The dog food you feed your pitbull matters. It can mean the difference between a happy, healthy dog that’s full of energy and vitality…and a skinny, lethargic dog that secretly wonders why his food tastes like cardboard.
But with all the different brands and marketing out there, how are you supposed to know what’s the best dog food for pitbulls?
We know it’s confusing, and that’s why we wrote this article. We’re going to cover some of the most important elements of pitbull nutrition, explain some things to keep in mind when feeding your dog, then dive into a comparison of some of the best dog foods for pitbulls in 2023.
Ready? Then let’s get started!
Pitbull Nutrition 101
It pays to start by understanding a little pitbull nutrition. What sort of nutrients and ingredients should you make sure your dog is getting? What kind of things should you be looking at when you evaluate a new pitbull dog food?
Here are some of the main things to keep in mind to help find which dog food will provide the best value for your pet.
Label Ingredients
The first thing you want to do when evaluating a dog food is to read the ingredients on the label. Ignore all the marketing-speak on the website and the front and sides of the label; the ingredients list is the only place where you can really, truly get the real measure of what’s in this dog food. And remember that ingredients are listed in order by weight, so the first ingredient is the one that’s present in the highest amount.
Protein
Your pitbull is primarily carnivorous, which means they need a lot of protein to build muscles so they can stay active. The best source of protein, not surprisingly, is real meat. And for dry foods, we highly recommend looking for a “meat meal” as the first ingredient on the label. (Find out why meat meal is actually the best protein source for dry dog food.)
Natural Fat
After protein, the next most important nutrient to look for is fat. Fat gets a bad reputation, but it’s a vital nutrient for dogs and people alike. Unfortunately, some dog foods use cheap vegetable oils. Instead, you want to look for an all-natural fat like chicken fat as a healthier choice.
High-Quality Nutrients
Your dog also needs vitamins and minerals, just like people, so scan the label for some of these too. Sometimes they can be hard to pinpoint because they often have scientific-sounding names like “ascorbic acid” for vitamin C or “niacin,” “thiamin,” and “biotin” for vitamin B, and so on.
Avoid Fillers and Questionable Proteins
Keep an eye out for common dog food “tricks,” like calling attention to a handful of healthy ingredients while ignoring the other filler ingredients. You also want to make sure your dog’s protein comes from real meat sources, and preferably from a “meat meal.” Keep an eye out for substandard proteins, like Pea Protein.
Avoid Overfeeding
This is an important point that many owners miss: you shouldn’t just feed your dog as much food as they want, or they’ll gain weight and develop joint problems. Instead, it’s your responsibility to make sure you’re feeding your dog the right amount of food for their breed, age, and size.
Most dog foods include a helpful table telling you how much food to give your dog based on their weight—but it’s also smart to check this for yourself to make sure. For more help, check out this weight chart to determine your dog’s ideal weight.
Health Problems
Certain ingredients can exacerbate health issues in dogs. Here are some of the most common problems and their offending ingredients:
Allergies
You might think only humans get allergies, but nope—dogs do too! And just as humans are allergic to some foods, dogs can also have a reaction to certain ingredients in their food. Not surprisingly, the best dog food for pitbulls with allergies is one filled with all-natural ingredients and lots of real meat. Fillers like corn, wheat, and soy, along with artificial flavors and preservatives, can wreak havoc on some dog’s allergies.
Bloating
Bloating isn’t just an inconvenience. Gastric torsion can actually be fatal to pitbulls! That’s why it’s important for dogs to separate their meals and stick to foods that are high in meat-based proteins.
Joint Problems
Pitbulls are an active breed, which means joint problems can often rear their head (especially as your dog gets older)—but a high-quality food with all-natural ingredients can really help. For more details, read about some common areas of joint pain in dogs.
Bully Max 30/20 High Performance Dog Food
Simply put, Bully Max 30/20 High-Performance Dog Food is the best dog food for pitbulls on the market. We pack it full of 100% natural ingredients and no fluff, resulting in the highest calorie density you’ll ever see for a dog food this healthy and delicious.
And we’re not the only ones who think so! Ours is the only performance dog food with a 5/5 rating from DogFoodAdvisor, and it’s also been rated the best dog food for pitbulls by Spruce Pets!
Features
- Price: $44.99 for 15 lbs., with 25% savings with subscribe & save! And because Bully Max is so calorie-dense (535 calories per cup), you can feed your dog less each day…which means it lasts a lot longer than other brands.
- Quality: 5/5 We pack Bully Max full of the highest-quality dog food ingredients we can find…only natural, healthy ingredients, with no filler or substandard proteins.
- Adult or Puppy: Puppies and adults.
- Protein: The number-one ingredient in our formula is chicken meal, which is exactly what we recommend looking for in a dog food.
- In addition to its high protein count, we also include healthy fats and carbs from sources like flaxseed, fish meal, brown rice, beet pulp, dried kelp, and many more.
- Main Feature: Bully Max is the delicious, calorie-dense, high-protein dog food that gives your pitbull the energy they need to stay happy and healthy for years to come.
Features
- Price: $51.99 for 28 lbs makes this the priciest food in our list, and with only 400 calories/cup, it’s middle of the road in terms of calorie density.
- Quality: 4/5. Solid choice with several proteins and a good variety of fruits and vegetables including blueberries, cranberries, apples, spinach, and carrots.
- Adult or Puppy: Puppies and adults.
- Protein: Number-one ingredient is bison meal—finally, a dog food that gets it! Points there…although we’re not sure why they also felt the need to include pea protein as the #3 ingredient. Seems like a strategy to inflate their protein percentage.
- Main Feature: When you strip away the marketing, you’ll find a fairly solid dog food choice with a good range of fruits and vegetables.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, there’s no “right” or “wrong” dog food for your pitbull. The best dog food for pitbulls is going to be a nutritious food whose taste your dog enjoys. That said, you definitely want to make sure to choose a healthy dog food that delivers enough high-quality protein from meat sources.
Keep a lookout for tricks like using non-meat meals and adding pea protein to inflate the protein count, and remember that the total price tag doesn’t tell the full picture. Only by factoring in the calories/cup can you really find out how much you’re really paying to feed your dog each day.
Of course we’re biased :-), but we hope you’ll consider our Bully Max 30/20 High-Performance Dog Food. It’s the top-ranked food by many dog food experts, and if you give it a try, we’re confident you’ll find out why.
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1 comment
Richelle Culliver
I’m constantly amazed by the breadth of topics you cover on your blog.