Food Pets Die For

A grassroots bestseller, this shocking book warns owners about the hidden dangers in commercial pet food that can harm pets.

Choosing the right dog food in a world with too many choices
Walking down the dog food aisle in a pet supply superstore can present you with an overwhelming number of choices. Reading about dog food on the internet can make your head spin with so many opinions and stories. And judging the content that you find on dog food packaging can be confusing and misleading. How can the average dog owner make an informed choice in accordance with her dog’s age, size and condition? In her latest book, author Linda Case describes how to make logical, evidence-based decisions for what to feed your dog amid all the options available.

You will learn
• How pet food marketers appeal to your emotions to persuade you to buy a particular type of dog food.
• To distinguish between scientific, evidence-based information and the anecdotal evidence which is so pervasive—and often misleading—in the dog food arena.
• Is there a scientific basis for dog foods designed specifically for puppies, senior dogs, canine athletes—even various breeds of dogs?
• How to read and evaluate all of the material included on a typical package of dog food from the ingredients and label claims (“Natural,” “Anti-Oxidant,” “Low Fat”),to the Nutrient Analysis and Nutritional Adequacy statements.
• How to avoid choice paralysis and the cognitive traps that can interfere with clear decision making.

What experts are saying about Dog Food Logic
Pet food is like a religion for many—but now those strong emotional ties can be backed up with fact. Linda Case separates fact from fiction, explains the complex terms and offers a guide to pet nutrition in simple to comprehend language. Unlike other books on this topic, there is no agenda here—except to present facts and then allow pet owners to make their own logical conclusions, letting the kibble drop where it may.
Steve Dale, CABC, columnist Tribune Content Agency; radio host Black Dog Radio Productions and WGN Radio (Chicago); contributing editor USA Weekend; special correspondent Cat Fancy; author Good Cat!

Dog Food Logic is the indispensable guide to the science behind canine nutrition that will help us to make wise, well-informed choices about how and what we feed our dogs. It takes the fear out of trying to understand proper nutrition and will empower us to determine what is best for the health of our dogs.
Claudia Kawczynska, Founder and Editor-in-chief of The Bark

Don’t read this book if you want someone to tell you what to feed your dog. This is a book for people who want to learn, in a reasoned and thoughtful way, how to figure it out for themselves. Dog Food Logic goes way beyond the usual textbook list of nutritional requirements to cover the pet food industry in all its glory: the history, the business, the marketing, and best of all, the science. Case deftly navigates the most controversial topics in pet food and presents the big picture without interjecting judgment about what approach is best. There’s something here for everyone: pet care professionals and dog lovers alike will learn something new from this informative, easy to read, and well researched book.
Jessica Vogelsang, DVM, CVJ, author, speaker, and CEO of Pawcurious Media

A big, inside look at the shocking lack of regulation within the pet food industry, and how readers can dramatically improve the quality of their dogs’ lives through diet. What's really going into commercial dog food? The answer is horrifying. Big Kibble is big business: $75 billion globally. A handful of multi-national corporations dominate the industry and together own as many as 80% of all brands. This comes as a surprise to most people, but what’s even more shocking is how lax the regulations and guidelines are around these products. The guidelines—or lack thereof—for pet food allow producers to include ever-cheaper ingredients, and create ever-larger earnings. For example, “legal” ingredients in kibble include poultry feces, saw dust, expired food, and diseased meat, among other horrors. Many vets still don’t know that kibble is not the best food for dogs because Big Kibble funds the nutrition research. So far, these corporations have been able to cut corners and still market and promote feed-grade food as if it were healthful and beneficial—until now. Just as you are what you eat, so is your dog. Once you stop feeding your dog the junk that’s in kibble or cans, you have taken the first steps to improving your dog’s health, behavior and happiness. You know the unsavory side of Big Tobacco and Big Pharma. Now Shawn Buckley, Dr. Oscar Chavez, and Wendy Paris explain all you need to know about unsavory Big Kibble—and offer a brighter path forward for you and your pet.

