This information is taken from Whole Dog Journal’s review of dog foods. Whole Dog Journal is a well-respected and informative publication on natural health and nutrition.
Quality foods should contain:
- Superior sources of protein, either whole fresh meats or source meat meal (ex. chicken meal rather than poultry meal)
- A whole-meat source as one of the first two, preferably three ingredients
- Whole, unprocessed grains, vegetables, and other foods. Nutrients and enzymes are more likely to be found in unprocessed foods
Quality foods should contain a MINIMUM of the following:
- Food fragments—lower cost by-products of another food manufacturing process, such as brewer’s rice and wheat bran. Manufacturers usually include at least one fragment to help lower costs. Beware any food that includes several fragments.
- Meat by-products (not handled as carefully as whole meat) – any food that contains meat by-products as the MAJOR protein source indicates a low-quality product
High-quality foods should not contain:
- Fats or proteins named generically (ex. Animal fat/poultry fat instead of beef fat/lamb meal)
- Artificial preservatives (BHA, BHT, ethoxyquin)
- Artificial colors
- Sweeteners (corn syrup, sucrose, ammoniated glycyrrhizin) to improve unappealing food
- Propylene glycol – a toxic substance when consumed in large amounts; added to some “chewy” foods to keep them moist.
- Corn, wheat, or soy. All may cause allergic reactions and behavioral problems.
All of the following foods listed meet the aforementioned guidelines. Though this is not an inclusive list, it offers many excellent choices: Solid Gold, Canidae, Castor & Pollux, Halo, Eagle Pack, Stella & Chewy’s, Wysong, Pinnacle, Primal, Fromm, Nature’s Recipe, Taste of the Wild, The Honest Kitchen, Wellness, Orijen, Nature’s Variety, Sojos Raw Made Easy (de-hydrated food), Merrick, Natural Balance, Trader Joe’s, and Costco’s Kirkland.