What's In Your Pet's Food?

When one of our loves, Ally, became lethargic and wouldn’t eat we rushed her to our veterinarian. Tests were run and we were told that Ally had kidney disease. We were stunned. How could a 4-year-old lab that was the picture of health one week earlier be dying from kidney disease? Not believing that this was to be Ally’s fate we took her to the Carolina Vet specialists who confirmed the first prognosis. There was nothing to be done. They recommended that Ally be put down. We refused.

We took Ally home and started caring for her with special homemade food, homeopathic supplements and daily IV’s. Although it gave us a few more weeks with Ally we knew that her time with us would be very short lived. On Ally’s last night I lay on the floor next to her side. I could see that in spite of our efforts - Ally was starting to fade. I looked into her eyes and told her I loved her. I told her that I would do all that I could so that no other dog would die this young. Ally lifted her paw, placed it on my shoulder and looked at me as if to say “ Thanks mom, you’ve done all that you could do”. Ally passed away that night surrounded by our other three dogs, all her sisters.

Having made that promise to Ally, we started to look at the food we had been purchasing. If you are like we were back then, we never stopped to think about pet nutrition as we were throwing a 50 pound bag into our shopping cart at the wholesale club. With four large dogs we knew we needed a lot of food at a reasonable price. Hey, dog food is dog food, right? Wrong!

We started doing research on what ingredients were in the food we were feeding our girls. We were shocked and angered at the “garbage” that we were buying and feeding our dogs. The television ads with the energetic healthy puppies and beautiful cats were not true. That food was not going to keep our pets healthy, it was going to harm them.

Have you ever heard the saying “You are what you eat?” This not only applies to humans; it also applies to animals as well. Take a look at what we found in our dogs’ food. We bet the same is in yours:

• BHA, BHT and ethoxyquin - chemical preservatives that may be related to some diseases in your pets. These preservatives are used to increase shelf life of the product;
• Corn, wheat or soy – sometimes genetically modified and a common allergen for dogs with skin disorders;
• Animal and poultry fat – these are saturated fats which may contribute to heart disease and some cancers;
• Animal-by-products – Dead animals and livestock go to rendering plants and end up back in pet foods. Many times, the chemical used to euthanize the animal stays in the renderings (trivia: how is mad cow disease transmitted – through renderings that are in livestock feed);
• Meat-vs.-meal – Chicken and lamb are used to represent real meat in
commercial foods. Chicken or lamb meats are heavier than grains
before cooking. The moisture contained in meats (70%) is reduced by two/thirds after the cooking process. This leaves the total formula as a grain based food and not meat based. Chicken & turkey meal are dry and are less then 10% moisture and 50-60% protein. In food with meal, the meat weight does not shrink below grain weights producing a true meat based formula.

So, does an animal food that uses meal versus meat with a shorter shelf life cost more? It does if you look at the initial purchasing price; however it doesn’t over the long run. It costs more to make a food that is full of nutritional ingredients rather than a bag full of filler and chemicals. However, in most cases, a nutritional food without filler is more calorically dense for a given volume; thus your pet will need less food because they will be getting a better quality food. It’s similar to a human eating junk food versus a nutritional meal. How do you feel after eating a bag of chips versus a salad? Also, the pet food will last longer. Your pets will also eliminate smaller amounts from their bodies because their systems will be taking in the nutrients not just passing the food through their systems.

Did our Ally die at a young age just because of the food? No one would give us a definite yes or no to this question. However, what we believe is that Ally’s death was not in vane. If feeding your pet a nutrient dense food with no chemicals means that you are hedging your bet on future health concerns and diseases for your pet, it was all worth it.