• Shop
  • DELIVERY
    • Auto-Delivery
    • Other Services
  • News
  • Food Guide
  • Resources
    • FAQs
    • About
    • Secure
  • Contact
  • Search

Smiley Dog | Healthy Pet Food | Free Seattle Area Delivery

Delivering Healthy Pet Food With Peace of Mind

Bark at us 24 hours a day! (206) 903-9631
You are here: Home / News / Grain Free and Low Carb dog food

Grain Free and Low Carb dog food

July 1, 2010 By smileydog Leave a Comment

Share

As grain free foods gain in popularity, the question arises. . . why? Are these foods better than formulas containing grains, or just different? And does grain free also mean low carbohydrate?

As with any food, the quality of the ingredients will be integral in the answer. A low quality grain free food will obviously be inferior to a high quality formulation which includes grain. Just because a formula is grain free, does not mean it is low in carbs.

If you are trying to cut down on the carbohydrates for your dog’s diet, check the guaranteed analysis panel. Some foods are now including that information. If it is not there, it’s simple to figure it out for yourself. Simply add up the total percentages of protein, fat, moisture, crude fiber and ash. Then subtract that number from 100. This will give you an approximate percentage of carbohydrates in your food.

Remember- just because of food is grain free does not mean it is low carb. According to Sean Delaney, Chief Scientific, Medical and Nutrition Officer  at Natura Pet Products, “dry foods with less than 18% carbohydrate for dogs and 12% for cats would be considered low in carbohydrate. Canned dog an cat foods with less than 2% carbs would be considered lower in carbohydrates.”

Grain free foods, just like lamb based foods many tears ago, were originally developed to address allergies. They are not necessarily better than other formulations, just different. Non-grain carbohydrate sources in a food (like vegetables and fruits) can contribute to a high carb level in a food.

Be sure you know what, and why, you are looking for in a formulation before being swayed by marketing claims.

Share

Filed Under: News

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Want to learn more?

Give us a call at
(206) 903-9631
or head to the Contact Page to send an email.

We look forward to hearing from you!

  • Shop
  • DELIVERY
  • News
  • Food Guide
  • Resources
  • Contact
  • Search

Does something on this page bug you? Big or small, let us know so we can fix it.
Click the tick to report your bug! Tick!

As of October 1, 2018 Smiley Dog operations and ownership transitioned to Sam's Cats and Dogs, Naturally. Click here to be taken to the Sam's website.
Shop Sam's