Many pet owners are often confused over the debate about which is better for their pets- homemade foods or commercial pet foods. Some analysts believe that commercial foods are better whereas some believe that homemade foods are safer.
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Homemade vs Commercial Pet Foods:
Homemade and commercial pet foods both have their own benefits and concerns. Depending on your comfort, priority, and consultation with a veterinarian, you may decide which one is suitable for you.
In this article, we try to analyze homemade and commercial foods in six parameters to understand which is better based on six different aspects.
Nutritional Value:
Both homemade and commercial foods have different nutritional values that are beneficial to pets. But in homemade foods, you have the authority to choose ingredients and maintain quality and freshness.
However, it is also true that without proper knowledge and guidance about nutrition, you may not be able to prepare well-balanced and nutritional food at home. Without proper knowledge about nutrition, you might miss many ingredients, such as omega-3 fatty acids, zinc, calcium, and other micro-nutrients from your pet’s diet.
On the contrary, commercial pet foods are often tested and certified by various quality control organizations, such as AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials). A certified product from such organizations ensures the customer that the quality of the product is high and it is safe for pets to consume.
However, some of the pet food products have low-quality ingredients, such as low-quality proteins, glutens, animal by-products, etc which are very bad for pet health. These companies try to certify their products from an organization that has less strict testing and policies.
Winner:
Depending on the analysis, in our opinion commercial food products have won over homemade foods based on nutritional values. However, as a buyer and owner of pets, you have to ensure that you purchase commercial foods that have high-quality ingredients and less harmful additives.
Convenience:
Homemade foods are more convenient for pets to consume as you can prepare them according to the pet’s taste and convenience. You can add or discard those ingredients that your pets like or dislike, it’ll help in feeding your pets without much trouble.
Homemade foods require plenty of time, preparation, and lots of effort. As an owner, you may not always have enough time to plan for your pet’s meals, shop for ingredients, cut the vegetables and meat, and cook them for 20 minutes.
On the other hand, commercial foods are highly convenient for the owners to prepare. Just scoop the food, serve it on the plate, and feed your dog. Also, you can store commercial foods for a long time with some precautions.
Winner:
Based on convenience, commercial foods are a clear winner over homemade foods. Commercial foods may have plenty of drawbacks but in this case, there is none. Hence, if you don’t have much time or energy to invest in pet food, you need to choose commercial pet foods.
Price:
Based on your location, requirements, and ingredients, the price of homemade foods per serving can vary. If you want to add high-quality proteins to homemade pet foods, you need to use chicken, beef, Salmon, and other fish which can be very costly for a middle-class person.
Purchasing individual ingredients and preparing foods at home is not only hectic but also very costly. You may need to invest a lot to purchase foods that consist of micronutrients.
You can find commercial foods in various price ranges and you can pick the one which is suitable for your pocket. Also, if you buy pet foods in bulk quantities or during sales, you may get attractive discounts that will comfort your pocket.
Premium and well-reputed brands are generally very expensive and you might think twice before paying the price for them. Paying a large sum for pet foods at once hurts many owners but in the long run, it is beneficial.
But the reality is, that those premium brands are still cheaper than homemade foods if you calculate the cost according to per serving. Yes, you also need to calculate the amount you effort you put into preparing food for your pets in monetary terms if you want to evaluate the actual cost.
Winner:
Commercial foods are cheaper and cost less per serving to your pets and are also easier to use. Hence, commercial foods are winners again.
Customizations:
Homemade foods are more suitable if you want to customize pet foods depending on various factors, such as the pet’s taste, dietary needs, and health issues. For example: if your pet has stomach infections, you can avoid grains and glutens from their diet easily by eliminating those ingredients.
But you need knowledge of food and nutrition if you want to customize them. Eliminating one ingredient may also reduce the amount of other essential micro-nutrients from their diet. You need to think about how you can compensate for it by using different ingredients that are not harmful.
The biggest benefit of commercial products is that you can find them in a variety of options. For example: if you want to buy dog food, you can find them in different flavours, such as beef, chicken, lamb, or salmon.
Still, commercial foods are less flexible in terms of customizing. If the product contains anything that is not suitable for your pets, you may have to avoid the whole product, you simply cannot extract that single element from it.
Winner:
Homemade pet foods are the winner if you want to analyze both products based on customization. If your pet has some health concerns and is not allowed to consume certain products that are often used in commercial pet foods, you need to choose home-cooked food in this scenario.
Quality Control:
Quality measurement of food products should not be judged on only freshness of the elements but also needs to be judged based on other aspects such as nutritional values and calories.
In homemade foods, you have complete authority over quality management as you customize the food according to your choice. You only need to purchase the fresh and right product for your pets.
As above mentioned, you might have control over the qualities, but without proper knowledge, you may not be able to provide your pet with proper nutritional values and calories. It might result in various diseases, injuries, and obesity.
Commercial food products are often certified by trusted and governmental organizations and it ensures their safety. However, the quality and freshness of the product cannot be completely determined by the certificate but you have the option to choose the right product based on ingredients, calories, and price.
Winner:
It could be a draw but commercial foods will receive an extra edge over homemade foods as commercial foods are not only certified, but you can clearly check which nutrients are present and how many calories they offer. It may not ensure freshness but definitely ensures safety, a well-balanced nutrition, and also helps in maintaining calories.
Health Consideration:
If your pet has allergies, sensitivity, and other health problems, a tailor-made homecooked diet after consulting a veterinarian will be more suitable for your pet.
But without the proper balance of nutrition, homemade diets may backfire and result in nutritional deficiencies. For example: due to calcium deficiency, your pet may have weak bones and joints which will result in more injuries.
Commercial pet foods are not flexible enough to counter one particular health issue as they are more focused on supporting overall health and growth. But if you put your effort and time into research, you can find the most suitable food product for your ill pets at the market.
Your pets may show poor reactions to low-quality commercial food and certain flavours. Also, low-quality proteins, bi-products, excessive additives, preservatives, and food colouring may result in other health implications.
Winner:
If your pet has any health issues or illness, it is better to feed them with homemade food according to the advice of professionals. Commercial foods are also good enough in this scenario but low-quality packaged food can bring bigger problems.
Our Recommendation:
Depending on the situation, preference, requirement, and comfort, you may choose any of them. But we recommend you use commercial foods for your pets over homemade foods because commercial foods offer more safety, quality, nutritional value, and convenience, and also the cost of commercial foods per serving is less than homemade foods.
Also Read: 6 Tips To Choose The Best Insurance For Your Pets
