

I'd also recommend a kong and a ball that will always be too big to fit in his mouth.

later in life: nylabones (they have gummy-textured ones for puppy mouths), skinny un-stuffed animals, frisbees.

I wouldn't recommend stuffed animals ever unless you have a very small or older dog. they'll be torn open and the fuzz will be either eaten or strewn about the house.

>>2431686
also, I just read the bit about what I wish I had when I got my first puppy...

more grooming items. learn to clip your puppy's nails now and don't puss out. touch his feet every day. you can get puppy toothpaste, too. brush his teeth--it'll save you a few years of dental cleanings.

I also wish I had known more than I did, like how to identify flea bites. the "vet" that the "rescue" I got him from recommended was shit. puppy had little scabs/blisters all over his tummy and I asked what they were. "I don't know!" he came with a belly full of worms (3 different kinds!) and a coat full of fleas. I took good care of him once I found a competent vet, but I wish I'd known enough to call that first one out on their bullshit.

>>2431688
nah I am going to a certified place for adoption, dog-dude will be wormed, flea and tick meds, nuts chopped off, etc and I hike a lot and know what flea and tick bites look like. Good advice tho about the teeth and nails. My parents dogs weren't used to getting their teeth brushed etc and are a pain in the ass when it comes to that

>>2431704
It's good that you know what all that looks like. He was my first dog as an adult--I'd had a dog before but I was a kid and didn't really know what good care looked like. My parents don't really take good care of their pets. Good to hear they're brushing their dogs' teeth now despite the difficulty.

Also, even if the rescue says the puppy is dewormed/parasite free etc, still get a checkup at the vet and do a fecal exam. Puppies need multiple wormings over the first couple months because virtually every puppy has some kind of worm. Also make sure the vaccine records are typed. Not handwritten. I know that seems like a weird thing, but it happened to me! It was a really shitty vet. No one would accept the records and I had to have them re-done.

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>>2431585
I give my dog this stuff from costco. Ingredients seem to be decent quality and it's only 26 bucks for 35 lbs. Not as cheap as purina corn cereal but it's a pretty decent price for a "budget" meat-first food. There's some negative reviews and bad reactions out there but I honestly have never seen a dog food that doesn't have someone's dog having explosive diarrhea.

>>2431970
yea man, trust me i am extremely autistic when it comes to researching things i am going to spend money on. the center i will be adopting to is certified to hell and back and I will be taking the dog to my univeristy vet school (which is very well respected in the USA) and will do all check ups etc. there. Hopefully I will make a post in the near future with a new friend for life

I've been giving my dog blue buffalo for the past six months and he seems to like it. I've heard on and off things about the brand but the ingredients seem straightforward (mostly meat, no byproducts, no wheat or corn, etc) and they make a formula specifically for puppies that I've used in the past. The dogs seem to love it a lot as well. Within the past two days my dog has come down with terrible shits though, not sure if it's from the blue buffalo and we just got a bad can or two, or if he ate something else shitty like garbage. Totally normal otherwise, and he still really wants his food, so I'd consider that a good thing.

Also, buy a placemat or a holder for whatever kind of food dishes you have so they won't slide around or flip over. Young dogs are especially messy eaters and I wish I'd realized that before getting my carpet fucked up. Mine calmed down with eating as he got older but the damage has already been done.

>>2431984
what the fuck? My parents dogs dont get diarrhea...what are you feeding yours?

>>2432250
I mean most dog foods have someone somewhere complaining their dog reacts badly to it. Mine is fine but look up any foods and you'll find recalls or complaints

I currently give my senior dog Royal Canin and plan to transition to Taste of the Wild. Royal seems too pricey for what you get, I read the ingredients and they have these red flag components everyone talks about and I guess there is some logic to judge the food based on the ingredients. Though i am not a nutritionist or anything. I just want to give my dog what's better for him.

Raw diet is the best

>>2433718
Got links to studies?

My dog is pretty sensitive to food so I feed her Merrick Backcountry. She seems to like it and it has good ingredients.