The AAFCO (The Association of American Feed Control Officials) sets the standards for food safety and nutrition in the pet industry. By testing products AAFCO determines whether or not certain ingredients are acceptable as pet foods. But they include both low and high quality ingredients as being nutritionally adequate. This is because of the demand for pet food in all price ranges. It is vital to read past the AAFCO approval statement on dog food labels if you want to know what your pet eats.
If a product has given the calorie content on the bag, “Premium Beef Dinner: now with lower calorie content,” this is done so voluntarily as a service to the consumer. Because the calorie content of pet foods does not have to be displayed in their labels, however, here's a formula to help you make sure Buster is not eating too much:
Multiply the carbohydrate by 4.2kcal (kilocalories) per gram, the protein by 5.65, and then the fat by 9.4 kcal per gram. If you need to convert the kilocalories to kilojoules (another unit of measurement for energy) simply multiply the total by 4.184. Of course, rounding to the nearest ten might be helpful, as long as you keep in mind that it’s an approximation erring on the low side.
Where's the Fat?
A good way to find the higher quality dog foods by reading the ingredient list is to search for that first source of fat. Everything that is listed before that fat source, and including it, is the main part of the food. Everything else is generally used for flavor, preservatives, vitamins, and minerals.
For example:
* Food A:Ground yellow corn, meat meal, chicken fat, ground wheat, chicken byproduct meal, dried beet pulp …
* Food B:
Turkey, chicken, chicken meal, ground brown rice, ground white rice, chicken fat, apples, carrots, sunflower oil…
The importance of finding the source of fat and where it is listed is so you can find ingredients that may or may not be harmful to your pet, such as beet pulp or corn gluten meal.
If you learn to read the labels on dog food correctly you can really make a difference to your pets' health. So take the time to discover what the labels really mean.
Sharda Baker has published several dog ebook and audios, including the internet best selling "Complete Guide to Your Dog's Nutrition"
Visit the link below now for Sharda's Special Free Dog Food Report
