All Natural Dog & Cat Food FAQ | Nature’s Logic

Frequently Asked Questions

Ash is defined as the portion of inorganic material that remains after the food is burned at extremely high temperatures.  It is created when a feed sample is heated in a furnace at a temperature of 500-600⁰C.  Water and organic material (carbohydrates, fats, and proteins) are vaporized and only minerals are left.  The remaining product is measured to determine the percentage of ash.

What this really means is that what remains is the copper, zinc, calcium, phosphorus, and other essential minerals that are left over.  The amount of ash in each product varies depending on the quality of raw material and the ingredients used.  Sometimes, companies need to supplement some of these minerals because they cannot provide all that is necessary for an animal with the raw ingredients used.  Nature’s Logic uses the right proportions of ingredients to get enough ash content in the food without adding additional synthetic minerals.  In addition, the minerals in Nature’s Logic foods are readily available and easily digestible so your dog or cat gets all that it needs each meal.

Our kelp comes from Nutra Blend LLC and is a natural product from the seas around Norway. It is solar dried and minimally processed through grinding, milling and screening, ensuring it remains natural all the way through to the finished product.

Grains are the most likely source of genetically-modified ingredients in pet foods. Nature’s Logic uses the grain millet in our dry kibble formulas. Our millet has been certified non-GMO.

Nature’s Logic adds Yeast Culture to their pet foods because of the numerous natural vitamins and minerals.  Yeast culture is especially high in B vitamins. Yeast Culture does not cause yeast infections, or make yeast infections worse. The many benefits of  Yeast Culture make it a safe and excellent addition to Nature’s Logic Pet foods.

Nature’s Logic believes its products will not cause any puppy (large breed or small) to grow too fast and develop skeletal growth issues. Our diets have been substantiated to provide complete and balanced nutrition for All Life Stages using AAFCO feeding trials.

This is not to say other brands of high protein diets are not contributing to skeletal growth issues in large breed puppies but for reasons that do not exist in the Nature’s Logic diets.

Unlike Nature’s Logic, other commercial dry diets contain as many as 26 chemical forms of synthetic vitamins, minerals and amino-acids. Many of these chemical forms of nutrients can cause toxic to lethal effects if taken in high doses or for extended periods of time.

Vitamin A: Continued high synthetic doses can cause cervical spondylosis which is a degenerative joint disease affecting the cervical vertebrae, intervertebral disks and surrounding ligaments and connective tissue. This disease can also put pressure on the nerve root resulting in pain or a prickling sensation radiating down the arms. Synthetic Vitamin A can also cause proliferative gingivitis, incisor exfoliation, thin mandibles, bone changes, and depleted cartilage matrix.

Vitamin D: Excessive amounts have resulted in calcinosis (an abnormal deposit of calcium salts in body tissue).

Vitamin B6: Excessive amounts have resulted in degeneration of posterior columns of the spine.

Phosphorus: The over supplementation of man-made forms of phosphorus have resulted in stiff joints, bone loss, bone porosity, and deposition of calcium in tendons and organs.

The above results came from tests reported and studied by The National Academy of Science. These tests, conducted on numerous kinds of animals including dogs and cats, resulted in negative effects on animals occurring in as little as a few days to after a year or more of research. After looking at this data it is Nature’s Logic’s belief that the likely cause of large breed developmental problems are from both average and high protein diets containing a toxic brew of 20 to 26 chemical forms of synthetic supplemental nutrients similar to those mentioned in the test results above. Thus, one could infer that a whole food, high protein diet like Nature’s Logic would not cause developmental problems.

It is Nature’s Logic’s position that a properly formulated whole food diet using high animal protein content will never cause negative effects such as large breed puppy growth issues. Many diets have the following disclaimer, “natural with added vitamins and minerals.” This disclaimer means that the food is natural, but it contains unnatural (synthetic) supplements and the manufacturer does not want the liability of the potential risk involved in their use. In other words, use this product at your own risk.

References:
Vitamin Tolerance of Animals, National Research Council; National Academy Press
Mineral Tolerance of Domestic Animals, National Research Council; National Academy Press

Yes, cats require the amino acid taurine in their diets and AAFCO has established a minimum of .10% in dry food and a minimum of .20% in canned food in their Nutritional Profile for cats.

