Best Dog Food for Weight Loss!

What is the best dog food for weight loss? This article was written to help all those dog owners whose pets are inexorably gaining weight and gradually turn into little hippopotamus bumps. Through practical trials and studies, we found out we found out which dog food is the best for weight loss.

We are not talking about the medical aspects of canine obesity, where obesity is not caused by basic overeating, but due to medical problems such as endocrine problems and some other diseases that result in obesity. In this case we must first check with the doctor.

This article is intended solely for owners of HEALTHY dogs whose weight problems are related specifically to overfeeding your dog and improperly selected feed.

Also, the article does not address the issue of maintaining increased motor activity of the dog. It is clear that in order to lose weight, 2 conditions must be observed:

• eat less
• move more

Important: This article is about food only.

Also, this article is intended for those dog owners who cannot afford to prepare daily dietary food to their pet, and prefer to feed dry food (which in itself is not bad, given its availability, not so high prices, balance, ease of feeding).

This is especially true for owners of small dogs and small breeds:

• Chihuahuas,
• Toy Terriers, etc.,

As small dogs have poorly developed sense of satiation, they can eat almost to infinity or to a state of overeating. And since their mobility is lower than that of large dogs (those at least walk outside, while small breeds often stay inside), this problem is especially acute for small dogs. How often do we see small dogs waddling from one leg to the other in the street, dragging their own weight on their frail legs! Needless to say, it’s exactly the same as for humans obesity leads to health problems in the future: heart, joints and the whole body suffers.

Your pet is eating dry food, but is gaining weight?

At one point you realize that you can’t go on like this. That your dog is getting fatter and fatter.

So the question arises:

1. What and how to feed it further, if with the old familiar food it gets fatter?
2. How to lose weight for a dog?
3. What is best diet food for dogs to lose weight?

Almost every company-manufacturer, from Eukanuba to Hills has something like “Light”, “Diet”, etc. in its food line.

The choice is wide you can of course take the cheapest or most common food, most advertised or the food your doctor recommends or the one that the salesman in the pet store will tell you. By the way, it is worth looking at the top of some of the best and most popular brands of dog food.

It’s no secret that pet food manufacturers pay their stores, doctors and anyone to have their pet food on the best shelves, to advertise and recommend it, and to display their brochures prominently in stores and clinics.

My name is Caroline. I’m not a doctor or a salesman. I am the owner of an overfed dog.  I realized that my dog is eating too much and the wrong food. Due to being overweight, the dog has bad legs.

So, I carefully studied the entire market of dry food to figure out what is the best food on the market, which should go to my dog, so she finally lost weight and came back to normal.

Ratings of dog food for weight loss

There are six levels of feed (or six stars). The best feeds are the feeds in the 6th category. There are only about 20 types of feed (not the companies, but individual feeds from different manufacturers!). And the worst foods are category 1. There are hundreds of them they include a variety of companies, from completely unknown, to, individual foods of the famous company Purina. That’s not to say they’re BAD. No, they’re quite suitable for dog feeding.

Category 6 and 5 foods are best for dogs. Why? They are rated according to many criteria. For example:

the content of grains in the food (do you know that, by the way, doctors recommend that people eat cereals, sprouted wheat seeds, etc. – It’s good for people. But for dogs grain crops are quite an unusual food for the body. In nature they wouldn’t eat grains!). So the less grains the better, and ideally grain-free dog food is the best.

Grain can be excellently replaced by vegetables or fruits, which are added to dry food during its production. You can add fresh fruits and vegetables, but read Can dogs eat broccoli or how many apples can dogs eat. However, they are more expensive, which is why grain-free feeds are considered the best (and slightly more expensive than conventional feeds).

Other indicators include:

1. meat content
2. use of different types of meat in one feed
3. fat content
4. carbohydrate content
5. vitamins and minerals
6. trace elements
7. quality of products used for production (the best dog food is considered if the ingredients used for dry food production could also be used for human consumption, not some fish scraps or meat offal)
8. many other indicators.

For all these factors, there are only 3 foods in the leaders (Category 6 in the European classification) for weight loss purposes:

• Innova EVO Reduced Fat
• Orijen Senior Dry Dog Food
• Wellness Core Reduced Fat

All 3 of these foods are great for feeding your dog for weight loss purposes.

