What Food is Better for a Labrador?
Most Labrador owners believe that dry food is an unmistakable way to grow a healthy and active dog. In order to make a complete diet of natural products, you need to have knowledge in nutrition, calculate the necessary calories, proportions of protein and carbohydrates, add vitamins in the exact amount.
In short, you need to do a lot of work to create a useful menu for the Labrador. Then, it is necessary to prepare daily dishes for the dog, following all the recommendations on calories and nutritional balance. It seems that ideally a Labrador should have a personal chef, or its owner, forgetting about all other things, will spend a lot of time every day to prepare dishes for his pet.
Best Dry Food Requirements for Labrador
By choosing dry food, you put all these labor- and time-consuming moments on the shoulders of dry food producers. All you have to do is choose the right food to avoid disappointment. Normally, people pay attention to such features of the food:
- The selected product is always available
- The dog has no symptoms of food allergy for the selected brand
- The dog feels healthy and energetic
If you find a proper diet of a certain brand, you can feed with it the dog throughout his life: from 2 months to the very old age. There are many opinions about the best dry food among the owners of Labradors, but in general everyone advises food of super-premium or holistic classes.
You can also find good food among in premium class, and even something at an economical price. But you should avoid explicit cheap brands with predominance of grain ingredients. Protein-rich diets are also far from suitable for Labradors, as this breed is susceptible to allergies that can be provoked by proteins.
For puppies there is special food, usually marked “Puppy” range, with which you can start feeding a pup as soon as he reaches 2 months. During the first weeks the dry food is soaked in warm water or milk. Beginning with about 6 months you can switch to “Junior” type – a menu for young dogs.
At about 18 months we recommend to proceed with the type of food “Standard”, which takes into account the needs of an adult dog having quiet life. If your Labrador is lucky to have additional physical activity, you should choose a special series of food for active dogs.
There is also food for pregnant and lactating bitches, for senior dogs, for those who are prone to allergies. Some manufacturers produce special therapeutic foods, which are necessary for the recovery period after illness and surgery.
Total Amount and Norms for Dry Food Recommended by Veterinarians
Many pet owners are concerned about the dosage of dry food. The general recommendations on the packaging can not take into account the individual needs of the dog. Sometimes even the owner himself is unable to determine the limit where he begins to overfeed the dog or, on the contrary, to underfeed it.
Such errors lead to improper physical development of the Lab, especially overweight. If you doubt that you have correctly defined the norm of each portion, you should consult with a breed expert who can assess the physical condition of the dog.
Observe your puppy’s pace of development and make adjustments based on these observations. As a result, you’ll be sure to find the right solution and optimal daily food allowance. Some owners prefer to feed the dog not with the same portions, but different, for example, giving 40% in the morning and 60% in the evening.
Large breeds of dogs, including Labrador, have a good appetite, but slowed metabolism. Therefore, their food should be nutritious, but low-calorie, with a high content of vitamins and minerals.
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