Since leaving Mud Bay, I’ve noticed that very few of my coworkers know what Dry Matter Analysis is or how to calculate it. Basically, dry matter analysis is how we accurately calculate how much of any ingredient is in canned/pouched/frozen raw food.

Say your vet tells you to go find food for your pet with less than 20% fat, due to a liver issue…well, in dry food, that’s super simple but if you are feeding wet food, it can be a lot more complicated. See, when they do the guaranteed analysis on dry food, there’s only ever 10% or less moisture in the recipe…however, when they do the G.A. in wet food, there is 75 to 85% moisture in the formula, so we need to subtract that moisture, in order to figure out how much fat is actually in the formula. The G.A. may read 4% fat, which seems low, but if there is 85% moisture, there is actually 26.7% fat.

What a minute! How could I possibly know that??? Here’s the formula:

Confused? Okay, let’s break it down. So, you have a canned food that is 85% moisture, that means that 15% of that formula is NOT moisture. So, 100% of the formula – the moisture is 15%. Now, the G.A. lists the fat as 4%…so, the 4% divided by 15% is .26666 times that by 100, which basically sets the decimal point back by 2, and you have 26.666%.

Still confused? Don’t sweat it, it took me FOREVER to figure this out. There is a link at the beginning of this post, for a calculate you can input the values into to figure out the actual percentages. Even though I know the formula NOW, I still use the calculator all the time…because MATH.

One thing to remember is that ALL canned, pouched and raw food is going to be higher in protein and fat than any dry food, because there is more meat in almost all of it, but it is much more digestible that kibble will EVER be. So, when you are looking for food with certain levels of protein, fat or fiber, which is usually listed in the G.A., do the math…however, remember that wet food and raw food is much easier for the body to digest and get the proper nutrients from than any kibble, so if one of the vital organs is struggling to perform, the more moisture the better. Cats and dogs are carnivores and meant to eat real meat, not biscuits as a main diet. I will always encourage any wet food over any dry food…but you know that by now.

Hello fellow crazy cat servants!

Blue Buffalo recently put out an ad  regarding peas, thanks to that annoying FDA “study” about grain-free diets causing DCM in dogs, that says that peas and grain-free kibble is causing heart failure in our pets. You know how I feel about this, it’s not the peas or rice, it’s the lack of meat in the kibble that is causing problems…oh, who am I kidding? It’s KIBBLE that is causing the problems.

You know that I don’t believe in feeding cats any vegetables or fruits, they don’t need it, their bodies don’t get anything from it and you should always feed raw food if you can. I will stand by that truth until the end of time.

But! Let’s get one thing clear, PEAS are NOT the problem! Yes, there are pets that are legitimately allergic to peas and I respect that. There are many options out there for those animals but peas are not evil. However, come next summer, or just before you will see literally EVERY pet food company come out with a “pea-free” options in KIBBLE. I’ve been in pet food for long enough to see the trends coming before they appear. The thing is, my fellow pet parents. that you need to take responsibility for what you choose to feed your pets. We all do!

It’s time to start listening to actual pet biologists and nutritionists, rather than pet food company commercials and veterinarians regarding proper diets for our carnivores! We are the only ones that are here to speak for them and make decisions for them. Vets are good at medicine but not trained in nutrition. Science Diet, Royal Canin and Purina are the only companies that “train” them in “nutrition” and that is NOT proper nutrition for carnivores.

If you have any questions, or need advice, please let me know.