Many commercial pet foods contain ingredients like animal by-products, which could include diseased and decaying animal parts, and chemical preservatives. Combined with filler products like grains, many of which don't benefit a dog's health, and provide only empty calories, and artificial colorings and flavorings, these are then processed at high temperatures, effectively destroying any nutritional value the food may have had.

It is no wonder then, that canine health problems like obesity and diabetes are on the rise, bringing with them complications like arthritis, that can seriously affect a dog's quality of life. The preservatives and chemical ingredients found in many commercial dog foods have even been linked to such health issues as digestive problems and even cancers.

Today, many brands of premium and natural dog foods have entered the market, giving dog owners literally hundreds of choices for dog food, kibble and dog treats, each with it's own claims of superiority and quality. A pet owner needs to educate himself in order to choose the food for his canine companion.

A pet owner might start by learning how to read and undertand the labels on pet food packages. In order to familiarize himself with the labels on pet products, a conscientious pet owner must know which ingredients a healthy pet food should and should not contain.

For example, animal by-products listed in the ingredients mean that the food uses, as a source of protein any by-products from the processing of animals - including hooves and hair, stomach contents, slaughterhouse waste, manure, meat from diseased animals and sometimes even euthanized pets. Certainly not ingredients we would want to feed our beloved pets in the form of kibble or dog treats.

The order in which the ingredients appear is also an important factor. The first ingredient in a dog food must be the one that the food contains most of. One sure indication of a low quality pet food is one that lists corn, corn meal or other corn based products as its first ingredient. This is usually used by pet food companies in order to keep costs down, but provide little nutritional benefit, and can cause health problems like allergies in cats and dogs.

Pet owners should also take care not to overfeed their pets with dog treats like table scraps, which might contain ingredients that are harmful to their canine companions. High quality dog treats like flint river ranch dog food contains the same ingredients as their pet food, ensuring that what your dog gets is not junk and fillers, but a nutritious and rewarding treat.