| Choosing the best commercial store bought food for | | | | There should be no "meat by-products" or "digest" |
| your dog feeding can be a huge challenge with so | | | | ("meal" is OK). Some disagreement exists as to |
| many different brands and a multitude of diverse | | | | whether whole meat is preferable to meal. Meal is |
| types of food being offered in stores today. | | | | meat that has been rendered, but is also dried, so if |
| Hopefully, this article will simplify things for you to | | | | a meal is listed as the "first ingredient", there is |
| make selecting the best food and the everyday | | | | greater likelihood that the food contains more meat |
| routine of feeding a dog as uncomplicated and | | | | than grains. |
| enjoyable for both you and your best friend. | | | | When whole meats like chicken, lamb, turkey, etc. |
| Don't be deceived by glossy packaging and enticing | | | | are listed as the first ingredient, there may actually |
| slogans... know what to look for when buying | | | | be much less meat because of the moisture weight |
| commercial food for your dog. | | | | in the meat. Both whole meats and meals are |
| Here are some of the things you should look for | | | | considered acceptable, provided they are identified |
| when buying a commercial dog food: | | | | by name and not just generic (e.g., not "meat meal" |
| There should not be any generic fats or proteins like | | | | or "meat and bone meal"). Some by-products may be |
| "animal fat" or meat meal". Instead, look for named | | | | OK if the company specifies they are from |
| sources such as chicken fat, beef fat or lamb | | | | human-grade organs such as liver and kidney. |
| meal...the generic term indicates the mixture is coming | | | | Otherwise they usually mean parts not considered fit |
| from several different sources, which is a sign of a | | | | for human consumption. |
| very poor quality food. Poultry fat is not considered | | | | Absolutely no BHA, BHT or Ethoxyquin (artificial |
| as bad as animal fat, but chicken fat is even better. | | | | preservatives) should ever be present! This is |
| "IMPORTANT": you should never feed a food that | | | | another "red flag" for low quality dog food. |
| uses the generic ingredients "meat meal", "meat and | | | | Ethoxyquin is banned from use in foods for human |
| bone meal", or "animal fat". | | | | consumption, except for the use of very small |
| USDA approved Human Grade Ingredients: This term | | | | quantities as a color preservative for spices. |
| is somewhat controversial, because dog foods | | | | Ethoxyquin is used to preserve fish meal, which will |
| cannot be labeled "human grade" by law. But you can | | | | not be disclosed on the dog food label as it is added |
| look for companies that use human grade meats and | | | | before the fish meal reaches the manufacturing plant. |
| not meats that were rejected by the human food | | | | Unless the manufacturer provides a statement on |
| industry. Better yet, for even higher quality, look for | | | | their web site that the fish meal in their food does |
| hormone free and antibiotic-free meats, especially | | | | not contain ethoxyquin, you can assume that is does. |
| those that are free-range or pasture-raised. | | | | You should contact the product manufacturer if you |
| Note: all poultry is hormone-free, since it's against | | | | are unsure. |
| regulations to give hormones to poultry). | | | | There should be no artificial colors, sugars or |
| You should avoid any foods that contain "corn gluten | | | | sweeteners (like corn syrup, sucrose, ammoniated |
| meal"! This is a cheap waste product from the human | | | | glycyrrhizin), no propylene glycol (added to some |
| food industry that provides incomplete protein for | | | | chewy foods to keep them moist, toxic in large |
| dogs. This ingredient is considered to be a "red flag" | | | | amounts). |
| of poor quality foods. Also, "wheat gluten meal", one | | | | There should be as few grains as possible. A |
| of the ingredients that caused illness and death | | | | whole-meat source should be one of the first two |
| because of contamination in the recent Menu Foods | | | | ingredients, preferably two of the top three. Watch |
| recall, is similar...it's a cheap source of poor quality | | | | out for splitting of ingredients, like listing ground |
| protein used primarily by the lower-quality foods. | | | | yellow corn and corn gluten meal as two separate |
| "Rice protein concentrate", which was also involved in | | | | ingredients which together might add up to more |
| the pet food recalls, is a slightly better quality than | | | | than the first ingredient. |
| the other two, but still provides incomplete plant | | | | Please note: canned foods often have fewer grains |
| protein rather than the more desirable animal protein. | | | | than dry. |
| Soy protein also has the same problem. | | | | |