Pet Nutrition

When I first wrote this for my website back in 2007 Cat & Dog food was an $11 billion dollar+ industry in the United States. Now it’s  2011 and the industry has grown to a whopping $16+ billion. There’s hundreds of brands so it’s safe to say that choosing just ONE is overwhelming. What to feed your dog is a very personal choice often made via advice from a trusted veterinarian, fellow dog-lover, breeder, trainer or other animal care professional. However, you need to do your homework! There are many articles and Internet sites that discuss the controversial topic of what lurks in your dog food. Read every single one that you can get your hands on! I have included some links at the end to great sites that discuss pet nutrition and what’s really in commercial dog foods from where I have derived a lot of the info below. You’ll be horrified at what’s in your favorite kibble at your local supermarket.

COMMERCIAL PET FOOD INDUSTRY:  The commercial pet food industry is a sub-industry of the human food/agricultural industry. Anything unfit for human consumption at slaughterhouses such as waste and grain remnants that end up on the floor ends up in our pet food. Think of a slaughterhouse; choice, high quality meats are cut away for human consumption as governed by the FDA. The left-overs (bones, blood, pus, intestines, ligaments and all other body parts not fit for consumption by humans) is used to make pet food. These would be referred to as “by-products” on the ingredients list on your pet food. Another source for protein that won’t be listed on your bag of dog food is actual dogs and cats! Commercial pet food manufactures denied these claims but the American Veterinary Medical Association confirmed the San Francisco Chronicles’ 1990 report that euthanized companion animals were being used in commercial pet food … An old report but scary non-the-less.

Did you know that most commercial pet foods are made by big, multi-national food corporations:
-Proctor & Gamble who make Joy dishwashing liquid, Crest toothpaste, Zest soap, Fabreze also make Iams and Eukanuba. 
-Alpo, Fancy Feast, Friskies and Mighty Dog are produced by the candy bar maker Nestle.
-9-Lives, Amore, Gravy Train, Kibbles & Bits, Recipe, Vets are all from your favorite ketchup maker; Heinz.
-Colgate not only keeps your teeth white and cavity free but they also make Hills Science Diet. dog and cat food.
-Mars, another candy bar maker also makes Kal-Kan, Mealtime, Pedigree and Sheba.

Sadly, no commercial pet food maker is dedicated solely to pet food or pet nutrition. Their pet food line is secondary to a line of human food and speculated as quite possibly a source for disposing of waste unfit for human consumption while making money at it too. Just read the ingredients on a bag of Alpo or Purina Puppy Chow…what is all that garbage?

PREMIUM PET FOOD INDUSTRY: (sometimes referred to as holistic) On the flip side, the premium pet food industry is dedicated to pet nutrition and pet health. Many of the premium foods were formulated by veterinarians and breeders out of necessity because they believed what was available did not offer the proper nutrition. Only high quality ingredients are used in premium pet foods that match with what is fit and balanced for canines and felines without over processing or the use of chemicals and preservatives or unnecessary plant based ingredients. The ingredients used in premium pet foods would be fit for human consumption. Price is often a good indicator of the quality of food inside the bag…Because there aren’t fillers, chemicals, preservatives and only high quality ingredients are used, premium dog foods are more expensive. But in the long run, you will need less of it. Since it meets or exceeds the nutritional needs of your pet, it will not only end up costing you less to feed your dog but your dog will be healthier with less trips to the vet and will live longer. For a medium to large size breed dog, you might need  3-4 cups of commercial brands daily for your dog where as a premium food may only require 2-3 cups. See the incredible value here. An easy tell-tale to know if your food has chemicals and preservatives is in it’s texture or shape and smell…the more hardened or shaped the kibble/food is and the more pleasant smelling, means the more additives, chemicals and preservatives have been used to retain such an unnatural form. PLEASE NOTE: Just because a pet food calls itself PREMIUM, doesn’t necessarily mean it is premium. You must still analyze the ingredients. There are many premium brands out there that, although very popular among the "premium" brand circuit, I still would not be comfortable feeding to my pets. But then again, they would still be better than just about anything you could buy at your local grocery store.

