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Home Pets The Woof
Gang The
Woof Gang: Dog Food for Thought

The
Woof Gang: Dog Food for Thought

Sunday, 29 November 2009 19:02
Laura Garber

Deciding the best diet
for our dogs has only gotten more confusing as the types and varieties have
proliferated. Here are some solid ideas to chew on....

Commercial
or homemade?  Cooked or raw?  Free feeding or discrete meals?
Let's explore:

Deciphering
Commercial Labeling

The Association of American Feed Control
Officials (AAFCO) promotes uniformity in feed regulations and labeling, but it
also substantiates whether a food is nutritionally adequate. A food deemed
“complete and balanced”  must prove it can sustain puppies (“growth”),
adult dogs (“maintenance”), gestating or lactating females, or “all life stages”
(all of the above).

Each standard has its strengths and weaknesses, so
your best bet is to read the ingredient list of each food to determine the
quality of the ingredients it contains.

The
Ingredient List on a Commercial Label

While there is a huge
selection of foods out there, there are a few basic tenets which will help
reduce the field substantially:

1. Look for foods that have a meat source
(e.g. “beef”) first in the ingredient list.

2. In dry food, a whole meat
(“chicken,” for instance) contains a lot of water, which means that it’s ideal
if the second or third ingredient in the list is a specific meat meal (e.g.
“chicken meal”).  If the only other animal protein is much later in the
list, it does not actually contain much animal protein.

3. Canned foods
need liquid for processing. It's better that this be the second item (not first)
in the ingredient list. It's also usually tastier to pets if broth is used
rather than water.

4. Animal proteins tend to be tastier and easier to
digest than plant proteins.

5. Avoid foods that contain by-products
(either specific or general) early in the ingredient list.

6. Look for
foods with whole grains and vegetables; avoid fractions (“brown rice” is better
than “wheat gluten”).

7. Avoid corn. It's a simple sugar, which no dog
needs.  Some dogs don't take well to corn in their diet.

8. Some
animals have adverse reactions to grains.  If your pup’s stool tends to be
loose or he has itchy skin, try a grain-free diet.

9. Avoid foods
with artificial colors.

Red Flags when Assessing Your Dog’s
Diet

Sometimes it’s difficult to assess what a symptom might
indicate about a diet.  Here are a few rules of thumb:

Fecal matter with a strong odor may indicate
indigestible proteins in your dog's diet.

Carbohydrates are harder to digest than
animal proteins, and high carb intake can manifest itself in flatulency or,
worse, inflammation in the body.

Poor-quality foods with artificial colors
and preservatives, hormones, and other chemicals can contribute to
overall
ill-health and create or increase allergic sensitivity.

Hyper, unfocused, out-of-control behavior
may be due to an extremely high level of cereal foods such as wheat, corn or
corn meal.  As a test, soak the food in water for 15 minutes; if it
swells in size and gets mushy, it’s mostly cereal.

Dogs who are shy and stressed do not
digest their food well and often suffer from intestinal complications such as
diarrhea.  Their coats are often extremely dry and shed
heavily.

An EFA (Essential Fatty Acid) deficiency
results in a dry, dull coat, hair loss, impaired wound healing, and the
eventual development of skin lesions.

COMING WEDNESDAY: Don't take
home-prepared dog foods lightly

Dog trainer Laura Garber of Hoboken regards training
as an exercise in building relationships rather than obedience. She believes
such an approach promises greater understanding and symbiosis within our family
packs. Laura works with private clients in Hudson County and beyond. For
information, go to myWoofGang.com or contact
her directly at

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Comments (2)

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Catalina
Perez said:

...
Laura, great tips! To be honest, I've
never paid much attention to what ingredients are in my dog's food. From
now on, I will look closely at what I buy for her. Thanks!

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November 29, 2009
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leslie said:

...
"An EFA (Essential Fatty Acid)
deficiency results in a dry, dull coat, hair loss, impaired wound healing,
and the eventual development of skin lesions. "

Lord that sounds
awful! Hopefully avoiding that with Trin's daily fishy-oil pill (shaped
conveniently like a fish) and olive oil dressing on dry Core food.

- Les

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December 04, 2009 | url

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