Savvy pet parents know that treats are a must when it comes to caring for their fur babies. Tasty treats make excellent rewards, training tools, and surprise snacks for your pets. However, many pet treats come with cheap fillers, artificial additives, and low-quality ingredients.
It’s essential to read labels and understand what’s in your pet’s treats so you know what to avoid and which snacks get a green light. It’s time to dive into the murky waters of dog and cat treats so you can discover why certain ingredients are harmful and what you should buy instead.
Why Is It Important to Read Pet Treat Labels?
In a nutshell, just because treats are packaged and being sold in a store doesn’t make them safe or healthy for your pet. (Just think about all of the human junk food filling supermarket shelves.)
Therefore, it’s up to you to scrutinize packaging and read the ingredient list to get a clear picture of what you’re feeding your pet. Of course, reading labels is a must, but it doesn’t do any good if you don’t know what red flags to look for or which ingredients are questionable.
Don’t Fall for Marketing Gimmicks
Guidelines for pet treats aren’t exactly super strict, so tread carefully when companies cover their packaging with words like “gourmet,” “natural,” or “premium.” These words sound good, but they often imply a level of quality that isn’t there.
The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) doesn’t require treats to meet the same nutritional standards that dog and cat food do. However, treats meeting health requirements will feature the necessary statement of nutritional adequacy on the label (often in small, tiny print).
This doesn’t necessarily mean that if treats lack this statement, they’re automatically bad. After all, treats are intended to be an occasional snack, only making up 10% of your pet’s calories for the day. (For more specific numbers for your pet, talk with your vet. Some pets may follow special diets, especially those dealing with obesity or certain health conditions.)
Common Harmful Ingredients in Pet Treats
The rule of thumb when choosing healthy pet treats is to look for short ingredient lists, typically with meat listed first. (Although other whole foods, like fruits and vegetables, also point to good options.) The standard rule for ingredient lists is that the order dictates quantity.
In other words, if the first ingredient listed for the treats is chicken, they’re mostly chicken. However, if there are a bunch of random words listed first, that means you’re dealing with mostly fillers and a tiny smidge of meat.
Here are some of the most common harmful ingredients in pet treats that you should try to avoid at all costs.
Artificial Colors
Your pet doesn’t care what color their food or treats are. They just want that yummy goodness. Artificial colors are added to treats to make them more appealing to humans so they’ll buy them. Unfortunately, many artificial colors (red 40, yellow 5, etc.) could contribute to hyperactivity, and they offer no nutritional benefit.
Safer Alternative: Look for treats colored with natural sources, like beet powder, or even better, no color at all.
Chemical Preservatives
Companies add preservatives to their products to extend the shelf life without dramatically increasing costs. You’ll see these chemicals pop up in the ingredient list as things like BHA, Propyl Gallate, Ethoxquin, BHT, etc. Many introduce higher risks of cancer, liver dysfunction, and other health problems.
Safer Alternative: Check for natural preservatives like rosemary extract or Vitamin E.
Artificial Flavors
Artificial flavors often mask poor-quality ingredients to make treats more appealing to pets. They can irritate your pet’s digestive system and also trigger allergic reactions. Avoid products that put the word flavor after certain ingredients, like “bacon flavor” or “cheese flavor.”
This means the treats don’t actually include bacon or cheese, just a fake flavoring that could be full of nasty things. Likewise, avoid things like "artificial peanut butter” or "artificial vanilla,” etc.
Safer Alternative: Pick the treats with real meat, peanut butter, broth, and no added sugars. Or put some peanut butter in a Rolly Cannoli and give your pet a delicious snack while they exercise their mental muscles.
Sugars, Sweeteners, and Flavor Enhancers
Once again, some ingredients are unnecessary, going into treats to mask poor ingredients or ramp up the flavor. Sugars often come disguised in ingredient lists as maltose, dextrose, and similar words.
Added sugars contribute to weight gain, tooth decay, diabetes, and addictive eating behaviors, like speedy eating. Also, avoid any pet foods or treats containing xylitol, which is used as a sugar substitute and is toxic to dogs and cats. You would think it wouldn’t be in anything intended for pets, but you’d be surprised.
Other red flags are brown rice syrup, corn syrup, or MSG (monosodium glutamate). MSG is often added as a flavor enhancer.
Safer Alternative: Look for unsweetened options or consider feeding small bits of fresh fruit like apples or blueberries as treats.
Mystery Meats
Generic terms like “animal meat,” “chicken by-product,” or “animal fat” typically signal low-quality animal parts. These ingredients could come from questionable sources and are best avoided.
Safer Alternative: Opt for treats with real meats in the ingredients, like chicken breast, beef, or salmon.
Cheap Carbohydrates and Fillers
Grab a random bag of pet treats, and the odds are good that the first few ingredients will be something like wheat, corn, or soy. These ingredients are cheap ways to bulk up treats and pet food, offering little to no nutritional value. They also often cause allergic reactions in many pets.
Safer Alternative: Look for treats made with single-ingredient proteins or whole foods, like sweet potato or pumpkin. Skip treats that list corn, wheat, or soy as the first ingredient. It’s not that you need to avoid these entirely, but if it’s listed first, that usually points to overall low-nutritional value.
Salt and Sodium Nitrate
Too much sodium can cause kidney problems, strain the heart, and other health issues. Many jerky treats and processed chews tend to contain high levels of sodium.
Safer Alternative: Look for low-sodium jerkies made with whole meats.
Glycerin
Glycerin makes treats chewy and also extends their shelf life. Although the FDA deems it generally safe for pets, it can cause gastrointestinal problems for some, depending on the source. It also offers no nutritional value.
Safer Alternative: Skip the chewy treats and look for natural-dried textures.
Tips for Choosing Safe, Healthy Pet Treats
If you're feeling a bit overwhelmed by this list of harmful pet treat ingredients, don’t let it get you down. Once you get the hang of reading labels and find a few treats that check all the boxes, you can stick with a few tried-and-true options.
To help make the shopping process easier, use these tips to find healthy pet treats.
- Look for treats with short ingredient lists featuring five or fewer items, preferably with whole foods, like real meats, vegetables, and fruits.
- Labels should name specific meats, not “animal by-product.”
- Stick with treats made in countries with stricter guidelines and standards, such as the United States, the European Union, and Canada.
- Don’t blindly accept marketing words like “premium” and “natural.” Always read the ingredients.
- Verify the source of the treats.
- Seek certifications, like human-grade ingredients, organic labels, or Safe Feed Safe Food (SFSF), etc.
- Choose treats that sync with your pet’s specific needs, whether it’s a health problem, obesity, or allergies.
Transitioning Your Pet to Healthier Treats
If you find that the treats you’ve been giving your pet aren’t the best, it’s time to switch. To avoid an upset stomach, slowly transition your pet to the new goodies, like you would transition your pet to a new food.
Healthy Treats for Healthy Pets
Everyone deserves a fun, tasty snack, including your pets. But choose your pet’s treats wisely to support their long-term health and avoid potential risks.
Read labels, look for whole foods, minimal ingredients, and verified sources. It only takes a few seconds to scan a food label, but those seconds can translate to a longer life for your fur baby.
For more helpful pet parenting tips and resources, check out the rest of the Neater Pets blog.