What, exactly, does “natural” mean?  More importantly, what does “natural” mean whenever you see it on a can or a bag of pet food?  You desire the best of everything for your dog, including his food, but are foods which are labeled as natural dog foods any better than another not labeled natural?

The essential definition of natural is, “in accordance with nature.”  The way it pertains to commodities – and dog food is a commodity – the definition is, “being unprocessed or manufactured using only simple or minimal … read more

There are lots of commercial dog foods to pick from.  Why would you wish to spend the extra money and time and make your pet’s food?  In case you read the labels and compare commercial dog food ingredients with all the ingredients you’d use in making your dog’s food yourself, the answer to that question becomes a great deal easier.

Among the popular brands of dog food, a mid-range food, has “Beef” on its label.  Look at the ingredients.  The first four ingredients are water, chicken, meat … read more

Do you remember the 2007 pet food recall?  Melamine and cyanuric acid were found in several top shelf labels of wet dog food.  Melamine is used to make plastic. Cyanuric acid is used to chlorinate pools. Neither is permitted to be used in pet food.  The FDA discovered these chemicals in the imported wheat gluten and rice protein concentrate used to make pet.  Eating them can lead to kidney failure.

Officially, 226 cats and dogs died, but the death toll is alleged to have been much, much higher as a consequence … read more