Dog Food
What Are You Feeding Your Dog?

Who wants a doggie dish? This Belgian Malinois prefers her dog food on a plate!

In dogs and cats, what do cancer, kidney disease, pancreatic disease, allergies, hair loss, blindness and immune deficiencies all have in common? The answer is PRESERVATIVES, according to Dr. Lisa Freeman, DVM -veterinary clinical nutritionist at Tufts University.

A hungry Golden Retriever begs for top quality,
nourishing food and to dispose of the PLASTIC food dish!

Want a complete list of dog poisoning products? — Things to keep out of reach of your dog or cat? There’s a lot of harmful; stuff around the house and a glance at the page is a good idea.(Link opens new window)

Greedy Dog Food Manufacturers!

The pet food industry is linked closely with the human food and agriculture industries, based on information from the Animal Protection Institute, as stated in their website, “Pet food provides a ready market for slaughterhouse offal, grains considered unfit for human consumption, and similar waste products to be turned into profit. This waste includes intestines, udders, esophagi, and possibly diseased and cancerous animal parts.” Your dog is eating these ingredients, plus fillers and preventives as mentioned above.

Major brands are named as being part of subsidiaries of major multinational companies, including brand names like Mighty Dog, Kibbles-n-Bits, Hills Science and Diet, Eukanuba, Iams, Pedigree, Nutro, Alpo and many more.. These brands are owned by large companies such as Nestle, Ralston Purina, Heinz, Colgate-Palmolive, Proctor and Gamble and Mars. You can see pet food companies have no interest in the welfare of your dog in mind. Aunt Millie’s dog health is not their concern.

“From a business standpoint, multinational companies owning pet food manufacturing companies is an ideal relationship. The multinationals have increased bulk-purchasing power; those that make human food products have a captive market in which to capitalize on their waste products, and pet food divisions have a more reliable capital base and in many cases, a convenient source of ingredients.”

“When cattle, swine, chickens, lambs, and other animals are slaughtered, the choice cuts such as lean muscle are trimmed away and used for human consumption. Up to 50% of every animal slaughtered is NOT considered usable in human food. Whatever remains of the carcass, bones, hooves, beaks, heads, feet, blood, lungs, ligaments, intestines and almost all the other parts not consumed by humans and are used in pet food. These other parts are known as “by-products” or “bone meal” or disguised as similar names on pet food labels. These “remnants” provide a questionable source of nourishment. The quality and ingredients of the “by products” can vary from batch to batch.” (This has been quoted from the Animal Protection Institute, article May, 2007 update)

There is also the possibility that some of the animals were sick at time of slaughter or at least some organs were diseased at time of slaughter and the disease would then end up in a few hundred bags of food. Less than healthy livestock are slaughtered on a regular basis, as that’s the easiest way to get rid of them and also to make money on the sick animal.

My wife used to complain about the “smell” when I would open a fresh bag of kibble for the dogs. I finally told her the manufacturers sprayed the kibble with recycled restaurant kitchen grease and it was the dry, rancid grease she was smelling. We decided at that time not to buy any more commercial dog food.

I’ve had too many dogs die of cancer and that’s why we HOME COOK for our dogs now!

A Maltese, ready to eat a home-cooked chicken and rice casserole!

Dry Kibble or Wet Canned Food?

The discussion about DRY vs WET dog food has been around awhile. Is it better for your dog to eat canned or dry food? The answer always come out vague but here’s a brief mention..

Dry dog food is more convenient to use and is better for the dog’s teeth and gums.. However, dry food lacks the odor of “fresh” from the can. I have found that bigger breeds of dogs will eat dry food much more readily than small dogs. Small dogs seem to be more finicky.

Feeding a dog dry food is a bit less expensive, quicker to work with and more self-cleaning for your dog’s teeth, (reduces tartar buildup, a little), and more helpful for the gums than canned dog food. It is not better than canned dog food when it comes to aroma and taste though.

However, DRY kibble contains more preservatives, additives that are harmful to your dog. The kibble is often treated (sprayed) with recycled restaurant kitchen grease in an attempt to add some flavor-appeal for the dog. A dog food disaster! Cancer-causing garbage.

Over time, gum inflammation found from feeding a dog with canned food diets causes the tissues surrounding the teeth to recede and the teeth to loosen. Also with time, bacteria moving through the bloodstream from infected gums causes damage to the kidneys and liver. Dry dog foods are richer and don’t often cause this problem.

A Jack Russell puppy begging for nourishing, quality food and a healthy treat.

Canned dog food runs 80% to 90% water and is usually more expensive. However, if you have a finicky dog, try the canned foods because they generally have more odor and are more enticing to the dog. You can also mix dry with wet (canned) foods.

Look at the labels on the dog food. All labels START off with the primary ingredient in the package, other than water. The FIRST item under ingredients should be MEAT. Dogs are meat eaters. If the label starts off with items such as “meat-by product” or wheat or meal, pass it by. Remember, dogs eat MEAT, first and foremost.

Also, when reading the labels, look for a statement refers to the use of the Association of American Feed Control Officials’ formulas, guidelines or procedures. AAFCO. This is an independent organization that certifies the food you are buying has met minimum nutritional requirements. (This is not the final word, but it is a step in the right direction.)

Feed your Border Collie the right stuff
and watch her fly to the moon for Frisbee’s.

Feeding A Dog

Puppy — follow instructions from your vet. Feeding depends on the breed and age.

This joyous Sheltie is giving thanks for a new supply of pure, organic dog food!

I disagree. I think a dog should have a little something on his stomach so I feed twice a day to adult dogs, just give a little less for each meal.

An overweight Beagle looking at a bowl of
cheap store food that is slowly shortening her life.

The Full Scoop On Dog Food and Treats

There’s a great website to visit that is all about everything “dog food” and is a reliable source for unbiased dog food comparison and one-stop for pet food information. You’ll find everything from How To Read Labels on packaging to an extremely eye-opening Dog Food Comparison Chart. It’s a one-stop for pet food information.

This site is from a lady in the food industry and she gives it to you straight about all kinds of doggie treats! Everything you need to know about dog TREATS
All about dog treats; a food industry product development specialist guides you through how to make dog treats, starting your own dog treat business, and selecting healthy dog treats for your dog.

Don’t feed your dog in combined food/water combo bowls. Food is likely to contaminate the water side of the combo. Use separate dishes and do NOT feed your dog in a plastic bowl. Plastic can cause your dog to have allergies, can contain bacteria as well as hold odors we cannot smell, but a finicky dog will, and he may refuse to eat. Use the shinny metal stainless steel or ceramic bowls… your dog will appreciate it.

Another bit of advice—do not teach your dog to “beg” at the table. All this does is encourage him/her to beg for more scraps from the table. Pretty soon your dog will need a diet. Dogs should never eat from the human table so don’t get it started with “begging.”

When your dog is finished eating, do as we do. Wait an hour before exercising him. Yes, wait an hour or so before going for that long walk. If you plan to RUN your dog, you might wait longer than an hour. This advice has turned up in more than one place. Dogs need a chance to digest just as we do.

There are a number of websites offering quality dog food with no preservatives, holistic ingredients or ingredients that have never been exposed to harmful chemicals. They may cost more, but the extra cost is nothing compared to what you will be paying a vet when your dog shows up with cancer, pancreatic disorder, hypothyroidism or any number of other problems!

You might want to consider the extra expense as an investment in health insurance.

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