Have you ever read the ingredients?
Have you ever looked into your pet's dietry requirements?
Dogs and Cats are both Carnivores. They eat meat. That is what they are designed to have.
Dogs can eat some plant matter and vegetation, although there is some dispute as to whether this is a necessary part of their diet. The prevailing opinion is that a small amount (20%< ) does no harm, and in the wild a wolf or wild dog may well eat fruit and vegetables, but these foodstuffs offer no nutritional benefit, and they are eaten more due to lack of meat (prey) available, than due to being a dietry requirement.
Cats on the other hand eat no plant matter or vegetation, unless as self-medication.
In the wild, a cat's diet would be >99% Meat & Offal.
So now, keeping that in mind, let's look at the ingredients in commercial pet food.
I'll focus on Whiska's Cat food first, as this is a leading UK brand.
Ingredients
Chicken: Meat and Animal Derivatives (including min. 4% Chicken, min. 4% Fresh Meat), Cereals, Vegetable Protein Extracts, Minerals.
Beef: Meat and Animal Derivatives (including min. 4% Beef, min. 4% Fresh Meat), Cereals, Vegetables (min. 4% Tomato in Gravy), Vegetable Protein Extracts, Minerals.
Duck & Chicken: Meat and Animal Derivatives (including min. 4% Duck, min. 4% Chicken, min. 4% Fresh Meat), Cereals, Vegetables (min. 4% Tomato in Gravy), Vegetable Protein Extracts, Minerals.
Now, does that look good to you?
A minimum of 4% Chicken and 4% 'Fresh Meat'? So what makes up the rest of the 'meat & animal derivitives', if it isn't fresh meat?! Not only that, but only 4% of the meat in any 'flavour' tin, is actually specified. The 4% "fresh meat" is unspecified. It could be anything. Just like the other 20 or so percent meat is not specified and not fresh. It is rendered animal parts.
You also have cereals and vegetables in there. Remember, Cats do not eat vegetables or cereals (grains). They cannot digest them. So why are they in this product?
So let's re examine the first 'ingredient'... Meat and Animal Derivitives.
What do you think that means? Derivitives? It does not mean flesh, or organ meat.
Animal derivitives or animal by-products can include: feathers, gizzards, heads, eyeballs, claws, feet & beaks.
The fact about commercial pet food, is that after the Food Industry has finished stripping as much of the meat off the animal as it can (to make into food for humans) All the bits which are left (again, beaks, gizzards, feet etc etc) that cannot be utilised, go to animal rendering plants, where they are ground up and melted down to make a huge 'soup'. This forms the basis for most pet foods.
And do not be fooled by 'premium' foods either, as the same animal rendering plants supply all the large pet food maufacturers - Mars, Nestle, etc etc.
Dry Cat food biscuits
Ingredients
Cereals (20%), Meat and Animal Derivatives (4% Rabbit and 4% Chicken in Dark Red and Light Brown Kibbles, 4% Duck in Red Kibbles), Vegetable Protein Extracts, Oils and Fats, Derivatives of Vegetable Origin, Yeasts, Minerals
20% Unspecified Cereals (none of which a cat needs or can actually digest), and only 12% specified meat in total. This ingredient list is also a little confusing, as the greatest ingredient is listed first. If there is only 20% Cereals, then this ought to mean that the Meat and animal derivitives equals <20%. I therefore pressume that the other ingredients are included in similar quantities in order for it to add up to 100%.
Artificial Colours and Additives are used to make these biscuits different colours.
If we look at some tins of Pedigree dog food, you see these are very similar in ingredients to the cat food.
