Are things like glutton and meeat-byproducts really bad for your dog?

In addition to Joanna's list I would also add Fromm - great food. Many foods are made with all natural human grade ingredients and those are ones you want to look for. Do your research and find out what is best for you. I love Innova, but it is a little to rich for my cats and one of my dogs and so I have to mix my food with another top tier brand.

Please go to this website and watch the video:
http://www.dogfoodsecretsuncovered.com

BY-products are extreamly harmful in the long run...

I am a firm believer in raw food - not just for pets, but for everyone! Food in a raw state is in a natural state, and thus at its prime for eating. You truly are what you eat, and the sad fact is that the major companies out there are companies that want to make money, at the cost of pet's health.

Now, I will say that not all bagged foods are bad. I am going to recommend a few brands that are trustworthy, not to mention minimally processed. Eagle Pack in Mishawaka, IN is a tremendous food that has my endorsement, based on what I've seen from feeding it to the animals in my care at the Humane Society.

I think probably the best thing to do if you don't have the time or money to go completely raw is to go half and half with a terrific dry food. These are the ones I recommend:

Blue Buffalo - Eagle Pack - Innova - Wellness - Authority Harvest-Baked - EVO - Timberwolf Organics - Castor & Pollux - Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul - Newman's Own - Solid Gold

(This is not, of course, a full listing, nor are they in order of favorite to least favorite. These are just some staples to get your pet started on the road to wellness and health.)

The main thing to remember about nutrition is the fresher and more pure the ingredients, the better health your dog (and yourself, for that matter) will be in. Your dog was designed to eat raw carcass, and from that it would consume muscle meat, gristle, fats, and fiber and vegetable matter from the stomach contents - hence, a whole meal. The next best thing - providing raw, whole foods from your pantry and butcher - is the ideal choice, but not always feasible in the busy lives we lead. In that case, if you're going to go the route of prepackaged food, be sure to choose something whole and made with care.

Look at the ingredients list on your dog's food. If it's dry food, look at the first 8-12 ingredients, which will show majority of the composition, about 85-90%; everything else is trace amounts, like vitamins/minerals. Now, if it lists generic things like "meat meal," "meat & bone meal," or "animal fat," get rid of it. The big food conglomerates (Purina, Iams, Pedigree) use ingredients such as these because they are cheap and by technicalities of pet food laws, they can be used. These mystery ingredients are literally scrapings from the bottom of the barrel - meats, fats and oils picked up from rendering plants (which would include leavings from fast food restaurants, roadkill, and even the melted-down remainders of Fido and Fluffy who's time ran out at the shelter.) If you don't believe me, check out "Foods Pets Die For: Shocking Facts About Pet Foods" by Ann Martin. Another good read that is considered less conspiracy theorist is "The Dog Bible," which has the most comprehensive dog information I've seen yet. Their chapter on nutrition is very sound and insightful.

What you want to see in an ingredient list a named meat (chicken, duck, lamb, beef) and a named meat meal first in line; ingredients are listed by weight, so if you see a bunch of brewer's rice (not a good source) or corn meal (it's alright, but shouldn't be the bulk, dogs cannot digest corn nearly as well as meat and other fibers) high up on the list, don't bother with it; this means an incomplete protein/fiber source is outweighing the meat. You'll want to see WHOLE wheat and grains other than corn (wheat has only become allergenic because we have stripped it of all nutrition and bleached it, turning it into something it's not supposed to be, causing a reaction). A few vegetables are good for digestion and should be included.

I hope this gives you some insight. Feel free to ask me about anything else, and best of luck to you and your dog!

They aren't exactly 'harmful' but they are basically cheap fillers and are junk. Your dog can't really do anything with them, they just fill up in your dogs stomach and they poop them out since they really don't have a nutritional value. Meat by products are disgusting though, basically it's all the scraps like eyes, lungs, brains etc that are thrown into a blender and ta-da, by products.

dangerous food items for dogs include onions, macadamia nuts, rich foods, spoiled foods, moldy foods....