Could I have a carrot instead?

Ok..this may cause a small uprising.  I wanted to see what was in the dog treats we serve up to our beloved dogs.  I am shocked, some of the ingredients are worse than in the lower rated dog foods. 

There is a lot of  ingredients preserved with BHT/BHA believed to possibly cause complications with liver and kidney function as well as a possible cancer causing agent.  It is band or limited in trace amounts in human food.  Some of the treats like the dog foods contain citric acid and sugar…nicely worded as sucrose.  None the less sugar, table sugar is used.  We are feeding this to our dogs…speaking as a used to be dental assistant, I am not sure a lot of these puppies are flossing.  They are eating a lot of wasted carbs. 

Please refer to one of my older posting for the “what to avoid” in your dog foods.

Well here it goes:

Guaranteed Analysis

 Top 5 Ingredients

Dry Dog Food~Ingredient groups – what to look for and what to avoid

(I found this on a site that gave good advice on what to look for and what to avoid when selecting the right dog food for you dog/puppy…I can’t find the site but really like the information)

Protein

Protein, in the form of quality meat ingredients, is the most important component of a dog’s diet. As animals with a carnivorous background, their digestive tract is designed to utilize primarily meat and fat. It is also the most expensive ingredient for a manufacturer to buy and the profit margin on a product is drastically affected by the amount and quality used. Ideally, the first ingredient of a food should be either a specified meat meal, or a specified fresh meat type followed by a meal. If your individual dog’s specific needs limit you to using foods that do not include a concentrated source of meat in meal form, I highly recommend supplementing with fresh or canned meats on a daily basis.

• Generically named sources of protein or fat (animal ___, meat ___, poultry ___, etc.) are never present in truly high quality products because they are derived from highly questionable sources. If a manufacturer uses quality ingredients and has nothing to hide, there is no need for generic names.
• Byproducts of any type are less desirable and only acceptable if they do not make up the main source of animal protein and if the name of the species used is also defined in some manner (e.g. “chicken byproducts” or “beef byproducts” but not “meat byproducts” or “poultry byproducts”). Byproducts consist of anything but the quality cuts of meat and highest quality edible offal used for human consumption. What this means (on a market with high demand for human snacks like “buffalo wings” and cheaper pet foods requiring flavoring agents like beef or chicken liver digest to make otherwise uninteresting food more attractive), I leave to your imagination.
• Contrary to what many people believe, meat sources in “meal” form (as long as they are from a specified type of animal, such as chicken meal, lamb meal, salmon meal etc.) are not inferior to whole, fresh meats. Meals consist of meat and skin, with or without the bones, but exclusive of feathers/hair, heads, feet, horns, entrails etc. and have the proper calcium/phosphorus ratio required for a balanced diet. They have had most of the moisture removed, but meats in their original, “wet” form still contain up to 75% water. Once the food reaches its final moisture content of about 9-12%, the meat will have shrunk to sometimes as little as 1/4 of the original amount, while the already dehydrated meal form remains the same and you get more concentrated protein per pound of finished product. This means that in the worst case you are left with only 4 ounces of actual meat content per pound of fresh meat included in a dry kibble, many of which contain less than one pound of meat per 2-3 pounds of grain to begin with. Preferably a food contains quality meat meal as well as some fresh meat.

What to look for:
►Specifically named meats and meat meals such as chicken, chicken meal, turkey, turkey meal, lamb, lamb meal, duck, duck meal, beef, beef meal, eggs and so on.
►The following are lesser quality ingredients and are not found in truly high quality products, but may be present in smaller amounts (not as the main protein ingredients) in “mid range” foods: fresh byproducts indicating a specific species (e.g. beef/chicken/turkey/lamb byproducts), corn gluten, corn gluten meal.Products that include these as main ingredients should be avoided.

What to avoid:
►All generic meat ingredients that do not indicate a species (meat, meat byproducts, meat byproduct meal, meat meal, meat & bone meal, blood meal, fish, fish meal, poultry, poultry byproducts, poultry meal, poultry byproduct meal, liver, liver meal, glandular meal etc.)