Ingredients
Gravy with Marrowbone: with Chicken: Meat and Animal Derivatives (36%, including 4% Chicken, 2% Marrowbone), Cereals, Derivatives of Vegetable Origin (0.9% Dried Sugar Beet Pulp), Minerals, Oils and Fats (0.3% Sunflower Oil).
with Lamb: Meat and Animal Derivatives (36%, including 4% Lamb, 2% Marrowbone), Cereals, Derivatives of Vegetable Origin (0.9% Dried Sugar Beet Pulp), Minerals, Oils and Fats (0.3% Sunflower Oil).
with Beef: Meat and Animal Derivatives (36%, including 4% Beef, 2% Marrowbone), Cereals, Derivatives of Vegetable Origin (0.9% Dried Sugar Beet Pulp), Minerals, Oils and Fats (0.3% Sunflower Oil)
So, only 36% of the product is "meat", but as little as 4% is specified actual meat, and 2% marrowbone. The other 30% consisting of unspecified animal parts.
Yum.
Jelly with Wholegrain and Taurine: with Chicken: Meat and Animal Derivatives (44%, including 4% Chicken), Cereals (4% Cooked Wholegrain Wheat), Derivatives of Vegetable Origin (0.7% Dried Sugar Beet Pulp), Minerals Oils and Fats (0.5% Sunflower Oil).
. with Lamb: Meat and Animal Derivatives (44%, including 4% Lamb), Cereals (4% Cooked Wholegrain Wheat), Derivatives of Vegetable Origin (0.7% Dried Sugar Beet Pulp), Minerals Oils and Fats (0.5% Sunflower Oil).
with Beef: Meat and Animal Derivatives (44%, including 4% Beef), Cereals (4% Cooked Wholegrain Wheat), Derivatives of Vegetable Origin (0.7% Dried Sugar Beet Pulp), Minerals Oils and Fats (0.5% Sunflower Oil).
Let's focus on the 'cereals' now - dogs can NOT digest wheat. At all.
Ever wonder why dog poo comes out looking and smelling almost exactly like it did going in? This is why. If 44% of the food is Meat & Animal Derivitives, at least 56% of the product is nutritionally useless, and is going to come out almost exactly as it went in. It is pure waste, the only purpose it serves is as a cheap filler.
And just so you know, have you noticed how those tins of Pedigree are almost identical in composition to those tins of Whiskas? This is why. Yup, Mars is responsible for both, as well as many other 'brands'. And believe me, there is very little difference, no difference at all in quality of ingredients. Sorry all those who have been tricked into buying 'Royal Canin' thinking it's something special. It's not....
Most dry foods are even worse.
Ingredients
Cereals, Meat and animal derivatives (26 % meat, 4% lamb), Various sugars, Vegetable Protein Extracts, Oils and fats, Minerals
See what is first on the list? Cereals. If 26% is unspecified meat, and 4% is specified meat, it is safe to assume that >50% of the product is 'cereals' (allowing 20% for the last few ingredients listed)
"With colourants, antioxidants and preservatives"
Colourants & preservatives = artificial colourings & additives.
Ingredients
Cereals (4% rice in the green & orange kernels), Meat and animal derivatives (26% meat in the chunk, 4% beef in the chunk), Vegetable protein extracts (4% soya), Derivatives of vegetable origin, Various sugars, Oils and fats, Minerals, Vegetables (4% vegetables in the green & orange kernels).
More artificial colours and additives to turn these green and orange.
Dogs should not have Soya, like wheat it is completely undigestable for them.
Rice is the only grain that is really 'ok' to feed (not ideal, but can be digested, unlike wheat or other grains and cereals), yet only 4% of the product is rice. over 40% of this product is made of other, unspecified grains.
The last two are also interesting: See, they are both Bakers, one is "Meaty Lamb", the other is "Senior", yet looking at the ingredients, what is the difference?
Well apart from more food colourings and specified beef rather than specified lamb, there really is no actual difference, other than soy and vegetables in the "Senior" product (neither of which a dog can actually digest).
The inclusion of 4% rice, 4% Soya, and 4% 'vegetables' do not make this product any more suitable for an older dog than the 'Meaty Meals'.
Is this ringing alarm bells yet?
It's all a manufacturing gimmick, making owners think they are buying something better, or more suited to their dog.
And for anyone who's read this far... a little treat for you
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