Dog Food – Know The Dangerous Foods To Avoid
We must be cautious when it comes to food, be it ours or our dogs. Many people make the mistake of blindly trusting pet food brands. These pet foods sometimes lack the quality ingredients, putting our pets in health dangers. Here are some ingredients we must notice before buying pet food or making it at home.
Best Ingredients in Dog Food
1. Meat
The first priority for the ingredients is meat. It will get your dog the right amount of energy and protein required.
The liver, lungs, heart of animals are also essential as they are rich with nutrients. This will strengthen the dog’s muscles and joints and induce growth.
2. Fruits
Fruits are as beneficial for dogs as for humans because of their rich vitamins, nutrients, fibers, and electrolytes. Pumpkins, Berries, Kale, etc., are highly recommended because of their accurate levels of carbohydrates.
Pumpkin is rich in Potassium, high fiber, and iron. It will nourish your dog’s digestive health and give it an ideal weight. Berries are heavy with antioxidants and manage blood sugar levels, and repair wounds.
3. Vegetables
When we go for a healthy digestive system, vegetables are a must. Broccoli is a beneficial ingredient because of its fiber, Vitamin C, and other nutrients. It helps fight cancer and boosts up the immune system.
Besides, Spinach is rich in vitamin A and K. Thus resulting in healthy skin and coat. How can we forget sweet potatoes? They’re high in Keratin, vitamin A and C. A healthy vision, forever.
4. Fats and Moisture
What about the fat requirements of your pets? You might trust sunflower oil, olive oil, fish oil, and coconut oil. The important fatty acids, Omega 3 and Omega 6 are also present in these. We must always look for high moisture percentage in the ingredients as hydration is an important factor in your dog’s health.
Ingredients to Avoid
1. Preservatives
In order to keep the food fresh for a long time, many brands use preservatives. These preservatives are mainly BHA, BHT, and Ethoxyquin. These are reproductive toxins and carcinogens. Though ethoxyquin is labeled illegal for human use, it’s still used in pet foods.
No more of them!
2. Food color
To make the food look attractive, colors are added to it. However, these colors are the root of allergic problems in dogs. Food dyes like Blue 2, Yellow 5 and 6, Red 40, and 4 MIE are very toxic and dangerous for your pup. Also, to enhance flavor, they use corn syrup, which causes obesity in dogs.
Cut the colors, cut fats!
3. Gluten
Gluten is present in wheat and rice to provide a low-quality dose of high carbohydrates, causing allergies and weight problems in the dogs. So be careful to pick gluten-free food.
4. Propyl Glycol
PG is a product of Ethyl Glycol, also known as antifreeze. It’s used in dog food to regain its moisture and keep it fresh. Beware; it may cause nausea or even vomiting.
For the good health of your beloved dog, always be careful of the ingredients and nutrients levels of the pet food.