4 Legs & a Tail LK Fall 2020

Page 54

Meal r Whole Meat? PETNOURISH

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ike so many simplistic questions in the pet food industry the answer is not simplistic. Let’s start by just telling you more about what “meal” is. Here are some basic facts: • Meat meals are exceptionally concentrated dry forms of the corresponding whole meat. So, analysis will show that pet foods using this concentrate contain more protein than the whole meats. • Whole meat, before it is cooked, contains about 70 percent water and around 15 percent protein. After cooking away, the fat and water… the remaining protein weighs very little. Brands that use whole meat will usually have to use a meal (later in the ingredient list) to get to the minimum protein percentage they are stating. They use whole meat because it is heavy from water weight and can look like a small amount of protein is the first ingredient because this is how the order of ingredients is determined. You must investigate this; if you are buying a fish-based food for instance and the first ingredient is a whole meat fish, there could be an alternate protein meal later in the ingredient list. This is to make the higher cost protein appear first in the ingredient list. • The actual “by-weight” nutrient content before cooking? Whole meat, 15% protein… meat meal, 65% protein. Pound-for-pound…that’s more than four times as much protein in meat meal… as in the whole meat itself. Now, these statistics alone will only tell you about the difference between meal and whole meat. As with all ingredients you read on a pet food label it tells you nothing about the quality of the meal or the meat! Choosing a meat over a meal or vice versa alone will not provide higher quality. Meal is more concentrated than its whole meat version but that does not mean higher quality. So, at the end of the day all meal is not created equal just like all whole meat is not created equal. You still must choose a company that only uses the highest-grade meats. Do not be afraid to ask about how much your provider knows about the sourcing and traceability of these ingredients. Another thing to watch out for are by-products; these are an example of a low-quality meat regardless if it is a whole meat or a meal. Low quality whole meats and meals will not be as digestible in the body of your pet; meaning low quality will deliver less overall nutrition. The last piece of information to provide is that fresh whole meats are more prone to bacteria growth. In this age of a recall every other day it is a consideration. Did you know what meal was before this read?

52 4 Legs & a Tail


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Articles inside

Proven Ways to Keep Cats and Wild

4min
pages 62-64

Pets and Infectious Diseases in Children

4min
pages 60-61

John Muir's Dog, Stickeen Kate Kelly

9min
pages 56-59

Meal or Whole Meat?

2min
pages 54-55

For Pet's Sake: Adopting Any Pet Requires a

6min
pages 52-53

The Purrfect Story Tanya Sousa

3min
page 51

Pup With A Purpose Karen Sturtevant

6min
pages 48-50

An Unexpected Visitor Karen Sturtevant

7min
pages 44-47

I Am Afraid of Anesthesia for My Pet

5min
pages 42-43

Your Pet May Be In Pain M. Kathleen Shaw, DVM

8min
pages 34-37

Alternatively Speaking: Pets Have Anxiety Too

6min
pages 38-41

International Dark-Sky Association: Keeping The

4min
page 33

2020: The Year of the Chipmunk? Scott Borthwick

3min
page 32

Love is Blind Gerda Silver

4min
pages 30-31

Friends, Family, or Farm Animal? Dorothy Crosby

4min
pages 28-29

Therapeutic Riding During a Pandemic Susan Miller

4min
pages 22-23

In The Moment: Horses and Mindfulness

7min
pages 24-27

Litter Box Training Your Rabbit Crystal Milbauer

2min
page 19

The Unexpected Snap

3min
pages 20-21

Veterans Wanted

3min
page 18

National Fire Pup Day

2min
pages 16-17

The Four-legged Friend Behind This Year's

3min
page 7

Bentley's Big Improvement Caitlin Richard

1min
pages 14-15

The Importance of Microchipping Your Cat

3min
page 10

The Donkey Days of Summer Found Their Way to New England

2min
pages 5-6

Choosing The Right Rescue Annie Guion

3min
page 11

Charity Begins at Home Marina Kinney

4min
pages 12-13

Monadnock Humane Society Seeks Quantum

4min
pages 8-9
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