Check the can of pet food you have been feeding your dog.  Don’t just have a look at the label.  “Super Gourmet Beef Delight” doesn’t let you know what your pet is actually eating.  Read the ingredients.  Are you aware what each ingredient is?  What it really is?  Not all ingredients in a can of food are necessarily good for your dog.  Here are three dog food ingredients you ought steer clear of.

Corn (in any form)

You will notice it listed as corn gluten, corn gluten meal, corn cellulose, or simply corn.  Dogs are carnivores but they can eat and digest vegetable matter.  However, corn is quite difficult for them to digest because they don’t have enough of the correct enzymes.  Excessive corn often leads to digestive issues.  The corn gluten, gluten meal, and cellulose are employed primarily as binders and also have little nutritional value.

BHA/BHT

These are phenolic antioxidants, used to preserve fats and oils.  Many countries have banned these from human use, but they are still permitted inside the U.S.  They may perhaps be human carcinogens and have been demonstrated carcinogenic in animal experiments.

Here’s how this ingredient listing looks on the bag of a preferred brand of kibbles.  It is the fourth ingredient, by the way:  “Animal Fat (preserved with BHA/BHT)”.

Ethoxyquin

Ethoxyquin is an antioxidant.  It had been developed by Monsanto as a stabilizer for rubber.  It’s also been used as a pesticide for fruit as well as a color preservative for spices – and later for animal feed.  It may be linked to thyroid, kidney, reproductive and immune related illnesses in addition to cancer.  Studies to determine the safety of Ethoxyquin haven’t been completed, which explains why it’s still allowed in dog foods.

As a side note, if you see that fish meal is an ingredient in the dog food brand you happen to be using, unless it says “human grade” fish meal, it is preserved with Ethoxyquin, even when it’s not specifically listed.

These are just a few of the dog food ingredients I suggest you avoid feeding your dog.  The best way to ensure that your dog is getting the healthiest, most nutritionally balanced food possible is to make it yourself.  Otherwise, you could be compromising your pet’s health without even realizing it.