Deciphering Dog Food Labels & Dog Food Ingredients
A Cryptic Game of Hide & Seek!

Aah, those images! Those enticing images of top dog food ingredients parading on colorful dog food labels! When you compare dog foods, how swayed are you by the pretty pictures and fancy words?

Don't be fooled!

Most consumers are unaware of the lack of transparency in dog food labels, and the true quality of the actual dog food ingredients.

Inviting descriptions are flaunted, such as "High Protein Dog Food", "Natural Holistic Dog Food," "Allergy Free Dog Food", "Lamb and Rice Dog Food", "95% Beef", and so on ...

It's human nature to conjure up glorious images of the best quality dog food.

However! What's the real scoop on these labels?!

Follow along as we show you how to compare dog food labels with X-Ray glasses. You'll be surprised and shocked at what most dog lovers are oblivious to ...!

How are Dog Food Labels Regulated?

In the U.S.A., The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) establishes the rules and definitions for animal feed, including dog food ingredients.

All dog food manufacturers are required to adhere to these "Rules" and display the following information on all their product labels.

As you will see, these rules are not as cut and dry as they may appear. One may even argue that they're downright misleading and full of loopholes!

• Product Name

• List of Ingredients

• Guaranteed Analysis

• Nutritional Adequacy Statement

• Dog Feeding Guidelines

• Net Quantity Statement

• Manufacturer's Name and Address

Read here, also, to discover some facts that you're probably unaware of, about AAFCO and the other organizations responsible for dog food regulations.

Empty Words and Omissions

A couple of other important points we want to make you aware of:-

• It is permissible to omit critical information entirely from dog food labels.

  For instance, are you aware that dog food ingredients which manufacturers do not add themselves, (i.e. ingredients that are obtained from their outsourced manufacturers) are not required to be listed on the label?

  What this means then, is that some dog foods may in fact contain (for instance) harmful dog food preservatives. But, because the dog food company did not add the ingredients themselves, they can choose to leave it off the label. (?!)

• Many common descriptions on dog food labels are not regulated at all.

  For instance, we've all seen all kinds of impressive claims on dog food labels, such as "Recommended by Veterinarians" “Premium”, “Super Premium”, “‘Choice”, "All Natural", etc.

  The truth is these products are not required to contain any different or higher quality dog food ingredients than any other “complete and balanced” dog food products.

  Note: The very common term “Natural” has no official definition. In most cases, “natural” is interpreted as equivalent to a lack of artificial flavors, artificial colors, or artificial preservatives.

  The term "Organic" is also not regulated by AAFCO.

Do not be mislead.
These claims are often merely marketing hype and far from the truth.
They are merely empty words!

CONTINUE to Dog Food Labels (Part I)