Each dog breed has its unique set of nutritional requirements, based on its body size and energy requirements. Developed initially for blood sports like bull-baiting and dog-fighting, pitbulls are highly energetic dogs, friendly, and love being attended to. Physically, pitbulls are medium-sized, lean, muscular, short coated breed with a brick like head and strong wide jaws. Like all other dog breeds, pitbulls also require food which has the right balance of proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, fatty acids and minerals that match the breed specific nutritional requirements.

Best Dog Food for Pitbull Puppies

To keep those adorable pudgy looking pitbull puppies happy, feed them good quality dry puppy food created especially for large breed puppies. A high quality dry kibble or a raw diet works great for the puppies. You can also try feeding the puppy wet food however, though there are no significant advantages of these foods and moreover wet food can result in plaque formation on the teeth. However, for the very young puppies and the ones suffering from a condition that warrants high protein concentration in foods, wet canned food may be the best choice. Avoid feeding table scraps to your pitbull puppies as high fat and high carbohydrate diets can cause health related problems.

What's the Best Dog Food for Pitbulls?

The best food for pitbulls may vary based on what the veterinarians recommend and what the breeder has to say. However, the essential thing to remember for all pitbull owners is to feed your dogs with meals that satisfy its unique nutritional requirements. This should include a balanced meal of meats and proteins. A healthy looking pitbull should have a lean, muscular, athletic body. The hourglass figure of a pitbull is characterized by the "tucked in" stomach and ribs that are easily felt through the muscles.

Dry Dog Food: Not only is the dry dog food the cheapest, it is also most convenient and easy to store too. It is also a feasible option when you have more than one dog as it costs much lesser in that case. The quality of the commercial foods can vary based on the manufacturer. To choose the best dry dog food you need to scan the ingredients mentioned on the packet; some low cost food may have fillers and other low quality ingredients like ground corn. However, most of the premium and super premium foods would contain sources of animal protein including chicken, lamb, beef, venison, bison, duck and carbohydrate sources like sweet potatoes. Brands like Innova Evo, Wellness and Artemis are well-known and are the best dry dog food for pitbulls. The advantage of dry foods is that it can be stored over a length of time and can be purchased in significant quantities. However, it should be noted that storing the food over a considerable period of time can affect the nutritional value.

Semi-moist Dog Food: Made up of water and meat products, the semi-moist dog foods are usually quite popular with dogs. However, here is a word of caution for all those of you considering this option: the high sugar content in the food along with the presence of preservatives and additives can affect the dog's health in the long run. It is also quite expensive as compared to the dry dog foods. The ingredients, nutrition, quality, taste may differ based on the brand. As a mid-way, you may alternate between dry food and semi moist food.

Canned Food: Canned food is easily the most popular and the best dog food for pitbulls. This is because unlike dry food, canned food products do need carbohydrate stabilizers in the formula. This means the percentage of meat is much more than the other foods. The downside? It is way too expensive. However, if you want the best food for dogs, consider brands such as By Nature Organics, Wellness, Innova Evo and Wysong. Again, here a good way to balance the cost is to alternate it with regular dry food. You can "treat" your dog to a can of canned food once in a while!

Raw Diets: Including lean red meat and game meat in the diet is essentially the best food for pitbulls. A raw food diet fosters good dental health, glossy coats, healthy skin and good digestive health in pitbulls. Include foods such as raw beef, raw eggs with shell, chicken bones and turkey backs.

Although some people might recommend grains such as brown rice and corn, remember that this is not part of the natural diet of the pitbulls and may thus result in many dog health problems. You can add certain vegetables to their diet but it is essential to keep in mind that the food for pitbulls should contain meat.