Dog Health Food

In recent years there has been a huge increase in dog health food as more people find out about what really goes into our dog?s food. With more and more diseases that have historically been human diseases, now appearing in our dogs, we have to look at what we can do to keep them healthy.

With dog food labelling laws much less strict than human, it can be hard to find out what really is put into our dog’s food. If a particular nasty ingredient doesn?t appear on the ingredients list, unfortunately that doesn?t mean it isn?t there. Some preservatives such as Ethoxyquin are routinely added to fish meal, which is then added as an ingredient but you won?t know what went into the fish meal. It?s a bit like those restaurants that can proclaim ?no added msg? because it?s only the ingredients and sauces that they use which contain it.

There are so many loopholes, which are exploited, in human food that I shudder to think about what really goes into the food we give our dogs. For example the preservative Ethoxyquin has been banned for human consumption for decades, but it?s still legal to put it into our dog?s food. Insiders have confirmed that road kill is often added to increase the protein amount, but that?s not the worst by far. In addition to toxic preservatives, there have been reported cases of pets being recycled back into dog food after being put down, complete with the lethal drugs still in their flesh!

Tumours that have been removed from dying dogs have been put into commercial dog food. So it’s little wonder that allergies, cancer and kidney failure are killing more dogs than ever before. So when you see ?animal? meat or ?animal? protein on a list of ingredients, run a mile!

There are many, many forms of protein, which can legitimately be put into dog food but are not really much better than poison. And even offal, which isn?t too bad as a rule, can be quite harmful. Offal is mainly produced from inedible organs but these organs can often have a high concentration of pesticides and hormones from the animal they came from. Basically, anything that can?t be sold as human grade food seems to find it?s way into dog food, and then promoted as being healthy!

It?s no surprise that the incidence of severe food allergies is rising either. There is a lot of corn and wheat gluten, which is a useless human food by product, being used as filler in dog food. This isn?t anything like a natural part of a dog?s diet and their digestive system doesn?t really cope with it. Not many dogs have a food intolerance when they’re born, but they can develop one later in life.

Allergies can lead to poor coat condition, bloating and wind, low energy, aggression and even organ damage. While often the effects are initially minor, if they are ignored, they can develop into more serious health problems. And all the time, your best friend can?t tell you if they feel sick after every meal they eat.

With all these things potentially making your pooch sick, dog health food is fast becoming a vital part of having a healthy dog. Making your own dog food is easy and fun, but if you don?t have the time, then there an increasing variety of all natural foods being produced that you?d be happy to give to your best friend.

Tagged as: Food, Health