Believe it or not, dog food has not always controlled an entire aisle in your local grocery store. The use of bagged and canned foods became popular in the United States after World War II.

Before that, most people fed their dogs what was available including left-overs, scraps of food, and some times inexpensive cuts of meat from the local butcher - another artifact of the past. In 1860, the first processed dog food was introduced by James Spratt, of Cincinnati, Ohio who developed a biscuit made of wheat, beet root, vegetables and beef blood. The name of this new product was Spratt's Patent Meat Fibrine Dog Cakes.

The idea for special food for dogs gained popularity as mill operators and slaughter houses found dog food to be a good market for their by-products. Since many of these meat sources were non-human grade, the practice became common to mix these with the grains and cook them together for many hours or days to kill bacteria and disease. The final mix was then formed into pellets that were easily bagged for convenience of feeding.

In 1985, the National Research Council guidelines for nutrition in dog food placed requirements for ten amino acids by weight of the dog and listing requirements for the availability of nutrition in dog food products. Today, federal regulations, enforced by the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM), establish standards applicable for all animal feeds.

In addition to kibble and cans, owners can now add sauces that are intended to improve the taste and nutrition of their pet's food. The Iams Company has produced a line of three Savory Sauces - Bacon, Chicken, and Beef to be added to kibble. These sauces are made with real meat, poultry, and vegetables, fortified with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants and are available in formulas for puppies, adult and older dogs.

Remember when adding extra goodies to your dog's food, that more nutrients are NOT always better and that many nutrients may be toxic in excessive amounts.

Posted by Paula.