What is a Good Dog Food?

I hear this question all the time: Just what is a good dog food and how do I find one? I totally understand why so many people are confused on the subject. The big pet food companies spend millions of dollars each year working to convince you that their products are the best on the market.

But these marketing campaigns don't change the fact that most of the dog food in the store is very poor quality or not as good as it should be.

The problem is that these big companies put profits ahead of the health of our companion animals.

They have to answer to their stockholders who expect to see their profit margins continually growing.

To meet these demands, companies find ever more creative ways to cut costs while trying to convince you that they’re making a good dog food.

And, how do they cut cost? Often it’s by purchasing the cheapest ingredients available.

Is There Really Any "Bad Dog Food?"

I would actually classify most of what you’ll find in the store as bad dog food. If you walk down the pet food isle at any supermarket or pet supply store, you'll find a ton of them.

They all have beautiful labels showing pretty pictures of their multi-colored dog food being. And, its usually being chowed down by healthy-looking dogs.

These pet food companies spend millions on getting the packaging just right. They are trying to fool you into believing that their pet food is good.

Their labels will often include the word "natural" because they've learned that being natural is important to their customers. But, what would an "unnatural" ingredient look like?

Freshness SHOULD Be a Big Concern

Do you have any idea how long that dog food you just bought has been sitting on that shelf? Do you know where it had been before it hit the shelf? What were the conditions where it was being being stored? How long had it been there?

It isn't unusual for pet food that you buy at the store to be over a year old. It could have been sitting on the shelf at the store for months. Before that, it could have been in storage units with no climate control for up to a year. This is very common.

What happens to the quality of the dog food during all that time? With each passing month, the quality of the nutrition in that bag of dog food degrades. Why settle for anything but the best for your pets?

My Criteria For a "Good Dog Food"

To make it onto my list of good dog food, a product has to pass all of these tests:

• Does the pet food company put the health of pets ahead of profits?

• Are their products formulated by knowledgeable professionals? Are these professionals proud enough to put their names on the products they formulate?

• Does the company use only the freshest ingredients in their products? Are ingredients sourced from local farms rather than imported from foreign countries with lower quality standards?

• Does the company have a record of safety? If a company’s products have ever been involved in pet food recall, they can't pass this test.

• Does the company subject themselves to APHIS inspections? This is a much tougher quality standard than most pet food companies are willing to submit to.

• Does the company guarantee the freshness of their products? Do they use only natural preservatives in the process and in all the ingredients? By law, a company does not have to disclose any dangerous preservatives applied to ingredients before they receive them.

• Does the company avoid the use of wheat and corn in all their products? Both are suseptible to a particular mold that produces a toxin capable of killing our pets. The mold is killed when cooked, but the toxin remains. Responsible pet food makers avoid the risk altogether by not using wheat or corn in their products.

Is There Any "Good Dog Food" Then?

You're probably looking at this list and thinking that there couldn't be any pet food company making a good dog food. Well, you would be wrong. I know of at least one in the United States.

These short videos showcase a wonderful company and the products they make:

Putting a Premium on Pet Health

Pioneers for Pet Health

Premium Ingredients with Purpose

Fresh and Fast

Safety is a Primary Objective

Putting Customers First

Abundant Nutrition for Life

Click here if you'd like to learn more about these products or give them a try.

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