Kibble Information

Taylormade Pet Care
"Because Animals are a Joy!"

Choosing the Best Kibble for Your Dog

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1) INGREDIENT LIST
Ingredients are listed descending order of weight when added in the formulation. The first
item on the list is present in the largest quantity, the second is in the second largest quantity
and so on.

Evaluating a kibble to feed your pet using just the ingredient list has serious limitations.
Follow these general guidelines:

a) For best results an animal protein source (meat) should be one of the first three
ingredients listed.
b) Beware of manufactures that list different forms of the same ingredient separately. For
example ground corn and flaked corn may be listed separately but result in a large amount of
corn in the diet.

2) THE NAME: THE 25% RULE
The named ingredient must comprise at least 25% of the product. Example "Beef Dinner".
This means that beef is at least 25% of the diet. This is usually the 3rd or 4th ingredient on
the list.

3) THE NAME: THE 3% RULE
Combined ingredients must add up to 25% with the second ingredient being 3% or more.
Example "Lamb and Rice Dinner" means that there is at least 3% rice and the combination of
lamb and rice make up 25% of the diet.

4) GUARANTEED ANALYSIS
This is declared on an 'as fed' basis so it includes all the water in the feed. Stated as
minimum or maximum values of nutrients. This isn't very accurate because it allows for a
large range. Example, 16% crude protein MINIMUM could mean it has 16.5% or 30%.

5) TESTING
To be claimed to be "complete and balanced" the diet must provide nutrients that meet an
established profile AFRO or COMA. Animal feeding tests are done following AFRO
procedures. Must meet the requirements of animals at that life stage. Example, Puppy food
must meet needs of puppies. Problem - testing is only done for 6 months and some
weightless is allowed so not much scientific data on the effects of a dog fed that food for
longer than 6 months. This raises concerns with the long term effects. Hopefully they will
change this procedure soon.

6) OTHER CLAIMS
The term "Natural" has no official term as far as regulation goes. In reality a balanced diet
HAS TO include some artificial ingredients. So be aware that no diet can be 100% natural.
Until recently "organic" was not regulated either. Most of the "organic" ingredients came
from animals and plants in the transition of becoming certified organic. This means they
were in the process of switching over from conventional to completely organic. This is now
becoming more strictly regulated.

7) MEAT is clean trim off federally inspected animals and is high quality. Something to keep
in mind is that when meat or meat byproduct is listed as the first ingredient, it is based on
pre-processing weight (which means it contains a lot of water) - after processing (drying),
that meat may only make up a small percentage of the food.

8) MEAT BYPRODUCT is non-rendered clean parts from federally inspected animals and is
high quality. It is called 'byproduct' because it is the leftovers of the animal that humans don't
eat, like the organs, tongue, heart. This is also high quality and nutritious. Because this
product comes from the slaughter plant where human food is produced it is clean and safe.

9) MEAT MEAL is rendered product exclusive of bone, hide and hair, not federally
inspected and not well regulated. Try to avoid this on your label if possible.

So bottom line - you want meat and meat byproduct, steer clear of meat meal.

10) Kibble has to have 40% carbohydrates to stick together in kibbles.

In order to choose a good quality kibble follow these guidelines:

1) Check the ingredient list. You want an animal protein source to be one of the first three
ingredients. The ingredients in the largest amount are listed first. If the first three ingredients
say corn, wheat, flour, or something along those lines you know that your food is full of
filler. Higher quality kibbles have animal sources listed first.

2) Try to choose foods that list meat or meat byproduct. This meat comes from clean,
federally inspected animals that are slaughtered for humans. The scraps are good quality and
go for pet food. Steer clear of meat meal as it is not well regulated and contains a lot more
'junk' meat that is less nutritious.

3) You want your food to have LOW carbohydrates because these are the filler in your pet
food. To figure out how much carbohydrates you have in your food follow this formula:

% Moisture + % Protein + % Fat + % Fiber + % Ash = Answer

If you don't have a value for Ash you can use the standard which is 9%. If you don't have a
value for Fiber you can use the standard which is 4.5%.

Now:

100-answer = % carbohydrates

You want this to be low as possible. The aim is for less than 40%.

Now:

% Protein x 3.5 = answer a
% carbohydrates x 3.5 = answer b
%Fat x 8.5 = answer c

Now add answer a + answer b + answer c = the energy in your dog food measured in
kilocalories/100 grams.

To decide how much energy your dog needs:

Body Weight x 30 + 7 = answer

For performance -> answer x 2 to 8
For growth/reproduction -> answer x 3
For maintenance -> answer x 1 to 1.5
For weightless -> answer x 0.8

Aim for HIGH energy and LOW carbohydrates to find your best food. Hope this is
straightforward enough to be useful.

Whole Dog Journal's Top Ten Kibbles

Ingredients in Kibble

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Natural Balance

Selecting a Commercial Pet Food

Solid Gold

Canidae

Eagle Pack

Innova EVO

EVALUATING KIBBLE QUALITY

Additional Kibble Information

English Kennels' Labs Twig (L), Vezina (centre), and mom
Nestle (L) have fun on the farm

The information on this page is provided for your own personal use and is not intended to
replace the advice or guidance of a veterinarian.

Kitty brothers Tyler and Ritz.

INTERPRETING KIBBLE LABELS

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