Big Kibble: The Hidden Dangers of the Pet Food Industry and How to Do Better by Our Dogs

by Shawn Buckley, Oscar Chavez

Overview

A big, inside look at the shocking lack of regulation within the pet food industry, and how readers can dramatically improve the quality of their dogs’ lives through diet.

What's really going into commercial dog food? The answer is horrifying.

Big Kibble is big business: $75 billion globally. A handful of multi-national corporations dominate the industry and together own as many as 80% of all brands. This comes as a surprise to most people, but what’s even more shocking is how lax the regulations and guidelines are around these products. The guidelines—or lack thereof—for pet food allow producers to include ever-cheaper ingredients, and create ever-larger earnings. For example, “legal” ingredients in kibble include poultry feces, saw dust, expired food, and diseased meat, among other horrors. Many vets still don’t know that kibble is not the best food for dogs because Big Kibble funds the nutrition research. So far, these corporations have been able to cut corners and still market and promote feed-grade food as if it were healthful and beneficial—until now.

Just as you are what you eat, so is your dog. Once you stop feeding your dog the junk that’s in kibble or cans, you have taken the first steps to improving your dog’s health, behavior and happiness.

You know the unsavory side of Big Tobacco and Big Pharma. Now Shawn Buckley, Dr. Oscar Chavez, and Wendy Paris explain all you need to know about unsavory Big Kibble—and offer a brighter path forward for you and your pet.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250260055
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	12/01/2020
Pages:	320
Sales rank:	655,490
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Entrepreneur and founder SHAWN BUCKLEY and veterinarian and professor in clinical pet nutrition DR. OSCAR CHAVEZ are the owners of Just Food for Dogs, a pioneer and disrupter in the dog food industry, and the leading brand of dog food made with USDA approved whole foods, fit for human consumption.

Table of Contents

Authors' Note ix

Part 1 Four Legs, Full Heart

Introduction 3

1 Our Longest Love Affair: Caring for Our Four-Legged Friends 21

2 It's a Dog's Life: 2.0: The Human-Canine Bond, Growing Closer Every Year 39

3 A Biscuit in Every Bowl: The Invention of Dog Food 63

Part 2 The Kibbles and Bits

4 The Rise of Big Kibble: Consolidation, Globalization, and Kibble Cash in Vet Schools 87

5 You Can't Judge a Kibble by Its Cover: Misleading Labels, False Advertisements, and Lax Regulations That Let It Slide 118

6 When "Meat" is a Four-Letter Word: Using Our Pets as Four-Legged Recycling Machines 142

7 How Mold on Grain-Not Grain-Harms Our Dogs: The Problem with Mycotoxins… and with the Grain-Free "Solution," or You Don't Want Grain-Free-You Want Mycotoxin-Free 166

8 Mysterious Mix-ins, Spray-On Flavor, Ultraprocessing, Oh My!: What Else Enters the Extruder 182

Part 3 Good Friends Deserve Great Food

9 We Speak for the Dogs: A Return to Fresh, Whole Food for Dogs 199

10 Fact Versus Fiction in Dog Nutrition: Top Ten Nutritional Myths, Debunked 227

11 Can My Dog Eat Popcorn?: Real Answers to Common Questions 245

Recipes: Healthy Food for the Ones You Love 255

Epilogue: A Better Future for Our Dogs 269

Acknowledgments 273

Endnotes 279

Index 299

Editorial Reviews

Big Kibble is a must read for anyone who loves their pup and wants to make sure they are feeding them the best possible diet for their health. As someone who has been cooking for my senior dogs for a few years, I can tell you that the turnaround in their health has been remarkable. Big Kibble can help you choose a diet that is best for your dog. Thank you Dr. Chavez and Shawn Buckley for helping us to better understand commercial dog food and our dog’s health!” –Kristin Davis

“If like me you believe that your pets are members of the family you have to read Big Kibble. It is alarming to see what large corporations are trying to pass off as ‘healthy food’ for our dogs, and people deserve to know the truth. Switching from processed kibble to fresh food saved my dog Finn’s life, so I know first-hand the difference that diet can make.” –Amanda Seyfried

“The quality of a pet’s diet has a profound impact on their energy levels and longevity. JustFoodForDogs uses real ingredients to supply a well-rounded diet. I have been a long time devotee of this brand and I’m so happy they now have a book to help spread awareness and information on how to improve animals' lives.” –Kristen Bell

"I saw personally the difference switching from kibble to fresh food made for my own dogs, Penny and Sally. There's really nothing quite like seeing them this excited for mealtime. I hope pet parents everywhere will read this book and make an educated choice for themselves and their pets.” –Diane Guerrero, actor and author of In the Country We Love

"Big Kibble sheds a much needed light on how dog food corporations operate and what is truly going into our pet’s food. The information provided made me question the food I gave my dogs and to look deeper into the ingredients rather than just the marketing. My hope is that all dog food companies will now be more transparent in what their real ingredients are and how the food is manufactured. I do everything for my dogs Alice and Wolf so why wouldn’t I make sure they are receiving quality, nutritious and real food? You will be prepared to answer that question after you read this.” –Heather Kun, MS PhD, CEO of FCancer

“So you love your dog right? Well you need to read this book right now! As an animal scientist (and dog lover) I was grateful that someone finally decided to blow open the closed doors to the secrets of the pet food industry. Every pet parent should read this so that they can make informed decisions about how they choose to care for their four- legged family members.” –Dr. Broc Sandelin, Ph.D., Dean of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, Delaware Valley University

"Big Kibble is a reader-friendly book that discusses the complexity of the pet food industry in frank and simple terms. If your eyes spin looking at nutrition tables, then this easy to read text provides essential information for pet guardians struggling to make better choices for their beloved four-legged family members. The book covers a wide variety of subjects and offers a counter point to the industry line of advertising, so prevalent in modern society. If you've thought that the bowl of brown kibbles or gooey brown pudding looks less than optimal, you are right. To get past that, read this book, which will show you how to lower the level of disease- promoting chemicals found in commercial foods and put your dog on the road to better health." –Richard E. Palmquist, DVM, GDVCHM, ACCHVM

"An important book for pet parents." –Booklist

"Pet food is one of the biggest processed food industries in the United States, and it’s getting a comprehensive and hard-hitting look in Big Kibble." –UpNewsInfo

"This book gives you the tools to make an educated choice about what you feed your pets, and even includes recipes if you want to cook for them at home." –QDT

From the Publisher