Wet dog food

Today, a lot of controversy is surrounding the proper nutrition of pets. Some owners advocate for natural feeding, others - for the use of production rations. And what place does wet dog food take on this issue? There is not much information about such food as about dry food, and not all owners know how to give canned food to the dog and, most importantly, how to choose the best quality ones.

Features of wet food

Dog canned food is a universal product that may interest owners of dogs that are on any food. It is recommended to give it as a treat, add it to natural food, offer it to dogs who eat dry food for a variety of diets. But to feed exclusively wet canned food of a pet is not recommended, unless there are special medical indications for this.

What are the benefits of wet dog food? The most important ones can be noted:

good quality canned food is a source of protein, which is more in them than in a dry diet;
top quality foods contain less carbohydrates;
such conservation occurs without artificial preservatives, stabilizers;
if the wet food is made from meat, then it has a natural aroma and taste - and each dog is simply happy to receive a piece of meat;
this is a great option for elderly animals having problems with the gastrointestinal tract, urinary system, teeth;
an excellent travel option, manufacturers produce various volumes of the product and you can choose a single serving based on the needs of the dog;
when feeding this type of food, the dog receives moisture, which means that there is no need to monitor its drinking.

As you can see, most of the advantages directly depend on quality, but how to choose a product that will bring only benefit to a four-legged pet?

Quality Product Composition

A mass of wet feed is produced, different in type of packaging, name, and most importantly, composition. What should a full-fledged canned diet consist of?

As in canned food for people, the quantity of meat is appreciated, the higher it is, the more nutritious the product. Do not read the advertising slogans of manufacturers and pay attention to the attractiveness of the design - you need to study the composition before buying.

In the feed of the highest category, meat is the first, with the obligatory indication of the type and variety. In the feed category just below can be used with meat and offal, but, again, their indication should be in the first place.

In canned goods of medium quality, the composition may contain the remains of meat production - offal of not the highest quality - veins, tails, scar and meat and bone meal.

If cereals are indicated on a jar of canned food, and after meat ingredients, this is a poor quality product, useless food for the dog, and often, due to artificial flavorings and flavor enhancers, also harmful.

It is not recommended to give dogs suffering from allergic manifestations a wet food that does not indicate the type of meat. The most hypoallergenic product in this class is canned lamb.

Rules for serving canned food

In most cases, wet food for the animal is more desirable than dry or natural food. But you do not need to pay attention to the acts of protest - nevertheless, these products are an addition to the diet, and not its basis.

It is worth knowing that for large pets a large portion of the product will be required, since it contains a lot of moisture. That is why, in order to saturate the dog, you can add canned food to your usual food or give it together with dry food.

Wet food is an excellent treat when training, although you need to consider that offering it to your pet is not as convenient as dry pieces.

It is recommended to feed canned animals during the rehabilitation period to a weakened animal that has undergone surgery or a serious illness.

Wet Dog Feed Rating

To understand the abundance of food, you can rely on the existing ratings of wet food for dogs, especially if independent experts and professional breeders participate in their development. Some independent associations offer the following option for evaluating canned canine, indicating the best quality with a large number of stars:

Six stars

Only products made from ingredients suitable for human nutrition fall into this category. Moreover, the feed should be produced exclusively from meat, without inclusion in cereal crops. These are very high requirements, therefore not all lines of even worthy brands reach this level, among them the following can be noted:

Innova evo Red meat (USA);
Barking Heads Bad Hair Day (Adult Lamb Wet) (UK);
Evangers Classic (USA) - 100% and premium lines.

Five Stars

On average, the meat portion in this diet is 70%, in addition to meat and high-quality offal, one can find broth, vegetables, oils, and vitamin supplements in the composition. If flavorings and colorings are added, then only natural. The following lines of well-known manufacturers were in this category:

Innova EVO (USA);
Innova Puppy Food (USA);
MERRICK (USA) - Puppy Plate (for puppies), Turducken, Campfire Trout Feast, Thanksgiving Day Dinner;
Instinct (New Zealand) - formulas - beef, duck, chicken,

Four stars

A high-quality product, but for the most part they use offal, to a lesser extent meat. In this group you can find the following products:

Canidae (USA): Chicken & Rice (chicken-rice), Chicken, Lamb & Fish (chicken, lamb, fish), Lamb & Rice (lamb-rice);
Chicken Soup (USA): For The Dog Lover's Soul, For The Dog Lover's Soul Senior, For The Puppy Lover's Soul (for puppies);
Merrick (USA) - Mediterranean Banquet, Wilderness Blend, Napa Valley Picnic;
Eagle Pack holistic (USA) - almost all wet foods of this brand belong to this category;

Three stars

A fairly wide group of canned canines, which, thanks to flavor enhancers, are very popular with four-legged picks. Meat in them an average of 25-30%, also includes plant components, cereals:

Pro Plan (France) - Classic, Extra Care, Puppy product lines;
Eukanuba (USA-Holland);
Max (Russia);
Gourmet (Russia);
Hill's (USA, Holland, Czech Republic).

Two stars

The producers of this practically plant product know how to make food for predators from 10-15% of the meat part (not meat, but waste - guts and other offal), just adding grain, vegetables, and various artificial additives to it. The following brands belong to this group:

Meal (Russia, Denmark);
Vaska (Russia);
Friskies (Russia);
May Lord, May Lady (Germany).

One star

The most poor-quality wet dog food that fell, at best, does not harm the pet, fell into this category, although some of them are not inferior in price to quite decent brands:

Pedigree (Russia);
Chappi (Russia).

Naturally, this is not the whole list, and the information may vary, but still the owners have something to choose from the most suitable food for their pet.

Reviews of wet dog foods

Opinions of the owners about these products are different, but more positive.

Evgeny Kupriyanov, Mukachevo: We keep two working dogs of the husky breed - 2 and 2.8 years old, they get a decent load, so nutrition is required high-grade protein. From six months we switched to dry food, but the canned food, which was used during natural feeding as an additive - Innova EVO, was left. The composition is good, and the dogs eat well. Now we give them as encouragement, during periods of molting, very good support during the change of wool. The food is not cheap and it is a pity that it is not always possible to buy.

Nelly Martynova, Chelyabinsk: It just so happened that we acquired a not-so-healthy dog Shih Tzu. Allergies, problems with stools (often swallows hair, which leads to constipation), flow from the eyes, all these problems led to the fact that we were recommended to feed our furry exclusively wet foods of the highest category. After the selection still settled on the American MERRICK. What can you say - it's expensive, but treating a pet is even more expensive. The food is so good that it, in my opinion, can be eaten by people - consisting of pieces of meat with a delicious broth. Plus there is a line for allergenic doggies. My handsome man feels great, leaving behind all his health problems.

Sergey Chesnokov, St. Petersburg : We keep Russian canine greyhounds. Dogs are very intelligent and fastidious in food. It happens that they refuse to eat dry food, they starve for several days, which immediately affects their complexion, which is already so slender, and the coat becomes dull. Found a way out, add to the dryer a can of Barking canned food. I don’t know what attracts them to it (no pungent smell, no flavoring additives), but they completely sweep away everything, and the hunger strike eventually comes to naught. Now one of our beauty is waiting for offspring, again indulge in Barking, and the coat is normal, and fatigue is not observed.

According to veterinarians and breeders, high-quality wet feeds are quite suitable for feeding dogs.