FDA:   The pet food industry is regulated by the FDA CVM (Food & Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine) working in partnership with AAFCO (Association of American Feeds Control Officials) to determine safe pet food ingredients and testing protocols. Pet food labels are required to carry certain information like ingredients listed in order by volume, life stage claims and manufacturers contact info. It is up to the consumer to decipher the information on the label and deem it fit or unfit for their pet.

WHAT IS A DOG?   Although they are scavengers and will eat ANYTHING, the true nature of dogs is a carnivore (meat-eaters). Their primary source of nutrition is PROTEIN, not corn, barley, wheat, soy, etc. Be sure that the first and greatest-by-volume ingredient on your dogs’ food is an actual MEAT PROTEIN. Ingredients on pet food packaging are listed in order of largest volume. If your first ingredient listed is CORN then you can stop right there because that ingredient will make up the majority of the food from which the nutrients are found. (No ingredient list should ever begin with a GRAIN!) OR if the first ingredient is beef but the second, third and fourth ingredients are various forms of grain (wheat, corn, barley, etc) then the volume of grain over takes the beef as the majority ingredient. This will not satisfy the nutritional needs of your pet and their health, longevity, skin and coat will suffer. You need to compare the number of meat ingredients vs. grain ingredients. (Dogs do not require grains and provide no nutritional value to canines) The first ingredient should be MEAT; chicken, beef, lamb, duck, venison even fish, etc. Not to mention, grains can harbor toxic molds. The FDA found widespread failure at Diamond Pet Food to test their CORN several years ago when nearly 80 dogs were seriously effected or died from mold contaminated pet food resulting in a nationwide warning and recall on their feed. And subsequent to that, Menu Foods had a major recall in 2007 of fifty popular brands of cat and dog food blaming WHEAT GLUTEN as the cause for illness and death in several pets. Gluten is the protein left over after washing dough made from wheat or rice flour in water until the starch is rinsed away, leaving only the gluten. It’s used as a low cost substitute for protein in dog and cat food and can cause irreparable damage and destruction to the villa that line the intestines through which nutrients are pushed into the bloodstream. The gluten filters into the villa and hardens, causing the villa to break off. Since villa cannot regenerate, the damage is irreparable and permanent. Canines and Felines are carnivores and have no place for glutens and  brans (left over outer shell of rice) or any other grain by product in their diet.   This is just one more example  and  one  more reason to please STOP FEEDING YOUR DOG COMMERCIAL BRAND PET FOODS!!! THEY ARE KILLING OUR PETS!!
 
SPECIAL DIETS:  If you have a pet that requires special diets due to allergies, auto-immune disease or digestive problems, tread carefully to determine what combination of ingredients is going to best satisfy the nutritional balance while meeting the needs of a special diet. Keep in mind the allergies can be caused by the very diet you are feeding. For example my late 15 yr. old Yorkshire Terrier had developed IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) in his later years and meat upsets his system terribly. Even chicken or lamb & rice results in constant vomiting several times a day. So I was reluctantly forced to use a commercial brand that I despised (Science Diet Sensitive stomach) that uses egg as its protein source instead of meat. It’s the only thing that stayed down. I would still use a little of my premium Abady brand mixed in to bolster the nutritional value of the SD. Perhaps if I had used a premium diet with him from puppyhood (I only discovered premiums when he was about 10 yrs. old), he might have never developed IBS.

