High-quality food that offers your dog adequate nutrition is extremely important. A good food can mean the difference between a happy healthy dog, and a dog that has health problems such as allergies, bad teeth, runny stools, or other ailments.

Dogs that have special health needs, as well as puppies and senior dogs should eat food specially formulated to address their needs. Older dogs, and special needs dogs often also benefit from nutritional supplements to help with joint health, digestive health, or overall well-being.

If you're not sure what makes a good dog food, you may want to try one of the many online resources on the subject, such as the Dog Food Project, a website that tells you all about what the ingredients on commercially manufactured dog foods mean, and how to choose a quality food. A vet can also provide you with feeding information, however, you should be aware that veterinarians' training in regards to dog nutrition is very brief and often sponsored by the big pet food companies, so the advice they give you on what to feed may not be the best.

For a free, comprehensive guide to making your own dog food, see Pet Grub.


Kibble (Dry Food)

The majority of pet owners feed their dogs kibble, or dry dog food. The main reason most owners feed kibble is because it is convenient and has a long shelf life. A high quality kibble also has all the nutrition your dog needs. Learn more about feeding dry kibble and how to choose the right one for your needs.


Homemade / Homecooked

With recent pet food recalls and people generally wanting something "better" for their dogs than commercial kibble brands, homemade diets are a popular choice. Homemade diets generally consist of human-grade food specially prepared for dogs - these are not table scraps!


Raw Food (BARF / Prey Model)

Some dog owners believe that cooked food is not appropriate for dogs and that they should be fed "BARF", or biologically appropriate raw foods. These diets consist of raw meats, mainly muscle meat and digestible bones, with additions of organ meats or fresh eggs every so often.


Special Diets

In addition to the main diets listed above, a number of other diets are available for dogs, such as organic diets, grain-free diets, and vegetarian (or vegan) diets for dogs.