Pet food recalls make us all very concerned and more people are turning to dog health food to keep their dogs healthy. Here's a list of some of the most common questions and some very important answers for your dogs health.
1. What Is Really Going Into Our Dog's Food?
This is a really concerning question for many of us. There have been rumours and some of them sound too far fetched to be true, but what if they are? Some of the things that are put into most commercial dog foods could be seriously impacting on the health of your best friend.
One of the most common is a highly toxic preservative called ethoxyquin. This toxic chemical has been banned in human food for years but it seems to be ok to put it into our dog food. In dogs, ethoxyquin has been linked to allergies, immune deficiency syndromes and cancers of the spleen, stomach and liver.
Factory workers who have come into regular contact with ethoxyquin have exhibited side effects similar to agent orange, from hair loss and blindness to leukaemia. This is a pretty sobering thought when you fill up a bowl of dog food and tell your beloved dog to eat it all up.
Apart from the nasty chemicals, many grains are used to add bulk to the food. Corn and wheat gluten which are useless by-products of human food production are routinely added. And it can be hard to figure out exactly how much of these fillers is really in your dog food. If you see two or three grains listed near the top of the ingredients list, it's probably a sign that there's a fair bit of filler in there.
2. Is It Doing Them Any Harm?
If you've read this far you're probably aware that there can be some really nasty side effects from some of the common preservatives that are found on many commercial dog foods. The hard thing is that often it takes years for the most serious side effects to appear. This also means that unfortunately it might be too late to save them by the time symptoms become obvious.
Few dogs are born with a food allergy, but more and more they are developing an allergy or sensitivity later in life after years of eating discarded grain by-products. The effects of this can range from flatulence to excessive weight gain, and your dog can't really tell you if they don't feel well after they eat. Other common symptoms are poor coat condition and general lethargy. Simply changing to the right food can add years to the life of your dog, as well as more energy and vitality.
3. Haven't All The Bad Ones Been Recalled?
Now you might be asking if all the really nasty batches of dog food have been recalled. While many deadly batches of food have all been recalled, that doesn't mean that the rest are necessarily safe. Allergies can cause many long term health problems.
At the end of the day, we never know when there's going to another batch of commercial food that has been contaminated with plastic that could mean the end for our best friend. Do really want to be at the sharp end of the next scandal when you think about what it could mean for your dog.
4. What Are The Alternatives?
You might be wondering what you can feed your dog when there are so many nasty additives in commercial food. Well first of all, I want to make it clear that not every food is going to contain all of these horrible ingredients. By looking closely at the ingredients list you'll be able to get rid of quite a few popular brands straightaway. Another thing to watch out for is fish meal, ethoxyquin is routinely added to fish meal so, unless it specifically states that it isn't present, just don't buy that food.
However, the only way to be completely sure of what is going into your dog's food is to make it yourself. More and more people are taking this option. By giving your dogs some variety in their meals you can help to make sure that they live a long healthy life.
So making your own dog health food is a great way to do the best by your dog and often ends up being cheaper too. Why not give it try and see what your best friend thinks of your cooking!
