Big kibble The hidden dangers of the pet food industry and how to do better by our dogs

Shawn Richard Buckley, 1964-

Book - 2020

"A big, inside look at the shocking lack of regulation within the pet food industry, and how readers can dramatically improve the quality of their dogs' lives through diet. What's really going into commercial dog food? The answer is horrifying. Big Kibble is big business: $75 billion globally. A handful of multi-national corporations dominate the industry and together own as many as 80% of all brands. This comes as a surprise to most people, but what's even more shocking is how lax the regulations and guidelines are around these products. The guidelines--or lack thereof--for pet food allow producers to include ever-cheaper ingredients, and create ever-larger earnings. For example, "legal" ingredients in kibble ...include poultry feces, saw dust, expired food, and diseased meat, among other horrors. Many vets still don't know that kibble is not the best food for dogs because Big Kibble funds the nutrition research. So far, these corporations have been able to cut corners and still market and promote feed-grade food as if it were healthful and beneficial-until now. Just as you are what you eat, so is your dog. Once you stop feeding your dog the junk that's in kibble or cans, you have taken the first steps to improving your dog's health, behavior and happiness. You know the unsavory side of Big Tobacco and Big Pharma. Now get ready to learn about unsavory Big Kibble, and a brighter path forward for you and your pet"--

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Subjects
Published
New York : St. Martin's Press, an imprint of St. Martin's Publishing Group 2020.
Language
English
Main Author
Shawn Richard Buckley, 1964- (author)
Other Authors
Oscar (Veterinarian) Chavez (author), Wendy (Journalist) Paris
Edition
First edition
Physical Description
viii, 309 pages ; 22 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN
9781250260055
  • Authors' Note
  • Part 1. Four Legs, Full Heart
  • Introduction
  • 1. Our Longest Love Affair: Caring for Our Four-Legged Friends
  • 2. It's a Dog's Life: 2.0: The Human-Canine Bond, Growing Closer Every Year
  • 3. A Biscuit in Every Bowl: The Invention of Dog Food
  • Part 2. The Kibbles and Bits
  • 4. The Rise of Big Kibble: Consolidation, Globalization, and Kibble Cash in Vet Schools
  • 5. You Can't Judge a Kibble by Its Cover: Misleading Labels, False Advertisements, and Lax Regulations That Let It Slide
  • 6. When "Meat" is a Four-Letter Word: Using Our Pets as Four-Legged Recycling Machines
  • 7. How Mold on Grain-Not Grain-Harms Our Dogs: The Problem with Mycotoxins... and with the Grain-Free "Solution," or You Don't Want Grain-Free-You Want Mycotoxin-Free
  • 8. Mysterious Mix-ins, Spray-On Flavor, Ultraprocessing, Oh My!: What Else Enters the Extruder
  • Part 3. Good Friends Deserve Great Food
  • 9. We Speak for the Dogs: A Return to Fresh, Whole Food for Dogs
  • 10. Fact Versus Fiction in Dog Nutrition: Top Ten Nutritional Myths, Debunked
  • 11. Can My Dog Eat Popcorn?: Real Answers to Common Questions
  • Recipes: Healthy Food for the Ones You Love
  • Epilogue: A Better Future for Our Dogs
  • Acknowledgments
  • Endnotes
  • Index
Review by Booklist Review

Ubiquitous pet food commercials seem to reveal many choices for dog owners. Some brands are basic, some seemingly gold-plated, and one bears the name of a Food Network star. The marketing implies that the level to which you love your dog is proportional to how much you are willing to spend on its food. Buckley reveals several startling facts in this book: there are five companies that make most of these different dog food brands, and the advertising and promotional tactics are much the same as those used by big tobacco in the past. Readers also learn that there is almost no regulation or control over what kibble contains. The author uses emotionally charged stories of beloved dogs who were negatively affected by faulty products interspersed with scientific information and mythbusting facts about what dogs should eat. The last chapter contains recipes for homemade pet food. There is a potentially improper emphasis on one company that meets with the author's approval, but overall this is an important book for pet parents.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.