When taurine is listed as an ingredient on a product’s ingredient panel, this means the base diet contains inadequate levels of natural taurine and the producer has added a man-made synthetic form of this required amino acid to the diet mixture to meet adequacy. No taurine is listed on any Nature’s Logic ingredient panel because the natural ingredients of the diet contain adequate amounts of natural taurine from the high levels of meat, poultry, and organ tissue ingredients. This is the way cats should derive all their needed protein, including taurine. In an independent analysis of Nature’s Logic dry food, it contained 60% more taurine than the AAFCO required minimum. During our cat feeding trial, the blood work showed the taurine levels were well above the AAFCO required minimums. Click here to see the bloodwork results.

When a pet food manufacturer adds chemically synthesized vitamins and minerals to its formulas, it is an admission that the food ingredients alone are inadequate to supply the nutritional needs of a dog or cat. The National Research Council states that chemically synthesized mineral and vitamin supplements are provided frequently to correct the deficiencies in the ingredients used in animal diets.

Here are a few quotes from the 2006 AAFCO Official Publication and also from some publications by The National Research Council (NRC). The NRC publications and studies are some of the research used by AAFCO to determine nutrient requirements for pet food. These statements about the use of synthetic vitamins and minerals should be of concern to all pet owners. AAFCO and NRC have done a good job in showing both concern and exposing this information. It is all available to the public; not just industry.

“Knowledge of nutrient requirements and toxicities (of synthetic mineral supplements) is incomplete and/or imprecise in many cases.” (AAFCO, 2006)

“The Committee considered the matter of contaminants in mineral feed ingredients for several years before adopting an approach to the problem as reported in the 1978 Official (AAFCO) Publication.” (Official Guidelines for Contaminant Levels Permitted in Mineral Feed Supplements, AAFCO 2006)

 “The current scientific literature, however, is not complete enough to support the estimation of maximum tolerable levels for any (synthetic) vitamin. In most cases, however, one can use the literature to estimate ranges of vitamin intake that can be presumed to be safe.” (NRC Vitamin Tolerance of Animals)

“The available information for most of the (synthetic mineral) elements is less than desired, and it is likely that these tolerance levels will need to be modified.Problems that may arise when two or more elements are present at high levels represent a virtually unexplored area.” (NRC Mineral Tolerance of Domestic Animals)

In the past there have been FDA recalls of zinc oxide due to high levels of dioxin, a chemically synthesized form of zinc supplement commonly used in pet foods. There have been recalls of pet foods that caused illness and death in pets from excessive amounts of chemically synthesized vitamin D, iron and copper.. Click here to see research and results of animal testing of synthetic vitamins and minerals).

Nature’s Logic launched its products in late March 2006 and chose not to use any added chemically synthesized vitamins or minerals. Nature’s Logic chose to design foods, treats, and supplements made of 100% whole foods from which all nutrients are safely derived without the addition of potentially toxic synthetic forms. Below is a sample ingredient food panel of a Nature’s Logic canned food that uses 100% whole foods and natural ingredients and no added chemically synthesized vitamins, minerals, or amino acids.

INGREDIENTS:  Chicken, Chicken Broth, Chicken Liver, Chicken Heart, Dried Egg Product, Porcine Plasma, Montmorillonite Clay, Herring Oil (Preserved with Mixed Tocopherols), Brewers Dried Yeast, Dried Apple, Dried Apricot, Alfalfa Meal, Dried Artichoke, Dried Blueberry, Dried Broccoli, Dried Carrot, Dried Chicory Root, Dried Cranberry, Dried Kelp, Dried Parsley, Dried Pumpkin, Dried Rosemary, Dried Spinach, Dried Tomato, Egg Shell Meal, Rosemary Extract.

Montmorillonite is clay mined from an area where volcanic ash has been deposited into inland sea waters outside of Redmond, Utah. It is used in some pet foods as a natural anti-caking agent. The montmorillonite used in Nature’s Logic’s products is approved for inclusion in USDA Organic Certified products and comes from Redmond Minerals, a supplier whose product has been tested and shown to contain no dioxin. Click here to view a pdf containing a technical analysis sheet of the clay we use.