STOOL SAMPLE:  Beet pulp and soybeans are very common fiber fillers in dog food. Beet pulp should be avoided at all costs. Don't let sly marketing ploys fool you into thinking the words "sugar removed" is safer for your pet. Beet pulp is the fibrous pulp left over from sugar beets after the sugar is extracted in the process of manufacturing sugar so ALL beet pulp has the sugar removed. (Just another way the commercial pet food companies use left-overs from human agriculture to make money on inferior dog food) Beet pulp causes a vicious cycle of devastating effects on a dog’s intestinal system.  I blame this ingredient on my yorkie’s IBS.  Here’s how it works: Your veterinarian usually does an annual stool sample test to primarily look for parasites and worms. But they should also check the consistency or hardness of the stool to determine nutritional sufficiency; a hard stool means a healthy dog, right? Wrong! Here’s the catch; beet pulp has enormous fluid absorbing capacity and expansive properties. Meaning it holds up to 7 times its weight in water and can increase in volume by as much as 250%. This swollen mass in the intestines will draw IN more and more fluid from the surrounding tissue and continue to expand until it becomes so large that it’s digestion through the colon comes to a screeching crawl. The colon’s job is to draw OUT the moisture and create a stool. This job becomes slowed and labored and forms a very hard dry stool that’s uncomfortable to pass and damages the intestinal lining. Because of this “artificially created hard stool” many digestive problems are masked because all seems right, right? WRONG…the intestinal tracts’ natural response to irritants is to eliminate them via diarrhea. Diarrhea is the body’s natural way to expel irritants by the intestinal tract drawing in water through osmosis (through the tissue) in an attempt to flush the system as rapidly as possible. So what’s really happening here? If your pet has eaten something it shouldn’t or has an infection, or just the mere fact of intestinal damage from these huge stools trying to pass every day, the body’s natural reaction is to create diarrhea to get rid of it and it’s that diarrhea that warns us something is wrong. BUT if beet pulp is present in the diet, a hard stool will almost always be produced …no matter how hard the body tries to produce diarrhea to flush out irritants, the stool just becomes harder and harder as long as beet pulp is in the diet. (although at some point, the body’s natural defense mechanism should win out and perhaps intermittent diarrhea will appear but because it goes away, you will think everything is fine) So next you switch your dog food to try to correct the problem. Perhaps you pick one that does not have beet pulp and all is right, right? WRONG…if intestinal problems were present, they were only masked before and now will present as diarrhea, bloody stools, etc. These symptoms are often blamed on the new diet when that is not the case at all and you switch back to the old food. Your dogs stool should never be rock hard or be difficult to pass. Nor should they be runny or puddle. They should contain moisture and some soft shape and be easy to pass.

BLOAT:  There are MANY theories on what causes bloat (a fatal gastrointestinal disorder where gas/bubbles form and are trapped in the stomach causing expansion and twisting cutting off circulation to it and other organs). It has been speculated that it’s genetic or breed specific often found in large breeds or breeds with deep chests such as Grate Danes and Boxers. It’s been speculated that it’s from too much exercise right after eating or drinking. It’s also been speculated that it’s from gulping too much air when eating or drinking. There is however, a more scientific theory; the combination of high fiber ingredients that contain Saponins. Beet pulp and soybeans contain Saponins (glycosides that have the ability to act as emulsifying agents). Saponins are like soap; when mixed with water and shaken make dense, foam-like bubbles with high surface tension, which makes them hard to rupture or dissipate. Beat pulp (left over fiber from the sugar making process) and tomato pomace (left over skin and seeds from the juice, sauce and paste making process) are high fiber ingredients that are not only excessive and unecessary in a dogs’ diet but also detrimental. So put the Saponin theory together with the heavy exercise after eating or drinking theory and you have a recipe for disaster. Do not allow your dog to run, jump or play for several hours after eating regardless of what diet they are on. Feed them smaller meals spaced out instead of one large meal and stay away from beet pulp, soy beans and tomato pomace.

INGREDIENTS TO AVOID: Corn, Wheat, Brans & Glutens, Brown Rice, beet pulp, tomato pomace, sorghum, alfalfa, soybeans, peas, beans, garlic, and yucca. It’s virtually impossible to find a pet food that does not contain some amount of rice or oats so these ingredients you may need to compromise on and/or make sure it's whole rice and whole oats and not rice flour or rice gluten or rice/wheat bran and wheat/oat bran.  Plant based ingredients have been equated to POISON in the carnivore causing a wide variety of allergies, sterility and death. All of life's creatures are created with defense mechanisms. Plants are no different; many plants contain poisonous chemicals to ward off predators. When these plants are processed into food and ingested year after year it CAN AND WILL produce side effects in your dog! Does your adult dog all of the sudden have allergies? All of the sudden seem twice his age with no energy? Or have you had a dog suddenly die? A poor diet with nutritionally devoid ingredients can be to blame!   Avoiding these ingredients will make shopping for your pet food a challenge to say the least. It will take much research to find one you are comfortable with. If you had to sacrifice any one for the other I would recommend finding a food that contains neither BEET PULP, SOY BEANS, WHEAT, CORN, BRANS AND GLUTENS.

