Choosing the right puppy food

There are few joys that compare to that of bringing home a puppy. There are also few stressors that compare to the many questions that come right after, namely: ‘What am I supposed to feed them?‘. Most dog owners have been there, and we know these initial decisions are the crucial ones…Bringing home a puppy means taking on the responsibility of keeping them healthy and happy. So how can we make sure to do it right from the start?

We love talking dog nutrition over here at NomNomNow, and we all know that health is one area where you should never compromise.

Here are some nutritional requirements to consider when choosing a puppy food, to help you make the best choice for your new addition to the family.

Puppy food: Essential nutrients to look for

The reason it’s important to buy puppy food, or a dog food that is appropriate for a puppy life stage, is because it means that the recipe includes enough of the nutrients that puppies need to grow. When choosing a puppy food, understand the nutrients that play a vital role in puppy health and development, and make sure any diet you consider includes them (in appropriate amounts).

1.) Calcium & Phosphorus

Just like a child needs to drink milk for strong bones, a puppy also needs the right fuel to develop properly. And while getting enough calcium is important, calcium control is equally essential. Sometimes, you can have too much of a good thing.

A quality puppy food will not pump each bite with as much calcium as possible, but will carefully balance the optimal amounts of calcium and phosphorus to promote adequate bone growth, without creating risk of debilitating orthopedic disorders (which can develop as a result of excess calcium.). This ratio is especially important for large breed puppies.

The appropriate amount of calcium for a growing puppy is 2.5-4.5 grams for every 1,000 calories. The calcium to phosphorus ratio should be 1:1, and no more than 2:1. The tricky part though is this is not listed on the guaranteed analysis on food packaging.

So how can you determine if a puppy food has the right balance of calcium and phosphorus?

First, you’ll want to look for the AAFCO statement on the food that says it is appropriate for puppies (some foods, like NomNomNow, may say ‘all life stages’. This includes puppies!). If a food doesn’t have this statement, you’ll want to rule it out. However, just because a food has this statement doesn’t mean that it has the appropriate calcium to phosphorus ratio, and your work as a responsible puppy parent is not yet done.

As a second step, you’ll want to email the company and ask for the amounts of calcium and phosphorus in the final product. AAFCO only requires testing of the initial ingredients, and doesn’t enforce that amounts and ratios are maintained in the final, cooked product. So, the food may have offered the right balance before being cooked, but no longer meet those standards (despite having the AAFCO puppy statement on the label). Make sure that the amounts are those listed above in bold. If the pet food company responds with units other than those listed above (# of grams per # of calories), then it’s a red flag that the food may not have been well-assessed.

2.) Protein

As we all know, protein is a source of calories, which the body relies on for growth and energy. When selecting a puppy food (or food for any dog), the highest-quality source of protein is always animal protein, rather than plant protein (unless you discover your dog has allergies to animal proteins).

Meats have a high-protein profile, meaning that they provide a higher percentage of protein per number of calories. They also provide healthy fats (dogs don’t have the same issues with animal fats as we do).

Plant sources of protein, on the other hand, provide mostly carbohydrates, and a limited protein profile. Plant proteins should not be the main source of protein in a diet, yet should be present as a lesser-ingredient to provide sugars needed. (This is why vegan diets, while possible, are very delicate to balance, and shouldn’t be cooked at home without a veterinarian-approved recipe.) Vegetarian diets can rely on animal proteins such as eggs to provide the right balance of protein.

How can you tell what the main protein sources in a puppy food are?

The ingredients that make up the largest amount of the food are listed first on the ingredient label, with those that make up the smallest amount of the food listed last. By looking at listed ingredients, you can tell if there are more plant or animal sources of proteins by the order they are listed in. Animal protein sources, whether they be meats or egg, should be listed before plant protein sources.