Food

A valid food elimination trial for the purpose of confirming food hypersensitivity consists of three phases: elimination, challenge, and provocation. In the first (elimination) phase, the dog is fed a diet consisting of a single protein source and a single carbohydrate source. Both of these ingredients should be completely “novel” to the dog – foods he’s never eaten before. (Thirty years ago, lamb and rice was the go-to food elimination diet, because those ingredients were not yet widely available in commercial pet foods. Because the diet was novel, few dogs had developed allergies to those ingredients, and “lamb and rice” gained an unearned reputation as a “hypoallergenic” diet.

Over the past few months, I've read more than 30 books on homemade diets for dogs. Many offered recipes that were dangerously incomplete; a smaller number provided acceptable guidelines but were confusing, unduly restrictive, overly complicated, or had other issues that made me recommend them only with reservations. A few were good enough to recommend without reservation. This review is about the cream of the crop: three relatively new books (one is a new edition of an older book) whose authors have taken the time to analyze their recipes to ensure that they meet the latest nutritional guidelines established by the National Research Council (NRC).

Over the past few months, I've read more than 30 books on homemade diets for dogs. Many offered recipes that were dangerously incomplete; a smaller number provided acceptable guidelines but were confusing, unduly restrictive, overly complicated, or had other issues that made me recommend them only with reservations. A few were good enough to recommend without reservation. This review is about the cream of the crop: three relatively new books (one is a new edition of an older book) whose authors have taken the time to analyze their recipes to ensure that they meet the latest nutritional guidelines established by the National Research Council (NRC).

I would like to know if you investigated Orijen dog food. I did not find it listed as one of Whole Dog Journal’s approved dry foods of 2011. Yet I noticed it pictured on the front page. In the February issue with the approved dog foods, I see on the cover a bag of Orijen dog food (which we use), but I don’t see it in your approved list. What is your opinion of this food? Is it not good?

How should you select the right dog food for your dog? Over the years, we've spoken to literally thousands of dog owners and industry experts – and they have at least a few hundred different approaches to the task. We'll briefly discuss some of the most prevalent factors used by owners to support their dog food buying decisions – and then we'll tell you how we recommend choosing your dogs' food.

The eight products we reviewed in this article are intended to appeal to dog owners who are interested in a “holistic” and/or “healthy” food for their dogs. None contains artificial colors or artificial preservatives. But none can hold a candle to the products on our “approved” foods list. Each misses that mark – some miss by just a bit, and some miss by a country mile.

Here is Whole Dog Journal's Approved Dry Dog Foods List for 2011. Along with the list of this year’s approved dry dog foods we’ll explain on what criteria you should use when selecting a food for your dog. Some of these criteria range from price, ingredients, a manufactures’ past history and the size of the manufacturer. All of the products that made the list have met our selection criteria – including our newest criterion, that the company discloses the name and location of its manufacturers.

In the November issue, we ran a news item about a press release we received from a pet food company warning dog owners about “the dangers” of feeding human food to pets. We were highly indignant that a pet food company that describes itself as blending “giddy devotion with sound nutritional principles” would blame human food for causing pet obesity and other health problems. It seemed like a throwback to the sort of messages promulgated for decades by the mainstream, “corporate giant” food makers, who routinely preach against “upsetting” pets’ tummies with table scraps or “unbalancing” their diets by augmenting pets’ meals with human food.

Interest in homemade diets has never been greater, especially since the huge pet food recall of 2007. Last month, I reviewed books that explained how to feed a homemade canine diet based on raw meaty bones (RMBs). This month, I’ll look at books about boneless diets – by far the largest category of books. Unfortunately, I found a lot of bad books out there. Many of the recipes provided in the books are nutritionally inadequate! There’s no harm in using them from time to time, or to replace a small portion (up to 25 percent) of a commercial food diet, but anyone who relies on these books to feed their dogs a homemade diet is likely to end up with issues that could range from dry skin to crippling orthopedic conditions.

I love you, and I wonder if you even know how rare a publication like Whole Dog Journal is. On the same day that I got my Whole Dog Journal, I also got a professional “journal” issue reviewing medical research. Without exception, every article in that magazine was research sponsored by a company that made the product being evaluated. And, surprise! All the research showed wonderful results using their products! I am awestruck every time I read a review in WDJ and it is actual, objective information, not an infomercial.

When someone becomes interested in feeding their dog a homemade diet, I always advise them to read at least one book on the subject before getting started. But which one should you choose? Guidelines run the gamut from diets that have been analyzed to ensure they are complete and balanced, to those that are dangerously inadequate. How do you tell the difference? I decided to check out the homemade diet books that are currently available. Some of them I’d read before, but wanted to take a fresh look at; others were new to me. It’s been an eye-opening experience.

If you follow any pet-related blogs or other social media, the odds are you’ve heard of Nulo, a new company that has been marketing its foods aggressively through a variety of online channels. Nulo’s main thrust is that its foods and feeding programs will help your dogs reach and maintain a healthy weight – an admirable goal. Its foods are relatively high in protein (27 percent) with moderate amounts of fat (14 percent) and fiber (4 percent), appropriate for dogs who are overweight or who tend to gain weight easily. So I’ve had no objection to the marketing messages I’ve received from them (these messages were sent to members of one of the blogs I subscribe to).