Clean Run Magazine - November 2009 - 67

total product. If the label says “with Beef” then there is a minimum of 3% of the total product that has to be met with beef products. If it says “Beef flavor” then there can be less than 3% beef in the total product as long as the manufacturer can prove it tastes like beef. Another trick food companies like to employ is separating out ingredients. Foods like whole grain corn, corn meal, and corn gluten meal are all technically corn, but by listing them separately they can be moved down the ingredient list making it seem like corn is a less significant ingredient in that particular diet. Also some food companies add trendy ingredients like glucosamine for joint health or blueberries for antioxidants. Amounts of these ingredients are often negligible and a marketing ploy since there may not be enough of the listed ingredient to be helpful on a biochemical level. If a company is adding a significant amount of a nutraceutical like glucosamine then the bag should also list how many milligrams per unit of measure are present. and the stool is collected and analyzed afterward to determine what percent was digested. You can call the manufacturer for this information if needed. You can do your own unscientific digestibility studies by looking at the volume of stool produced from one diet compared to another. Generally, the more stool produced, the less digestible the diet. High digestibility is not always desirable in some cases. Talk to your veterinarian if your dog has any underlying medical conditions that may affect his digestion. Guaranteed Analysis AAFCO regulations also state that the guaranteed analysis is required to be on the pet food label. The guaranteed analysis determines that certain nutritional minimums and maximums are met by the food. It is critical to understand that the guaranteed analysis, also called the “as fed” basis, is not helpful in comparing foods. You must convert the given information to a dry matter basis to compare foods. This is very important and cannot be overstated. But don’t worry; the math is simple and straightforward. The guaranteed analysis tells how much of a given type of ingredient is present by weight (in percentages) and it includes moisture. Diets vary greatly in how much moisture they contain. Converting to a dry matter basis eliminates the moisture variability. Here is where it can get a little confusing. It is important to compare foods on a dry matter basis to determine the nutritional content of one food versus another. However, if you are trying to feed a certain amount of protein or fat, for example, you also have to consider the volume of food that needs to be fed, which once again includes the moisture. Digestibility It makes sense that a high-quality diet is essential for performance dogs; however, quality can be difficult to determine from just reading dog food bags. Digestibility can give you a clue about quality. Digestibility is defined as how well your dog’s system can break down and use the nutrients in the food. Protein quality generally goes hand in hand with digestibility; the higher the quality of the protein, the more digestible the food. In general you should look for animal based proteins (muscle, organ meat, and so on) over plantbased proteins (soybean meal, and so on). Some manufacturers do digestibility studies where the food is analyzed before it is fed WEYBRIDGE AGILITY EQUIPMENT • • • • Contacts Jumps Weaves Plus more WEYBRIDGEAGILITY.COM • (586) 925-0480 The largest international agility event in the world 2+ hours of coverage of the action-packed individual finals Analysis & commentary by Marq Cheek See some seriously awesome agility runs! www.cleanrun.com November 09 | Clean Run 67

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Clean Run Magazine - November 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run Magazine - November 2009