You can't save them all. And sometimes that can be a really tough thing to swallow.
Let me start by saying that
#1: I am not a Veteranarian.
#2: At work, I'm not sponsored by any pet food company.
#3: I study pet nutrition from a holistic point of view.
#4: There is not one dog or cat food that is perfect for every animal.
My job is to educate pet owners about pet food and treats. I will evaluate a pet, identify their dietary needs, discuss previous and current health issues with pet owners, and suggest foods and treats that that are appropriate for that dog. I am not swayed by how cute a dog food commercial is or how cleverly designed the pet food bag is. Sometimes I help pets and then their owners start to take their pet's nutrition seriously. Many times I am talking to a brick wall disguised as a human. You can't save them all. Even when you present only the facts about pet food ingredients, there is a percentage of folks that just don't care or would prefer to take all of their pet's nutritional advice from someone who never took any course work in pet nutrition or from someone sponsored by one giant pet food company. How do I get up each morning and do this day after day? The hope that I will help at least one person make better choices for their pets. The hope that I will make someone want to ask questions.
my Vet said.
You wouldn't jump in front of a train if your Vet told you to. And you certainly wouldn't stab your pet in the throat if your Vet advised that. Would you? But if you are willing to feed some of the diets being prescribed by Vets without a second thought, you could be taking poor advice. And you are paying a fortune for it! Case in point - a perscription diet aimed at Glucose Management. To me, managing glucose means controlling the amounts of sugar in a pet's diet. Perhaps this could be for an overwight dog, one with Diabetes, or pets who constantly have bacterial infections brought on by yeast. I would suggest diets without starchy carbohydrates that metabolize into sugar, like Corn for instance. Corn metabolizes in dogs similar to the way sugar metabolizes in humans. It's like feeding a child foods high in corn syrup. Dogs eating corn may even experience energy rushes, crashes, hyperactivity, and a hard time concentrating.
Simply put:
Yeast needs sugar as a source of energy.
Carbohydrates like Corn and Potatoes break down into sugar.
Manage glucose by NOT feeding a food with Corn or Potatoes.
Pets that are overweight or suffering from Diabtes should avoid high-sugar diets.
Carbohydrates like Corn and Potatoes break down into sugar.
Manage glucose by NOT feeding a food with Corn or Potatoes.
Sounds like common sense, right?
So HOW does a Veterinarian-prescribed diet for Glucose Management have CORN as the FIRST ingredient? It certainlay CANNOT be for Glucose Management!!! Is it beacuse most believe in High Fiber diets for the overweight and Diabetic? I'm just so confused. There must be a High Fiber dog food available that is actually nutritious. If I were faced with this at the Vet, I would ask so many questions rather than blindly say, "sign me up for your
one size fits all diet".
You will find some of the following content about dog food ingredients at Dog Food Advisor
. This website is a must for anyone who wants to learn about pet food.
Back to this Veterinarian-prescribed food... The bag says
Canine Low Fat - Glucose Management- Gastrointestinal Dry Dog Food and these are the ingredients:
Whole Grain Corn, Powdered Cellulose, Chicken by-product Meal, Corn Gluten Meal, Chicken Liver Flavor, Soybean Mill Run, Soybean Oil, Dried Beet Pulp, Lactic Acid, Soybean Meal, Caramel (color), Potassium Chloride, Calcium Sulfate, Flaxseed, L-Lysine, Choline Chloride, Calcium Carbonate, vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Niacin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), Taurine, minerals (Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Manganous Oxide, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Iodized Salt, L-Tryptophan, L-Carnitine, L-Threonine, Mixed Tocopherols added to retain freshness, Citric Acid added to retain freshness, Phosphoric Acid, Beta-Carotene, Rosemary Extract.
This food costs approx $64 for 27.5 lbs.
The #1 ingredient, Corn, is a cheap filler ingredient that is non-nutritious for pets. Gastrointestinal?? Corn is difficult to digest, a known allergenic, and in some cases aflatoxin (mold) contamination has been associated with corn in dog food. Corn is in commercial dog food because it supplies cheap calories to the product. And starchy carbohydrates play a critical role in a process known as gelatinization — a process which is absolutely crucial to the workings of kibble machinery. In a nutshell, corn SHOULD makes pet food less expensive to produce as well as to purchase. So why on earth does this Corn based food cost so much? For pet food companies to advertise that corn is included in commercial dog food primarily for its nutritional benefits is misleading — and a gross misrepresentation of the facts.
Ingredient #2: Powdered Cellulose is a fiber source in dog food with the lowest food value of any kind of fiber and it may amaze you that it is even permitted in dog food. (YEP… this ingredient is a fancy term for sawdust)
Meat by-products (example: Chicken By-Product Meal): These are the leftovers after all the good stuff is harvested for the human food industry and consist of the parts of animals that are NOT meat.
That’s right… NO MEAT! Non-specified “mystery meat” by-products are even worse (example: Meat by-product meal and Animal by-product meal).
What is Corn Gluten Meal? Gluten is the rubbery residue remaining once corn has had most of its starchy carbohydrate washed out of it. Compared to meat, glutens are inferior grain-based proteins lower in some of the essential amino acids dogs and cats need for life. This inexpensive plant-based ingredient can significantly boost the total protein reported on the pet food label — a factor that must be considered when judging the actual meat content of the dog or cat food.
Soy is estrogenic and wreaks havoc on your pet’s endocrine system.
Soy Protein is a Poor Quality, incomplete protein. Same goes for Soybean Meal. Dogs and Cats should be getting protein from healthy meat rather than inferior plant-based protein sources.
Caramel (color): It is always disappointing to find artificial coloring in any pet food. That’s because coloring is used to make the product more appealing to humans — not your dog. After all, do you really think your dog cares what color his kibble is?
Since the process of making kibble cooks all (if any are even present here) of the natural vitamins and minerals out of the food, synthetic vitamins and minerals must be added to fortify the food. The same way a Cocoa Puff could be advertised as "packed with vitamins and minerals". Let me guess, you only feed Cocoa Puffs and fortified cereals to your kids? No, you don't. So is it OK to feed your pets that way - only with synthetic nutrition? Some say, "it's JUST a dog" or "my cat doesn't care". Others start to look at commercial pet foods in a whole new way. Especially once they figure out that many of these synthetic vitamins and minerals are made in China.
Based on the ingedients, this example of a Veterinarian-prescribed diet is poor quality food with ingredients similar to the cheapest dogs foods on the market. While there might be some clinical study that proves this is a good thing, does a diet like this solve one problem BUT create other health problems because the ingedients as a whole are so horrible? I couldn't feed this to my dogs - EVER.
Educate yourself.
Use common sense.
Ask questions.
Don't jump off a bridge if someone tells you to.