However, another factor to consider is the availability of these foods on the market. You do not want to start feeding your dog a randomly bought package of food, and then, when it runs out, switch to another? Well, of those 3 foods, there’s only two feed you can easily buy in stores: Orijen Senior and Wellness Core Reduced Fat.

Innova EVO in general has recently been repurchased by another company, so, at the moment Innova EVO is not supplied to the online retailer and stores. Chewy was selling this excellent dog food, but now Innova EVO is not available for purchase.

ORIJEN Senior Grain-Free Dry Dog Food is good for weight loss

Orijen Senior dog food is:

• increased protein
• reduced carbohydrates
• low fat

You can see for yourself, as other manufacturers (many) have diet foods with the same name: “Food for aging dogs or dogs with weight problems” (e.g. Belcando Senior and Light or Arden Grange Senior – “Dry food for aging dogs, also suitable for adult dogs prone to overweight,” or Berrimans Senior/Light Chicken & Rice or Corey Pro series Senior-Lite).

So the best dog food available on the market for weight loss is Orijen Senior food.

What about the price? The price depends on the volume of the bag:

Price for Royal Canin, Hills, Eukanuba, etc. about the same, but they are not as good for weight loss dogs.

So what to choose? Orijen Senior Grain-Free food with top-quality ingredients award winning or mass-produced by the abovementioned hype brands?

Of course – Orijen Senior. The size of pellets will suit both Chihuahua, and large dogs. By the way, the Orijen Senior feed manufacturer is very well known. Maybe you know a good food Acana? Well, the company Champion Petfoods has 2 brands of food:

• Acana (business class segment)
• Orijen (premium segment)

Orijen vs Acana dog food comparison, especially for weight loss

 

Now on to Class 4 and Class 5 feeds. This, too, is the highest quality feed. If you can’t afford or find the best food of 6th class Orijen Senior and Wellness CORE Grain-Free Reduced Fat Formula Dry Dog Food, then I recommend this food of class 5: Acana Light & Fit. There are no other diet foods in class 5.

In the 4th class the following dietary foods are also present:

• Artemis Fresh Mix Weight Management
• Premium Edge Healthy Weight II Weight Control
• VeRUS G/P Advantage Diet Chicken Meal
• Oats and Brown Rice for Growth and Puppies
• Wellness Weight Management and a 4-star Now grain-free senior formula

Then go food Grade 3:

• Almo Nature Holistic Croquettes Small Breed Diet
• AvoDerm Natural Brown Rice
• Oatmeal & Chicken Meal Formula Lite Adult
• Bakery Blend Chicken Recipe Reduced Calorie
• Berrimans Senior/Light Chicken & Rice
• California Natural Low Fat Rice & Chicken Meal
• California Natural Low Fat Rice & Lamb Meal Adult
• Canidae Platinum (Senior/Overweight)
• Corey Proseries Senior-Lite
• Dog Whisperer by Cesar Millan Canine Weight Control Formula Adult Dry Dog Food
• Evolve Reduced Calorie Formula
• Innova Low Fat Adult Dry Dog Food

and many others.

The most popular brands that offer diet food for dogs

• Eukanuba Excess Weight – got a 2-star rating.
• Eukanuba Reduced Fat Bites with Savory Chicken in Gravy – 1 star.
• Hills Prescription W/D – 1 star
• Hills Prescription R/D – 1 star
• Belcando Senior and Light – 2 stars
• Pronature Senior – 2 stars
• Purina Fit & Trim Healthy Weight – 1 star
• Pro Plan Large Breed Formula – Weight Management – 1 star
• Pro Plan Chicken and Rice Formula – Weight Management – 1 star
• Purina ONE Dog Healthy Weight Management Formula – 1 star
• Royal Canin Veterinary Diet canine Low Fat LF 20 – 2 stars
• Royal Canin Veterinary Diet canine Calorie Control CC High Protein – 2 stars
• Royal Canin Veterinary Diet canine Weight & Stone WS 30 Small breed adult – 2 stars

Of course, these 1-2 star foods aren’t bad either. Well-known companies, well-promoted brands… But dog food produced by hundreds of thousands of tons … Can they make super quality dog food in such quantities and for a fraction of the cost?

