Canine nutrition is one of my foremost interests. It was that topic that sparked the concept of my starting this blog. As such, I hope that it will be a regularly recurring topic and as I continue to read the many books and websites; and confer with experts in the field, I look forward to continuing to write on this topic.In light of the recent food recalls, there has been a great deal of debate on the topic of pet food and increased awareness amongst pet owners. There is a mass of conflicting information about what is ‘good’ dog food. Most dog owners have experienced their vet encouraging the use of certain brands of dog food. We feel if it is vet recommended, it must be safe. We must think outside of this rationalization. Try and imagine a responsible internist endorsing a a brand of food - it seems wrong.

Commercially prepared dog food is a modern invention for the sake of convenience. Prior to the advent of the pet food industry, our pets ate table scraps and other ‘human’ foods. In the 1950’s dry pet food was introduced and over the next decade advertisers packaged and commercialized the notion that commercially prepared foods were superior to freshly cooked meats and vegetables.

The pet food industry has done a wonderful job of convincing us that feeding our pup anything but commercially prepared dog foods is dangerous to his health. While commercially prepared foods are carefully formulated to the specific needs of our canine friends, while reading the ingredients, you often find meat by products, fillers and chemicals to provide a long shelf life.

If the over 5,000 pet foods that were recalled in 2007 are not enough to convince us that we need to reevaluate the trust we put into packaged food products, I highly recommend Ann Martin’s book, Food Pets Die For. Originally published in 1997, it was one of the first exposés on the pet food industry. She has updated her book and continues to call out the unethical practices that take place in the industry. The most shocking information was the assertion that euthanized animals are rendered into the mix.

The veterinary recommended brand we were feeding Louis was included in the pet food recall, although not his specific formula. It was still enough to make me rethink what I was feeding him. After reading Ms. Martin’s book, I committed to changing his diet drastically. We are in the process of making the change and are already seeing positive changes.

In addition to the new-found knowledge of the revolting processes the pet food industry utilizes, Ms. Martin makes helpful suggestions for revising your pet’s diet, offers recipes for feeding pets home cooked meals and advises on selecting commercially prepared foods made by ethical companies using human grade ingredients. Her book is gut-wrenching and I needed a few lengthy breaks in order to stomach its contents, however, for anyone who cares for a pet, it is necessary reading.

   Email This Post

Related Categories:

Dog Nutrition

 

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.