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In this guide we’ll take a look at the best dog food for Irish Setters.
We’ve compared the quality of ingredients, nutritional information, and value for money.
Our top recommended Irish Setter dog food is Halo Holistic Adult Dry Dog Food.
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All of our dog food suggestions are carefully selected by professionals. We extensively research the products to check if they’ve been approved by governing bodies before making recommendations. You can read more about our stringent review standards here. And remember, always consult your veterinarian first, before changing your dog’s food.
Often rated among the best dog foods for Irish Setters available today, Halo Holistic Adult Dry Dog Food is an exceptional quality diet that has been optimized to meet the nutritional needs of highly active and athletic breeds. Chicken and chicken liver are the main ingredients in this powerhouse food formulation, two proteins that are easy on a dog’s digestive system and that are packed with the amino acids needed to support a healthy body in the Irish Setter.
Halo Holistic Adult Dry Dog Food contains highly digestible whole grains. Its carbohydrate profile is comprised of whole grains, fruits, and vegetables that are antioxidant and fiber-dense to support strong digestion and a healthy immune system. Among the superfoods found in this diet are oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and blueberries. This diet is completely free from artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives.
To boost coat and skin health, Halo Holistic Adult Dry Dog Food includes a supplement known as DreamCoat that is rich in the essential fatty acids the Irish Setter needs.
Farmina N&D Ancestral Grain Adult is a premium performance food that delivers big on both exceptional nutrition and a reasonable price, giving families with Irish Setters good value for their dog food dollar. A diet that prioritizes a high protein formulation, the main ingredient in this food is chicken, included in both whole and dehydrated form to provide the maximum amount of nutrients for the Irish Setter.
Often ranked among the best dog foods for Irish Setters, Farmina N&D Ancestral Grain Adult’s recipe does include grains, but each was carefully selected for its low glycemic index to help keep the dog’s blood sugar levels stable. This premium tier formula is free from whole peas, legumes, and by-products. Essential fatty acids occur organically in this recipe to ensure the Irish Setter has adequate servings of healthy fats to promote optimal coat and skin health.
Merrick Backcountry Freeze-Dried Raw Dry Dog Food is a premium tier food formulation that is rich in flavor and nutrients to support optimal health and wellness in the Irish Setter. One of the best dog foods for Irish Setters available for purchase today, Merrick Backcountry Freeze-Dried Raw Dry Dog Food ensures its recipe is irresistible to dogs through its inclusion of both freeze-dried meat pieces and kibble. The main ingredient in this food is beef, a lean meat that is easy for dogs to digest and full of the vitamins, minerals, and nutrients the Irish Setter needs to enjoy strong and healthy muscles.
A grain-free diet, Merrick Backcountry Freeze-Dried Raw Dry Dog Food contains no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives. To boost joint health in the Irish Setter, glucosamine and chondroitin have been supplemented in this exceptional quality food.
Rachael Ray Nutrish LID, one of the best dog foods for Irish Setters, earns top marks for its high quality nutrition and exceptional price point. The foundation of this limited ingredient diet is lamb meal, a meat that is easily digestible, rich in amino acids, and unlikely to trigger allergic reactions in Irish Setters with sensitive skin or stomachs.
A food that is free from corn, wheat, and soy, Rachael Ray Nutrish LID is an excellent choice for dogs with allergies to some of the most common food allergens. Other ingredients that can be problematic for some dogs play no role in this premium tier diet including by-products, fillers, artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives.
Wellness Large Breed Complete Health Adult, a diet often recommended as one of the best dog foods for Irish Setters, offers a highly flavorful and nutrient-dense formulation to support the Irish Setter’s optimal health and wellness. This diet has been carefully calibrated to fuel the energy reserves of busy dogs like the Irish Setter.
The main ingredients in Wellness Large Breed Complete Health Adult are chicken and chicken meal, two proteins that are easy on a dog’s digestive system and power packed with the amino acids dogs need for a healthy body.
The elegant Irish Setter is the picture of sophistication, charm, and fun. With its distinctive, flowing red locks, the Irish Setter captures both the eye and the heart of nearly all that it meets. A breed with an athletic build and energy to spare, the Irish Setter is a dog that is renowned for its sweet, sociable nature, making it an excellent companion both in the field on a hunt and in a home by the fire.
