Is it a red flag if pet food won't show 'as fed' caloric info?

Dry pet foods come in a variety of shapes and sizes. Accordingly, the weight of one diet that fills a cup may not be the same as the weight of a cup of another diet. If you are purchasing a high quality pet food brand such as Science Diet, Royal Canin or Purina, to name a few, these diets are usually very well tested for weight and calories per cup. If you have any concerns, you can always speak to your veterinarian and request a diet-specific measuring cup with which to feed your pet. You can also call the toll-free number for the pet food manufacturer if you have any questions or concerns about their product.

Dry food labels give the amount of nutrients that are contained in the finished product. Period. Be aware that pet food marketing is a serious business. And unfortunately, buzzwords and trend diets are generally used to sway your views towards whatever product is attempting to be sold to you, and these buzzwords don't have your pet's best interest at heart. I would encourage you to explore some sites published by those who have dedicated their careers to advancing veterinary nutrition. This is a great article about raw food: http://vetnutrition.tufts.edu/2016/01/raw-diets-a-healthy-choice-or-a-raw-deal/ Scroll down to the 2nd 1/2 of the page for some common questions regarding pet foods. http://www.acvn.org/frequently-asked-questions/#choose This one is a bit long, but has some really good information: http://dels.nas.edu/resources/static-assets/banr/miscellaneous/dog_nutrition_final_fix.pdf Thank you for asking PetCoach!

I understand your math and logic for conversions but for some reason it is not needed with pet food! If it says 76 kcal, it is noted as 76 calories! Canned food is the best way to get them to lose weight

Yes that’s the calories in the can. On dry food it will have the kcal/cup. I usually recommend diet dry food with added vegetables to fill him up rather than wet food. I like dry food with 250kcaks/cup or less, and measure each meal. You can give canned pumpkin, green beans, zucchini, broccoli, cauliflower and carrots. Some dogs prefer the vegetables cooked and mixed in with a little fat free chicken broth. Hills has a metabolic diet that is very effective to use for a diet also. That is heavy for a dachshund so I’m glad you are putting him on a diet. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to help you care for Oskar.

The amount and type of food can have varying caloric contents. Attaching pictures of the feeding guidelines on the packaging and an accurate body weight of Snowy can help us determine if you are feeding the correct amounts.

Food labels can be extremely confusing! The 1197 kcal/kg is a calculation of calories on a "dry matter" basis, which allows you to easily compare a compatible calorie count between different brands and types (wet or dry) of foods. Since canned foods have a very high water content, there is a much lower calorie count per can. To answer your question, yes, this means that there are 102 calories per can of food. Your vet will help you to determine Kitty's ideal body weight so that you can appropriately feed her for your weight loss goals. I hope this helps!

Hello! All great questions and comments - and you're right, there's a lot of conflicting information out there regarding food. Some of the information you're going to find is based on personal preference or a value bias. Corn is a good source of digestible carbs, fatty acids, and protein - but these things are better digested in dogs than in cats (who are obligate carnivores), and some people prefer to minimize grains, so those people might state corn is "bad".... in my opinion, the focus on grains is based more on trends in human nutrition than evidence-based pet nutrition. Statements regarding what pet foods are "good" vs "bad" will also come from personal preference...your vet can probably explain what made them state that Purina is better than Merrick, and another vet might have their own input on the matter. I do personally like both Purina and Hills because I find their products consistent, reliable, and I like that those companies put a lot of their profits back into nutrition research to work on creating good foods - but that doesn't mean they're the only good foods out there. Raw food is another hot topic. I have worked extensively with dog mushers, and raw meat is a very common component to their food - and I'm fine with that. However, I also have a degree in Public Health, and know that raw foods increase the likelihood of foodborne illness such as salmonella both in the pets themselves, and in the humans who are in contact with them. So, again, there are going to be different sides to the conversation. It's confusing when there's conflicting information! Try to sort through what's based on research and evidence, and what is based on the personal opinions and biases of the speaker. Good luck! Hope this helps.