Dog Food Additives & Supplements

Adding food additives to the composition of a product is part of the maker's recipe. Although, those substances are prevailed by a specific directive about food additives. The introduction in the market of a new additive destined to feeding the animal needs from 5 to 10 years of administrative and scientific transactions in the distinct country organisms. Several categories are distinguished. Between the 15 accepted groups, some of them can be very familiar, like for example smells, coloring, vitamins and minerals. Antioxidants and other additives are used to slow down the oxidation of the fats and the degradation of the vitamins; these, therefore are used to keep the products good until they expire. At the beginning of the early 90's of the past century, a scandal arose about some antioxidants that were bad for our health. The pressure of the distributors and consumers made the factories explain the necessity of using these products and justify the reasons of why they were using these additives. There are also antioxidants such as vitamins C and E, copper and zinc which have good results. Other additives are less known, such is the case of the prebiotics and the probiotics, which intervene in the regulation of the intestines and favor the digestibility of the different foods. The first ones are in charge of complex sugars, which have the action of reducing the pathogen flora in the intestine and in improving the immune system. Some factories use these and have good results.

The introduction of the probiotics in the food industry is very recent. These are classified as zootechnic foods, and are composed by live microorganisms, like yeast and bacteria, which act inside the digestive apparatus. These have began to substitute some antibiotics that were used to accelerate the growth of cattle before the European prohibition in 1999, which was dictated after the possibility that part of the antibiotics destined to the feeding of cattle ended up affecting the immune system had gone public. Diverse studies demonstrate that the prebiotics do not affect dog foods directly.

The presentation of dog food products: The different presentations are distinguished by the index of humidity in the fabricated food.

Moist Dog Foods: They are characterized by their elevated proportion of humidity (70-80%). After grinding them, the ingredients are weighed and mixed and the additives are added later on. After this the mixture is packaged in metallic cans of different sized or in small flexible trays.

Semi-Moist Dog Foods: With an inferior index of humidity (30-60%), these foods represent a limited quota in the dog food market.

Dry Dog Foods: At the beginning dry food is based on a less than 10% humidity index. Dry food is without a doubt, one of the best ways to feed our dog, since they have a high nutritious and energetic power and it is not precise to use in large quantities. The presentations are very diverse: pills and biscuits that can be served as they come or in soups and porridges. In terms of price they are much more reasonable than humid food or traditional foods. The ingredients (meat, flours, cereals and additives) are weighed, mixed and are cooked specifically. The fabrication continues with drying, cooling and packaging. Its storage and further transportation should be done with extreme care because if not the product can lose its quality.
Dog Food Labeling: between obligation and information Labels permit the possible buyers to know minimum information about the product. The consumer finds different data and information, which in the end will not serve any purpose. We would prefer perhaps having the explanation of the composition of the product, knowing the virtues of certain ingredients, and making sure that the food he or she buys is the appropriate one of their dog. Most of the producers will use all the communication media to inform us about their product. Dog Nourishment and Health