Few people today remember feeding their pets anything but a commercial diet, but at one time, all dogs were fed table scraps and whole foods. In the mid-1800s, James Spratt produced a dry biscuit made from grains, vegetables, and meat. His product was convenient and promised balanced nutrition, and soon his business exploded. In 1890, he sold the company to a larger corporation, and production started in the U.S. as well.
Canned horsemeat became common in the U.S. after WWI, and in the 1930s, canned cat food hit the shelves, along with a ‘dry meat meal’ for dogs produced by Gaines Food Co. During WWII, when metal for canning was needed for the war effort, the canned pet food industry nearly collapsed entirely. However, with the end of the war came a revival, and soon major food manufacturers such as Quaker Oats, General Foods, and Nabisco jumped on the commercial pet food bandwagon.
In 1956, the first extruded ‘kibble’ was produced, and the commercial dog food industry has never looked back! Extrusion is the process by which ingredients are pressed into kibble and then cooked.
Since then, pet food manufacturers have continued to refine the process and develop marketing strategies that appeal to consumers by focusing on the convenience and balanced nutrition of pet food. As prescription and breed-specific formulas developed and emphasis was placed on feeding according to the needs of individual animals, the pet food industry grew into the $15 billion industry it is today.
Facts about Feeding Dogs
Is commercial pet food better for your dog? Can a homemade diet offer more for your dog than pet food? Is a raw diet a healthier option?
With so many dog food brands on the market today, along with the growing number of food allergies and food-related conditions, deciding what to feed your dog has become more than a challenge—it’s become a nightmare!
How do you decide what is the best way to feed your dog or choose a brand of food? You start with the facts about feeding dogs and base your decision on the truth, not the hyped-up marketing tactics of various proponents in the dog food debate.
Commercial Dog Food Facts
Is the pet food industry the monster that many raw and homemade pet food advocates claim it is? Honestly, it can be, but the quality largely depends on the manufacturer. Like most things in life: buyer beware!
The facts about feeding dogs a commercial diet are:
The quality of the food is largely dependent on the quality of the ingredients. Cheap food to purchase means cheap ingredients and fillers were used to make the finished product. Always buy the best quality food you can afford—it will save you money in vet bills in the long run!
If you cannot pronounce an ingredient, it does not mean the food is full of chemicals. Learn the names of the common and FDA-approved preservatives and nutrients that are added to pet food so you are not fooled by the sometimes confusing ingredients.
All-natural does not mean anything in terms of food quality. Looking for food with non-GMO grains, free of pesticides or insecticides, and meat free of steroids, hormones, and antibiotics? Then you are looking for ‘organic’ dog food. All-natural loosely means that the food has not been over-processed. But if a manufacturer has gone the extra mile to use only organic ingredients, the last thing they would do is risk losing nutrients or lowering the quality of their food through over-processing.
Are roadkill, euthanized pets, or diseased livestock used to make commercial pet food? While it would be foolhardy to say it has never happened in the past, stricter FDA regulations now negate the chance of it ever happening again. When choosing a food for your dog, look for one with the FDA-approved stamp and always buy the best quality food you can afford.
Are prescription diets necessary? In a word, yes. If you have a heart condition and your doctor tells you to cut down on fat and salt, do you listen to them? Yes. So why would you ignore the same advice for your dog?
Commercial dog food is not the ogre that some homemade food advocates think it is, and it does have one highly redeeming quality: it is convenient. If you would rather be exercising and training your dog than cooking for him, do not berate yourself for feeding kibble. Buy a top-quality food that fits his nutritional requirements, and rest assured you are providing him with all that he needs.
Homemade Dog Diet Facts
Is a homemade diet better for your dog? Again, it depends on many factors. Are you thinking of a cooked, nutritionally balanced meal that takes into consideration your dog’s unique requirements? Are you willing to talk to a veterinary nutritionist to build a meal plan and have your pet’s health monitored?
The facts about feeding dogs a homemade diet:
Like commercial dog foods, the quality of the finished product is entirely dependent on the quality of the ingredients. Many people who feed homemade diets buy cheap meat and scraps from butchers to save a few dollars, thereby compromising their pet’s health by bombarding them with steroids, hormones, and antibiotics.
The belief that dogs are carnivores often leads owners to feed them all-meat diets or, in other words, pure protein. However, dogs are omnivores—they require complex carbohydrates and vegetables. Homemade food must be a complete and balanced diet.
Raw and BARF (Bones And Raw Food) diets are dangerous to your pet’s health. Many advocates of feeding uncooked meat and raw bones claim this is how the canine ancestors ate, and there is some truth to their arguments. However, the ancestors of our dogs lived an average of five years, not fifteen, and who’s to say their natural ability to fight off bacteria such as salmonella and E. coli was not greater? Today, the risk of exposing your dog to these dangerous bacteria outweighs the potential health benefits of a raw or BARF diet.
A well-balanced, nutritionally complete homemade diet can be the perfect solution for many dogs, especially those with food allergies. But do you feel equipped to feed your dog from your kitchen? Are you ready to buy and prepare fresh, high-quality cuts of meat and poultry, along with whole grains and vegetables? Consider the pros and cons of a homemade diet and decide whether or not the time commitment involved is worth it in the end.
The facts about feeding your dog properly boil down to one simple conclusion: whether it is commercial dog food or a homemade diet, always buy the best quality food you can afford. The quality of the ingredients makes or breaks the food, and in our consumer-based society, you get what you pay for!
