The dog food world is filled with bags, boxes, and cans featuring images of real meat, fresh produce and sometimes healthy whole grains. These images were designed to tempt owners. The latest trend? A limited ingredient diet.
It’s especially popular with pups prone to allergies. Eating less ingredients generally means less chances of food sensitivities. But is the diet necessarily better for your dog? We turned to Dr. Nancy Welborn, a veterinarian and assistant professor at Louisiana State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine and Dr.Gary Weitzman of the San Diego Humane Society to answer your questions about the latest canine eating craze.
What is limited ingredient dog food?
A limited ingredient diet is a diet with fewer ingredients. It could mean that there’s only one protein or grain source, Welborn says. The limited diet could also feature some exotic protein sources, like rabbit, bison, or kangaroo.
These diets might use carbohydrate sources like sweet potatoes, brown rice or oatmeal which pups might not have been exposed to previously. For example, a limited ingredient label could read: Deboned duck, peas, fish oil, pumpkin and dried chicory root.
There is currently not a set number of ingredients that defines a limited ingredient dog food. The number is very broadly defined as less than the average dog food.
What are the benefits of limited ingredient dog food?
The primary reason dog owners look for a limited ingredient dog food is that they think their dog is suffering from a food allergy….