Human nutrition expert and author of the critically acclaimed What to Eat, Marion Nestle, Ph.D., M.P.H., has joined forces with Malden C. Nesheim, Ph.D., a Cornell animal nutrition expert, to write Feed Your Pet Right, the first complete, research-based guide to selecting the best, most healthful foods for your cat or dog. Human nutrition expert and author of the critically acclaimed What to Eat, Marion Nestle, Ph.D., M.P.H., has joined forces with Malden C. Nesheim, Ph.D., a Cornell animal nutrition expert, to write Feed Your Pet Right, the first complete, research-based guide to selecting the best, most healthful foods for your cat or dog. A comprehensive and objective look at the science behind pet food, it tells a fascinating story while evaluating the range of products available and examining the booming pet food industry and its marketing practices. Drs. Nestle and Nesheim also present the results of their unique research into this sometimes secretive industry. Through conversations with pet food manufacturers and firsthand observations, they reveal how some companies have refused to answer questions or permit visits. The authors also analyze food products, basic ingredients, sources of ingredients, and the optimal ways to feed companion animals. In this engaging narrative, they explain how ethical considerations affect pet food research and product development, how pet foods are regulated, and how companies influence veterinary training and advice. They conclude with specific recommendations for pet owners, the pet food industry, and regulators. A road map to the most nutritious diets for cats and dogs, Feed Your Pet Right is sure to be a reference classic to which all pet owners will turn for years to come.

An essential list for food lovers, this culinary catalogue features luscious photographs and descriptions of must-eat foods from soup to nuts--from all over the world.

In this invaluable guide and touchstone, New York Times bestselling author Jon Katz addresses the difficult but necessary topic of saying goodbye to a beloved pet. Drawing on personal experiences, stories from fellow pet owners, and philosophical reflections, Katz provides support for those in mourning. By allowing ourselves to grieve honestly and openly, he posits, we can in time celebrate the dogs, cats, and other creatures that have so enriched us. Katz compels us to consider if we gave our pets good lives, if we were their advocates in times of need, and if we used our best judgments in the end. In dealing with these issues, we can alleviate guilt, let go, and help others who are undergoing similar passages. By honoring the animals that have graced our lives, we reveal their truly timeless gifts: unwavering companionship and undying love. With a brand-new Foreword by the author.

Discussing the worldwide problem of overweight pets, this comprehensive writing explains how behavior—both of pets and people—is a critical aspect of any proper diet. It discusses how pets are poorly adapted to cope with a constant excess of soluble carbohydrate, a common feature found in the majority of dry kibble diets. Therefore, this reference shows how, oftentimes while pet owners believe that they are providing the best nutrition for their pets, they are actually silently robbing their companions of health and longevity in their failure to restrict carbohydrates. In response to this situation this informative book draws on anthropology, genetics, and behavior to establish logical nutrition, thereby educating pet owners on how they can improve the length and quality of their pets' lives.

The 2007 pet food recalls followed a multitude of pets getting sick and dying from contaminated food; now pet owners must take charge of what they feed their dogs and cats. With The Ultimate Pet Food Guide, veteran dog trainer, behaviorist, and author Liz Palika focuses on nutritional needs and covers every type of feeding, including controversial raw diets, homemade cooked food, and commercial foods. Palika also addresses introducing new foods; what “human foods” pets shouldn't eat; free-feeding; responsibility for food safety; where ingredients come from; and red flags in ingredients. Included are over fifty veterinarian- and pet-nutritionist-approved recipes and diets tailored to special-needs pets, such as puppies/kittens and pregnant, older, overweight and/or more sedentary animals.

Organic, seasonal, farm-to-table food has become a huge movement--and conscious eating doesn't stop with the family pet. With the increase in contamination scares of manufactured pet foods and the inclusion of preservatives, grains, and fillers with low-nutrient value, many pet owners are looking for solutions to the issue of what to give their pets. The Healthy Homemade Pet Food Cookbook teaches you how to tailor your pet's diet to their specific nutritional needs for better health and behavior. This book includes 75 recipes that you can make at home, nutritional information for every stage of your pet's life from puppy or kitten to adulthood, meal plans, healthy snacks and treats, and suggestions for supplementing store bought food with homemade ingredients. The switch from store bought to homemade pet food doesn't have to be hard or expensive. The Healthy Homemade Pet Food Cookbook makes switching your pet over to a homemade diet comfortable, safe, and inexpensive.