Use Your Smart Phone To Shop For Pet Food

Original article by S. Veigel

Revised 09/04/2021

So when I went to the store to buy the usual treats we give our dogs I found they were out of stock. So naturally I started looking around for another suitable treat. As I looked at the packaging I was reminded of why I was so suspicious of some brands.

Let me give you some advice. Use your smart phone when you’re shopping. Don’t just grab a brand you recognize. If there’s an ingredient you don’t recognize, look it up.

Take a look at the pictures below of two packages and see if you can see what I’m concerned about. You can select the pic to enlarge the view of the labels.

Ingredient labels start with the largest quantity of product (by weight) first. So if it starts with a meat substance, that’s a good start. Then every other ingredient follows from the largest amount to the smallest amount in order.

Notice that the package on the left starts out with “Beef”. That’s good. The second ingredient is “Meat Bi-Products”. That gives me pause. If it’s a reputable company this is supposed to mean things like heart, gizzards, tongue and other things good for animals. But for some less reputable companies this has also meant scraps of anything unwanted. Including road kill.

As we move along to the next labeled ingredient for the product on the left we see “Soy Grits” (whatever that means). Not so good. Then we get to “Sugar” and “Salt” just in the fourth and fifth ingredient. With the sixth ingredient raising alarm bells. That ingredient is “Propylene Glycol”.

Propylene Glycol is a bi-product of propane gas production. You’ll find it in your laxative because it will cause diarrhea. It will also destroy healthy gut bacteria. Regular use of this substance can cause a dependency where you cannot go without it.

Propylene Glycol is sometimes used to keep food moist. It is also used to deice aircraft and as an ingredient in antifreeze.

Moving along we now notice “Garlic Powder” and “Natural Smoke Flavor”. The “Smoke Flavor” (Liquid Smoke) is used to give the treat a bacon-like smell and make your pet think it’s getting a really nice cooked treat. But it is actually produced by burning wood and filtering the smoke through water. It’s generally believed that in small amounts it’s harmless. There is the suggestion that more research is needed but the presence PAH’s (Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) also suggests that it can cause cancer over a period of time.

“Onion Extract” as a “preservative? The product is already using “Potassium Sorbate” as a preservative. Onion and garlic are toxic to dogs. These damage red blood cells. Onion Extract comes from onion skins and it’s generally used as a topical agent intended for scar repair. Not a food additive. With dogs, it should not even be used as a topical cream or oil or as a wound repair.

Now look at the package on the right. This dog treat has to be refrigerated after opening. The pepper and paprika may upset your dogs’ stomach if you give them too many treats but these ingredients are last (indicating smallest quantity). And even with a little salt and sugar you’re not likely to do any harm when used as directed. Just remember (need I really say it) it’s a treat not a meal.

So, which one would you pick?

Special Note: DO NOT feed your dog anything – even peanut butter – that contains Xylitol! Xylitol will kill a dog faster than too much chocolate. See my reference table titled “Foods Dogs Should Not Eat and some they should” in the “Food – Do’s, Don’ts and Quirks” section of this website.