It's so important to READ INGREDIENT LABELS and research ALL unrecognizable ingredients before feeding it to your pets.
Make sure the product is made AND sourced in the U.S.A. Many American companies either produce their products or source their ingredients from China and this has proven to be harmful and even fatal to dogs.
Know the differences in jerky treats. We've already established that it's dangerous to buy anything made in China but there are other concerns worth mentioning. When meat is dehydrated, 80% of the weight is lost in moisture. This means that the cost to the manufacturer is high because meat is purchased per pound which includes the moisture. When the moisture is removed, the weight is reduced dramatically.
A trick that many companies do is add weight to the product so they can sell less meat for more money by adding empty ingredients. Many "jerky" treats contain sugar which is not good for dogs, some type of flour or grain to add weight and most notoriously, glycerin.
One seemingly innocuous ingredient found in many jerky products is glycerin. It’s not a long chemical-sounding name so it’s easily overlooked when checking product ingredients. Companies use Glycerins to make their jerky treats chewy, because it allows the product to retain more water without producing mold. However, this additive can be deadly. The FDA documents linked below state a substantive finding in an inspection tour as follows: “The FDA did identify that one firm falsified receiving documents for glycerin, which is an ingredient in most jerky pet treats.”
http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/ProductSafetyInformation/ucm295445.htm
Any treat marketed as Jerky should have one ingredient only: some type of natural meat, whether it's chicken, beef, pork, bison, duck, etc.,
Some are fortified with vitamins and that's ok, but make sure it actually is a vitamin and not a harmful preservative or chemical.
Another trick companies use to add weight to their product: Have you noticed that many jerky treats are reshaped? They grind all the gristle, fat, cartilage and inedible parts and then reshape them into jerky like strips. All the fat and garbage that we cut off and throw out, is included in these treats and the suspicious smell is always a red flag.
At Bone Bons, our pets are part of our family. We love them and they trust us to keep them safe & healthy. We use high quality beef, chicken, pork & duck, sourced in the USA, USDA approved, with no added hormones, antibiotics or chemicals of any kind - meat that we eat ourselves - meat that smells and tastes like what it's supposed to be. We add no fillers or ingredients of any kind to add weight to our product. Unlike some jerky treats, we don't grind and reshape our treats, including inedible parts; we just slice the meat, remove the fat and dehydrate. Our product is what it looks and smells like - no mystery meat! People have been known to eat our treats along with their dogs! Yes, our products are a little more expensive but there's peace of mind knowing that you’re feeding your pet a treat that promotes their health and elongates their already too-short lives.
My wish is that some of these large corporations would allocate the billions of dollars they spend in deceptive marketing and use at least some of that money to make a better quality product.
Reading and Understanding Ingredient Labels for your Pet's Safety
It's so important to READ INGREDIENT LABELS and research ALL unrecognizable ingredients before feeding it to your pets.
Make sure the product is made AND sourced in the U.S.A. Many American companies either produce their products or source their ingredients from China and this has proven to be harmful and even fatal to dogs.
Know the differences in jerky treats. We've already established that it's dangerous to buy anything made in China but there are other concerns worth mentioning. When meat is dehydrated, 80% of the weight is lost in moisture. This means that the cost to the manufacturer is high because meat is purchased per pound which includes the moisture. When the moisture is removed, the weight is reduced dramatically.
A trick that many companies do is add weight to the product so they can sell less meat for more money by adding empty ingredients. Many "jerky" treats contain sugar which is not good for dogs, some type of flour or grain to add weight and most notoriously, glycerin.
One seemingly innocuous ingredient found in many jerky products is glycerin. It’s not a long chemical-sounding name so it’s easily overlooked when checking product ingredients. Companies use Glycerins to make their jerky treats chewy, because it allows the product to retain more water without producing mold. However, this additive can be deadly. The FDA documents linked below state a substantive finding in an inspection tour as follows: “The FDA did identify that one firm falsified receiving documents for glycerin, which is an ingredient in most jerky pet treats.”
http://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/ProductSafetyInformation/ucm295445.htm
Any treat marketed as Jerky should have one ingredient only: some type of natural meat, whether it's chicken, beef, pork, bison, duck, etc.,
Some are fortified with vitamins and that's ok, but make sure it actually is a vitamin and not a harmful preservative or chemical.
Another trick companies use to add weight to their product: Have you noticed that many jerky treats are reshaped? They grind all the gristle, fat, cartilage and inedible parts and then reshape them into jerky like strips. All the fat and garbage that we cut off and throw out, is included in these treats and the suspicious smell is always a red flag.
At Bone Bons, our pets are part of our family. We love them and they trust us to keep them safe & healthy. We use high quality beef, chicken, pork & duck, sourced in the USA, USDA approved, with no added hormones, antibiotics or chemicals of any kind - meat that we eat ourselves - meat that smells and tastes like what it's supposed to be. We add no fillers or ingredients of any kind to add weight to our product. Unlike some jerky treats, we don't grind and reshape our treats, including inedible parts; we just slice the meat, remove the fat and dehydrate. Our product is what it looks and smells like - no mystery meat! People have been known to eat our treats along with their dogs! Yes, our products are a little more expensive but there's peace of mind knowing that you’re feeding your pet a treat that promotes their health and elongates their already too-short lives.
My wish is that some of these large corporations would allocate the billions of dollars they spend in deceptive marketing and use at least some of that money to make a better quality product.