What’s in a name? Not much with some pet foods!
April 4, 2008 – 2:56 pmFrom looking at as many pet food labels as I do, I’ve been reminded about an interesting but disheartening issue about some pet foods. Many pet food manufacturers produce dozens of different types of dog food and cat food. Besides the typical adult or puppy formulas - there are foods that are marketed to specific needs of pets - such as senior pets, indoor cats, dental formulas, and so on. The problem can be that with these niche marketing pet foods - often times there is no difference (or there is very little difference) in ingredients between the higher priced niche products and a maintenance pet food.
A few examples…
This is the first five ingredients to a cat food sold as a ‘hairball management’ diet Chicken, Chicken Meal, Cracked Pearled Barley, Egg Product, Ground Rice,
Same manufacturer, next here is the first five ingredients to a cat food sold as a ‘finicky eater’ pet food…Chicken, Chicken Meal, Cracked Pearled Barley, Egg Product, Ground Rice,
The first five ingredients are exactly the same - the only difference is the order of the third and fourth ingredients are swapped between the two products.
I’m not saying that all specialized pet foods aren’t good or appropriate for their designed use - but what I am saying is look at the ingredients closely. Often the foods that are designed for a special purpose also have a special price tag as well. You could be paying for something that has no proven benefit for your dog or cat - and that is basically no different than a cheaper priced maintenance diet.
Always read the ingredients of your pet’s food and treats before you purchase them. And make a habit of calling the manufacturer to ask if ingredients in the foods are human grade (same quality as human food) and if any ingredients are imported.
Tags: Pets
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