We don't usually slam other dog foods, but this needs to be addressed.
Before we look closely at a recent grocery store discovery, let's look at the ingredients list of Napa Fresh Turkey Delight. And, it's important to note that it actually looks and smells like turkey, and yes, the list is rather short, and you'll recognize all of the items:
Fresh USDA inspected hormone free turkey wings & thighs, fresh USDA inspected chicken hearts & gizzards, spinach, carrots, summer squash, yellow bell pepper, pears, whole milk organic yogurt, organic vegetarian fed eggs, ground flaxseed, alfalfa powder, garlic.
65% is fresh meat.
Yesterday, one of our customers sent us a photo of a new dog food in the refrigerator section of a local supermarket. She was appalled when she looked at the label. It is billed as "human grade" "fresh". UGH. Many will be fooled by the labeling, so let's take a look:
The first ingredient is listed as "beef", the second is potatoes! That means there are A LOT of potatoes! Then we have a bit of beef liver and beef kidney, then we have RICE, carrots, PEAS, then begins all of the "human grade" additives and chemicals.
And the food is made into little brown processed-to-death balls that look nothing like fresh meat.
Dogs don't digest rice or peas, and if the ingredients were indeed fresh and whole, no additional chemicals would be needed.
This is a "no thank you"!
What about another heavily-advertised mail-order subscription brand? We see their commercials all the time. Well, it is next to impossible to find an ingredients list, but I did manage to find one. Here is the list:
Turkey Recipe
USDA Turkey, Chickpeas, Carrot, Broccoli, Spinach, Parsnip, TFD Nutrient Blend, Salmon Oil [Tricalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, Salt, Choline Bitartrate, Magnesium Amino Acid Chelate, Taurine, Zinc Amino Acid Chelate, Iron Amino Acid Chelate, Vitamin E Supplement, Selenium Yeast, Potassium Iodide, Copper Amino Acid Chelate, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Manganese Amino Acid Chelate, Riboflavin Supplement (Vitamin B2), Thiamine Mononitrate (Vitamin B1), Vitamin D3 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride (Vitamin B6), Folic Acid]
Again, turkey is OK, but because meat is expensive, they use fillers like chickpeas, A LOT of cheap chickpeas, to make up the protein content, a very bad idea - chickpeas can cause gas, they're not a complete protein (a reason they have to use so many additives) and they use a lot of carrots (small amounts of carrots are OK but should never be a major part of your dog's diet - dogs need FRESH unprocessed MEAT). Then we have broccoli, a nutritious vegetable, yes, but, it can also cause gas! For dogs with a propensity for bloat (all deep chested breeds and some others), this is not a risk we will ever take. They are also using more carbs in the way of parsnips - way too many carbs in this diet. They brag about using Brussell's sprouts and even lentils in some recipes too, also gas-producing. And this food does NOT look like fresh ground meat, at all. We are told the smell is rather offensive also.
We won't even get into the other brand we see in the refrigerator of the pet food aisle! Just look at at....
Again, if these mass-produced foods just used real, fresh dog-friendly ingredients, there would be very few ingredients and no need for the ingredients that dogs don't need - and no need for all of the chemicals.
That's why Napa Fresh is made the way it is. It's the next best thing to making it yourself.
Dogs thrive on raw fresh meat and a handful of whole foods like some fresh veggies and fruits. It's actually very uncomplicated and very simple. This has been taught and proven out by science and first-hand experience many many times by veterinarians and scientists like Dr. Billinghurst and Dr. Brady, two of our favorites. Yes feeding your dog fresh whole food can seem costly in the beginning, but saving more on vet bills, tests and drugs more than make up the difference, let alone the heartache and suffering that dogs experience over time when they are fed foods their little bodies were never meant to process.
We will continue to make Napa Fresh the right way, not the easy or cheap way. After all, we're feeding the dogs you love, and our own dogs.
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