Trust Still Lacking in Pet Food Industry
Wednesday March 26, 2008
The coverage of the recent anniversary of the pet food recalls continues, and some of what I read is truly troubling. USA Today reports:
- A recent USA TODAY/Gallup Poll of 574 dog or cat owners showed that 30% had less confidence in the safety of pet food than before the recall; 46% had more confidence; and 17% had the same level of confidence.
While these numbers are disquieting, what really troubles me is this: For the past year, cat and dog owners have increasingly turned to poor sources of nutrition for their pets. Comments on blogs refer to solutions of:
- Feeding low-quality grocery store foods simply because they were not recalled.
- Feeding a well-known questionable food because it is "made in the U.S.A."
- Feeding pets scraps "like we used to do"
- Feeding dry food exclusively, I suppose under the premise that it was not among the first recalls. Most feline nutritionists agree that all-dry diets are not nutritionally adequate for cats.
- Feeding homemade diets without adequate nutritional information. One recipe called for "roasted chicken thighs, cooked corn meal, brown rice and cat vitamins."
- Potentially dangerous "recipes": "real ground meat then I sprinkle it with Bio-degradable vitamins and dried dogfood. Who needs that toxic can food." Mixing dry food with wet (whether meat or canned) or with water can contribute to mold contamination and is not recommended.
Comments
I have zero confidence in the makers of pet food. They are not held accountable so I will not buy their products. I’ve been feeding my two cats human food since last year and couldn’t be happier. I’ll usually make a little more food than normally and feed the excess to my cats. It took some getting used to, but I figured it would be a good thing in the long run. My cats favorite food is now McDonalds french fries and a bit of vanilla milk shake on the side for milk replacement. I highly recommend feeding your cats (dogs too I would imagine) human food. You’ll know it’s been prepared safely and you’ll save money in the long run. Cheers!
Um, why do you think human food is automatically safe? There have been plenty of recalls of human food for salmonella, E coli, etc. And fast food is full of chemicals and preservatives that I wouldn’t put in my own body, let alone that of a poor, defenseless cat!
Anyway, I have a question for Franny - Abby refuses to have anything to do with wet food (I’ve tried seven premium and/or organic kinds so far). The closest she got to eating any of it was California Naturals, which rated one lick before she shook her paw and walked away. Dry food isn’t a problem - she loves Eagle Pack Holistics dry (but won’t eat their wet food either). What do you recommend for extremely finicky cats? I don’t have to worry about Audrey’s opinion - she likes anything that’s high-quality.
Please be careful with both meats and vegetables. My sister’s cat and dog got salmenella (sp?) from chicken. Throughly wash meat before cooking or serving raw. Our vet says if possible cook meat in water (or canned unseasoned broth) for a short time to help kill off surface contaminents. As for my cats, they have dicovered canned chicken/tuna salad. This was not intentioned. Someone decided to help themselves to my husband’s.
I’ve found that the finnicky cat will eventually eat when it gets REALLY hungry. After that, they know first hand who controls the menu.
This isn’t about teaching her who’s boss, it’s about nutrition and quality of life. I don’t see myself starving my cat into eating something she doesn’t like. Aside from the fact that I’d rather work with her than against her, the disliked food would not be her only diet and she would skip it as soon as the dry food was available. It makes a lot more sense to find something she will want to eat.
James, your attitude alarms me greatly. McDonalds? French Fries? Oh my gosh. You are feeding your cats garbage. There is almost zero nutrition in their food. You will end up with fat cats who are nutritionally starved. Look at the health crisis fast food has made in this country. Is that what you want for your babies? If so, you really should consider getting a guppy and giving up the cats.
I couldn’t disagree with Sue more. I understand cats are free spirits, but as humans it is our duty to make sure they know their place. We humans pay the bills so we also make the rules. Establish the rules and carry them out is all I’m saying.
In respose to Sue, human food is more likely to be safer than pet food. Can you imagine if PEOPLE died as a result of tainted human food. It’s one thing for a cat to get smoked, but people are different. They can SUE you, get it? HAHA!
Jeanne-
I’m not sure why you said to get a guppy, but I have had aquatic pets for years. I currently have a beautiful reef aquarium. I consider every animal in there important and feel it’s my responsibility to take care of them just as well as I take care of my cat. I don’t agree with your implication that a fish is less important to take care of than a cat. If that’s not what you meant then I’m sorry but I feel very strongly about how cavalier people seem to be with fishes’ lives compared to other pets.
To Leezah - they have. Remember the spinach recall? Mad cow disease? Need I go on?
To Wayne - My rules for my cats apply to things they are and aren’t allowed to climb on, play with, chew, etc., and they are generally very good at following those rules, most of which are for their own safety. I wouldn’t force my children to eat something they hated when there was a nutritionally comparable alternative they liked, so why should I treat my cats any differently? I want them to enjoy their lives, not merely exist for my amusement. And I don’t have any need for power trips, so I don’t need to teach my cats “their place” in order to feel good about myself. I asked a simple question about what might be a good canned food to try, and I am amazed that instead of any constructive suggestions, I’ve gotten nothing but criticism about being what some people consider “too soft” on my cats.
My cat loves pig products - in fact he’s the fifth cat I’ve had that goes bananas for a bit of cold ham. Fried bacon, pork bits, salami, you name it, if it’s got pork in it, he’ll have it. I do limit the amount he gets, as with all of them, as I’m aware that too much of a good thing is probably detrimental.
However, recently I came home to find the fridge door left open, a frying pan on the stove and the unmistakable signs of bacon having been fried then eaten on the floor.
The cat was looking at me from the sofa as if butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth.
Damn, if he’s learned how to cook for himself, I’m sunk.