Kibble, wet food or home-cooked: how to feed your dog well

Kibble, wet food, raw meat, table scraps: everyone has an opinion on feeding dogs, and every package promises perfect health. In reality there are several good ways to feed a dog, and a few bad ones. This guide gives you the reference points to choose according to your dog and your budget, without being led by advertising.

What a dog needs

A dog is not a strict carnivore like a cat. It needs good-quality protein, fat, a moderate amount of carbohydrate, which it digests well when cooked, fibre, minerals and vitamins, all in precise proportions. Too much or too little calcium in a large-breed puppy, for example, causes serious growth problems.

That is why the first criterion is simple: your dog should receive a complete and balanced food, suited to its age and size. Everything else is secondary.

Kibble

It is the most widespread way of feeding, and for good reasons: it is practical, keeps well, costs less per portion and is formulated to cover all needs.

Its limits: it contains little water, so fresh water must always be available, and its quality varies enormously between ranges. Between a bargain kibble and a good one, the difference shows in the coat, the stools and the amount you need to feed.

In the Moroccan climate, keep the bag closed, in a cool, dry place, ideally in an airtight container. Fats go rancid quickly in the heat. Buy bags you will finish within a month to six weeks rather than the biggest size.

Wet food

Pâtés, terrines and fresh pouches are very palatable and supply a lot of water, which is useful for dogs that drink little, older dogs or those with urinary problems. They are, however, dearer per portion, keep only a short time once opened and do less for dental hygiene.

Many owners combine the two: kibble as the base, plus a spoonful of pâté for appeal. That works well, as long as you reduce the kibble accordingly.

Check on the pack that it really is a complete food: some tins are complementary foods, which are not enough on their own.

Home-cooked rations

Cooking for your dog is possible, but it isn’t handing over leftovers. A balanced home-cooked ration contains a meat or fish, a source of carbohydrate such as well-cooked rice, vegetables, a vegetable oil and, without fail, a mineral and vitamin supplement formulated for dogs. Without that supplement, the ration is short of calcium, and the consequences show within months, especially in puppies.

If this appeals to you, ask a vet to work out the recipe for your dog. Recipes found online are very often unbalanced.

As for table scraps, they are too fatty, too salty, and some common foods are truly toxic. See our list of dangerous foods for dogs.

Raw feeding

The raw-meat diet has its supporters. It demands great rigour in balance and hygiene: raw meat can carry bacteria such as salmonella, which contaminate the kitchen and vulnerable people, and parasites. With heat and a cold chain that is sometimes uncertain, the risk is higher. If you are set on it, get a vet to guide you and never give cooked bones.

Adapting to age and size

• Puppies need a growth food, richer in protein and energy. Large-breed puppies should have a “large breed” formula, less calorific and with controlled calcium, so that they grow slowly.
• Adult dogs get a maintenance food suited to their size and activity.
• Senior dogs, from seven or eight years, earlier for large breeds, benefit from a less calorific, more digestible food.
• Pregnant or nursing bitches have very high needs: they are fed a puppy food.

The switch from puppy to adult food happens at around ten to twelve months for small breeds, and up to eighteen to twenty-four months for giant breeds.

How much to give

The amounts on the bag are a starting point, not gospel. They depend on the dog’s ideal weight, not its current weight, and often overestimate the needs of a flat-dwelling dog.

Go by your dog’s shape:

• you should feel its ribs under your fingers without pressing, without seeing them;
• seen from above, it has a marked waist behind the ribs;
• seen from the side, its belly tucks up towards the back.

If you can no longer feel the ribs, cut the ration by ten per cent and reassess after two weeks. Obesity shortens a dog’s life and worsens arthritis, diabetes and heart problems. Weigh the ration on kitchen scales: an over-full measuring cup can mean twenty per cent more calories.

Count treats too. They shouldn’t exceed ten per cent of the daily intake.

How many meals?

Three to four meals a day for a puppy up to four months, three up to six months, then two meals a day in adulthood. Two meals are better than one, particularly for large deep-chested dogs, which are prone to stomach torsion. Avoid intense exercise in the hour before and the two hours after a meal.

Changing food gently

An abrupt change causes diarrhoea and vomiting. Spread the transition over seven to ten days:

1. days 1 to 3: a quarter new food, three quarters old;
2. days 4 to 6: half and half;
3. days 7 to 9: three quarters new food;
4. day 10: new food only.

Water, especially in summer

A dog drinks on average fifty to sixty millilitres of water per kilo per day, and clearly more when it is hot or when it eats kibble. Always leave fresh, clean water available, changed at least once a day, and take some on walks.

How to choose, in practice

No brand is best for every dog. A good food is one your dog eats willingly and on which it has a shiny coat, firm, small stools, a stable weight and energy. To compare two bags, learn to read a kibble label, then browse the food listings to compare prices near you.

Key takeaways

Choose a complete food suited to your dog’s age and size, weigh the ration, watch its shape rather than the figures on the bag, change food gradually and never let the water bowl run dry. If in doubt, or in cases of illness or overweight, your vet remains the best adviser.