If you're trying to feed your dog a healthier diet, but feel overwhelmed by the misleading labels and hidden ingredients, you're not alone.
The pet food industry is designed to confuse you.
🧐 Here's the Truth:
Just because a dog food bag says "Natural," "Grain-Free," or "Complete & Balanced"
...does NOT mean it's healthy or species-appropriate.
🎯 The Problem With Pet Food Labels
❌ They're designed to hide poor-quality ingredients
❌ They use clever marketing terms that sound healthy
❌ They add synthetic vitamins to meet "AAFCO standards"
❌ They legally don't have to disclose sourcing or quality
👀 What to Look For
Step 1: Ignore the Front of the Bag
The front is pure marketing.
Focus on the ingredient list and the Guaranteed Analysis.
✅ Step 2: The Ingredient List
Ingredients are listed in descending order by weight.
But here's the trick:
Kibble brands "ingredient split" to hide carbs and fillers.
🎯 Example of Ingredient Splitting:
Chicken Meal
Peas
Pea Protein
Lentils
Chickpeas
Sweet Potato
Looks like chicken is the main ingredient, right?
Wrong.
👉 They're using multiple pea and legume sources to hide the fact that the food is mostly carbs.
🧐 What Should Be the First Ingredient?
✅ Real muscle meat (beef, chicken, turkey, lamb, etc.)
✅ Organ meat (liver, kidney, spleen, etc.)
✅ Raw meaty bone (for calcium and phosphorus)
❌ Step 3: Red Flags to Avoid
❌ Meat meal or meat by-products
❌ Synthetic vitamin packs
❌ "Natural flavor" (hidden MSG)
❌ Grains (corn, wheat, soy)
❌ Legumes (peas, lentils, chickpeas)
❌ Canola oil or vegetable oils
📊 Step 4: Guaranteed Analysis
This section shows:
- Protein %
- Fat %
- Fiber %
- Moisture %
🎯 What Should the Protein & Fat Levels Be?
| Type of Food | Protein % | Fat % |
|---|---|---|
| Kibble | 18-24% | 8-12% |
| Balanced Raw | 50-60% | 30-40% |
👀 Step 5: Where is the Calcium Coming From?
In kibble and cooked diets, calcium usually comes from:
❌ Synthetic calcium carbonate
❌ Bone meal (low quality)
❌ Ground eggshell
In raw diets, it comes from:
✅ Raw meaty bones (like duck necks, chicken wings, etc.)
🚫 Step 6: Watch Out for Synthetic Vitamins
Synthetic vitamin packs are added to make up for poor-quality ingredients.
| Synthetic Vitamin | Natural Source |
|---|---|
| Vitamin A | Liver |
| Vitamin D | Oily fish |
| Vitamin E | Egg yolk |
| Calcium | Raw bones |
| Magnesium | Secreting organs |
🔎 Real Transparency Looks Like This:
✅ Muscle Meat (80%)
✅ Edible Bone (10%)
✅ Secreting Organs (10%)
✅ Freshly sourced from local farms
✅ No synthetic vitamins or fillers
🎯 The Bottom Line
If your dog food brand isn't transparent about:
❓ Where the meat is sourced from
❓ What cuts of meat and organs are used
❓ Whether synthetic vitamins are added
...they're hiding something.
🧐 What We Feed at Game of Yorkies Raw
We believe:
✅ Real, raw, human-grade food
✅ Locally sourced meat, bone & organs from Ontario farmers
✅ No synthetic vitamins, grains, legumes, or fillers – EVER
✅ Complete transparency – because we feed this to our own babies
🌿 When You Know Better, You Can Do Bette
We’re here to make raw feeding simple, clean, and honest.
No marketing tricks. No mystery meat. No compromises.
Just real food, real results—for dogs that thrive.