MY RECOMMENDATION:  Personally, I HIGHLY recommend ONLY Abady dog food. It was created by Dr. Robert Abady, a veterinarian. It comes in 10 formulas for different breed sizes, stages of life and textures (the granular formulas have the consistency of dirt but they also have two kibble formulas and canned). Abady’s formulas are scientifically developed to be species specific and are made up of fish & real meat proteins and essential fatty acids. The Robert Abady Dog Food Company focuses it’s research on the fact that dogs are carnivores (meat-eaters) and believe many commercial dog food manufacturers are misleading the public into thinking that dogs are omnivores (meat and plant eaters) in order to justify the use of inexpensive plant based ingredients in the foods to save on manufacturing costs. The formulation of the Abady food is scientifically designed taking into account that dogs don’t require plant based food, that their digestive system is designed to process meat/protein and they lack certain enzymes needed to breakdown plant matter. To further support the carnivore nature of dogs, their dental set up is also designed for meat/protein; to rip flesh, cut tendon and crush bone. Canines don’t possess a single tooth suited for grinding grain. Abady’s research has also made a connection between these plant-based foods consumed over time and digestive tract corrosion and bloat. In fact Abady’s research found reports of an alarming rise in Gastric Dilation (bloat) in the 70’s through the 90’s and could be directly correlated to the introduction of new ingredients in dog foods such as beet pulp and other highly expandable fiber ingredients that reek havoc on a dogs digestive system. I’ve been feeding Abady to my 11 year old Doberman since she was a puppy and in that time I’ve only had to take her to the vet ONCE outside of regular vaccination visits. She’s never sick, her coat gleams and she is strong, lean and healthy and acts half her age. I feed her 1 ½  cups a day.  Think of all the money I’ve saved  on veterinary bills and how her life has been extended just by buying quality food with quality ingredients!

There are many other amazing premium brands out there (you just need to find the one you like and can feel comfortable with).

Below is a brief analysis of some of the most popular premium brands (keep in mind that I have very high standards when it comes to feeding my dogs; they are my life and I want them around a long time…Feeding them the best food is going to insure that.

-Abady: It’s no coincidence that Abady is always at the top of the list alphabetically. I’ve been using it for 11 years and it’s phenomenal. I consider it a stand alone premium dog food. There are many formulas for various stages of life and consistency and include predominantly beef protein (meat, muscle meat, organ meat) but some formulas also contain fish, chicken and lamb and various sources of omega fatty acids. Their granular formula (loose dirt-like consistency) is far superior as the process enables the processing of each ingredient individually to perfection making the nutrients more available than any other food. They also have a raw frozen formula…Raw meat provides a diet that is as close to how carnivores eat in the wild as is possible. Abady has created a superior raw meat complete diet that consists of a variety of muscle and organ meats with no fillers, artificial colors, preservatives, or flavors. They also have a small kibble formula that comes in chicken or lamb & rice. I exclusively use New York Natural & New Frontier Kibble formulas and the Classic Maintenance & Stress granular formula.

-Bill-Jac: They keep their ingredients short and simple; the way it should be but they blew it by using corn and beet pulp!

-Blue Buffalo: They have several great formulas. They limit highly processed grains and they even have a grain free formula called “Wilderness that uses either salmon, duck or chicken.”  A portion of the kibble in each bag is cold-processed for maximum retention of nutrients. This brand is a great choice if you can’t afford some of the ultra-premium brands.

-California Natural: They have a simple ingredients philosophy that you don’t need a masters in chemistry to understand. They stick to chicken, lamb and fish proteins combining with rice and omega fatty acids sources with minimal processing so that ingredients retain as much nutrients as possible. There are no fillers, fibers, wheat, corn or vegetables. A good choice!

-Canidae: They have a no grain, soy, corn, wheat and artificial preservatives philosophy. They stick to the basics; chicken, lamb, herring & turkey with rice. Their original chicken lamb & fish canned recipe or Platinum dry formula are both good choices.

-Chicken Soup for the Dog Lovers Soul: They’ve got everything in there except the kitchen sink; turkey, chicken, duck, salmon, fruits, vegetables and although they don’t use CORN OR WHEAT they do contain a number of other grains such as oats, whole grain rice & millet. It would seem to be a good balance between protein & carbs. The canned formulas seemed to have a better “order of appearance” of ingredients with protein far outweighing the vegetables than in the dry formula.

