SOME THOUGHTS ON DOG FOOD OPTIONS

I have some thoughts on the vet industry’s common recommendation of only big brands dog foods that rhyme with Wesley, Corina, pills & foil canin. Lol.

These big brands have big money and resources to promote themselves. They engage in lots of lobbying. Many integrative vets (and MDs) speak of the limited education they got in school about nutrition, so it’s no wonder most vets and docs might be swayed by the big companies who show up to their schools and practices with samples and reports on self-interested research.

They make so-called prescription diets and charge more money for them yet the ingredient lists are worse than some of their own other recipes - starting with starches and GMO starches to boot. One article on prescription dog food (& its controversy is HERE. 

There’s lots of info on the marketing behind ‘prescription’ dog foods such as ones for joints or crystals. There’s plenty of info out there on mold in grains like mycotoxins in corn and how grains can be a problem with arthritis. There’s the fact that so many B vitamins and other synthetic vitamins added to pet foods are sourced from China. This isn’t to say every lab in China is suspect and every lab in the US is safe. That wouldn’t be accurate.

I have a hard time taking a company seriously as the standard when they’re happy to manufacture anything from fluorescent food to prescription foods. I wouldn’t dine at a so-called gourmet restaurant if the owner or chef was affiliated with McDonald’s either!

The idea that they’re the only ones doing legitimate testing of food is absurd.

Plenty of responsible pet food companies do 3rd party lab testing of all batches. Some are human-grade dehydrated to begin with, and potentially safer and healthier in the first place. Some are freeze-dried, which is another process that successfully removes bad bacteria like E Coli & Salmonella while retaining whatever probiotics and stabilized oils it adds in.

PS Plenty of kibble has been recalled for bad bacteria.

PPS Dogs’ stomachs are far more acidic than ours and can handle such bacteria way better than us anyway.

The idea that the big brands are the only ones using qualified personnel to make species-appropriate recipes is ridiculous. There are plenty of pet nutritionists employed by or even the founders of other pet food companies such as Honest Kitchen’s founder. Plus Dr. Alvarez, one of the directors at NYC’s prestigious Animal Medical Center has her own dogs on it and suggests it to clients.

Kibble is what the big companies tend to sell and while it’s convenient, it’s low quality without nutrient density or human-grade ingredients. Kibble is highly processed at high heat removing phytase that otherwise helps digestion and nutrient absorption. It usually lacks a focus on humane treatment of animals. It’s often made with GMO ingredients, 4D awful quality animal proteins, carcinogens, chemicals, mold,  and other issues like high glycemic index, high starch content, which is never helpful for dogs’ longevity or health. In fact, think of what cancer feeds on – sugar/starch. A good documentary to watch on the pet food industry is Pet Fooled.

As for a species-appropriate diet and the delivery process, the jury is still out on what is best – whether raw, freeze-dried raw, gently cooked, dehydrated, air dried, or other food preparation. That’s partly why there is a huge study of up to 100,000 dogs in the USA called the Dog Aging Project that’s partly funded by the NIH.

Additionally, dogs are bio-individual like we are, so your dog’s diet may not be good for my dog and vice versa. Some can’t tolerate lamb, venison or chicken. Others are sensitive to grains or potatoes. Most don’t truly tolerate dairy though they tend to want any cheese or ice cream they can get their paws on.

Some thrive on raw like Open Farm or Small Batch raw options while others thrive on home-cooked or delivery-cooked food like Evermore.

Food sensitivities also change with age as they produce less pancreatic enzymes for digestion and their stomachs may lose some of the acid helpful for digestion. Sometimes food sensitivities go away, so you may be able to re-introduce a protein source, for instance, months after it has been removed. It’s always a good idea to rotate proteins every month or so to avoid reactions occurring to any one protein source and in case one food has more toxins or different benefits.

For dogs: 80/20 muscle meat/bones or the 80/10/5/5 rule is good. This means that eighty percent of the food comes from muscle meat, ten percent comes from bone, five percent comes from liver and the last five comes from secreting organs. This is a ratio for raw that represents a dog eating the whole prey.

There is also research on vegan and vegetarian diets for dogs as well as “nutritarian” as described by Dr. Joel Fuhrman where far less animal protein is used. A Nutritarian canine eats 15 – 30 percent of calories from animal products, and strives for over 70 percent of calories from whole natural plant foods.

Many are up in arms over the idea of a dog’s diet being low in animal protein since most research has suggested they need mainly animal protein like their ancestors, wolves, with whom they share over 95% of their DNA. But there is also a cost to these food sources from environmental to humane to health – many have toxins like mercury and glyphosate.

However, dogs are not obligate carnivores like cats. They’re carnivore-leaning omnivores. They have evolved next to humans for tens of thousands of years. Hence, the Chihuahua and the Great Dane.

It is conceivable that they can thrive on various diets. Besides, many vegetables provide prebiotics for a healthy gut – to feed the probiotics in the microbiome. Over 80% of a dog’s immune system starts in the gut just like with humans. Yes, wolves tended to get their greens and other vegetables and fruits second-hand from the prey they consumed, but dogs are not wolves.

Some other dietary theories to support health are TRE – Time-Restricted Eating, one meal per day and intermittent fasting. All of these promote hormesis where the biological response to minor stressors (like fasting, cold shower, hot sauna) is generally favorable and promotes longevity.

A good place to start when choosing a food is which company was high quality and transparent enough to take Susan Thixton’s pledge of responsible sourcing and quality and make her list of trusted brands. (I think some companies are new or small and may not even know about this pledge, so this is not a comprehensive list of the best foods, but it’s a great place to start.)

What's left out of your dog's food is as important as what's in it. Does it have organic produce? Well-sourced protein? Or mystery meat like by-product meal and animal digest that can contain euthanized animals and dangerous euthanasia drugs? Is there a good balance of muscle meat, organ meats and glandulars? Are omega 3 oils added and if so, are they added at high heat, which defeats the purpose and actually becomes problematic and inflammatory? Does it have grains prone to toxic mold? Is there a lot of starch listed in the ingredient list and high up on that list? That's not good. Are there probiotics added in and how many CFUs? Are there synthetic vitamins? Dangerous chemicals like food dyes? Is there 3rd party testing? 

These are some of the questions to ask that I can help you answer. Reach out if you want help and make sure to grab my free dietary guide if you haven’t yet.