These days pet parents are demanding cleaner, less processed, less preserved pet foods which leaves manufacturers in a quandary. The consumer wants convenience, shelf stable yet no shelf stabilizers…yikes! In comes the high tech packaging!
The bag your pets’ food comes in is especially designed to keep out 1)air, 2)light & 3)moisture. Many of them have one way oxygen barrier seals, are of a heavy duty non——- plastic, and/or have zip lock or velcro closures. All this fanciness is for more than attractive shelf presence, it’s to help insure the integrity of the nutrition in that food.
So what does this mean for you?
It means the best practice of pet food management is to actually leave it in it’s original bag, not to pour it into a receptacle.
Ya see, when the kibble gets transferred from it’s original bag to a container each & every kibble is exposed to air & light which oxidize (break down) the vitamins and delicate fatty acids. And the better you’re food, the more fragile it is, because after all, real food expires. Think about that for a sec.
Now if your loyal to your favorite pet food bin, I get that. They often fit just-right in the pantry, or are sealed in our garage to keep out mice, or are built by NASA to maintain freshness, etc.
If that’s you, that’s ok. But (there’s always a butt isn’t there?) You’ve got to be equally as loyal to cleaning that receptacle out between bags of food! You’ve just got to! Here’s why. Ever heard of mycotoxins? Rancid fats? They’re nasty and dangerous! This stuff will make your pets spontaneously ill with diarrhea or barfing for what seems like no apparent reason when all along their food has been getting contaminated by old food residues at the bottom of that totally awesome container, argh!
When ever I hear “would you take a bag of food back, I think this batch is bad, it’s only half gone and my dog won’t touch it” or “my dog got ill from the exact same food he’s been on for months”…a red light goes off in my head. I ask the loaded question (after letting them know of course I’d be happy to take the food back and I’m so sorry Rover doesn’t feel well) : “Mr. Pet Parent, just how do you store your said kibble? I may have a different suggestion for you?”
