Issue 10 | July/August 2018 | $9.95
Featured Department Maryland Heights Canine Unit
2018
K9 SWAT Deployment Bakersfield Debrief
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Dry Dog Food SAFELY HANDLING AND STORING KIBBLE By Chelsea Kent herospets.com
First, keep in mind that your canine’s food is just as perishable as your own. After you purchase your food, it is important to remember that, like a loaf of bread, just because it comes in a bag and has an expiration day a year or so long, does not mean it lasts on your home shelf for that long. The expiration is how long the food is good for BEFORE it is opened, while it is still in an oxygen barrier bag. As soon as you open the bag, the food is exposed to oxygen and begins to degrade. Natural foods do not contain heavy, toxic chemical preservatives and must be treated how you would treat your own natural foods.
Do NOT: ll Do not leave the bag open and exposed to air after opening it. ll Do not store the food in the sunlight. ll Do not let the food get wet and if it does get wet, throw it away. ll Do not keep the food past expiration even if you do not open it. ll Do not throw the bag away. Even if you store the food in an airtight container, you MUST keep the batch code. ll Do not pour in your new food before the old food is COMPLETELY gone unless you pour out the old food and put it ON TOP OF the new food.
DO: ll Feed the food within 30-45 days of opening the bag. ll Throw away what you do not use by that time. ll KEEP THE BAG (which includes the barcode, expiration date and batch code). ll Store the food in an airtight container (preferably still in the original bag inside the airtight container). ll Store the food in a cool and dry place. ll Rinse the container between EVERY use (oils that have perforated your container eventually go rancid and contaminate new food). ll If the bag of food you purchase does not fit in your container, then line the food bin with an airtight bag. Pour in what WILL fit and keep the rest either in its original bag, tightly sealed in a cool, dry place until it will fit in the bin. OR (better yet) put the remainder of the food in zip lock bags in your freezer; remove them as needed (making sure to cut the barcode, batch code and expiration date off the original bag and tape it onto a storage bag). OR purchase smaller bags (you may spend more per pound but you spend less at the vet because the health effects of eating rancid food are not good).
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