Label Reading 101
Do you know what is in the food you feed your dog, puppy, cat or kitten?
Your pet is an important family member and you want them to live a long and healthy life. One important step to accomplishing this is by feeding your pet a high quality, whole food diet. “You are what you eat” is an old cliché and like most clichés it has truth to it.
The first step to knowing what your dog is eating is learning to understand the label on the food you are feeding. Reading a pet food label can be confusing but I hope to simplify it for you so that you can make an informed decision about the wholesomeness of your pet’s food.
The first thing to analyze on the label is the area that gives the information on the protein and fat content of the food. It might look like this:
Guaranteed Analysis:
Crude Protein (Min) 21.0%
Crude Fat (Min) 10.0%
Crude Fiber (Max) 4.5%
Moisture (Max) 12.0%
Linoleic Acid (Min) 1.5%
Calcium (Ca) (Min) 1.0%
Phosphorus (P) (Min) 0.8%
Vitamin A (Min) 10,000 IU/kg
You want to match these levels with your dog’s individual needs. A 10 year old overweight Lab has different nutritional needs than a lean 1 year old Jack Russell Terrier. This formula would be more appropriate for the lab.
The other important feature of the label is the list of ingredients. The ingredients are listed in descending order based on weight. This has significance – for instance chicken meat weighs more than chicken meal which has been dehydrated. There would be more nutrition per ounce in chicken meal than in an ounce of chicken meat. Also be aware (and beware) of multiple forms of one type of food - for instance Rice Bran, Rice Gluten and Rice.
I would like to address is some specific ingredients, what they are, what to avoid and what you want to be in your pet’s food.
Meat By-Products – if the label lists a specific meat by-product like chicken it would be all the parts of the chicken not usable for consumption by people. This might include sick or diseased chickens, dead chickens, and all the parts not used in hot dogs! The same applies to beef or fish. Please be aware that if the label lists “Meat By-Products” the by-product is not species specific and there are rumors that this type of by-product might contain road kill and other less than appealing things.
Another common ingredient in dog food is corn – in various forms. Corn commonly causes allergic reactions in dogs and is not very digestible.
Soy products are commonly added to the cheaper pet foods to boost the protein when little meat protein is used. Soy is difficult for pets to metabolize.
When you read a pet food label look for real, whole food ingredients – for example Rice, Oatmeal, Chicken Meal or Chicken Meat. Avoid parts of things like: Rice Gluten, Corn Glutten or Rice Bran.
Following is the list of ingredients from a popular “good” grocery store brand:
Ingredients:
Ground yellow corn, poultry by-product meal, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols
(form of Vitamin E), corn gluten meal, brewers rice, soybean meal, animal
digest, calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate, salt, potassium chloride, L-Lysine
monohydrochloride, choline chloride, zinc sulfate, Vitamin E supplement, zinc
proteinate, ferrous sulfate, added color (Red 40, Yellow 5, Blue 2, Yellow 6),
manganese sulfate, manganese proteinate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, copper
sulfate, calcium pantothenate, copper proteinate, garlic oil, pyridoxine
hydrochloride, Vitamin B-12 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, Vitamin D-3
supplement, riboflavin supplement, calcium iodate, menadione sodium bisulfite
complex (source of Vitamin K activity), folic acid, biotin, sodium selenite.
P-4101
I would have a hard time feeding this food. The first ingredient is corn, the second ingredient poultry by-product meal – they do not name the type of poultry – it could be any kind of poultry, the fat is not animal specific – what kind of animal fat is it??? Corn glutten meal and brewers rice are both byproducts from other industries and are not whole foods. Soybean meal is a cheap substitute for meat. Animal digest???? That does not sound wholesome! Salt and artificial colors - our pets do not need added salt or artificial colors.
Here is another label from a “higher” quality, very popular food:
Ingredients
Chicken, Corn Meal, Ground Whole Grain
Sorghum, Chicken By-Product Meal, Chicken Fat (Preserved with mixed Tocopherols,
a source of Vitamin E), Dried Beet Pulp (Sugar Removed), Natural Chicken Flavor,
Fish Meal, Potassium Chloride, Dried Egg Product, Brewers Dried Yeast, Salt,
Flax Meal, Calcium Carbonate, Sodium Hexametaphosphate, Fish Oil (Preserved with
mixed Tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Choline Chloride, Minerals (Ferrous
Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Manganese Sulfate, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide,
Potassium Iodide, Cobalt Carbonate), Vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, Ascorbic
Acid, Vitamin A Acetate, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Thiamine Mononitrate
(Source of Vitamin B1), Vitamin B12 Supplement, Niacin, Riboflavin Supplement
(Source of Vitamin B2), Inositol, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Source of Vitamin
B6), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Folic Acid), DL-Methionine, Rosemary Extract
This food is better – chicken is the first ingredient, it still has corn, and there are some by-products in there and salt but no colors and it has “whole grain” sorgum.
Following is an example of a label from a “super premium” food:
All Natural Ingredients
Chicken Meal, Turkey Meal, Brown Rice, White Rice, Lamb
Meal, Chicken Fat (preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Herring Meal, Flax Seed,
Sun Cured Alfalfa Meal, Sunflower Oil, Chicken, Lecithin, Monocalcium Phosphate,
Potassium Chloride, Choline Chloride, Linoleic Acid, Rosemary Extract, Sage
Extract, Dried Enterococcus Faecium, Dried Lactobacillus Acidophilus
Fermentation Product, Dried Aspergillus Oryzae Fermentation Extract, Dried
Bacillus Subtilis Fermentation Extract, Inulin (from Chicory root),
Saccharomyces Cerevisiae Fermentation Solubles, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Mixed
Tocopherols (source of Vitamin E), Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Manganese Amino Acid
Chelate, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Cobalt Amino Acid
Chelate, Vitamin A Supplement, Vitamin D3 Supplement, Ascorbic Acid (source of
Vitamin C), Niacin, Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Riboflavin (source of
B2), Beta Carotene, Calcium Pantothenate, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6),
Calcium Iodate, Folic Acid, D-Biotin, Sodium Selenite, Papaya, Vitamin B12
Supplement.
There are no parts of foods in this formula, no salt, no colors and four different protein sources. I like it!
Don’t forget to read the label on the treats you feed your pets!
Avoid by-products and parts of things like Rice Bran or Corn Glutten Meal.
Avoid colorings, added sweeteners and salt.
I do not recommend foods that are marketed as diet foods. They are usually loaded with ingredients lacking nutritional value.
Do not feed your pet anything that contains BHA, BHT, Ethoxyquin, and Propylene Glycol. These ingredients are linked to negative and serious long term health issues.
If you would like more specific information do not hesitate to contact me and I will be happy to share with you what I have learned and/or help you find in depth, reliable resources available on the internet.
In closing, be aware that large commercial dog food manufacturers are a business first with stock holders to answer to and their main objective is profits. They market their products to people using attractive ad campaigns. Please do not be fooled by slick marketing tactics. Just because the company has a great ad campaign does not mean that the food provides the best nutrition for your pet. Reading the label will tell you what is in the food what is not in the food and with the little bit of knowledge I have provided you should be able to figure out if what you are feeding is healthy for your pet.
