BEYOND KIBBLE

How to Shop for the Healthiest Pet Food

by Sheila Julson

People are always striving to improve the quality of life for their pets. For some, this means making homemade dog and cat food or buying meat directly from a local butcher, but not all pet parents have the necessary time, space or fi nances. While there are better quality kibble and canned pet foods available today than in the past, along with frozen raw and freeze-dried raw foods, an overwhelming volume of choices can confuse even the savviest consumer.

Cecille O’Brien Greenleaf, a holistic veterinarian in San Jose, California, advises pet parents to use the same criteria they do when shopping for human food—look for the freshest, cleanest ingredients possible, a limited ingredient panel and no chemicals and pesticides.

“Look for human-grade ingredients that off er the most vitality,” she emphasizes. She notes that some larger manufacturers have been caught using the least expensive ingredients they could fi nd, including diseased animals that have been rejected from the human supply chain.

Ingredients on panels are listed by weight from highest to lowest, so the fi rst one listed is the one that weighs the most. It should be pure meat— chicken, beef, venison or fi sh. Proteins such as chicken liver, organ meat or eggs may follow. “If there are many synthesized items in the ingredient list, that is to be avoided,” she says.

Frozen raw and dehydrated raw foods provide optimal nutrition while more closely mimicking pets’ primal eating patterns. Th e extrusion process that some pet food manufacturers use to make kibble can overcook the product. To compensate, synthesized vitamins are oft en sprayed onto the fi nished product, similar to how many children’s breakfast cereals are produced, she explains.

When purchasing kibble, look for brands that are minimally processed and provide vitamins directly from the ingredients; a long list of supplements on an ingredient list means the food has been highly processed. Th ere has been recent debate within the animal care community as to whether grain-free diets are more helpful or harmful to pets. O’Brien Greenleaf notes the jury is still out on how some grains aff ect pets or whether grain-free diets are better. “It depends on how contaminated or genetically modifi ed the grains are, and whether grains agree with your pet,” she says. Testing is now available to help determine ingredients to which a pet may be allergic. She also recommends adding high-quality fi sh oil to pet’s food to help quell infl ammation that can cause skin issues and other disorders.

Smaller Manufacturers Emphasize Quality Control

Randi Ross owns the franchise in Campbell, California, for Ben’s Barketplace, a Northern California pet food store chain that specializes in quality foods for dogs and cats. She notes that corporate mergers and acquisitions over the years have put many large pet food brands that are carried at bigbox stores into the hands of conglomerates that also produce candy, soap and other non-pet products. Th is can lead to lack of oversight and quality control issues. Many smaller, specialty pet food stores carefully screen the brands they carry. Th ey off er products made by smaller companies that produce just pet food and embrace a holistic, farm-to-table philoso-

phy regarding how they source their ingredients and manufacture their foods.

The melamine pet food recall of 2007, in which the U.S. Food and Drug Administration found chemical contaminants in vegetable proteins imported from China used as ingredients in pet food, prompted many people to look for “Made in the United States” on packages. However, even if a brand is labeled as American- or North American-made, it doesn’t necessarily mean all of the ingredients were sourced from America, Ross says.

Freeze-dried raw meal toppers and pour-over broths have become popular ways to add nutrition and flavor to kibble. When purchasing those products, she says, the same rules apply as when shopping for food: look for single or limitedingredients on product panels and be wary of excessive filler ingredients like corn or wheat.

“We help educate people on the true cost of pet ownership,” Ross says. “Spending a little more money now on high-quality pet food ultimately keeps dogs and cats healthier, reducing the need for veterinarian visits, pharmaceuticals and antibiotics.”

Sheila Julson is a Milwaukee-based freelance writer and contributor to Natural Awakenings magazines throughout the country.

Local K9 Kitchen Owners Love Their Dogs

by Yvette Lynn

Running a household with four dogs—a 13-year-old chihuahua/shih tzu mix named Jena, Brody, a nearly 11-year-old golden retriever, Louie, a 4-year-old mixed black Labrador and a hound/Labrador mix named Kona—Kendra Locke and Corene Petitpren had serious reasons to begin making their own dog food. The owners of K9 Kitchen, LLC, in Immokalee, Locke and Petitpren were adamant that kibbles weren’t going to pass their dogs lips. “It’s basically junk food for pets, and we were concerned about how often it got recalled,” says Petitpren, who notes that she and Locke had long careers in healthcare and were aware of the effects on humans that regularly consumed processed foods containing hormones and antibiotics. The duo initially began making dog food after meeting a dog walker that made her own. “Kendra started mixing up a recipe of sweet potato, oatmeal and rice. One of our dogs had a bad case of dandruff, which we noticed improved, and Jenna, who’d never eaten a full meal in her whole life, gobbled up every crumb. That’s when we said, ‘Let’s start a dog food business,’” recalls Petitpren. After researching regulations for pet food, they created what they considered a nutritious recipe and sent it off to a laboratory for testing. “Not being chemists or nutritionists, we were surprised when our first recipe was rejected.” After more research, the women located a veterinarian nutritionist with experience in pet nutrition and pet food recipes. “She knew what measure of correct ingredients made the most nutritious recipe. We worked to balance the nutrients in our ingredients, and then turned it over to her to do her magic, which she did, right down to the gram. We make our wholesome, premium dog food, pup-sicles and treats with human-grade ingredients. There are no steroids, antibiotics, hormones or preservatives and we use all natural, grass-fed, lean prime meats which we hand-trim and grind in small batches for consistency. We roast the veggies and scramble the eggs in our commercial K9 Kitchen. We deliver to your door as well as selling our meals and treats at locations in Fort Myers, Cape Coral, Punta Gorda, Sarasota, University Park and Lakewood Ranch, which are all listed on our website. We also ship throughout the U.S.,” says Locke. From personal experience, Locke and Petitpren know that feeding dogs healthy and balanced meals means fewer trips to the vets for allergies, food intolerances, food allergies and upset bellies.

The K9 Kitchen LLC is located at 170 Airpark Blvd., in Immokalee. For more information, call 239-898-0795 or email info@The K9Kitchenllc.com. See ad, page 14.

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Saturday, March 19 10 a.m. - 6 p.m.

$5 cover at the door

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