The Irish Setter’s original purpose was to serve as a bird dog, accompanying its owners on hunts for fowl. However, this sporting dog is up for any adventure with its family. It is important to note that the Irish Setter was intended to function as a working breed, and thus, has a lot of energy which must be positively expended every day. Experienced breeders relate that this charming dog breed needs at least one hour of vigorous exercise every day.
A breed that enjoys the company of its family best, the Irish Setter does not do well if left alone for long periods of time. Because the breed is highly active and has a high prey drive, the Irish Setter is best suited to living in a home that has an accompanying securely fenced yard.
The Irish Setter is an extremely versatile dog, successfully competing in many different activities. Among the most popular events the Irish Setter excels at are obedience, Rally, agility, conformation, and tracking. Because the Irish Setter is gentle natured and friendly, they also do well as therapy dogs.
A breed that is naturally quite intelligent, the Irish Setter has a penchant for mischief and is a dog with a mind of its own. Because of this, training this breed can be challenging. In addition to this, the Irish Setter enjoys a slow path to full adulthood, meaning its owners get to enjoy a lengthier puppyhood with this delightful, happy breed.
Because the Irish Setter is an athletic and active breed, this dog type is not predisposed to weight gain. Still, free feeding this breed is still strongly discouraged.
Though most often a very healthy breed, the Irish Setter can be prone to certain health conditions. These include such problems as progressive retinal atrophy, hip dysplasia, and hypothyroidism. The best dog foods for Irish Setters contain helpful supplements to support optimal eye and joint health such as glucosamine, chondroitin, DHA and ARA.
As a general rule of thumb, the Irish Setter does best on a diet that contains a minimum of 18 percent protein and 5 percent fat.
The Irish Setter is a natural born athlete, eagerly enjoying the active lifestyle. Because of this, this breed requires a diet that is well-balanced and crafted from only the finest ingredients to attain and sustain exceptional health.
Trying to determine how much of a food to feed a dog is often a process that involves some trial and error. To provide a helpful starting point, the best dog foods for Irish Setters list suggested serving sizes on their packaging. Owners can use these suggestions as a starting point, making adjustments to reflect their own dog’s age, weight, activity level, and appetite until the correct portion is found.
Though the Irish Setter is an active dog and is not predisposed to becoming overweight, it is still best that this dog type not be free fed. To help maintain the ideal body condition for this slender and graceful breed, it is best to measure all food and monitor all intake.
The best dog foods for Irish Setters make a lean, meat-based protein the basis of their recipe. The ideal foundation for this type of diet is a whole meat or meat meal. By-products are typically comprised of pieces of an animal that are more difficult to digest, and thus, are best avoided. Likewise, the plant-based proteins soy, corn, and wheat can be common allergens for many dogs, and thus, are not the best choice for a diet for the Irish Setter.
Some commercially prepared dog foods make use of ingredients designed to improve taste and appearance or to help increase the shelf life of the food. These ingredients offer no nutritional benefit to the Irish Setter, and thus, it is recommended that diets containing them be left on the shelf. Some of the ingredients best avoided include chemicals, fillers, additives, artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives.
From carbohydrates, the Irish Setter gains the necessary nutrients to achieve fluid digestion and a strong immune system. These carbohydrates can come from antioxidant and fiber-rich whole grains, fruits, and vegetables, or a combination of the three. Dogs that have previously expressed allergies to grains may do best on a grain-free diet.
Healthy fats assist the Irish Setter with fuel for its energy levels and support for optimal coat and skin health. These fats are best obtained from animal-based foods such as chicken fat and oily fish.
Here is a basic list of the most important things to look for in the best dog food for an Irish Setter:
The Irish Setter requires a diet based on a lean meat to achieve optimal health and wellness. Whole meats and meat meals are the best option to provide the nutrients this dog breed needs.
Chemicals, fillers, artificial flavorings and colorings, and mystery ingredients provide no nutritional benefit to the Irish Setter. Foods containing these items are not suited for the needs of this breed.
Supplements help a food to work its most effectively. The ideal supplements to look for in a food for the Irish Setter are glucosamine, chondroitin, prebiotics, and probiotics.
All foods appropriate for the Irish Setter should bear the AAFCO seal of approval, indicating it meets the standards for a complete and balanced food.
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