Choosing the best food for your furry friend can be confusing with all the different brands, formulas and claims on pet store shelves. Nonetheless, reading and understanding dog food labels is the key to selecting a high-quality, nutritious diet.
The Ingredient List
Let us start with the ingredient panel listing everything that goes into making that particular dog food. Ingredients are listed in order, by weight, before cooking.
You will want to see lean protein sources like real chicken, beef, turkey, or fish listed first. These provide essential amino acids for muscle growth and repair. Avoid excessive fillers like corn, wheat or by-products.
Ingredients to limit:
- Artificial colors, flavors and preservatives.
- Generic sources like “animal fat” or “meat meal”.
- Chemical names you cannot pronounce.
Wholesome, recognizable ingredients you might cook with at home are ideal, like sweet potatoes, peas, brown rice, and healthy oils.
The Guaranteed Analysis
This chart shows the minimum percentages of crude protein and crude fat, and the maximum levels of crude fiber and moisture in the finished product. Reading this lets you evaluate if a food meets your pup’s specific needs.
For example, puppies require a minimum of 22% protein and 8% fat, while less active adult dogs may only need 18% protein and 5% fat. Keep an eye on the fiber percentage for dogs with sensitive stomachs too.
Look for an AAFCO Statement
This confirms the dog food provides complete and balanced nutrition for the specified life stage, like adult maintenance or growth/reproduction. Foods without this third-party verification may be nutritionally deficient.
Natural, Holistic and Human-Grade
These unregulated marketing terms are applied very broadly by pet food manufacturers. Natural simply means no artificial flavors, colors, or preservatives. Holistic implies whole, unprocessed ingredients.
Human-grade means it is edible for people, but alone doesn’t indicate a superior product. Evaluate the actual ingredients rather than relying on these buzzwords.
Cold Pressed Dog Food
An emerging trend in pet nutrition is gently cold pressed dog foods made by slowly dehydrating fresh ingredients at low temperatures using thousands of pounds of pressure. The experts at Nextrition say that by avoiding the extreme heat and processing of standard kibble manufacturing, these refrigerated or frozen products aim to retain more of the original nutritional integrity from whole food sources.
Reading Meat Meal Labels
Meat meal is a rendered, dehydrated meat protein found in many dry dog foods. The specific source is important as something like “chicken meal” is higher quality than vaguely listed “meat meal.”
Ingredients for Health Issues
Dogs with allergies or sensitivities require diets avoiding problematic ingredients like beef, wheat, corn, soy, dairy or eggs. Limited ingredient or hydrolyzed protein dog foods may be better options.
Weight management formulas contain higher protein and fiber amounts with lower fat levels. Large and giant breed puppies need controlled calcium and phosphorus ratios to prevent bone issues.
Look for the AAFCO (Association of American Feed Control Officials) statement confirming nutritional adequacy for any of these special therapeutic needs.
What about By-Products?
By-products like “chicken by-product meal” tend to be viewed negatively by consumers but can actually provide nutrient-dense protein and flavor. However, quality rendered meals from a regulated source are better than extremely vague “animal by-products.”
Understanding Nutrients
Finally, some nutrients to check for include:
- Omega fatty acids for skin and coat health.
- Probiotics and prebiotic fibers for gut health.
- Glucosamine and chondroitin for joint support.
- Chelated minerals for better absorption.
Conclusion
While dog food labels take some decoding, you now have the tools to cut through the marketing claims and identify recipes that truly meet your pup’s dietary requirements for a long, healthy life.
