Quality Treats for Your Dog

As you are selecting over the counter dog treats for your furry family members, you should keep in mind the same things you do when selecting food for their meals and yours too. According to The Whole Dog Journal, whole food ingredients are the best!

What should I look for? What’s in a label?

Take are reading the labels on your dog’s treats and pay really close attention to the first few ingredients. The first few ingredients should be of high quality because the first few ingredients on the labels make up the biggest portion of the treats (or food) content. Didn’t know that, did ya? Try to steer clear of any ingredients that are highly processed. Highly processed ingredients lack nutrients and are more likely to be contaminated. Always select domestic treats and ingredients over foreign ingredients. Also treats that are made near the manufacturer are highly preferred due to the freshness as well as the fact that there will be no need to ship the ingredients. When selecting treats with meat content, be sure that the particular meat is specified on the label. Is it chicken? Beef? Lamb? If it’s not on the label it can be ANY meat ingredient. Treats should be organic whenever possible and all preservatives should be natural, too!

Are there any ingredients I should avoid?

Always, always avoid these ingredients:

Chemicals
Artificial preservatives
Artificial color
Chemical humectants
Sweetener (unless natural and food-based)

Whether your dog prefers a cookie treat or a meaty treat, there’s a treat for him!

Cookie Treats

Meaty Treats

For more information about selecting the best quality treats for your dog, please visit The Whole Dog Journal. Do you feed your dog all natural treats? What kind? We’d love to hear about it.