For many people, pets are just like children, and that means being careful in what is fed to them.
In hopes of saving money, some people try switching out the brand of pet food to something less expensive, but the price for pet food could ultimately result in the price of a pet’s health.
A new report says many off-brand labels may contain lead and pesticides.
John Griveas is the co-owner of Fetch Gourmet Dog Treats at the Eastern Hills Mall. He says there are certain things all pet owners should be looking for on labels.
"You're at the grocery store and you see something and it looks good, you've seen commercials, you want try it out, but there is a couple of ingredients that you don't quite understand… Take out the phone, pop it into Google. All else fails, call the company,” said Griveas.
At his shop, Griveas makes all of his products from scratch and gets his ingredients from local vendors.
As peanut butter dog treats become more popular, Griveas worries about a toxin that is harmful to dogs.
"It's starting to contain xylitol more and more, which is an ingredient that we find in our sugar free gums and candy. It’s incredibly toxic to dogs, it can and will kill your dogs," said Griveas. "Just be smart. A lot of it is common sense. If you have a question and you're not able to answer it just move on. Plenty of options out there."