Montmorillonite clay may also bring with it added health benefits to pets. It is a natural source of over 70 chelated trace minerals. The clay has a negative electrical charge which attracts positively charged toxins in the body.  The clay and toxin bind, allowing the clay to shuttle the toxin out of the animal.  In humans it helps to alleviate those suffering from occasional diarrhea, constipation, heartburn, stomachache, acid indigestion, acid reflux, and other digestive problems (“Redmond Clay”, 2014).  Montmorillonite can potentially help pets with similar problems.

Redmond Clay. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.redmondclay.com/

We use 100% natural dried liver (chicken or beef) to enhance the flavor of our foods. Liver, along with other organ meats, is high in essential vitamins and minerals.  Liver is high in protein, Thiamin, Zinc, Copper and Manganese, and a very good source of Protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Riboflavin, Niacin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Vitamin B12, Pantothenic Acid, Iron, Phosphorus and Selenium.  These are all essential for the health of your animal.  Not to mention, these are natural ways to get these requirements!

Read More https://www.self.com/

Chelated proteinate minerals are created by the binding of a protein and trace element together.  This is common practice in agricultural industries because it helps with the digestion and absorption of trace minerals such as zinc, copper, manganese, and cobalt. However, this is not always a natural process, and the natural formation is more expensive for a company.  This means that many companies choose to go the synthetic route to save on price.

As a company, we stand behind the idea that all of the essential nutrients are available through the foods in the diets we provide.  There is no need to add any chelated minerals to provide a wholesome product for your pet.

As a manufacturer, Nature’s Logic is able to review ingredient data from companies that produce proteinate minerals for the pet product industry. Many proteinates we have reviewed use hydrolyzed soy as the protein in proteinates. Hydrolyzed soy releases MSG as a by-product. Some examples of metal proteinates are copper proteinate, zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, calcium proteinate, etc. Other similar forms of synthetic minerals produced by similar means are metal amino acid complex, metal amino acid chelate, metal polysaccharide complex, and metal propionate. It is Nature’s Logic’s opinion that synthetic proteinates are not a good substitute for the real thing found in food unless you want your pet eating synthetic substances, soy and MSG.

If you are seeking a single ingredient in the meat sense, then our pork, chicken and sardine products are single protein products.  However, when looking at all ingredients, there are other ingredients that add protein to our diets.  Protein also comes from grain and vegetables (or fractions of these products such as soybean meal or glutens), any dairy product (such as cheese, whey, or eggs), fish product, and any proteinate or amino acid complex mineral as well.

All of the Nature’s Logic’s diets, treats, and supplements have one to two main protein sources. Other minor protein sources in the products such as plasma are safe and natural ingredients which incorporate into each diet, treat, or supplement numerous natural food sources of essential amino acids, vitamins, minerals, and trace nutrients. The alternative, which Nature’s Logic opposes, is to include in these as synthesized nutrients.

Note: We have had a number of calls for a diet that contains no chicken protein due to their pets being sensitive to chicken protein. For these customers we recommend our Original pork or turkey diets or Distinction beef, pork or sardine. Also, the chicken fat used in our diets has been clarified, which means the protein has been removed. The protein is the common allergen.

Plasma is the liquid portion of blood where red and white blood cells and platelets are suspended.  Plasma contains albumin (a constituent of protein), fibrinogen (a clotting factor), and globulins (antibodies).  Not only does it have health benefits for your pet, but also acts as a palatant for the food.

No life exists without blood, and the nutrients it provides as part of the diet of carnivorous animals is essential. Nature’s Logic porcine plasma is an important natural food ingredient which supplies natural sources of iron, sodium, chloride, potassium, calcium, phosphorus, magnesium, numerous vitamins, and over 18 amino acids. These nutrients found naturally in blood plasma play a huge role in creating a safer and more natural diet and help decrease the need for adding potentially toxic chemically synthesized supplements. Continued research has found that plasma proteins:

  • Improve the efficiency of dietary protein utilization
  • Possibly reduces pathogen attachment and replication
  • Helps to maintain gut barrier function
  • Reduces local inflammation of the small intestine
  • Reduces mucosal damage in the intestinal tract
  • Helps maintain “tight” junctions of the intestine

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All Natural Dog & Cat Food FAQ