Commercial Dry Foods - Introduction

If you have read about dog food on other websites, you might ask "Why do you recommend any dry dog food at all? Shouldn't I avoid all commercial products and just feed a homecooked or raw diet?"

The answer is simple - not everyone has the time, money, resources or dedication to feed a properly balanced homemade diet and not all commercial dog foods are made from low quality ingredients and inexpensive byproducts, only meeting the bare minimum of nutritional requirements. The philosophies and ethics of manufacturers vary widely and it is my goal to make as much information available as possible so you can form your own opinion about what is a good food and what isn't. If enough pet owners make a conscious choice, avoid the "junk food" and support trustworthy manufacturers by buying their quality products, maybe it will send a message to the companies who are happy to sell you bags of beef "flavored" corn or rice byproducts.

Fortunately, changes are already happening. More and more smaller, privately owned businesses are entering the market with quality products. Almost every pet food manufacturer that is owned by a corporate giant is following the example of the successful smaller companies, trying to secure themselves a piece of the "natural" or "holistic" segment of the market. Royal Canin offers "Natural Blend" and "Sensible Choice", Heinz Pet Products offers "Nature's Recipe" and Colgate-Palmolive offers Science Diet "Nature's Best" and "Advanced Protection". Even the low-end range on the grocery store shelf has candidates like Purina "Beneful".

In some cases a quick look at the ingredient list reveals whether the product is made of quality components or not, in others it takes more knowledge about individual ingredients to determine which food is the better one. Of course every company is going to tell you that they are using only the best quality ingredients, but the constitutional right to freedom of speech does not require such statements to be truthful.

Let that sink in for a moment.

It's your responsibility as a pet owner to look past the pretty pictures of fresh cuts of meat and juicy vegetables, the cute commercials and the misleading, biased information about "proper nutrition" and question the statements the manufacturer makes. If you can't locate enough information on my website, or doubt any of its content, make use of your email and discuss things with the manufacturers directly. If you are concerned about a particular ingredient, get several different opinions and compare the statements.