The regulations set by the government on the labeling of dog food have made it easier to determine the ingredients, but the labels can still be confusing. Learn how the the labeling of canned dog food is done and the ingredients to look for in high quality dog food.
The list of ingredients
On any can of dog food, ingredients are listed in order of weight predominance. This can get confusing because while one product may list meat as the first ingredient and another might list corn, the water content of meat is much higher. This means that a product might look as though it has more meat content, when in reality meat is listed first because of the water weight.
The product name is important
The 95% rule means that any dog food made primarily of meat, fish or poultry must be 95% of the ingredient named on the label.
While this does not include any added water during processing and “condiments” to flavor the food, the can of dog food must be at least 70% of the ingredient in the name once it is processed.
Complicated ingredients are often vitamins and minerals
Dog food manufacturers are regulated in that they must use ingredients that are “Generally Recognized As Safe” or GRAS. As you go down the list of ingredients on the label of a can of dog food, the items become unrecognizable to many people. In general, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients have chemical sounding names, but they simply provide added nutrition for your pet.
Guaranteed analysis of canned dog food
At the very minimum, canned dog food must contain minimum percentages of crude fat and crude protein. Maximum percentages are set for crude fiber and moisture. Understand that this guaranteed analysis is rather basic, and does not describe the specifics of the fat, protein and fiber used when making the dog food.
Organic dog food doesn’t have to be all organic
Food that is labeled organic might not necessarily be 100%.
In fact, to contain a seal stating the food is organic, the food must contain 95% organic ingredients.
If the label states, “made with organic ingredients” the percentage quickly drops to 70% organic.
Although some organic products are better than nothing, don’t be tricked believing you are feeding your dog fully organic food.
The best way to truly know what your pet is eating is to cook meals for your dog, just as you do for yourself. Most of us don’t have that kind of time, so looking for natural products that meet the weight and age requirements of our pet is the next best choice.
When you want to feed your dog a healthy diet, read labels carefully. Look for products that list the main ingredient as “beef”, not “meat”. Know what your pet is eating. Dog food is one area where paying a little more is worth it.