-Eagle Pack: They use corn and beat pulp in their regular formulas and their Holistic Select would have been a great formula had they not used beet pulp and tomato pomace

-Eukanuba: This is a wildly popular and hugely commercial brand made by Proctor & Gamble that uses inferior ingredients and preservatives. This food has too much grain, too much corn and there’s dried beet pulp in every bag and every formula. Although they are a self-proclaimed premium brand, they are not!

-Evolve: Natures Menu and Super Premium formulas both use beet pulp and/or rice bran and flour. Not a good pick.

-Flint River Ranch: While they don’t use beet pulp they use a lot of rice, wheat, flour and bran.  The only formula I could recommend is the Trout & Potato.  It has no beet pulp and minimal bran.

-Fromm: They have three formulas; Four Star Gourmet, Gold Nutritionals and Family Classic. While they do use a hand full of grains they use fresh whole ingredients, avoid brans, glutens and beet pulp in their Four Starr and Gold formulas so these two would be a fantastic alternative to Nutro users and the commercially produced Iams and Eukanuba brands. The Fromm Family Classic formula uses beet pulp so I do not recommend that one.

-Iams:  Another popular commercial brand made by Proctor & Gamble that uses inferior ingredients like corn, corn meal and beet pulp in every bag and every formula. Another self-proclaimed premium brand but  au contraire mon frère .

-Innova: They focus on simple, natural ingredients. The EVO line is far superior to their others formulas containing little or no grains focusing primarily on a raw meat/protein nutritional theory.

-Merrick: A holistic brand that uses human grade ingredients like beef, chicken, turkey and trout using rice as the only grain ingredient in their canned formulas. This brand also contains high ingredients of fruits & vegetables which are of questionable necessity in dog food especially if together they outweigh the protein source, but in terms of avoiding corn, wheat, brans, hulls etc. in their canned formula, this brand fits the bill. The dry formula contains too many grains for my liking. I find their restaurant style selection and packaging/marketing (“grammy’s pot pie,” “smothered comfort” and “rocky mountain rainbows”) a bit of a gimmicky ploy to attract our internal human “comfort food” factor rather than the real focus of pet nutrition.

-Natural Balance: While they do use organic ingredients Dick Van Patten’s Natural Balance brand has a high content of grains and vegetables in all formulas that seem to outweigh the protein. I would only recommend the Meat Rolls as a supplement or treat.  

-Newman’s Own: Paul Newman and his wife are very philanthropic and have a reputable line of fine grocery food items including pet food. All of the proceeds and royalties go to one charity or another. Their chicken is from hormone-free, vegetarian-fed chickens from the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country. ‘Makes you feel all warm inside but their dry formulas contain high amounts of grains which seem to outweigh the protein. The canned formulas seem to have a better balance with much less grains.

-Nutro: Several formulas (Natural Choice, Max, Ultra) they all include brans, glutens, beet pulps and a higher ratio of grains to protein. Certainly this is going to be a step up from Alpo or Old Roy but you can still do better. This is not one of my favs.

-Oma’s Pride: This is a raw diet made from human grade ground chicken, turkey, beef and lamb from USDA inspected meat plants mixed with vegetables and ground bone. There are no chemicals and preservatives. This type of diet would be as close to nature as you could get without preparing it yourself.

-Organix: (by Castor & Pollux) uses human grade organic ingredients so they have a stricter government standard resulting in a quality product. They don’t use beet pulp or brans or glutens or corn. This is a good, affordable choice.

-Pinnacle: Only available in a few formulas using Trout, Chicken & Duck ingredients with potato, oats and omegas avoiding all together corn, wheat, rice, barley and soy. Not a bad choice!! 

-Rachel Ray: Conceptually this could have been a great food but she uses many ingredients we are warned against; corn, gluten, soybeans and BEET PULP!  One of her ingredients is listed vaguely as “animal fat” … This could be anything from rendered animal fat, restaurant grease or other oils too rancid or deemed inedible for humans. Look for a named fat source, such as poultry or chicken fat, that is naturally preserved. You can do way better than this food!

