Calculating the Carbohydrates In Kibble
	Information gathered from Internet search and article written by Steve Brown and Beth Taylor

Pet food regulations do not allow the word carbohydrate on the label. Fortunately, pet food labels provide the information you need to determine the percentage of carbohydrates.

How the FDA defines how to calculate carbohydrates: Subtract the weight of crude protein, total fat, moisture, and ash from the total weight ("wet weight") of the sample of food.

The Ash Content
	Ash is sometimes listed, usually for cat foods. Ash is what remains after the food is burned. It consists primarily of elements, including calcium, phosphorous, iron, zinc and selenium. Typically, ash content is in the 5 percent to 8 percent range, on a dry-matter basis. A Guaranteed Analysis of pet food is required information on the labels of treats and foods.

Here is an example of the typical adult dry food: Minimum percentage of crude protein = 26 percent, minimum percentage of crude fat = 15 percent, maximum percentage of crude fiber = 4 percent, and maximum percentage of moisture = 10 percent.

These numbers tell you the percentages by weight of the macronutrients. In 100 grams of this food, there are 26 grams of protein (minimum), 15 grams of fat (minimum), 4 grams of fiber (maximum), and 10 grams of moisture (maximum). Because fiber is considered a carbohydrate, don't subtract the fiber when you do your calculating. These listed figures are a good estimate because most manufacturers keep the protein, fat, and moisture levels close to the listed amount. Protein and fat look good on the label, and the water adds free weight for the manufacturer.

Formula To Calculate Carbohydrate Percentage On an
	100 - protein-fat-moisture-ash=Carbohydrate. Using the Guaranteed Analysis example (100-26-15-10-6), this typical dry dog food is about 43 percent carbohydrate by weight.

To compare dry and wet foods, you must remove the water from the food. What remains is the dry matter (DM): Protein, fat, carbohydrate and ash. A dry matter anaylsis tell us the percentage of dry matter that is protein, fat, and carbohydrate. The following is a three-step process to calculate carbohydrate percentage on a dry matter basis:

Step 1:
	Calculate the total dry matter in the food. Subtract the percentage moisture from 100 percent. If a food is 75 percent moisture, it is 25 percent dry matter. (100-75)

Step 2:
	Divide the listed macronutrient percentage by the dry matter percentage. PROTEIN = Divide 10 percent by 25 percent = 40 percent protein. FAT= Divide 8 percent by 25 percent = 32 percent fat

Step 3:
	Use formula 1 above and calculate carbohydrates (remember to subtract the ash) CARBOHYDRATES = 100 percent minus 40 percent Protein minus 32 percent Fat minus 6 percent (Ash) = 22 percent