Rat Terriers are adorable, medium-sized dogs that can bring light to your world. They are compact little dogs coming in at around 13 inches tall that love to play, be loved, and are tough as nails. Like with any dog breed, however, finding the right dog food is important. Considering their activity levels, you need high-quality dog food that can keep up. This review of our favorite dog foods for Rat Terriers can help you choose the right one for your feisty pup. Take a look below to find out more.

A Glance at Our Winners (2024 Update)

The 10 Best Dog Foods for Rat Terriers

1. The Farmer’s Dog Fresh Dog Food Subscription – Best Overall

Our choice for the overall best dog food for Rat Terriers is The Farmer’s Dog Chicken Recipe. The Farmer’s Dog offers a subscription service where you have the opportunity to provide your pet with fresh, healthy foods without the worries involved in choosing one at your local pet store.

What we like most about The Farmer’s Dog is the customization it offers your dog. They gear each subscription to your dog’s weight and nutritional needs. By following the directions you can avoid issues with overfeeding, the tummy upset involved, and of course, potential obesity. Their chicken recipe uses USDA human-grade chicken as the number one ingredient. It also adds additional vitamins and nutrients including fish oil.

The only issue we see with The Farmer’s Dog Chicken Recipe is the potential for allergens. If your pet shows any signs of a possible poultry allergy, consider switching to The Farmer’s Dog’s Beef Recipe.

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2. Purina One Natural SmartBlend Dry Food – Budget Buy

Our favorite budget option is Purina One Natural SmartBlend Chicken & Rice Recipe. While it may not be as good as our top pick, for owners on a budget, this food is a decent choice. What we like is that chicken is the primary ingredient. You’ll also find that this food contains several antioxidants, omega fatty acids, and even glucosamine for your dog’s continued health.

Our biggest concern with this dog food is the protein content. Considering it is dry kibble, 26% protein is a bit low. You can supplement additional protein into your dog’s diet if this amount is too low for your standards.

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3. Blue Buffalo Wilderness Grain-Free Dog Food

Blue Buffalo Wilderness Chicken Recipe Grain-Free dog food is a great option for your Rat Terrier if you have the budget for it. This food is considered on the higher end when it comes to price but it is a well-rounded food for your pet. You’ll find that deboned chicken is the first ingredient helping make it high in protein. You’ll also find all the vitamins and nutrients you’d expect like omega-fatty acids. If your pet has sensitivities to grains in their diet, this food is an excellent option.

Our only true issue with this dog food is that peas are included and are high on the ingredient list. They are part of the reason this food is so high in protein content. Keep this in mind, if you choose the food, as peas may be linked to certain health concerns in dogs.

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4. Blue Buffalo Life Protection Formula Puppy Food

Giving your Rat Terrier the right nutrition at an early age is crucial for their growth and development. This is why we like Blue Buffalo’s Life Protection puppy food. This food is formulated to help puppies of all sizes from an early age. The kibble itself is smaller and easier for young dogs to eat. You’ll also find phosphorus, calcium, and other nutrients essential to your dog’s development.

The only area where this puppy formula seems to be lacking is fat content. While we would like to see a bit more for a growing puppy, it isn’t what we would consider too low. Even with this issue in mind, we still feel it is the best puppy food we tested.

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5. Merrick Healthy Grains Dry Dog Food

Another good option is Merrick Healthy Grains Real Salmon & Brown Rice Recipe with Ancient Grains. If your Rat Terrier is a fan of fish, this tasty salmon recipe is what they are looking for. Deboned salmon is the main source of protein and the primary ingredient. This ingredient will help your pooch build and retain healthy muscles. You’ll also find healthy grains inside such as quinoa to support a healthy digestive system.

The only true issue we saw with this dog food is the smell. If you or your pup aren’t fans of “fishy” smelling foods, this one may be off-putting. If you have no issues, we recommend giving it a try.

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6. Taste of the Wild High Prairie Grain-Free Dog Food

Taste of the Wild High Prairie is a grain-free dog food that focuses on providing your dog with novel proteins such as buffalo and bison. You’ll find healthy fruits inside to help provide your pup with the antioxidants they need along with fatty acids to promote healthier skin and coats. Taste of the Wild also includes a blend of probiotics designed to help your dog’s digestion and is free of artificial colors and preservatives.

