Dog food is plant or animal material intended for consumption by dogs or other canines. Special dog foods given as a reward, and not as a staple, are known as dog treats.
Some people make their own dog food or feed their dogs meals made from ingredients purchased in grocery or health-food stores; many others rely on commercially manufactured dog food.
There are many different recommendations on what diet is best for dogs. Some people argue that dogs have thrived off of leftovers and scraps from their human owners for thousands of years and that commercial dog foods (which have only been available for the past century) contain poor-quality meats, additives, and other ingredients dogs should not ingest, or that commercial dog food is not nutritionally sufficient for their dogs.
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[edit] Commercial dog food
Most store-bought dog food comes in either dry form, also known as kibble, or wet canned form. Dry food contains 6-10% moisture by volume, as compared to up to 78% in canned food. Semi-moist foods have a moisture content of 25-35%. Pet owners often prefer dry food due to the convenience and price. Besides usually being significantly cheaper, dry pet food can also be left out for the animal to eat at will over the course of several days; whereas, canned food spoils or becomes unappetizing after several hours. On the other hand, canned food has a longer shelf life than most dry food.
[edit] Dry dog food
The average dry food is the least expensive, per pound, when compared to its canned (wet) or semi-moist counterparts. It may be beneficial in the prevention of tartar buildup, as well as being less likely to spoil quickly than an open can.[1][dubious ]
[edit] Manufacturing process
Pellets of dry dog food, called kibble, are primarily produced by one of two methods: extrusion and baking. During the extrusion process, cut dough or a mixture of raw materials is fed into an expander, while pressurized steam or hot water is added. When removed from the high pressure that results, the pellets puff like popcorn. The resultant kibble is allowed to dry, then sprayed with vitamins, fats and oils, or any other ingredients that are not heat-tolerant.
If extruded kibble is exposed to air for too long or not properly stored, the fats and oils added after cooking can become rancid, and vitamins and minerals in the food may be destroyed by heat during storage or shipping.[1]
[edit] Wet dog food
Wet, or canned, dog food is significantly higher in moisture than dry or semi-moist food.[1] Because the food is sterilized after being canned (sometimes it is also cooked in the can), it is often easier to ensure the sterility of wet food. A given wet food will often be higher in protein or fat when compared to a similar kibble on a dry matter basis (a measure which ignores moisture). However, because water accounts for so much of the food, the canned food will generally be lower in protein and fat in terms of actual content. Grain gluten and other protein gels are commonly used by steam cooking formulation in wet dog food to create artificial meaty chunks, which appears to look like real meat. [2]
[edit] Alternative dog food
In recent years, new types of dog food have emerged on the market that differ from traditional commercial pet food. Many companies have been successful with targeting niche markets, each with unique characteristic [3]
Popular Alternative Dog Food Labels:
- Frozen or Freeze-Dried, comes in the form of raw or cooked (not processed). The idea is to skip the processing stage traditional dry/wet dog food goes through. This causes less destruction of the nutritional integrity. To compensate for the short shelf life, products are Frozen or Freeze Dried.
- Dehydrated, comes in the form of raw and cooked. Products are usually air dried to reduce moisture to the level where bacterial growths are inhibited. The appearance is very similar to dry kibbles. The typical feeding methods include adding warm water before serving.
- Fresh or Refrigerated, produced through pasteurization of fresh ingredients. Products are lightly cooked and then quickly sealed in a vacuum package. Then, it is refrigerated until the time it is served. This type of dog food is extremely vulnerable to spoilage if not kept at a cool temperature and have a shelf life of 2-4 month unopened. [4].
- Homemade Diet often comes in a bucket or tupperware-like package. Commonly thought to be a diet owners create themselves. However, recently many small companies has begun to home cook dog dishes and then sell them through specialty stores or over the internet.
[edit] Contents
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Many commercial dog foods are made from materials considered unusable or undesirable[citation needed]. These may include:
- Meat by-products (which includes euthanized family pets) In 1990, John Eckhouse, a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, wrote a two-part exposé on the rendering of companion animals in California. While the pet food companies vehemently denied that this was happening, a rendering plant employee told Eckhouse that "it was common practice for his company to process dead pets into products sold to pet food manufacturers."
.[5])
- Meat-and-bone meals
- Grain by-products
- Horse meat[citation needed]
Less expensive dog foods generally include less meat, and more animal by-products and grain fillers. Proponents of a natural diet criticize the use of such ingredients, and point out that regulations allow for packaging that might lead a consumer to believe that they are buying a natural food when, in reality, the food might be comprised mostly of ingredients such as those listed above.[6][7] Several pet food brands do not contain any of these ingredients. Many pet stores stock well-known brands that are free of by-products, and run at around the same price as some grocery store brands.[dubious ] More expensive dog foods may be made of ingredients suitable for organic products or free-range meats. Ingredients must be listed by amount in descending order.
[edit] Special varieties
There are dog foods specially formulated for dogs allergic to common ingredients such as chicken, wheat, or corn. These foods usually contain "novel proteins" and substitute uncommon starches for the usual grains. Meats used in allergy formulas can range from the mundane, such as lamb, beef or whitefish, to the unusual, such as venison or duck. Carbohydrates in allergy formulas are usually a less common grain, such as rice or barley, but such ingredients as potato and quinoa are sometimes used. Allergies are more likely to develop with consistent exposure to a protein (i.e. prolonged feeding of the same food).
It should be noted that the commercial approach to allergies in dogs is not the same as the veterinary approach. Prescription diets, purchased from a veterinarian, will often contain common ingredients that have been hydrolyzed to prevent them from triggering an immune response.
Some foods are designed for dogs with maladies such as urinary tract infections, and some are tailored to the dietary needs of especially young or aging dogs. There are also vegetarian dog foods for owners who do not want their dogs to consume meat products, as well as for dogs who have experienced allergic reactions to animal-based dog foods.
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