THE BEST PET FOOD IS NOT FOUND IN MIDDLE GROCERY STORE ISLES

The simplicity of knowing what you are getting when you shop the meat and produce aisles at the grocery store is lost once you move into the center aisles. That's the domain of the processed food industry where everything starts to become nondescript. How can consumers really know what's in the syrups, gravies, flakes, nuggets, powders, creams and mashes? Anyone can say anything on a label. True, they are regulated, but no government official watches over what goes into every package. We hope there is honesty, but the lure of $ can skew ethical judgment.

Producers can convince you that what lies within their best pet food is "value-added" and far better than what you might be able to find at the meat and produce counters, or harvest out of your backyard garden. That's not so easy with an apple, a bundle of lettuce, or a lamb chop which are clearly what they are. Those basic commodity businesses are far less profitable precisely because there is little opportunity for deception-chicken is chicken, a banana a banana.

Keep in mind the fact that you are extending a lot of trust as you choose among packaged pet foods.

Unlike almost everything else in the grocery sections, which are just intended as components, condiments, or recreation (a lot of that) for human menus, pet foods are pushed as "100% complete" meals. That makes them the mother of all deceptions and very dangerous.

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A heartwarming video of a Pitbull and cat befriending and caring for baby chicks.

Thought for the day: "Old age means realizing you will never own all the dogs you wanted to." – Joe Gores

Word for the day: glucosamine - noun: A monosaccharide that promotes joint and cartilage health