People often ask me to look at a food, supplement or herbal product to see if it is ‘good’… What makes food good?  Here’s is a list of what I look for when I’m making sure a food or supplement is good enough for my babies or my clients companion animals…

1. NO GMO’S…you don’t want any products in it that are made from CORN, CANOLA, SOY, ALFALFA…there’s more but these are the biggies!
2. No artificial colors/flavors/fillers…really go through the ingredient list. There should be no artificial anything in it…if it is it’s not good. You should be able to pronounce and recognize every ingredient if you can’t be weary. Yellow #5 for example has a cross reactivity in people that are sensitive to Aspirin…so your pets too may be sensitive to Yellow #5…better to be safe and avoid them.
3. For cats and dogs – try to avoid corn and wheat…not only do they not need it but it can cause inflammation.
4. Synthetic vitamins and minerals…well this is a hard one as MOST are synthetic based. The main thing to watch for is that 90% of supplements such as Vit C and E for example are made from GMO corn…there are suppliers just starting to source non-gmo so worth the look.
5. No added IRON – this is especially important for horses! Iron in feed and as a supplement is not only not necessary but can be dangerous. Iron can’t be ‘peed’ out if in excess…so it can cause organ damage this can especially be a problem if your water has high Iron as well…never a good combination.
6. NO SUGAR! Animal food manufacturers love putting in lots of salt, sugar and fats into pet foods as well as chemicals to enhance flavor and addiction to that food or snack. When there are so many choices on the shelves how do you think they compete to get your pet to choose their brand? Yes they cheat just like with our foods to make them very addictive…so try and read the labels as much as possible.
7. When the label doesn’t say much email/write the manufacturer for a full list. Some have proprietary blends but they can give you the ingredients just not how much…you want to know what you are feeding your pet.
8. If it’s made in CHINA do not buy…sorry to say but this country has had so many issues with animals getting sick and dying from so many of their products that I just stay away from all of them. Not worth taking any chances even if it says organic. Really look closely at the label as packaging can be done in U.S.A for example and product sourced/made from China…
9. Vet approved doesn’t mean too much as many Vets still don’t know or realize that GMO’s are very bad for our animals and that the artificial chemicals cause a shortened life span…some are learning and pushing better products but most aren’t. So this will be left to you…

If in doubt don’t buy it…that’s the best way to handle it. This is why home-made food/snacks and whole food sourced supplements are best or make sure you know who you are purchasing from is as reputable as you can get. I know now easy…but if you at least follow the above steps…you will be miles ahead of the game. And remember try and choose organic products as much as possible..