An article recently posted on the Consumerist website provides pet owners with a very good lesson. The article explains the story of a pet owner whose little Yorkie became ill from eating expired pet food - 3 years expired - all recently purchased - unknowingly - from PetCo. What happened to this pet owner can easily happen to anyone. How often do you check the expiration date on the pet foods and treats that you purchase? With pet food - somewhere on the can or bag, usually on the side or back of the bag - is the 'Best By' date. With most of the manufacturers that I have spoken with, this date does NOT mean the food is officially expired - it just means that the food does not provide the nutrition as stated in the Guaranteed Analysis. The 'best' nutrition for your pet has expired - but again in most cases - per what the manufacturers tell me - the food is still 'good'. Shelf life is one of the questions I ask manufacturers about and provide in Petsumer Report. It varies greatly from manufacturer to manufacturer. The shelf life of dry pet foods can vary from 4 months to 3 years - canned and/or pouched products vary from 1 year to 5 years. Treats usually have the same shelf life as the manufacturer's dry food - but just to keep things confusing, that can vary too. The 'Best By' date provided on the food - does NOT tell you how old the product is - it does NOT tell you when the food was manufactured. It only tells you the date that particular manufacturer has determined the food no longer provides the pet with the proper nutrition. While some ingredients in the food might still provide adequate nutrition - other ingredients have faded over time. Pet foods that are naturally preserved begin to lose nutritional value almost immediately. A drawback - but the ONLY drawback to a naturally preserved pet food. The challenge is to purchase a dog food or cat food (and treats) that are very fresh. Pet food manufacturers are not required to put the date the dog food or cat food was made on the label. Again, only the date that particular pet food manufacturer has determined the food is no longer 'best'. Here's how you can make sure your pet is only eating fresh food - providing the best that product offers. Make a phone call to the pet food manufacturer and ask them what the shelf life is for the dry food or the canned/pouched food. As an example - ABC Pet Food Company tells you the shelf life of Premium ABC Dry food is 18 months and the shelf life of Premium ABC Canned/Pouch food is 2 years. With that information, check the 'Best by' date on the pet food. Let's say the 'Best by' date on the dry dog food you are considering says June 2008. Knowing that ABC Pet Food Company told you 18 months was the shelf life, you would know the food was made in January 2007 (Shelf life 18 months minus from June 2008 equals Jan. 2007). If 'today' is October 20, 2007 - you would know this pet food is now 10 months old. With a canned pet food, ABC Pet Food 'Best by' date is also June 2008. This tells you that this can of pet food was made in June 2006 (Shelf life 2 years minus from June 2008 equals June 2006). Thus the canned product would be 14 months old in October 2007. Using my above examples - I would NOT purchase a dry dog or cat food that was already 10 months old. Ideally - dry foods should be four months or less old and you should use them within a two month time frame. Again, with any naturally preserved dry product - the nutritional value starts to deteriorate almost immediately. Fresh is best. I would recommend purchasing and using the food within six months of manufacturing. Storing the food in an air tight container will help keep the food fresher after opening the bag - providing your pet with more quality nutrition. With canned products - it's a different ballgame. You definitely want to purchase and use the food before the best by date expires - but the quality of the nutrition is protected by the canning process. Any unused opened can must be covered and stored in the refrigerator and used within a couple of days. Call your pet food's manufacturer and ask them the shelf life of dry foods and canned foods. I know it's a chore, just one more thing you have to do and look out for - but it is very important. You want what you pay for - quality nutrition for your pet - and a fresh product will provide that (of course you have to pay attention to ingredients too - but that is a whole different subject!). Get yourself into the habit of looking at the 'Best By' date BEFORE you purchase the pet food and or treat. Your effort will not only provide your pet with better nutrition - getting yourself into the habit of looking at the expiration date could just save you from an experience similar to the pet owner mentioned in the beginning of this article - and a sick pet.
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