Monday, June 5, 2017

Healthy and Happy Dogs - Choosing the Right Food




We all love our pups and want them to be happy and healthy. As someone who lost a dog to tainted rawhides made in China, I want to share an important resource with you -  http://www.reviews.com/dog-food/. 

You don't want to feed your dog unsafe ingredients. Knowledge is vital for this. Recently in a study conducted by Reviews.com, they surveyed pet owners where 70 percent admitted that they didn’t know all of the ingredients in their dog’s food—including the very ingredients at the heart of a recent Purina lawsuit. All dog foods claim to be “premium” and “all natural,” but with very few regulations on what it takes to meet these qualifications.

Just verifying all the ingredients in your food are “safe” doesn’t mean they are optimal or even healthy for your best friend. Dogs need the right combination of protein, fat, moisture, fiber, and nutrients to live healthy, happy lives. The wrong ingredients in the wrong combinations can lead to a host of health problems, both physical and mental.

Because ingredients matter most, Reviews.com started by eliminating formulas with ingredients they determined to be unhealthy, unsafe, or unfavorable. It was important that each formula have a meat protein listed first. Then they looked at formulas containing beet pulp or sugar, by-products and sauces, and product recalls.

After a very rigid and specific review methodology, they brought their list from 2,200-plus dog food formulas down to 134 formulas across 29 approved brands. You can see their full article here to see if your dog food made the cut: http://www.reviews.com/dog-food/

Buddy and Herbie want to stress the importance of feeding your pup the right food with the right ingredients. Here's to a long and healthy life for our best friends.

In Memory of my Lucy Girl - Forever in My Heart

5 comments:

  1. Their Top 10 were all unfamiliar names for me. I buy what I thought was a good food for my pups, but I guess they didn't like it. Knowing more now, I'll go read the ingredients again, but I do like to know that my first ingredient is natural. A few years ago I started cooking for the dogs. We visited a friend on vacation and I saw them put a crockpot on for the day with food for their two dogs, which were in really great shape! When we got home, I started doing more in the kitchen for mine. I cook either chicken or ground turkey, I use brown rice, and give all sorts of fresh fruits and veggies. This cuts back on their dry food and hopefully, satisfies them better. It makes me feel good to be able to offer them healthier meals. (Patty)

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    1. I recognized a couple from their top ten but haven't ever tried them. Mine get a raw/cooked food diet. They are doing really well on it.

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  2. Oh Cecilia I am so sorry to hear about Lucie Girl! I can't even imagine.....and thank you for bringing up an important topic. We have always been very proactive when it comes to choosing our dog's food, especially since her breed is prone to a kidney disease that can be exacerbated by certain food groups. We really do all need to pay more attention! xo Kathleen|Our Hopeful Home

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    1. Kathleen,
      I cannot begin to tell you the level of heartbreak I experienced when she died. Then I gave the leftover rawhides to my sister and one of her dogs had an incident...it suddenly dawned on me it was the rawhides and they were poison. Sure enough, we looked at the label and it said "Made in China". I just about died. It was my fault. My poor Lucy.
      I was supposed to get Buddy as a companion for Lucy (we were going to name him Ricky). I almost didn't because it hurt so bad. I'm glad I went ahead and got him and his brother. They bring me so much joy. I'm just more careful now.

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  3. Great post Cecilia. Our pets are a big part of our hearts and family. So you want to love them and keep them as safe as you would your other family members. This is a good resource that you shared.
    xoxo
    Kris

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