Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Don't Be Fooled by the Label on Your Dog's Food

Did you ever take your dog to an animal nutritionist? For only $90 we got a full one-hour consultation based on the doctor's looking at all our dog's medical records, recent tests, etc.  This was well worth it.

One of the things that we received was a diet, with brands and weights, for our dog that fulfilled his particular nutritional needs and the goals of the doctor for him.

I think too many people purchase dog food for their dogs based on advertising: They make the same mistake purchasing food for their dogs that they do for their family. They look at the ingredients in the order in which they are listed on the package. But what you don't realize is that much of this is PR.

I recently saw a TV commercial where two women were shopping for food for their dog. One said, "See here! MEAT is #1 on the ingredients!"

What's the problem? Food is listed by volume.  Dogs don't need that much protein! Much of that is going to be wasted.

Furthermore, what they need more in volume is carbohydrates.

We've settled in with Science Diet. They don't do a lot of advertising, and it's not in the "natural" pet food stores, but it's scientifically sound - and NO PR fluff.