IMPORTANT:

– The goal of my research was to find not just good, but truly the BEST dog foods.

– Caroline

Now more details about 3 of our leaders that are available for purchase

ORIJEN Senior Grain-Free Dry Dog Food Ingredients

ORIJEN SENIOR is infused with premium animal ingredients (85% minimum), including wild-caught fish, free-range turkey and chicken, and whole eggs. All this is grown or harvested and delivered to the FRESH factory every day. In the absence of cereals and low carbohydrate levels, ORIJEN SENIOR contains Canadian vegetables, fruits and phytocomponents. ORIJEN SENIOR has a metabolic energy of 3,630 kcal/kg or 417 kcal/cup in a 250ml (115g) volume. To keep your dog healthy at an optimal level, calories are distributed as follows:

• Crude protein 38% min
• Crude fat 15% min
• Crude fiber 8% max

Bags:

• 5-lb (2kg)
• 13-lb (5.9kg)
• 25-lb (11.4kg)

Wellness CORE Grain-Free Reduced Fat Dry Dog Food Ingredients

Wellness CORE Natural Reduced Fat Dog Food helps reduce dog weight thanks to its reduced fat content and balanced grain-free composition. Selected ingredients contain high quality proteins. The highly nutritious food stimulates the dog’s lean body mass. Supports dog muscle tone, coat and skin. Wellness CORE Natural Reduced Fat is free from organ meats, soy, corn and any preservatives. Rest assured that your dog will receive the best and proper nutrition of the 6th grade!

CORE Natural Reduced Fat contains 3,300 kcal/kg or 366 kcal/cup ME (metabolizable energy) on an as fed basis:

• Crude protein 33.0% min
• Crude fat 10.0% – 12.0% min
• Crude fiber 12.0% max

Bags:

• 4-lb (1.8kg)
• 12-lb (5.4kg)
• 26-lb (11.8kg)

ACANA Light & Fit Recipe Grain-Free Adult Dry Dog Food Ingredients

ACANA LIGHT & FIT contains freshly caught fish flounder (off the northern shores of Vancouver Island), fresh free-range chicken and turkey + whole eggs from Canadian prairie farms. All of these ingredients are delivered to factory FRESH to ensure unparalleled nutritional and palatability qualities.

ACANA Light & Fit Recipe Grain-Free Adult Dry Dog Food is 60% quality animal ingredients plus 40% vegetables, fruits and botanicals, including whole pumpkin. It contains no high-glycemic grains such as rice and corn.

The metabolic energy is 3055 kcal/kg (348 kcal/cup), where:

• Crude protein 33% min
• Crude fat 10% min
• Crude fiber 8% max

Bags:

• 5-lb (2kg)
• 13-lb (5.9kg)
• 25-lb (11.4kg)

It would seem that in terms of fat and calorie content, Acana food even performs better than Orijen. But let’s not forget that it is not so much the amount of fat in the food that matters for weight loss, but low in carbohydrates and a higher Protein content. And here Orijen is the leader. The level of Orijen is higher than Acana. This can be seen in the richer Orijen formula.

What is the best dog food for weight loss?

The result of my research is as follows:

ORIJEN Senior Dry Dog Food Grain Free High Protein Raw and Fresh Animal Ingredients

Wellness CORE Grain-Free Reduced Fat Turkey & Chicken Recipe Dry Dog Food

Acana Light & Fit Recipe Dry Dog Food

Oh, and here’s another thing: What would you spice up your dog’s dry food so that he eats it better? Here I would recommend a can of HILLS PRESCRIPTION DIET i/d Digestive Care Low Fat Original Flavor Pate Canned Dog Food. This diet meat is great for enticing your dog to eat all the dry food he should be eating.

Finally remember 2 things:

Feed your dog 2 times a day (you can feed him 3 times, but 2 is enough), dividing the daily dose indicated on the package into 2 meals.

One more thing:

When calculating the daily allowance for a dog, don’t base it on its current weight, but on the IDEAL weight you want it to reach. This is written in all diet food guides. For example, if your Chihuahua weighs 4.5 pounds and should weigh 3 pounds, you calculate the daily dose of food at the rate of 3 pounds!

That’s all, I hope that my labors will be useful your dog and you!