High Heat Processed Pet Food
When choosing food for our dogs, most of us look for things like good ingredients, trusted brands, or the right life-stage formula. But one important factor often goes unnoticed, how the food is processed. Most commercial kibble and canned foods are made using high heat processing. This means ingredients are cooked at very high temperatures to sterilize the food and make it shelf-stable. While this sounds practical, the process can actually harm the nutritional quality of the food and even create toxic by-products.
How High Heat Affects Macronutrients
Proteins: When proteins are exposed to high heat, some essential amino acids become damaged. These amino acids are crucial for building muscle, producing hormones, and supporting the immune system. If your dog isn’t absorbing enough, it can lead to issues like muscle loss, low energy, or poor overall health.
Fats: Essential fatty acids are also damaged by high heat. These healthy fats support skin and coat, brain function, and inflammation control. When oxidized, they not only lose their benefits but may also create compounds that can harm organs like the heart, liver, and kidneys. Dogs lacking these fatty acids may show signs such as dry, flaky skin, hair loss, or recurring infections.
How High Heat Affects Micronutrients
Vitamins: Cooking food at high temperatures destroys a significant amount of vitamins, up to 70%. Since vitamins are essential for growth, bone health, metabolism, and immune function, these losses can impact your dog’s health in many ways. Symptoms of vitamin deficiencies can range from weak muscles and brittle bones to poor immunity and even seizures in severe cases.
Minerals: Unlike vitamins, minerals are not destroyed by high heat. However, processing can change their form or cause them to bind with other compounds, making them less available for your dog's body to absorb. Minerals are vital for wound healing and bone health, as well as heart and nerve function.
Toxic By-Products Created by High Heat
High heat can also create toxic by-products.
Heterocyclic amines (HCAs): These form when meat or fish is cooked at very high temperatures. HCAs are linked to DNA damage and cancer. Studies have found them in nearly all commercial heat-processed pet foods tested.
Acrylamide: This chemical forms when starchy ingredients (like rice, corn, or potatoes) are cooked at high heat. Acrylamide has been associated with tumor growth in several organs. Research shows that dogs eating processed dog food may consume several times more acrylamide than humans.
With around half of all dogs over 10 years old developing cancer, these risks are hard to ignore.
Conclusion
High heat processing is convenient for manufacturers, but it can come at a cost to your dog’s health. Nutrient losses and toxic by-products make it less than ideal as a daily diet. It’s worth considering alternatives like raw, gently cooked, or freeze-dried diets, which preserve more nutrients and avoid many of the harmful by-products created by extreme heat. Your dog depends on you to make the best choices for their health, and understanding the impact of high heat processing is a great first step.