Since dogs tend to gobble their food down like it their last meal most of the time, it’s easy to forget that they really do need a balanced diet, just like we do. The better their diets the longer and healthier they’ll live, especially many breeds that have certain medical problems that are inherited. For many of those, it’s important to put them on a low-protein diet for best results. What exactly does that mean “low-protein?” and what is the best low-protein diet for most dogs?

What Defines A Low-Protein Diet For A Dog

The authority on dog food and other types of animal feed is the American Feed Control Officials, or AAFCO for short, and they’ve designated that dogs should have a protein content in their food of about 18% for dry dog food. Most quality commercial dog food will provide around 25% protein, which is a little high.

Dogs that are suffering from various diseases, like kidney disease, liver disease, urinary bladder stones, and other problems should reduce their protein intake to about half of that. This is recommended by Vets to reduce the pressure on the kidneys and liver where much of the protein is processed in their bodies. Some Vets also suggest limiting the element phosphorus as well and that is also a consideration in a low-protein dog food.

Finding The Best Low-Protein Dog Food

When limiting the overall amount of protein that your dog will get in its diet, it is then more important than ever to choose dog foods with high-quality protein so that it will be utilized completely.

An example would be Active Longevity Chicken Meal, Rice and Barely dry dog food by Hill’s Science Diet. You’ll note that all of the protein derived from animal sources is from chicken meal, a quality source. It also has all of the essential vitamins and minerals that your dog needs to round out the diet.

Read the ingredients on the label as they are listed in order from most to least by weight in the food. They are: chicken meal, wheat in the whole grain, corn meal, and sorghum. All healthy ingredients, no recycled waste products.

The protein content is 16.5% which is right in the range that most Vets will recommend for dogs needing a low-protein diet. Remember though, that giving your dog extra food from the table can negate any value that’s gained by a low-protein dog food. So stick with the diet and insist all family members abide as well.

If you’re in the market for a high-quality low-protein dog food under your Vet’s recommendation, you’ll need to learn how to read labels to find the best. Look for a protein content around 15% and all pure meat ingredients for the animal sources. Stay away from dog foods manufactured in China or made from ingredients imported from China as there are many fraudulent companies creating poor quality products there now. If the label says 100% made in the USA or Europe, you can rest assured that the ingredients are of better quality.