Guidelines for Healthier
Pet Diets
by Terri Symonds Grow
In light of the recent pet food recalls, deciding what pet food is safe and appropriate for your companion animal can be challenging. Selecting a healthy diet, whether commercial or homemade, is a personal decision that should be made with knowledge, understanding and veterinary guidance. Some people are turning to home-prepared diets made from organic ingredients and free-range meats, but this may not be practical for many busy pet owners. So what should you consider when choosing a commercially prepared pet food?
- Understand your pets' needs. Cats are carnivores. Whether it's an indoor or outdoor cat, the primary ingredient in your cat's diet must be meat, poultry or fish protein. Dogs are omnivores. They don't require as high percentage of meat protein in their diet as cats, but the first ingredients on the label should still be meat, poultry or fish. The specific product formula must consider your pet's health history, activity level, food allergies and medical conditions.
- Look beyond the glossy packaging. Labeling guidelines allow manufacturers to highlight specific ingredients even when they make up only three percent of the formula. Learning to read and understand the ingredient panel on the back of the package enables you to have more control over your pet's diet and health.
- Ingredients are in descending order. AAFCO (American Association of Feed Control Officials) and FDA label regulations require pet food manufacturers to list ingredients by weight in descending order; the first ingredient has the highest weight percentage in the product formula. When comparing ingredients, it is important to remember that weight includes the water content of the uncooked ingredients. For example, a product with chicken listed first and rice second may have less meat protein than a product with rice listed first and chicken meal second because the weight of the chicken includes water in the first product.
- When parts add up to more than you think. The placement and abundance of grains on the food label is important and often misleading. Some companies incorporate a number of different grains or list parts of grains separately on the label so that the meat, fish or poultry contents appear to be the primary food ingredient. (It's known as grain fractioning.) But if weighed together, the grains would outweigh the meat protein content. Why is this an issue? An abundance of grains in a pet's diet is considered a contributing factor to obesity and chronic diseases.
- Decipher by-products and meal. Meat by-products can include parts other than meat, such as heads, feet, necks and intestines. A single protein meal, such as chicken meal, is made from a clean combination of flesh and skin with or without bone. It is important to also understand that there are grades of meals-the higher the grade, the less bone content. Perhaps this may explain why your cat or dog can benefit from chicken meal, but have an adverse reaction to chicken by-product meal.
- What you won't see on the label. Unfortunately, FDA and AAFCO labeling requirements and restrictions prevent quality pet food manufacturers from promoting their use of human grade ingredients on the label or packaging. Once any ingredient is processed in a pet food plant, it is pet food regardless of the quality of ingredients. For information on your pet's food, check the manufacturer's website, contact their customer service, or talk to your veterinarian or knowledgeable pet food retailer.
- Consider natural, holistic or organic food. Choosing a natural food takes some understanding of preferred ingredients. Natural is an elusive term and foods that claim to be natural may not be an appropriate diet for your companion animal. For example, soy is a natural ingredient, but can be problematic for cats and dogs in excess. Holistic foods were founded on the premise of using more whole, unprocessed ingredients cooked slowly at low temperatures to preserve nutrients, yet this term can also be misused. Organic foods can be a good option, but to meet organic requirements and keep costs down, organic pet foods often contain higher amounts of grain.
- Understand that pet food shouldn't be purchased on price alone. Quality pet food manufacturers place their foods in veterinary clinics and retailers that understand and respect the efforts they have invested in their products. In many cases these will be specialty pet food retailers, such as independent pet stores, health food stores and health oriented grocery stores, that offer in-depth knowledge of ingredients and manufacturers. Don't assume these foods are more expensive or that the most expensive is the best for your companion. Once you've learned to read and understand a pet food label, you will know how to evaluate and compare products.
* Written by Terri Grow, owner of PetSage, a natural and holistic pet retailer based in Alexandria, Virginia.
© Copyright 2007
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