►Byproduct meals, even if a species is identified (chicken/beef/turkey/lamb byproduct meal etc.), since highly questionable ingredients may be used in these rendered products.
►Any food that contains corn (ground or otherwise) as a first ingredient, especially if corn gluten meal is also a main ingredient and no concentrated source of identified meat protein (e.g. chicken meal, lamb meal etc.) is present.
► Corn gluten or soy(bean) meal as main ingredients. Note: Not all dogs tolerate soy products! Small amounts, especially of organic soy, are okay as long as a dog is not sensitive. There are only very few products on the market that include high quality soy ingredients, none of them sold at grocery stores or mass retailers.

Fats and Oils

Dogs need a certain amount of fats and oils in their diet, mostly for skin and coat health, but also for proper brain development and other critical processes in the body – and in this regard some are more valuable than others. As food ingredients they should be specifically named and of high nutritional value. Beef tallow and lard make foods highly attractive to dogs and are not harmful, but they are high in saturated fat and low in valuable fatty acids.

What to look for:
►Specifically named fats and oils such as chicken fat, herring oil, canola oil, sunflower oil, flax oil etc.
►High percentages of Omega-6 and Omega-3 fatty acids, but a low ratio of the two. For each percent of Omega-6s at least 0.13% Omega-3s should be present, resulting in a minimum ratio of 7:1. Ratios of 5:1 and lower are preferable. Don’t discount a food because of low percentages of essential fatty acids though, you can easily make up for this with a good quality fish oil supplement.

What to avoid:
►Non-specific sources such as animal fat, poultry fat, vegetable oil, generic fish oil
►Mineral oil

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates may originate from grains (rice, wheat, barley, oats, corn etc.) or alternative sources like potatoes, sweet potatoes, tapioca or peas. The claim that all carbohydrates in commercial dog food are nothing but fillers and can not be digested by dogs is incorrect – properly cooked (as in extruded and baked dry foods as well as canned foods) they are highly digestible and valuable sources of energy.

• The tolerance of amounts and types varies, some dogs do better with more carbs in their diet than others, and some do better on grain-free foods with alternative sources.
• For certain health conditions it is beneficial to avoid high-gluten grains like barley, wheat, rye or oats and favor low gluten ones like rice, millet, amaranth, quinoa and sorghum (milo).
• Quality is also important, since grains deemed unfit for human consumption (often contaminated with mold) can legally still be used for animal feed.
• Whole, unprocessed grains (also listed as “ground” or in “meal” form) retain all the nutrients in the bran layer, the original fat content and the endosperm. Grain fragments and flours are incomplete and may have already lost much of their nutritional value during processing and storage. Some manufacturers include one fragment (most commonly brewer�s rice) to lower product cost, which is acceptable if whole grains or starchy vegetables are also present. Be wary of products that consist mainly of fragments and flours. Flours are highly refined and while not harmful, contain less valuable nutrients and more refined carbohydrates than whole ground grains.
• Be careful of “splitting” of ingredients, such as for example rice, rice flour and rice bran all appearing in an ingredient list. Added together they would appear much higher on the ingredient list.

What to look for:
►Whole ground grains such as rice, oats, barley, millet etc., potatoes, sweet potatoes, peas
►Corn often gets an undeserved bad reputation. While it is not acceptable as a main source of protein in a dog food (as it is used in combination with corn gluten), as a source of carbohydrates it is no better and no worse than other grains in terms of nutritional value and digestibility. The starch part of corn is highly digestible but the whole ground product has a higher fiber content than other grains (around 7%), which results in slightly larger stools – often incorrectly interpreted as lack of digestibility. Unless an individual dog is intolerant or allergic to corn, there is no need to avoid products which include it in reasonable amounts.

What to avoid:
►Fragments like potato product, middlings/mids or mill run of any kind
►Unspecified grain sources like cereal food fines, (distiller’s) grain fermentation solubles

Fiber

Fiber is the part of carbohydrates that can not be digested by the dog. Depending on nutritional goals, varying levels of dietary fiber with different properties are necessary to make a highly processed food source like commercial kibble “work”, since a dog’s digestive tract is not designed to process a diet with such high levels of carbohydrates – most commercial dry foods contain 40-50%, low quality ones even more.

