Dog
Food Comparison - For the Love of Your Dog
As
veterinarians report more and more diet-related problems
in dogs, owners are doing their own dog food comparisons,
to see if what they are feeding is actually a "good"
food, or merely adequate.
Many
of the "brand" names in dog foods fall into
the adequate category, and are sufficient for young
to middle-aged dogs to do relatively well on, despite
the fact that they are often loaded with chemicals as
preservatives, and supplements to replace ingredients
lost in the processing.
A
good dog food review, will list the entire contents
of the various brands of kibble, so that you can see
for yourself, what is going into your dog's dish. In
a lot of cases, the terminology on food bags can be
misleading, such as when a food lists "wheat flour"
which basically means white flour.
Reviews
will also show you which foods have higher meat content.
The average brand name kibble runs at about 25-30% meat
or meat products, which can mean by-products such as
organ and muscle tissue, as well as bone. And while
an all meat diet would be a big mistake since dogs in
the wild are not total carnivores, a diet with too little
meat, is lacking some of the nutrients and proteins
their body needs.
The
majority of commercial kibble found in grocery stores
will carry stamps or notations that they meet a certain
set of standards for nutrition, but what they won't
say, is that the fillers in the food, cause it to pass
through the dog, before its system has a chance to absorb
what it needs. Nor does it mention that things such
as essential amino acids that went into the food, were
destroyed by heat, during the processing.
Dog
food ratings may have polar opposite responses on the
same foods, depending on whether they are done by consumers,
or by unbiased analysis through laboratories. They can
also vary because of the different emphasis applied
to certain foods by their makers. For example, Bil-Jac's
focuses on the meat content, which is largely by-product
in nature. The Nature's Variety Chow claims their kibble
is 40% meat or organs. And SoJo's,
which is not a complete kibble, but rather a base in
which to mix your own selection of raw meat, states
that their food lasts twice as long as others.
If
you want to do your own dog food comparison, take note
of the ingredients in what you're feeding now, including
the artificial items, and the chemicals. Then take that
list to the store with you, and read the bags of other
leading manufacturers. You may be surprised to find
that what looked good in the dog food ads, is not that
good in your dog's bowl.
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