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I'm not talking about canned dog food. I'm talking about kibble or dry dog food.

I've had dogs for 22+ years and don't give them dry dog food, or any kind of dog food for that matter, because its quality is ridiculously low and they don't enjoy it. And the results? Let's just say my dogs have a habit of living past their "sell by date," usually by an extra 5 - 7 years.

A friend of mine has gotten her second family dog, a golden retriever, and she spends a silly amount on a specific dog food that the dog has been on since birth. She's one year old now and still eating the same dog food.

I don't think she enjoys it too much as she's eating her own feces like it's her last meal.

Would she live longer eating dog food or real food?

Allison C
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MrJoshFisher
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Yes, they will

The pet food business is big business. Companies won't last too long if they produce food that's unsuitable for their target market. An awful lot of science goes into the ingredients for pet food (wet and dry) to ensure that it meets the dietary requirements of the animals.

People choose dry food (kibble) for a variety of reasons:

  • It keeps well
  • It doesn't smell
  • It doesn't make a mess if it gets spilt
  • It's easily transportable
  • It's easy to weigh out portions
  • Dogs like eating it
  • Less waste (there's no tins and because it keeps better, you can buy it in larger bags)

Yes, it's probably more expensive, but to many owners, the convenience outweighs the downsides of buying wet food.

As to whether dogs live longer on wet or dry food - that's pretty much impossible to prove one way or the other, considering just how many factors there are in a dogs life. I've also seem plenty of old dogs do perfectly well on dry food.

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