What to feed my dog

Plump whole chickens, choice cuts of beef, fresh grains, and all the wholesome nutrition your dog or cat will ever need. These are the images pet food manufacturers show us in their advertising. This is what the $11 billion per year U.S. pet food industry wants consumers to believe they are buying when they purchase their products.

The reality is that most commercial dog food is made by grain milling companies - Purina comes to mind, but most large pet food operations are owned by grain/food companies and provide a way to get rid of spoiled and other waste materials (materials not fit for human consumption).

• Most dogs do not digest wheat, corn, or soybeans well. Read the label on your current dog food; I would be willing to bet that one of more of those three grains make up a high percentage of the food. Look for foods without wheat, corn, or soybeans, especially if your dog has food, skin, or others allergies/disorders.
• Animal byproducts are not a good thing. These are things that are not edible by humans, not able to even be made into hot dogs, lunch meat, or sausage. This category includes snouts and ears and faces but even worse are spoiled meats (often treated with poisonous preservatives) and intestines (including the fecal matter that is inside of them when the animal is killed). Look for foods that do not contain animal byproducts.
• Many foods include a percentage of protein that can cause a young dog to grow too fast. The dog can outgrow his body's ability to provide a strong skeleton and other support components, ultimately leading to injury. Too high a protein content can lead to skin and other allergies in older dogs. Look for a food with an adequate but not excessive amount of protein.

So what can I do to ensure my dog eats the right foods?

1. Educate yourself, read the labels, and do not assume that all foods are good.
2. Avoid foods with wheat, corn, soybeans, and animal byproducts.
3. Look for foods with real meat and secondarily, rice (which is more digestible by dogs than other grains).
4. Be aware that a higher protein content is not necessarily always good.
5. Watch for signs of food allergies and your dog's discomfort after ingesting food and be willing to experiment with different foods, always while keeping the above guidelines in mind.