Foods for pets may contain wildly varying levels of vitamins, minerals and macronutrients, and yet all can be called complete and balanced, writes Nancy Kerns. She shares the Whole Dog Journal’s criteria used to identify good-quality dry dog foods.
AAFCO establishes the nutrient levels that legally constitute “complete and balanced” diets for our pets. But, unlike the human RDAs with target levels of nutrients, the Dog Food Nutrient Profiles consist only of minimum values for all the nutrients required by dogs and maximum values for just a few nutrients.”
Source: Whole Dog Journal, January 18, 2022. Link. Cost, nutritional adequacy and energy density are important factors to consider when choosing or switching dog food.