While this is great dog food, you will find that it has the controversial ingredient, peas, inside. This ingredient may be linked with certain issues in dogs so this should be kept in mind when adding this food to your dog’s diet.

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7. Iams Adult Mini Chunk Small Kibble High Protein Dog Food

The next food on our list is Iams Adult Mini Chunk. This food is considerably more affordable than a few of the other options we’ve discussed but bear in mind that you will sacrifice a bit of quality for the savings. We just aren’t loving a lot of the ingredients. What we do like about this food is that farm-raised chicken is the first ingredient and main source of protein. You’ll also find it has a healthy amount of prebiotics, antioxidants, and fibers for your pooch.

What we really aren’t thrilled with when it comes to this dog food is the low protein and fat content inside the bag. Yes, chicken is the main ingredient, but healthy dogs need protein and fat in their diet.

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8. Victor Classic Hi-Pro Plus Dry Dog Food

The Victor Classic Hi-Pro Plus Dry Dog Food is an expensive dog food that is promoted as being a high-quality food. Unfortunately, some ingredients make us question that assessment. What we do like though is the high protein content. Most of this protein comes from animal and animal ingredients such as beef, pork, and chicken meal. It also packs good fat content for your pooch.

One of our biggest issues is the price of this food. With what they want you to pay, it should contain a better list of ingredients. Real chicken, beef, or pork would make this food higher in quality considering the price tag.

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9. Diamond Naturals All Life Stages Dry Dog Food

Next up is Diamond Naturals Chicken & Brown Rice Formula Dry Dog Food. This food is designed for all life stages and is made with real cage-free chicken as the first ingredient. You’ll also find a great assortment of vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and added omega fatty acids to keep your dog healthy and looking its best. They even include a probiotic blend to help your dog better digest this food and is ideal for those that suffer from sensitivities.

Our only concerns and reasons for this food being lower on our list are the protein amount found inside and the price. Like with our previous dog food, you would expect more bang for your buck. Unfortunately, the protein content is just too low for our liking.

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10. Hill’s Science Diet Adult Small Bites Dry Dog Food

Our final food on this list is Hill’s Science Diet Small Bites Chicken & Barley Recipe. This food is made with chicken as the main ingredient and is designed in small pieces so your pet can easily enjoy it. There are no artificial ingredients inside and the mix of vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, and vitamin E is great for your pooch.

The issues we find with this dog food are similar to others on our list, low-quality ingredients, and low protein content. This food is quite high in carbs while not offering your pup the high amount of protein they need to stay healthy.

Buyer’s Guide: Choosing the Best Dog Food for Rat Terriers

Now that we’ve shared our top 10 picks for the best dog foods for your Rat Terrier, let’s share what criteria we used to choose these foods. This will help you better understand why we ranked them in the order we did and which ones may be best suited for your particular situation.

Ingredients

The most important thing to keep in mind when choosing your dog’s food is the ingredients inside. You’ll hear lots of people talk of low-quality, high-quality, and fillers. If you truly want to give your pooch the best foods, higher-quality ingredients are, of course, your best option. Reading the ingredients list isn’t always enough, however. If you want your pup to have only the best, taking the time to understand these ingredients helps. You’ll also note that we mentioned protein and fat content quite a bit. This is due to your dog needing fat and protein to thrive. Wet foods, like our top pick, will have a lower protein content but this is due to the food being fresh and ready for your dog to eat. Kibble is processed for your dog and should feature a high fat and protein level to ensure they are getting enough of what they need daily.

Grains

A couple of the entries on our list include grain-free foods. Many feel that these foods are better for your pet. You’ll even notice some companies push grain-free options. While this may be true if your dog suffers from sensitivities to grains, it isn’t necessarily best for those who don’t. Whole grains are a healthy addition and something your dog needs. Unless your vet recommends avoiding grains, having them in your dog’s diet is a good idea.

Price

Price is always important. While we want only the best for our pup, everyone is on a budget. We tried to keep this thought in mind while compiling our list so you could be aware of whether certain brands were more expensive than others. If you are on a lower budget, you should find several affordable options to offer your Rat Terrier.

Conclusion

For the best overall dog food for Rat Terriers, we suggest The Farmer’s Dog Chicken Recipe and its list of great ingredients. If you’re on a budget, Purina One is an affordable option you can trust. We hope this article has helped you find the perfect food for your sweet Rat Terrier!

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Featured Image Credit: Emily Ranquist, Shutterstock