The Best Dog Food For Boxers (2017 Edition)

Dog food is dog food, right?

Wrong!

What a dog eats every day has a huge effect on their overall health and activity level. If you want your dog to live a long, healthy life at your side, you need to make sure that you are researching their food and feeding them a quality meal.

The best dog food for boxers like yours will have the right balance of protein, fat, and carbohydrates to keep your dog playing for years to come! Let’s take a look.

More...

What Boxers Need In Their Food

It’s important to know what kind of food your boxer needs to live a healthy life. Their energy and their long-term health are largely determined by what they eat on a daily basis, so you need to be aware of what you feed your dog.

Let’s take a look at the important factors you should consider when choosing your dog’s food.

Avoid Food Allergens

Dog owners of nearly any breed should avoid food allergens. Boxer owners, however, need to be even more careful because boxers are very prone to be affected by food allergies. This means that they can have digestive and allergy problems quite easily.

Always avoid foods that have wheat, corn, and soy in them. These fillers are common causes of food allergies. They’re cheap fillers that do not do anything for your dog nutritionally, so there is no reason not to avoid them. Wheat and corn are the biggest problem causers, so avoid those at all costs.

Always check for food allergens before buying a new dog food for your boxer.

Consider The Meat Menu

If you’re choosing food for your boxer that has meat in it, make sure you pay attention to what form the animal products are in when they get to your dog’s food. The three main types of food that show up are by-products, meals, and real meat.

By-products

These are typically low-quality ingredients. These are animal parts processed down that are leftover after the “good parts” of the animal are used. Avoid these.

Meat meal

While meat meal may not sound very good, this is typically a high-quality ingredient. Meals are real meat, but the water is removed, so you are giving your dog a higher concentration of meat.

Meat from specific animals

Always check and see if the meat ingredients in your food come from a specific animal or not. Don’t buy poultry meal, buy chicken meal. You want to know that the exact animal that the meat is coming from is identified. This is because you want to know that the animal is one that your dog can eat safely. Otherwise, it could be very low-quality.

Nutritional Ratios

Like all breeds, boxers have a specific amount of both fats and proteins that they should eat to remain as healthy as possible.

For proteins, you will want to get to around 30% at a minimum if possible. You can feed boxers food in the 25% to 30% range without problems, but many experts recommend you feed between 30-40% protein to your boxer.

Fat is in food to help it taste good and to help keep a dog’s coat healthy. Since boxers have a short coat, they don’t need as much fat to keep them healthy. Still, it’s good to feed them between 10-15% fat levels in their diet.

Top 5 Best Dog Food For Boxers

1. Taste of the Wild, Canine Formula, Lamb

Via Amazon

CHECK PRICE

The Sierra Mountain formula from the Taste of The Wild line is a great choice for boxers that need a source of grain-free, highly digestible energy. The carbohydrates in this food largely come from sweet potatoes and peas, which are both good on digestive systems.

I really like this food because it doesn’t have too many added ingredients, and the protein sources are all high-quality, with lamb being the main base.

Pros
Protein: 25% Fat: 15% No common food allergens (corn, soy, wheat) Lamb based formula good for those with food allergies to other proteins or fish Lowers gas and digestive problems in many dogs Dogs love the taste

---

Cons
Some owners may want an even higher percentage of protein Contains filler tomato pomace

2. Blue Buffalo Life Protection Dry Adult Dog Food, Chicken & Brown Rice

Via Amazon

CHECK PRICE

The next food is the Life Protection Formula with LifeSource Bits from Blue Buffalo. This chicken and brown rice recipe is great for boxers that are prone to food allergies and sensitive digestive issues as it is free from grains and only has wholesome whole grains.

I like this food because of the balanced nutritional palette that it offers boxers. The main source of protein is deboned chicken, and there is also chicken meal in the formula.

Pros
Grain-free formula High-quality ingredients No by-products No artificial colors, flavors or preservatives Protein: 18% Fat: 10%

---

Cons
Can break apart easily Protein level low for a boxer Some dogs don’t like the “life bites”

3. Wellness CORE Natural Grain Free Dry Dog Food, Turkey Formula

Via Amazon

CHECK PRICE

The next food is the turkey flavor of Wellness CORE Natural Grain Free Dry Dog Food. This grain-free food is such a great option for boxers because it has a decent level of both fat and protein while also using turkey as the main, quality source of protein. The food also has chicken meal and turkey meal, giving a great combination of protein sources.

I like this food for boxers because it does not contain any allergens that commonly upset digestive systems.

Pros
Protein: 34% Fat:16% Grain-free, free from common allergens No meat by-products Contains deboned turkey, turkey meal, and chicken meal

---

Cons
Potatoes and tomato pomace are filler carbohydrates Fish oils are great for the skin but can cause some dogs allergy problems

4. Natural Balance Limited Ingredient Diets Dry Dog Food - Chicken & Sweet Potato Formula

Via Amazon

CHECK PRICE

Next up we have the chicken and sweet potato formula from the Limited Ingredient Diets line that Natural Balance makes. This line is perfect for dogs that have sensitive stomachs because the point of the line is to limit ingredients as much as possible. The fewer ingredients, the lower the risk is of irritation.

Since boxers can have very sensitive digestive systems, choosing a limited ingredient food like this one is a great choice. Plus, this has tons of great antioxidants and digestible carbs!

Pros
Protein: 21% Fat: 10% Limited ingredients means less risk of irritation Grain-free, sweet potatoes are main carb source Good source of omega fatty acids Main protein source is real chicken and chicken meal No unnecessary filler ingredients

---

Cons
Protein level lower than suggested for boxers Low fat level

5. Royal Canin Breed Health Nutrition Boxer Adult dry dog food

Via Amazon

CHECK PRICE

The last food worth looking at for your boxer is this breed-specific Boxer Formula from Royal Canin. This food is specifically made to supplement the nutritional needs of boxers like yours. Because boxers are prone to cardiac and joint issues, this food is high in antioxidants and supplements that can help offset those risk.

Overall, this food is formulated really well. I do think it has a great level of protein, but I wish that it had less fat in it because there is no reason that a boxer needs that much fat in their diet.

Pros
Protein: 24% Fat: 18% High in antioxidants Ideal for keeping muscle mass on boxers healthy Promotes shiny and soft coat

---

Cons
Fat level is higher than it needs to be Some dogs don’t like the taste of it Price fluctuates often

The Best Food For Boxers Is…

As you can see, there are a lot of foods out there that are great for boxers, but that doesn’t mean that one still isn’t clearly better than the others.

There’s no doubt in my mind that the Taste of the Wild, Canine Formula, Sierra Mountain Lamb Formula is the best food out there for boxers. It has a unique taste that dogs love, and it doesn’t cause them any digestive issues. Additionally, it fills the nutritional profile that they need very well. This is a great food for most boxers.

Do you have food that your boxer loves? Let me know what it is in the comments, and then share this article with other boxer fans.