Premium dog foods contain human-grade ingredients and have meat as the first ingredient, with an additional meat in the next four ingredients. The best kibble you can buy your dog will have three or more meats (ie: chicken & chicken meal & fish meal, or turkey & chicken meal & lamb meal) in the first 5 ingredients. High-quality meat sources include chicken, chicken meal or other specific USDA-inspected protein sources such as beef, lamb, turkey or fish. Avoid foods with vague meat sources such as “meat and bone meal” or “poultry/poultry meal” or “animal fat/digest” and those containing by-products.

After high-quality meats, look on the ingredient list for whole grains rather than flours or grain fragments. Ground brown rice provides more nutrients than rice flour and brewers rice. Corn is a cheap source of protein and is not easily digested by dogs. Most premium foods avoid corn all together. Other common grains are oats, oatmeal or barley. Avoid foods with artificial colors, preservatives and low-nutrient fillers like corn gluten meal.

A newer category of foods are those classified as grain-free. These foods are protein-rich and contain potato rather than grains. Makers of these foods follow the belief that dogs are not able to effectively digest grains and that a correct canine diet includes mostly meat and a smaller amount of vegetables and fruits. In the wild, the only grains (and fruits and vegetables) canines eat come from the stomach of their prey. In general, grain-free kibbles contain more meat than traditional kibble and are therefore higher in protein. These foods are nutrient-packed and easy to digest.

You will find high-quality dog kibble at feed stores, organic-focused grocery stores and dog boutiques. Large pet supply chain stores generally carry mediocre foods. Kibble you find in grocery stores is typically lower-quality. While this is not a complete list, some brands to look for include Innova, Wellness, California Natural, Solid Gold and Fromm.

If you are interested in a grain-free food, look for Evo, CORE, Taste of the Wild, Instinct, Orijen…to name a few. If your dog has allergies or a sensitive stomach, many of these companies have special formulas.

I would also recommend occasionally switching kibble to get your dog a wide variety of vitamins and minerals and to avoid an overload of any such supplements. Each company has their own vitamin/mineral formulation and switching provides a more complete diet for our companions.

You can supplement with canned food as well. Many of the above brands make canned varieties, including 95% meat options. Canned food is not exposed to the same high temperatures as extruded kibble and more nutrients survive the cooking process. Brands like Life4K9 and Orijen offer kibble that is baked rather than extruded—baking is a lower heat process that preserves more nutrients than the extrusion process.

If your dog needs to lose weight look for a food that is reduced fat, rather than reduced protein. Many weight-loss or senior formulas bump meat from the first ingredient. You end up with a food that is higher in grain. Reduced fat is a healthier formula for weight loss. Innova and CORE are to brands with reduced-fat formulas.

A special note for owners of large and giant breed dogs: The growth of large dogs needs to be carefully monitored. Such dogs should eat a puppy kibble specially formulated for large breed puppies until they reach 18 to 24 months old. This is to avoid an overload of calcium and phosphorus which can cause problems with bone growth. Innova, Orijen, Solid Gold and Fromm make large breed puppy food.