Let's Dissect Dog Food! (Part 2 of 2)

So now that we understand some of the red flags in our dog food ingredient list, let's talk about some green flags starting with protein. Ideally, your first ingredient would be a protein. But it should be the right kind of protein. So what kinds of protein are there?

There are obviously many animals we can put into dog food. The type of animal is not as important as the process it goes through. There are basically 3 versions of protein; protein as a whole, deboned, and protein meal. There are also those byproducts but we've already discussed them so I won't go into any more of that.

Now the version you want to see on the label is dependant on the type of food you are feeding be it canned or kibble. I'll explain using chicken.

If your label simply reads "chicken" as an ingredient, this is basically how you would purchase a roaster at the store. It's all inclusive of bone, skin, and maybe a few quality innards. Some of the higher priced foods will read "Deboned Chicken" which is the same item with the bones removed. Finally, you'll see "Chicken Meal".

Meal is not what they feed the animal as a few students have suggested and joked. Meal is the process of which they take the chicken and basically put it through a juicer. They extract as much of the fluids as possible turning the meat into more of a thick paste like a pate.

So which do you want? If you are feeding a canned food, you want to see one of the first two. You want the proteins intact since the need for extracting the moisture is not needed. If you are feeding a kibble, you want the first ingredient to be a meal. The reason for that is because you are feeding a dry food. If the label simply lists the item as "chicken" then it has not been processed yet.

Ingredients are listed by volume so the first 5 ingredients are the basis of your dog's diet. Some companies like to get that protein source at the top so by listing it in it's whole state they can do that. However, by the time they finish the process that item will no longer be in the top 5 and be somewhere around the 7-8th item. So look for that Meal as a first ingredient since they have already processed it for the kibble.

Some other good things are fruits, vegetables, rice, and barley. My general rule is when you are reading those ingredients, put each of those first five items on a mental plate. If you wouldn't eat it, don't feed it!