What’s in your dog food? By Maryellen Errigo

Posted by: Dave@HDDCo  |  02-11-10  |  There are (673) Comments

This is a common question most people do not even think about asking.  Most folks will buy their dog food at the grocery store, since its convenient and cheap.  What they don’t realize is that just because the food is cheap doesn’t mean it’s good for their dog and they don’t realize they go through more dog food from the grocery store then buying a better quality dog food at a pet store. Better quality dog foods equal less intake and the dog’s body absorbs more of the nutrients so the output is less as well.

http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com is a great place to start to understand what is in dog food, and to read the labels on the bags they get at the grocery store. Corn, wheat, rice, beet pulp,  and other grains do nothing but fill up the dog as they are fillers. Beet pulp makes the stool firm when the dog poops.. 

Here is one grocery store dog food’s ingredients:

corn, soybean meal, beef and bone meal, ground wheat flour, animal fat (bha used as preservative), corn syrup, wheat middlings, water sufficient for processing, animal digest (source of chicken flavor), propylene glycol, salt, hydrochloric acid, potassium chloride, caramel color, sorbic acid (used as a preservative), sodium carbonate, minerals (ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, manganous oxide, copper sulfate, calcium iodate, sodium selenite), choline chloride, vitamins (vitamin E supplement, vitamin A supplement, niacin supplement, D-calcium pantothenate, riboflavin supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid, biotin, vitamin B12 supplement), calcium sulfate, titanium dioxide, yellow 5, yellow 6, red 40, BHA (used as a preservative), dl methionine

Prices at grocery stores for this type of dog food is around $15 for a bag, but you go thru more bags in a month then you will with a higher quality dog food.

Now here is a dog food sold at Tractor Supply:

Bison, venison, lamb meal, chicken meal, egg product, sweet potatoes, peas, potatoes, canola oil, roasted bison, roasted venison, natural flavor, tomato pomace, ocean fish meal, salt, choline chloride, dried chicory root, tomatoes, blueberries, raspberries, yucca schidigera extract, dried fermentation products of Enterococcus faecium, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum, dried Trichoderma longibrachiatum fermentation extract, vitamin E supplement, iron proteinate, zinc proteinate, copper proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc sulfate, copper sulfate, potassium iodide, thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, ascorbic acid, vitamin A supplement, biotin, calcium pantothenate, manganese sulfate, sodium selenite, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), vitamin B12 supplement, riboflavin (vitamin B2), vitamin D supplement, folic acid.

Notice the difference in ingredients, in the grocery dog food bag the first two ingredients are corn and soybean meal.  Where as the dog food at Tractor Supply has bison and venison as their first two ingredients. The price of the TOTW dog food at Tractor Supply is around a dollar a pound but you feed less as it’s a higher quality food. A 30 lb bag runs around $30 and lasts a lot longer as you are feeding less as it’s a higher quality food.

For those that want the best for their dog, research is the best key.  At http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com they rate every dog food out there, and show the ingredients.. 

To make the transition from one kibble to another the best way to do it is to slowly add the new food to the old food over a course of 2 weeks to a month , so that by the time the dog is on the new food his stomach has had time to digest the higher quality food.

Now some dogs do not do well on higher quality dog food, so you have to shop around for the right food..  By reading the ingredients and taking your time you should be able to find the right food for your dog.

Some better quality dog foods are:

Taste of the Wild
Canidae
Merrick
California Natural
Innova
EVO
Wellness
4HealthyPet
Solid Gold
Chicken Soup for the Dog lovers Soul