The Truth About What’s Actually In Dentastix…

Denastix are a widely known dog treat that are recommended to be fed daily to help clean a dogs teeth. They are sold in most supermarkets and pet stores and are labelled as ‘vet approved’ and an all-round healthy treat.

So what’s the problem?

Well, In the UK, pet food manufacturers don't have to list specific ingredients which leaves room for a lot of 'hidden' ingredients! The law states that it ‘allows for fluctuations in the supply of the raw materials used and provides flexibility for labelling ingredients”. This makes life very easy for the big corporate pet food manufacturer, but leaves consumers confused and in the dark.

Once you take a look at the ingredients list in Dentastix and break it down, it’s shocking as to what’s actually in them!....

Ingredients List: Meat & Animal Derivatives, Iron Oxide, Natural Poultry Flavour, Sodium Tripolyphosphate, Potassium Sorbate.

What does ‘Meat and Animal Derivatives’ actually mean?

According to the Pet Food Manufacturing Association, ‘Meat and Animal Derivatives’ can come from leftover meat cuts such as lungs, claws, and heads that aren’t sold in UK supermarkets. Controlled by EU law, the label on your pet food can still be confusing. This allows suppliers to change what meat types (beef, pork, shellfish, rabbit etc.) goes into your dog’s treats – without telling you. This can create a whole range of problems for owners that have a dog with allergies.

Beef is one of the UK’s most common allergies in dogs, yet the current pet food labelling legislation allows this important information to be hidden from owners.

How can you know if your dog’s runny poo’s or itchy paws are related to their daily dental sticks when you don’t know what’s in them in the first place? Instead, most of the big-name brands like Mars (Pedigree) can only guarantee up to 4% meat in their dental sticks. This type of behaviour from companies that call themselves nutritionists would not be acceptable for your children, and we don’t think this is acceptable for our pets either.

Iron Oxide is a known skin irritant

Iron Oxide is a known skin and eye irritant that causes lung inflammation. This red food colouring is very cleverly hidden on Dentastix labels as a ‘mineral supplement’. In addition to Smoke Flavour, there are now recent concerns about the genotoxicity (cancer) risk posed by Iron Oxide.

Dentastix makers at Pedigree state ingredients are “included for a specific purpose and provide a benefit to the dog”. However, there are contradictory studies that show Iron Oxide has no nutritional benefit in a dog’s digestive system.

‘Natural Poultry Flavour’ = no real meat

Natural Poultry Flavour is made from animal digest that has not yet undergone decomposition or rotting. The ‘digest’ is chemically treated with heat, acids and enzymes to produce the final concentrated flavour found in Dentastix. When you read between the lines on your current pet food labels, you may find that the end product does not contain any real or fresh meat at all. This clever trick used by big pet food manufacturers means that only a small amount of ‘chicken digest’ is needed to make a ‘chicken flavoured dog treat’. As a ‘complementary’ product for your dog, pet food manufacturers do not have to ensure that Dental Chews contain any minimum percentage of real meat.

STPP use in dog treats and detergents

Sodium Tripolyphosphate (STPP) or E451 as it is more commonly known is the ingredient in Dentastix that carries out all the teeth cleaning action. However, it is well known as an offender in the ‘hidden ingredients’ tactics used by big food companies. STPP is used in dog food products as an artificial preservative, known chemically to help thicken mixtures. In studies on dogs, E451 caused a decrease in iron content in the bone, liver and spleen plus emesis (vomiting).

STPP can also be found in household detergents, water softeners and tanning agents.

Natural Alternatives 

There are so many delicious, healthy natural alternatives out there, that are not jam packed with chemicals! 

We have plenty of different options that help clean teeth and also have lots of health benefits too! 

A few examples are: Fish Fingers, Pizzles, Buffalo Braids and our full range of Veggie Chews