Vet's advice

How to Read Dog Food Labels: a Vet's 4 Secrets

Learning to read a food label is the simplest way to truly understand what you're putting in your dog's bowl. Dott. Bellei, medical director of the Clinica ARS Veterinaria di Modena, walks us through four clear steps to recognise a quality food that's right for your dog at a glance.

Standing in front of the shelf (or the product page of an online shop), every bag and every tin seems to promise the same thing: good ingredients, happy animals, long-term health. The difference, though, isn't in the pictures on the packaging but in the lines printed in small type on the back. It's those lines that tell the truth about composition and quality. Let's look together at the four secrets to decoding them without being a vet.

1. Composition and analytical constituents: the two sections to always read

Every label is divided into two key sections: the composition and the analytical constituents. The composition is, in effect, the recipe: the list of everything that went into the food. Here you find out whether meat is present and what kind, whether there is fruit and vegetables, grains or other ingredients. It's the part that tells you what is inside.

The analytical constituents, on the other hand, are the result of the laboratory analyses carried out on the finished product. They're a series of values expressed as percentages: protein, fat, carbohydrates, fibre and — the most overlooked figure of all — ash. Two numbers deserve your attention more than any other:

• Protein above 20%. A good protein content is the foundation of a healthy diet, especially for a carnivore like the dog.
• Ash below 6-7%. Ash represents the residual mineral portion of the food. The lower this value, the higher the quality tends to be: when a food is mediocre, in fact, the ash figure rises. A food that stays on average below 6-7% is an excellent sign.

Learning to compare these two sections is already half the job: it lets you put two seemingly identical products side by side and work out which one is genuinely superior.

2. Preservatives and colourings: the fewer, the better

The second secret is to focus on the presence of colourings, preservatives and palatants. Colourings, in particular, are there mainly for our eyes: they make the product more appealing to the buyer, not healthier for the eater. Think of the difference between meat you boil at home — which comes out a brownish-grey colour — and tinned meat, which stays a bright, vivid pink. That colour isn't natural: it comes from preservatives such as nitrites and nitrates.

These substances do preserve, it's true, but they then have to be metabolised by the kidneys and place extra strain on the body. An excess of preservatives and colourings brings no benefit at all to your dog's health. That's why, faced with two foods, it's always better to choose the one with the cleaner list.

This is exactly the thinking behind Pappa Fresh: the recipes are steam-cooked and vacuum-sealed, so they keep for a long time without any artificial preservative and without colourings added just "for show".

3. Quality nutrients and the single-protein rule

The third secret is to understand the nature of the ingredients, not just count them. Fruit and vegetable sources, for example, provide minerals and vitamins: they're valuable elements that make a difference in a balanced diet. But there's an even more important detail to check: the protein source.

Many people buy "a tin of chicken" convinced they're giving their dog chicken alone. Then they read the label and discover there's also a bit of beef in there, a trace of pork, or — the other way round — chicken fat in a product sold as "pork". This is where the whole difference lies between a truly single-protein food and a food that's simply "[meat]-flavoured".

This distinction becomes crucial if your dog has been diagnosed with an intolerance or allergy to a certain type of protein — chicken, for instance. In that case it's essential that the protein appears nowhere in the food. A "pork-flavoured" product isn't enough, because besides pork it might contain other animal sources. The rule is simple: in a true single-protein diet, the protein must come from one single animal source. Only by reading the label can you be sure.

On this point, Pappa Fresh is built around single-protein recipes: each flavour uses just one animal source, a choice designed precisely for dogs with food sensitivities or intolerances. You'll find all the details and percentages on the products page.

4. A food suited to age, breed and lifestyle

The last secret is to remember that there's no such thing as a "right" food in absolute terms: there's the right food for that dog. Age, size, breed and habits radically change nutritional needs, because every element of the food is dosed precisely on these factors.

One example makes it all clear: a large-breed puppy can double its weight between three and seven months. During that phase it needs more "building blocks" to support its growth, and therefore a higher protein content than an adult dog. In the same way, a working dog that spends the day in intense activity — perhaps in the snow — needs energy to come not only from sugars but also from fats.

That's why choosing based on age, breed and lifestyle isn't a detail, but the heart of good nutrition. It's also the reason Pappa Fresh recipes are formulated by a vet and the portions are calculated for the individual dog, starting from weight, age and activity level.

In short: the 4 secrets to reading a label well

1. Read the composition and analytical constituents — look for protein above 20% and ash below 6-7%.
2. Avoid preservatives and colourings — the fewer additives there are, the less work for the kidneys and the body.
3. Demand quality nutrients and single-protein — fruit and vegetables for minerals and vitamins, one single animal source for the protein.
4. Choose a food suited to your dog's age, breed and lifestyle.

Keeping these four points in mind lets you read any label with a critical eye and choose with awareness. If you have other questions about storage, ingredients or portions, you'll find many answers in our frequently asked questions.