• Depending on the inclusion of ingredients that are naturally high in fiber (e.g. brown rice, oats, certain fruits or vegetables), a food may or may not include specific, isolated types of fiber.
• Beet Pulp, the isolated fibrous material from sugar beets, is another ingredient that has an undeservedly bad reputation. It is a very gentle, beneficial source of fiber that is not only generally very well tolerated, but also has specific properties that make it suitable as a source of nutrition for the beneficial bacteria that reside in the intestinal tract. The sugar is almost completely removed, what is left in the pulp is only about 1/5 the amount of sugar that you would find in a serving of carrots of equal size. It is also colorless and does not turn a dog’s coat turn red, like urban legends claim. The argument that beet pulp is an “unnatural” ingredient is often brought up, but people who present this complaint seem to forget that it is also not natural for dogs to eat highly processed commercial products with a carb content of generally 40% and more, and a moisture content of only around 10% as opposed to a more natural 60-70%. Added fiber is required to make such formulations work for the pets who eat a dry diet.

What to avoid:
►Corn bran, peanut hulls, rice hulls, soybean hulls, oat hulls

Fruits & Vegetables

Fresh, unprocessed fruits and vegetables add vitamins, minerals and various phytonutrients. They are nice ingredients but by no means necessary and mostly only included in insignificant amounts. If a brand of food contains high quality protein, carbohydrate and fat sources but no fruits or vegetables, it’s still a better choice than one with less ideal main ingredients that does have a few pieces of blueberries, peas or carrots added to make the ingredient list look more impressive. Sharing some of the fresh, unprocessed fruits and vegetables you eat yourself will add much more nutritional value to your dog’s diet – just please do not give onions, grapes or raisins.

What to look for:
►Fruits and vegetables are a nice touch but should not be a deciding factor in choosing a brand. Unprocessed, fresh items are preferable to already processed ones, and organic is always the best choice.

What to avoid:
►Apple pomace, grape pomace, citrus pulp

Flavorings

High quality foods do not really need any flavorings, but natural ones are harmless and may even add a little nutritional value.

What to look for:
►Specific stocks or broths (e.g. chicken, beef), liver of specified animals

What to avoid:
►Any highly rendered products (e.g. digests of any kind), ingredients of unknown origin (“meat broth”), glandular meal, artificial flavor(ing)
►Onion of any form is toxic to dogs and thus has no place in dog food!

Preservatives

Quality products are preserved naturally, but sadly there is almost always a possibility of products containing hidden preservatives and additives, since manufacturers only have to declare ingredients on the label that they have added themselves. If they purchase for example fish oil and meal, fats or other prepared ingredients from suppliers with stabilizers and other additives already added, these do not have to be listed.

The higher the ingredient quality, the less effort must be made to delay further degradation of the product, making natural antioxidants like rosemary extract and vitamin E very effective. Any chemical preservative should not be trusted, some of them are even banned from human consumption in some countries outside of the U.S. due to their questionable side effects.

What to look for:
►Mixed Tocopherols (Vitamin E), Rosemary-, Sage-, or Clove Extract, Ascorbyl Palmitate, Ascorbic Acid and other forms of Vitamin C

What to avoid:
►BHA (Butylated Hydroxysanisole), BHT (Butylated Hydroxytoluene), Ethoxyquin, TBHQ (Tertiary Butylhydroquinone), Sodium Metabisulphite

Sweeteners

Sweeteners have no place in food products that are consumed daily, period. They are generally only added to poor quality foods to make them more attractive, since otherwise dogs would simply refuse to eat them. Many dogs get addicted to sweeteners, which can cause or aggravate health problems, including ear infections and diabetes. This addiction frequently poses a problem when owners are trying to convince their pets to eat a better quality food that does not contain any sweeteners, so frustrated owners continue feeding unhealthy brands.

• Blackstrap Molasses is not very sweet, a source of many trace minerals and not the same as Cane Molasses. It is harmless as a supplement in small amounts.
• While any sweeteners should be avoided in food that a dog eats on a daily basis, small amounts of unrefined sugar, such as honey or molasses, are okay in dog treats.

