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What to look for on your Dog Food Label
Diverse Protiens: 18%-35% on a dry weight basis
Importance: Creates healthy cells, organs and tissues, produces hormones, enzymes, and antibodies
Fats and Oils: 10%-15%
Importance: Helps the body absorb fat soluble vitamins, provides energy, and keeps the skin and coat healthy.
Species Specific Animal Fats and Oils:
Carbohydrates: 15%-20%
Importance: Complex Carbohydrates are broken down into Glucose for one of the dogs main sources of energy.
*Quality Tip: high quality ingredients usually have the word "whole" in the name of the grain.
Antioxidants
Importance: Antioxidants help counter free radicals in your dogs body, aids in cognitive health, boosts the immune system, and acts as a natural preservative in the dog food.
Minerals:
Importance: Transports oxygen in the blood, maintains proper function of muscles and nerves, forms bone and cartilage, balances fluid, as well as acid/base equilibrium.
Macro Minerals:
Calcium
Phosphorus
Magnesium
Potassium
Sodium
Chloride
Micro Minerals:
Copper
Iodine
Iron
Manganese
Selenium
Zinc
Omega 3's and Omega 6's:
Importance:
Prebiotics:
Importance:
Probiotics:
Importance:
Vegetables:
Importance:
Fibers:
Importance: Good for Digestive System
Importance: Creates healthy cells, organs and tissues, produces hormones, enzymes, and antibodies
- Lamb
- Beef
- Poultry (Chicken, Turkey, Duck)
- Fish (Salmon, Herring, Trout, Ocean Fish)
- Dairy (Eggs, Milk, Cheese)
- Animal specific Meat Meal (Chicken meal, Beef meal, Fish meal)
- Organ Meats (Kidney, Heart, Liver)
Fats and Oils: 10%-15%
Importance: Helps the body absorb fat soluble vitamins, provides energy, and keeps the skin and coat healthy.
Species Specific Animal Fats and Oils:
- Fish Oil (Salmon, Herring, Trout, Ocean Fish, etc.)
- Poultry Fat (Chicken, Turkey, Duck, etc.)
- Beef Fat
- Lamb Fat
- Pork Fat
- Flaxseed
- Pumpkin seed
- Oatmeal
- Canola Oil
- Sunflower Oil
- Safflower Oil
Carbohydrates: 15%-20%
Importance: Complex Carbohydrates are broken down into Glucose for one of the dogs main sources of energy.
*Quality Tip: high quality ingredients usually have the word "whole" in the name of the grain.
- Grains:
- Whole Grain Brown Rice
- Whole Oats
- Pearled Barley
- Millet
Antioxidants
Importance: Antioxidants help counter free radicals in your dogs body, aids in cognitive health, boosts the immune system, and acts as a natural preservative in the dog food.
- Berries: Blueberries, Cranberries, Strawberries, Blackberries
- Leafy Greens: Kale, Spinach
- Selenium- Increases immunity, helps protect against free radicals, maintains healthy thyroid function, cardiovascular support, and reproductive health.
- Carotenoids- Protects against cellular damage, slows down the effects of aging, and boosts the immune system.
- Vitamins:
- A- (Fat soluble) Maintains healthy vision, neurological function, reproduction, and helps the organs function properly.
- C- Helps grow, develop, and repair body tissues, helps form collagen, absorb iron, helps with the wound healing process, and maintaining healthy bones.
- D- (Fat soluble) Helps absorb Calcium, and promote bone growth
- E- (Fat soluble) Protects cells from free radicals, helps repair damaged cells, and helps organs function properly
- K- (Fat soluble) Regulates normal blood clotting, transports calcium through the body, helps regulate blood flow, helps heal bruises and cuts.
Minerals:
Importance: Transports oxygen in the blood, maintains proper function of muscles and nerves, forms bone and cartilage, balances fluid, as well as acid/base equilibrium.
Macro Minerals:
Calcium
Phosphorus
Magnesium
Potassium
Sodium
Chloride
Micro Minerals:
Copper
Iodine
Iron
Manganese
Selenium
Zinc
Omega 3's and Omega 6's:
Importance:
- Fish Oil
Prebiotics:
Importance:
Probiotics:
Importance:
Vegetables:
Importance:
- Sweet Potato- (Complex Carbohydrate) Benefits: Energy, Digestion
Fibers:
Importance: Good for Digestive System
Dog Food label Comparison
Below are examples of a Dog Food label with high quality Ingredients vs. a Dog Food label with low quality Ingredients. The first 5 ingredients are the most important to look at when buying a bag of dog food.
High Quality Dog Food Ingredients Example
Low Quality Dog Food Ingredients Example
If this were our choice on a menu at a restaurant, which would you choose? Most would want to eat a balanced meal of real meats, vegetables, fruits, and ingredients that we can understand where and what they came from rather than "fillers" that have little nutritional value.
A common misconception is that to get high quality dog food you have to pay an arm and a leg for it, but you'll be surprised at how many brands are affordable, and still have quality ingredients for your dog.
There is always the option of making your own dog food from fresh ingredients if you do not want to buy dog food.
A common misconception is that to get high quality dog food you have to pay an arm and a leg for it, but you'll be surprised at how many brands are affordable, and still have quality ingredients for your dog.
There is always the option of making your own dog food from fresh ingredients if you do not want to buy dog food.
Common Dog Food Questions
What does meat-meal mean?
Meat-meal means that the meat has been condensed down by a process called rendering. Rendering cooks out the moisture from the meat making the meat more protein dense. This process leaves the meat with a powdery or "mealy" texture.
Fun Fact! Whole meat is 70% water, 12% is fat, and only about 18% is protein. By rendering the meat, it reduces the water to only 10%, and you now have a condensed meat that has 65% protein.
