Do you compare dog food, well do you? Dry dog food, natural dog food, canned dog food. The types of dog food doesn’t matter. It’s what is inside. That therein lies the mystery. Mystery meat?
Yes. Even holistic dog foods are the way to go but still you must do your research and see what the dog food ingredients are.
Dog food analysis can and should be done at the consumer level. Ever think about what the food and agriculture industry does with all of its meat and byproducts, all the rejects? They put it in your dog’s food. Forget about all of the savory, fresh images of real beef and chicken smothered in gravy zoomed in on the commercials. Some of these commercial dog foods can make your loyal companion die at a young age. Compare dog food online and learn what is really in these disgusting brands and learn how to spot the reputable companies from the companies just trying to increase their profit from waste products.
What is Your Dog Really Eating?
Have you ever looked at a bowl of dog food and wondered what is really in those kibbles and bits and slimy gravy? It’s not bacon. The most popular dog food brands are owned by companies that make food for humans:
• Nestle makes Alpo, Mighty Dog, and Dog Chow products
• The popular ketchup company Heinz makes Gravy Train and Kibbles-n-Bitz
• The toothpaste and dish soap brand Colgate-Palmolive make Hill’s Science dog food
Why do these companies (and many more) make dog food? It is an easy way to make more money off of its customers with the parts of the products that would have otherwise been wasted or thrown away. It sounds like a genuine idea at first, stemming from the old adage, “waste not.” It is terrible to waste when things could have been used for other markets. However, some companies think it is acceptable to include the waste of many products that were unsuitable for humans: intestines, esophagus, rotten and diseased animal parts, and much more. Over half of the animal is “wasted” when creating products for human consumption; these bones, blood, ligaments, and more are grinded and processed to create dog food. These by-products are not fresh and may have come from animals that were unfit for human use. The methods which companies use to create these nuggets and process them do not fully destroy the hormones and bacteria derived from the slaughtered animals.
The smell of a freshly opened dog food bag is old grease picked up from restaurants that leave gallons outside for weeks or months until a truck picks them up. These gallons of old fatty grease are then mixed with chemicals and other fats and sold to companies that make animal food. This restaurant grease gives the otherwise bland nuggets of putrid old animal carcasses their flavor and makes it smell delectable for your dog.
Old rotting animal by-products and dirty restaurant grease are not the only things found in your dog food. Once considered merely filler to fluff up nuggets and puffs, grains have become a significant portion of dog food. Most of these are empty carbohydrates for your dog and have little to no nutritional value. Peanut hulls, wheat, beans, and oats provide the least amount of nutrition from grains. Dogs are carnivores and need meat to feel satisfied; the only reason their dog food comes with grain products is because it is cheaper. A mix of grain and animal by-product is much cheaper to make than a product containing mostly meat or all meat. Dogs can eat more of this mostly carbohydrate meal and still feel hungry, thus eating more and becoming overweight. Also, even though the label on the bag or box denotes a certain flavor such as beef or chicken, it does not mean there is even any actual beef or chicken in the dog food; it just means the food has a particular flavor or smell to that meat. This “flavor” is derived from parts of the animal such as the tissue or intestine, and contains no actual beef or chicken meat at all. It is no wonder they always stare at our food at the kitchen table!
In the 1990s over 50 brands of popular dog food had to recall over $20 million worth of dog food because their owners complained of their dogs getting sick. The problem was that the wheat used in this lot was contaminated with fungus and contained a toxin that made the dogs vomit and lose their appetite. 25 dogs died during this time. Soy, another grain product used to add filler and weight to the dog food, was reported to cause gas and bloating in dogs. Another recall in 2007 was due to a food contaminant originating in China.
Like most packaged food, dog food contains a number of chemicals and preservatives in their meals. These enhance the flavor, keep it fresh, and improve or add color to the dog food. Some of these preservatives, such as butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) are potentially cancer-causing. Propylene glycol is a less toxic form of antifreeze. Do you really want your dog eating antifreeze? Furthermore, many veterinarians and experts believe ethoxyquin causes skin problems and disease in dogs. Most of these additive agents have not been studied for its long-term chronic use in animals, or at all.
Reputable Brands
If you love your pet as much as you think, you should be surprised to learn about the possible harm you can do by buying these terrible food sources. Luckily, concerned pet owners are fighting, and some more reputable brands have emerged. Dogs require the same quality nutrition as humans and do not have the logic or reasoning to see or smell the difference thanks to clever processing and spray on fats that make dog food irresistible to dogs. The best dog food comes with a balance of meat, bones, vegetables, and vitamins that come from all-natural sources. These top four brands found from Consumersearch.com are found to be the best and contain the least amount of dangerous products. They are a bit pricey, but you get what you pay for, and these products feature no fillers, quality meat, better baking methods, and natural ingredients.
• Orijen, as low as $15 per 5.5 lb bag
• Chicken Soup for the Pet Lovers Soul Dry Dog Food, $23 per 18 lb bag
• Innova EVO canned dog food, $12 for 6 13.2 oz cans
• Canidae features human-grade meat and no fillers, $10 for 5 lb bag
Make your Own Dog Food
There are a number of easy ways to make good food for your dog without relying on sleazy commercial brands. There is no way to tell what your dog is really eating unless you make it yourself. Some people would never take the time to do this for their pet, but what better way to show them how much you care for their well-being than homemade food? They are, after all, a significant part of your family and deserve the same treatment. Dogs should not be treated as garbage dumps. They too enjoy quality nutrition. As long as you know the formula for optimum nutrition, you can combine any meat, vegetable, and starch. A dog requires 40% meat, 30% vegetables, and 30% starch for a balanced meal. An easy mixture to make for your dog is a combination of white meat chicken, white rice, and steamed carrots. For meats you can choose ground or cut up turkey, beef, steak, chicken, deer or rabbit, and for starch you can choose white rice, potatoes, oatmeal, or pasta for starch. Any vegetable will do. It is important to note that chocolate and garlic are potentially fatal to dogs, and also avoid feeding your dog animal organs more than once or twice a week. Variety is the key to a long, happy life for you and your pet.
