Natural pet food: reading AAFCO labels and comparing cost per day

Reading the label

• Complete and balanced: a statement, often found in small print, that the food provides complete nutrition for a stated life stage, such as growth, adult maintenance or all life stages. It is based on a set of nutritional standards, and the statement says how the food was shown to meet them.
• Life stage: puppy, kitten, adult and senior foods differ. Choose the one that matches your pet, and ask your vet.
• Foods labeled for intermittent or supplemental feeding are not complete and balanced on their own.
• Ingredient list: ingredients are listed by weight, so the first few make up most of the food.
• Guaranteed analysis: shows minimum or maximum levels of certain nutrients.
• Manufacturer information: the label gives the maker or distributor and contact information.

What natural means on pet food

AAFCO, the Association of American Feed Control Officials, publishes model rules that many states use for pet food, and it has a definition of natural for feed. In general, natural describes ingredients that come from plants, animals or mined sources, without chemically synthetic processing, with some exceptions for vitamins and minerals. It describes where ingredients come from and how they are handled, and it does not by itself tell you about quality, nutrition or suitability for your pet. Organic is a separate, regulated term. Human-grade also has its own meaning in pet food rules.

Please ask your vet

• Your pet's needs depend on age, size, activity and health. Ask your vet before changing food, especially for a pet with health concerns.
• Switch foods gradually, mixing the new food with the old over several days.
• If your pet has a food sensitivity, ask your vet rather than trying foods one after another.
• This page does not say that any food is better for any pet.

Our angle: compare cost per day, not price per bag

Foods differ in how much they weigh per cup and how many calories they have, so price per pound can mislead. Use the feeding guide on the bag, for your pet's weight, to find how much you feed per day. Divide the bag size by the daily amount to see how many days a bag lasts, then divide the price by the days. A dense, higher-priced food that you feed in smaller amounts can cost less per day than a cheaper bulky one. Do this for each food you consider, and use the vet's feeding advice where it differs from the bag.

1. Find the daily amount from the feeding guide, for your pet's weight.
2. Divide the bag size by that amount to get days per bag.
3. Divide the price by the days.