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Advertising is big business in this country and nowhere is that more evident than in the television commercials that constantly bombard the airwaves. The ads we see on our T.V. screens have become such a big part of our lives that we hear almost as much about the commercials shown during the Super Bowl as the game itself. Like most people, I tend to complain about the high number of commercials I’m forced to endure any time I sit down to watch television. However, every now and then, a company comes up with an ad that I find entertaining and actually fun to watch. Last year, a well-known brand of dog food created just such an ad. The tag-line at the beginning and end of the commercial was “We’re for dogs,” and in-between we were treated to a montage of big dogs, little dogs, purebreds and mutts, all engaging in doggie activities. Any time this ad appeared, I paused to watch it, and although I’ve seen it a dozen times, it still makes me smile. I feel certain this company’s dog food sales increased as a result of this cleverly done bit of advertising. The dog food in the ad is one of dozens of medium-priced brands available in most supermarkets. Thirty or forty years ago, there weren’t many brands of pet foods to choose from, but that certainly isn’t the case today. Food and other pet supplies has become a billion dollar industry that rivals the cereal aisles in our grocery stores for color and variety. The choices are staggering. Most of us are aware that Cheerios are healthier than Cocoa Puffs, but when it comes to what brand of food to feed our animals, many folks are in a quandary. Price often becomes the factor that determines what brand we choose. People who truly appreciate and value their animals tend to buy the more expensive brands of food available, assuming, if it costs more, it must be better. When I was a kid, many family dogs were fed as much people food as dog food. In those days, before the advent of fast food restaurants, most families sat down to a home-cooked meal every night and when the table was cleared, Fido often got a plate of leftovers. These days, pet food companies spend a ton of money convincing us to never feed our dogs and cats anything but food made especially for them. They tell us these foods are designed with their nutritional needs in mind and will guarantee a happy, healthy animal. The truth, as is often the case, lies somewhere in the middle. Take those bags of dry dog food, for example. The listings of ingredients on the cheapest ones don’t appear to be all that different from the listings on the medium-priced ones. Ingredients are listed in the order of amount, the first being the weightiest one. For most medium-priced dry dog food, that will be ground yellow corn or soybean meal, neither of which is particularly nutritious or good for your dog. Although soybean meal sounds healthy, it is not easily digested by dogs and much of the protein content is wasted. And guess what? If you read the label on the cheapest brands, those same ingredients appear in that all-important first position. The nutrition content is definitely better in the most expensive brands, but even with those, there appear to be lots of questionable ingredients. It’s easy to assume from pet food ads that the crude protein content comes at least partially from food we might eat ourselves. In reality, any food fit for human consumption in this country isn’t likely to become an ingredient in any commercial dog or cat food. Without being too graphic, let’s just say, the parts of any animals used in pet foods, aren’t the parts you will ever be even remotely tempted to put in your own mouth. Not only do pet foods contain things like chicken beaks and feet, but some of them also contain body parts of companion animals that have been euthanized. The bodies of dogs, cats and farm animals are shipped to rendering plants where they are boiled into some kind of hideous concoction that the manufacturers will tell you is safe for our pets to consume. The high temperature and pressure used to “render” the bodies, supposedly kills any poisonous toxins. Suddenly, giving the family dog table scraps is sounding better and better. However, in today’s world, I think it’s safe to assume most families don’t sit down to a home-cooked meal more than three or four times a week, and for folks who live alone, preparing a big meal is almost never an option. Buying commercial pet food has become a necessity, but supplementing your pet’s diet with some “human food” will not only provide a tasty treat, but will also give them a nutritional boost. Until last year, for most of my adult life, I’ve had more than one dog. When I moved to St. Louis, I had three dogs. The youngest of the three, Buddy, should have been named Houdini, because he was always circumventing the fence and escaped on a regular basis. I formerly lived a couple of blocks from a park and he would always go there if he got loose. Here, although my street quietly dead-ends a block from my house, in the opposite direction is a busy thoroughfare. After he breached the fence several times, fearing for his safety, I gave him to a friend who lives in the country and had often mentioned she wished she could find a dog like him. If he gets past security at her house, there isn’t traffic to worry about and he is with someone who loves him dearly. Another of my dogs, Rosie, developed complications from congestive heart failure and died a couple of years ago when she was fourteen. I haven’t added to the menagerie and so now, Tess, my loyal German Shepherd, is my only dog. I thought she would be lonesome for the company of another dog, but she hardly seemed to notice and has become even more attuned to me. Since I’m now at home writing full-time, she is my constant companion and seems to enjoy being an only dog. She has also become the recipient of more people food than ever before. Whether or not I cook for myself, several times a week, I toss some meat, rice and vegetables into a pot and cook it for her. She still has dry food available in her dish, but I never buy canned food anymore. She is almost thirteen years old and is a glowing picture of good health. It isn’t difficult or expensive to prepare food for a dog. Any kind of meat, some rice and a variety of vegetables simmering in a pot for an hour, is easy and provides excellent nutritional benefits. If you are inclined to improve your dog’s diet by doing this, I will warn you to ease into the change. Any dog not accustomed to eating scraps from your table or specially prepared doggie meals, might initially get diarrhea or even vomit and the point here is to give the dog better nutrition, not indigestion. Your dog’s body will need time to adjust to any changes in his diet. Pet food companies will never admit that many of their products are less healthy for your animals than the kinds of foods we eat, but that’s only true if you are living on French fries, donuts and soda. Unfortunately, some of you probably are, but I’ll leave that problem for the folks concerned with human nutrition.
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