-Royal Canin: While they do have breed specific formulas they have a high amount of grains and they use almost every ingredient we’ve been warned against; beet pulp, corn and glutens.  ‘Not a fan of this brand!

-Science Diet:  This food is absolutely one of the worst out there. If you are using it I urge to you find something else. Every veterinarian recommends it; I’ve heard it’s because it is so widely marketed to students of veterinary medicine during college.  Their first ingredient is almost always CORN.  The only time I could possibly recommend this brand if it’s the prescription formula that can only be purchased at the vet for a specific major health ailment such as renal failure, certain digestive disorders, bladder/kidney infections etc. where traditional dog food ingredients could be detrimental.

-Solid Gold: Their formulas vary widely and they use innovative ingredients like Bison and Salmon but their dry formulas have high grain content! Stick to canned formulas of Turkey & Chicken for this brand.

-Three Dog Bakery: They describe themselves as Ultra-Premium. This dog food is made from 100% Human quality ingredients in a USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) inspected plant. YOU could even eat this food. Although they do use vegetables in their recipes, which we have discussed the questionable necessity of, their dedication to high quality ingredients and the absence of grains such as corn and wheat as well as the absence of beet pulp and soy beans, I would consider this the only pet food fit for dogs at the supermarket. They keep their ingredients simple with a balance between protein & vegetables.

-Timberwolf:  They claim to closely proximate the wolf diet however their name and claim are contradictory to their ingredients. They use a lot of grains and vegetables and some of their formulas use entire “meal” such as chicken meal or lamb meal instead of actual meat product. (“meal” means the protein source meat is dried and ground).  They have many formulas and they vary one to another; the ones that standout best are Ocean Blue, Black Forrest Canid, Wilderness Canid. 

Once you pick a brand, you can find it just about anywhere on the Internet.

MYTHS:
1) Dogs need vegetables and grains in their diet…not true! They are carnivores and need protein. Their entire makeup is designed to tear-into and digest meat and bone. Raw vegetables make a great alternative to processed treats but are not a requirement in the canine diet.

2) Dogs can’t eat raw meat…not true! Dogs can fully digest raw meat, fish and eggs and are unaffected by the bacteria that might otherwise debilitate a human due to certain enzymes in their digestive system. They have a harder time digesting cooked meat than raw. However, raw diets should be introduced early and avoid being introduced to seniors.

3) Beet pulp, soybeans and other fibers are beneficial to a dogs’ digestive health…not true! Abady’s research goes into a long litany of how the opposite is true. Soybeans and Beet pulp have adverse effects on a dogs’ digestive system.

4) The FDA oversees dog food manufactures procedures…true yes, but even the FDA’s website states “Neither the FDA nor state feed control officials have the number of employees required to monitor every supplement and food manufacturer and prevent those using unapproved ingredients from selling their products…It's a matter of profit incentive versus likelihood of getting caught. The same forces apply for why police cannot write speeding tickets to everyone driving over the speed limit. That doesn't make speeding legal."


BOTTOM LINE:  Their entire lives, our pets rely solely upon us to provide for them. It is our responsibility to make sure what we are feeding them is safe, healthy, nutritionally balanced and appropriate for their species.

CREDITS:
EXCERPS & INFORMATION FROM THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES WERE USED TO GATHER THE INFORMATION YOU HAVE JUST READ. VISIT THESE SITES FOR EVEN MORE INFORMATION ON WHATS REALLY IN DOG FOOD AND YOU’LL NEVER LOOK AT THE DOG FOOD ISLE IN YOUR SUPERMARKET THE SAME AGAIN!!!

http://www.bornfreeusa.org/facts.php?more=1&p=359

www.ababadyfeeds.com
www.therobertabadydogfoodcoltd.com
http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/Products/AnimalFoodFeeds/PetFood/UCM2006475

http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/default.htm

www.petcaretips.net/premiumfood
www.petcaretips.net/petfood_ingredients
www.shalako.com
www.threedog.com
www.waggintails.com

I hope you have found this information insightful. My hope is that I have changed your mind from ever purchasing commercial brand dog food again.

You are wiser now and should feel the need to do better for your dogs nutrition.