What to avoid:
►Cane molasses, corn syrup in any form, sugar, sorbitol, sucrose, fructose, glucose, ammoniated glycyrrhizin, propylene glycol

Dyes

Dyes are another unnecessary ingredient in dog food, since dogs do not care about the color of their food. This is strictly aimed at making products look more appealing to humans, for example by hiding the grey color of poor quality rendered products or visible variations in ingredients, or attempting to make a food look like it contains more meat by adding red dye.

While natural substances like caramel coloring are harmless, they are still unnecessary and generally only serve to make a food look more appealing and uniform to the human eye.

What to avoid:
►Blue 2, Red 40, Yellow 5 and 6, other “numbered” dyes.

Supplements

All dog foods are required to meet certain nutritional standards, so manufacturers must add certain minimum amounts of vitamins and minerals. Like any other ingredients, these can vary in quality and in how well the body can absorb them. Any other supplements are not a “must” but some of them add considerable health benefits. Certain nutrients are lost or altered during processing, but manufacturers of quality foods take great care to add them back into their product after it has cooled down sufficiently. Do not hesitate to ask if you can’t locate the information on the bag, in a brochure or on the internet or have additional questions. Trustworthy companies will gladly inform you about their procedures.

It is important to understand that supplements like glucosamine, chondroitin and probiotics are generally not included in large enough doses to actually provide a therapeutic effect for particular health conditions in the daily feeding amount. Their presence may reduce the amount you have to include of a separate supplement, but it is not a good idea to choose a food based on added supplements. A different food combined with a proper dosage of a specific stand-alone supplement product is likely to bring better results.

What to look for:
►Chelated or sequestered minerals (also labeled as chelates, proteinates, amino acid chelates or complexes, polysaccharide complexes).
►Nonacidic, time released versions of Vitamin C (labeled as Ester C, Calcium Ascorbate, Stabilized Vitamin C or L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate), natural Vitamin E (Tocopherol, Natural Tocopherol) and natural sources of Vitamin K (egg yolk, liver, oats, kelp, alfalfa).

What to avoid:
►Menadione in any form (also listed as vitamin K3 or “vitamin K supplement”, please refer to www.dogfodproject.com/menadione to learn about this harmful version of synthetic vitamin K), Yeast Culture
►Harmless but poorly absorbed and thus mostly useless: sulfate and oxide based mineral supplements (e.g. zinc oxide, iron oxide)

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This is a little analysis I did on store brand dog food reviews from dogfoodanalysis.com and the manufatures’ sites:

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This is the more common store brands top 5 ingredients…it goes with the chart shown above.

I am impressed with Innova and Evanger’s canned.  Cali, my picky eater loves Evanger’s so I am transitioning them over to the canned Beef with Chicken and Chicken flavors but will use Innova’s small bite dry food alternating Red Meat and Chicken Turkey with it.  I found the Innova Puppy food had a good source of protein and will also alternate that into their diet for variety. 

In just a week of using the new foods I have noticed shinier coats, drier eyes, and they seem more energetic and content.   Cali is no longer hiding in the other room but out under my feet with Zoe while I prepare their food, she is actually eating on her own especially with the Evanger’s Beef with Chicken Chunks.  After she eats Cali has come into the kitchen looking for more!

You can mix brands and mix flavors up.  Watch the protein and fat , especially the fat if you have an less avtive dog.

The old rule of thumb used to be find one food, stick to it. How boring is that?  Now a days dog food companies make several flavors within the same basic ingredients, the only difference is the first few ingredients are the different meats used. 

Hope this helps, the postings prior are of comparisons of some of the top dry food.  Again I will mention, when picking out a food consider the breed, health and activity of the dog…and when in doubt check with your vet. 

Cali, as a puppy at 13 weeks

This is a chart for the dry dog food percentages in the top brands.  Keep in mind you need to consider the dog’s activity, age, breed and over all health when picking a food.  Just because your dog eats  the food you give him/her, it does not mean it is healthy and beneficial for the dog.

drawing of a Queen's cavalier, Princess

A lot of people aren’t concerned with what their dogs eat.  They figure they are eating it and why mess with that.  I started looking at what my dogs were eating and the fact both seem to be prone to bladder and urinary problems.  The first 5 ingredients should be as healthy as possible, mostly protein. 

