I'm a Foodie, My Dogs are Foodies...Wouldn't You Like to be a Foodie Too?

In my mind, one of the responsibilities that comes with being a pet care professional is taking steps to continuously learn and educate oneself on a broad range of pet care topics.  In preparing for a pet education class I’ll be delivering to elders at a La Jolla retirement community, I delved into the topic of diet and nutrition for dogs.

One point that became readily clear is the need to closely read the nutritional content on all dog food packaging when initially searching for a high quality product for your new puppy or considering switching your adult dog’s current food.  But understand that a cursory look at dog food labels is insufficient; it does not provide a complete picture of an individual product’s nutritional value. 

Dog owners normally have a choice between wet (canned) versus dry food (kibble).  You’ll need to examine the levels of protein, fat and fiber plus the amount of moisture in each product regardless of its wet or dry form.  This information is found in the Guaranteed Analysis section on the food label. 

If you’re comparing a canned food product to a dry food product, initial looks can be deceiving.  While the sheer percentages of crude protein, crude fat and crude fiber might appear to be lower in canned food, this may not in fact be accurate.  To effectively compare the nutritional value of both canned and dry food, you’ll need to convert these items to what is called a “dry matter basis”.  To do this, simply subtract the percentage of moisture reported on the label from 100% (let’s call this result X).  Then divide the percentage of crude protein as reported on the label by this % (X), and do the same for the fat and fiber content – divide the percentage of crude fat by (X) and also divide the percentage of crude fiber by (X).  This will allow you to compare all canned and dry foods on an equivalent basis.  You might be surprised to learn that certain canned foods actually provide more protein than some dry foods even though the numbers reported on the labels would lead you to believe otherwise.

So why is protein so important?  Simply put, dogs require a source of protein (meat) in their diets in order to grow and develop into strong, healthy pets, and maintain this state of well being through adulthood.  Check back with our blog going forward; I am a foodie so there’s more to come on canine nutrition.