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READING PET FOOD LABELS

Pet food labels contain a wealth of information, if you know how to read it.
Don’t be swayed by marketing gimmicks or eye-catching claims.

Pet food labels are regulated by different rules than foods for human consumption, but reading and understanding a pet food label can help you make proper food choices for your pets.

Pet food labeling is regulated at two levels. The federal regulations are enforced by the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine and some states enforce their own labeling regulations through the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). Product labels should consist of a product name, ingredients list, guan-teed analysis, a nutritional adequacy statement, feeding instructions, caloric statement and manufactures name and address.

Product name:

Many product names incorporate the name of ingredient to highlight its presence in the product.

Product name Ingredient
Chicken for Cats

Dave’s Beef for Dogs		 Chicken or beef makes up 95% or more of the product and beef or
chicken should be listed as the first ingredient on the label
Chicken Dinner for Cats

Dave’s Beef Supper for Dogs 		Chicken or beef constitutes 25% or more of the product (not including
water for processing). Also, platter, entrée nuggets and formula could
be used. Be careful since the primary ingredient is not the named ingredient.
Cat Food with Chicken

Dave’s Beef Dinner for Dogs with Bacon 		This food contains at least 3% of chicken or bacon. This “with” may
give an impression that more of an ingredient is presentthan really is.
Chicken Flavored Cat Food

Dave’s Beef Flavored Dog Food 		This means that the food is only flavored with the meat source.
Lite Chicken Cat Food

Dave’s Lean Beef Food for Dogs 		This product has 15% less energy or fat than the product to which it is
compared. The confusing point about this rule is that a light diet may
have more calories than a regular diet by a different manufacture.
Natural Chicken for Cats

Dave’s Natural Beef for Dogs		 This product contains no additives, preservatives or artificial colors.
(See more on misc. ingredients)

Ingredient List:

Ingredients are required to be listed in descending proper order of predominance by weight. Chicken meal is not chicken per se, since all the fat and water have been rendered. Ingredients must be listed by their “common or usual” name. The majority of ingredients with chemical-sounding names are vitamins, minerals, or other nutrients. For example, Vitamin E can be called “alpha-tocopherol acetate,” and Vitamin C can be referred to as “acetic acid.”

Guaranteed Analysis:

At minimum, a pet food label must state guarantees for minimum percentages of crude protein and crude fat, and maximum percentages for crude fiber and moisture content. The “crude” is the minimum and maximum amounts shown are determined by laboratory assay and not by feeding studies conducted with dogs and cats. Canned foods typically contain 75-78% moisture, while dry foods contain only 10-12% water. This is very important if your pet has health issues pertaining to their bladder or kidneys.

Feeding Instructions:

At minimum the feeding instructions should tell to “feed ___ cups per ___ pounds of body weight daily.” Remember these instructions should be taken as “rough guidelines”. Dog food manufactures tend to overestimate an animal’s needs, possibly to make sure that the highest calorie requirement are met, or to sell more of their product. Don’t be afraid to adjust portions to your individual pet’s need. The actual feeding amount depends upon your pet’s age, the type of food you feed, body condition, health history, and activity level.

Calorie Statement:

Kilocalories are the same “Calories” we are familiar with on food labels.

Miscellaneous:

There are two types of additives: 1) Those that are nutritional; 2) Those added to benefit the food. Such examples are vitamins A, D3, E and B-complex, minerals, trace minerals and amino acids. Certain preservatives are added to pet food to help prevent fat rancidity but can be damaging to your pet’s health. These are propylene glycol, BHT, BHA and ethoxyquin. Other types of preservatives are added to semi-moist food like sorbic acid, K+ sorbate. Artificial colors are used to give the product a more desirable appearance. Your dog or cat doesn’t care what color their food is.

ADAPTED FROM:
Understanding pet Food Labels
David A. Dzanis, DVM, Ph.D
FDA Consumer Magazine

Remember:

  1. The more ingredients a food contains (barring the vitamins and minerals), the less of each ingredient the food contains.
  2. Expect to pay dearly for quality.
  3. Dogs and cats should have more a meat-based diet versus a starchy, carbohydrate loaded diets. Like the Atkins diet for cats = Catkins.
  4. We cannot tell you which diet is “best” because what is “best” for every dog and cat is different.
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