Are antibiotics in pet food? You may have heard about the prevalence of antibiotics in traditional protein sources like beef and poultry. In fact, around 70% of all medically important antibiotics in the U.S. is sold for use on farms (1). What’s more startling is that roughly 40% of all antibiotics produced are not even used for medical purposes, but are being used for feed additives (2). 

They say you (and your pup) are what you eat. Unfortunately, consuming traditional protein sources means antibiotics are likely a prevalent part of a diet.

While antibiotics prescribed by doctors can work wonders, when it comes to farm animals, they are often abused. Farmers routinely use antibiotics on animals instead of reserving them for a specific cause. Sometimes, farmers are not even trying to eradicate an illness – they are simply using them to promote the growth of livestock. The situation has become so dire that the World Health Organization has called for complete restriction of certain antibiotics for promoting growth and disease prevention among animals unless they’ve received an official health diagnosis (3). 

When antibiotics are overprescribed, the bacteria they are trying to fight has the chance to evolve and become resistant to the antibiotic. We call these resistant bacteria superbugs!

These superbugs don’t just impact pets, but can harm their humans too! Even if a pet parent has taken steps to avoid antibiotics in the meat they consume, if their dog’s meat is from traditional protein sources, both pawrent and pup are still at risk! There have been antibiotic residues found in the meat of pet food which have led to adverse health effects in dogs. Unfortunately, antibiotic-resistant bacteria found in cats and dogs have made it impossible to treat some pets that are ill (4).

Even if dogs don’t show any sign of illness, owners may still be at risk, as these superbugs can transfer from pet to parent! Once in your system, these antibiotic resistant bacteria become hard to fight off. 

So, how can you ensure that your dog’s diet does not pose a risk to their wellbeing or yours? The best method is to avoid traditional, mass-produced proteins. Antibiotics are ingrained in agricultural practices for beef and poultry which makes it difficult to ensure that these protein sources are truly free from antibiotics. Alternative protein sources are a great alternative. The benefits are two-fold: they are much less likely to contain antibiotics, which makes them safe for you and your pup, and they are often more digestible than traditional meats like chicken or beef!

As for Chippin’s products, we ensure that all of our planet-friendly proteins are antibiotic free, high quality, and nutrient dense.

1. Source: PEW Org
2. Source: NCBI
3. Source: WHO
4. Source: AKC.org