Meat meal is favorable in dog food labels because it has 300% more protein than fresh meat, making your dog food more nutrient dense.
Meat meal is favorable in dog food labels because it has 300% more protein than fresh meat, making your dog food more nutrient dense.
...So why then does meat-meal sometimes get a bad rap?
Because some dog food brands are cheap, and misleading. They use cheap ingredients in their meat meals such as bones, hooves, and leftover unwanted materials from the animal carcasses, giving little nutritional value to your dog, and can actually be more harmful than good.
Good news is, you can usually pick out a good meat-meal vs. a bad meat-meal by the way it's labeled on the ingredients.
Because some dog food brands are cheap, and misleading. They use cheap ingredients in their meat meals such as bones, hooves, and leftover unwanted materials from the animal carcasses, giving little nutritional value to your dog, and can actually be more harmful than good.
Good news is, you can usually pick out a good meat-meal vs. a bad meat-meal by the way it's labeled on the ingredients.
Any meat meal that is unspecified or has an unspecified animal "by-product" in the name:
- Meat meal
- Meat by-product meal
- Animal meal
- Animal by-product meal
- Meat and bone meal
- Meat meal
- Meat by-product meal
- Animal meal
- Animal by-product meal
- Meat and bone meal
Any meat meal that is animal specific:
- Beef meal
- Salmon meal
- Lamb meal
- Duck meal
...etc.
- Beef meal
- Salmon meal
- Lamb meal
- Duck meal
...etc.
What does by-product mean?
A meat by-product is the rendering of parts of the animal other than the meat that are also nutritional in the diet. Organs such as the spleen, liver, lungs and kidneys are rendered by cooking out the moisture and is usually added to the meat meal for condensed protein.
Meat by-products can also be favorable in dog food labels because of the nutrient dense protein that it adds to your dog food.
...So why do by-products get a bad rap?
Again, because some dog food brands are cheap, and misleading. They can get away with adding the hooves, hide, horns, and other unwanted parts of the animal carcass to their dog food by labeling it as a "by-product". These can also include diseased animals to be used in their "by-products".
Good news again! If the dog food company you buy your dog food from are AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) and/or FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved, they will not have undesirable or diseased by-products in their dog food ingredients. AAFCO and FDA also have lists of approved dog food brands.
It requires you to do a little homework on your dog food brand, but is it worth it? Yes, yes it is.
A meat by-product is the rendering of parts of the animal other than the meat that are also nutritional in the diet. Organs such as the spleen, liver, lungs and kidneys are rendered by cooking out the moisture and is usually added to the meat meal for condensed protein.
Meat by-products can also be favorable in dog food labels because of the nutrient dense protein that it adds to your dog food.
...So why do by-products get a bad rap?
Again, because some dog food brands are cheap, and misleading. They can get away with adding the hooves, hide, horns, and other unwanted parts of the animal carcass to their dog food by labeling it as a "by-product". These can also include diseased animals to be used in their "by-products".
Good news again! If the dog food company you buy your dog food from are AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) and/or FDA (Food and Drug Administration) approved, they will not have undesirable or diseased by-products in their dog food ingredients. AAFCO and FDA also have lists of approved dog food brands.
It requires you to do a little homework on your dog food brand, but is it worth it? Yes, yes it is.
Click on the links below to check out AAFCO and FDA's nutritional requirements.
"One last thing!" Tip: A good dog food brand will be transparent with what their ingredients are in their dog food, and where their ingredients come from. Some even have a nutritional hotline where you can talk with one of the nutritional scientists directly and they can answer your specific questions. There are companies that will even let you tour their dog food factory! So give them a call, or send them an email. If they're sketchy, and won't answer your questions, find a new brand.
What's the difference between Simple Carbohydrates and Complex Carbohydrates?
Simple Carbohydrates are a quick source of energy; they are broken down in the digestive system easily, giving a quick burst of energy. Simple Carbohydrates include Fructose (fruit sugar), Sucrose (cane sugar), and Lactose (milk sugar).
Complex Carbohydrates are a sustained source of energy; they are broken down in the digestive system gradually, giving a prolonged, even amount of energy. Complex Carbohydrates include starches (whole grains, and potatoes).
Simple Carbohydrates are a quick source of energy; they are broken down in the digestive system easily, giving a quick burst of energy. Simple Carbohydrates include Fructose (fruit sugar), Sucrose (cane sugar), and Lactose (milk sugar).
Complex Carbohydrates are a sustained source of energy; they are broken down in the digestive system gradually, giving a prolonged, even amount of energy. Complex Carbohydrates include starches (whole grains, and potatoes).
What is the difference between Omega 3 and Omega 6 Fatty Acids?
What are Chelated Materials?
improve dogs' absorption of nutrients and minerals from dog food.
What does "dry weight basis" mean?
What are "fillers" in dog food?
Healthy Fruits for Dogs
Apples
Bananas Blueberries Canteloupe |
Cranberries
Pears Peaches Mango |
Raspberries
Watermelon Pineapple Strawberries |
Healthy Vegetables for Dogs
Spinach
Brussel Sprouts Carrots Beets |
Green Beans
Kale Cucumber Potato |
Sweet Potato
Peas Celery |
What are some beneficial supplement foods?
Brewers yeast- boosts the immune system
Imulin
Pumpkin- Maintains GI Tract and aids in regular bowel movements (For Diarrhea or Constipation)
Fish Oil- Full of Omega 3's, keeps skin and coat healthy.
Imulin
Pumpkin- Maintains GI Tract and aids in regular bowel movements (For Diarrhea or Constipation)
Fish Oil- Full of Omega 3's, keeps skin and coat healthy.