There should be at least 2,3 or more sources of protein.  The words “By Products” is bad, “Meal”  is good.  The ash content should be low, between 5 and 8 %. Ash is what’s left over after any food has been completely incinerated.  It contains traces of minerals.  Remember with dry always provide plenty of water to drink.

Also if your dog food contains “Citric Acid” (usually used in conjunction with Canola Oil) Do Not add water to the food, it can cause bloat in dogs especially the bigger breeds.

Currently I am using Innova Chicken/Turkey dry and Innova Red Meat Dry.  I always mix it with canned food  (I am using Innova and Evanger’s canned) and alternate the food flavors around to keep them from getting board with their food. Maybe do the chicken 2 days, red meat 2 days and so on.  I use 1/4 cup dry to 1/4 cup canned in the morning and 1/4 cup canned to 1/8 of a cup dry at night.  I supplement at lunch with a healthy doggie cookie, apples, fruit (no grapes ever), whole boiled egg or a little yogurt with blueberries.

Zoe, our comic little girl

Zoe is just over a year old and has to be the one of the most personable dogs we have owned. 

This little girl is always by my side, follows me from room to room.  If you are doing something she is right there checking it out.

She greets my husband with an over exaggerated cavalier wiggle, usually with a toy in her mouth giving him a muffled “wo wo wo” as if she is telling him about her day happily wiggling around his feet.  We usually can get her to “talk” by saying “tell me about it” or as my husband and daughter like to do, get her started by mimicking the “wo wo wo” to her in a low pitch.  She wiggles and prances around, tail going a mile a minute telling her tale. we get a kick out of it everytime she does it.

She loves to stand on our bed with her front paws on the top of the foot board gazing at herself in the mirror. We wonder what she is thinking as her tail wags checking herself out.

With Zoe you are guaranteed that if you are lying in bed on your back she feels the need to come over before going to sleep and stand on your chest, she does this with my husband.  He is usually all settled in, Cali comes over to him and sniffs him, he pats her goodnight.  Meanwhile Zoe is like ”me, pat me to”. She scrambles and climbs on his chest, standing there looking and  waiting for the exact moment to lick his chin.  Once she accomplishes that she comes over to me and plunks herself against me and is planted solidly in that spot.  Cali likes to quietly curl up on her blanket at my feet.

Cali is a little taller than Zoe.  Zoe takes great joy in running under Cali, if playing she tries to throw her off balance this way.  Most of the time she scoots under her to get to something, this is a little rough on Cali if they are on leashes outside!

Zoe seems to find joy in just about everything, she is rambunctious and adventuresome.  She is a character and our entertainer.  If you leave the room she is following you curious and boldly checking into what you are doing. 

If you close a door she has her nose under the edge of the door trying to figure out what is going on in there.  When I leave to run errands she is right there to greet me at the door when I return before anyone else.  On shopping day she sits on the rug in front of the sink keeping me company in case I brought a present home for them..usually a treat or toy she can shred.

Cali is a little stand offish and if you want her to come to you she hesitates and approaches slowly.  Zoe on the other hand runs wiggly over and leans into you, she can’t get enough hugs and pats.  She runs happily,tail wagging behind you either licking your calf or stepping in your flip flops as you walk. There are times you wish she wouldn’t walk so close especially when she has a Nyla bone in her mouth and she pokes you with it.

If Cali is barking, Zoe runs to me and and sits at my feet staring up at me as if to say “I am being good, Mommy”.  We are not a fan of the barking especially the high pitch one Cali does to sirens that pass, we are working on controlling it. Sometimes I am not in the room when it happens, if not Zoe comes to find me doing the good girl thing for me. 

Other times if Cali barks she nudge Cali’s face with hers as if she is trying to stop her, or joins in with a muffled low bark watching me to see if I approve.  As soon as I get up or head over, Zoe quick runs next to me as quiet as can be.  She is kind of like that little kid that is brown nosing it to the teacher. 

She is a sweetie, a joy, a bug, a teaser, a love.  She keeps us laughing . As different as our two cavaliers are it seems their differences seem to balance out and they fit nicely into our lives, we love them…

Cali finished on her own.

good job!