Robert F Davis said,
Hi
Crystal…. thank you for your response. Yes…I only started
him on it as a last resort. He could not get up at all. He has been
on it since December of 2006 and I have brought his dosage down
after being on Kumpi. Today I have fed him and not included any
meds and I’m going to see how he does. I do believe that with
the right nutrition his body needs he will not need Rymadyl anymore.
Afterall, I’ve already seen the results of being able to cut
his dosage in half after being on Kumpi food.
I
did try him on Glucosamine liquid that you can get off the internet.
He did great for one month. After that his blood sugar got to high.
He drank a minimum of 3 large bowls of water a day and he was a
non-stop peeing machine. That lasted only a couple of days before
I took him off of it. It took me a couple of days to figure out
what was going on.
Thank
you for the information on EVA as well and I am very sorry for your
loss. My first Cotton ( I have another one now ) passed away to
cancer August 28, 2005. My world ended on that day. I was just a
mess. So I feel for you and hope you are doing okay. God was gracious
enough to send me another Cotton a little over 6 months from when
my first one passed. And I have made sure that each day I work to
make it special for my babes…life is precious and we should
cherish every day with those we love.
Mike Weed said,
Diana,
I’m
really glad you pointed out that “Corn is a good food after
you cook it IF YOU CHEW it. Dogs and cats don’t chew enough. They
don’t have molars that are appropriate to grind grain.”
The
reason it has to be chewed is to break through the outer coating
which is impervious to stomach acids (this is why you’ll sometimes
see whole kernels in poop 
. The same effect is had by simply using “Ground” corn,
meaning the kernels are ground/crushed so that the inner, nutritious
part is easily digested.
. The same effect is had by simply using “Ground” corn,
meaning the kernels are ground/crushed so that the inner, nutritious
part is easily digested.Related
Fact: Dogs and Cats only chew if they have to break a piece down
to a smaller size. Their teeth are optimized for tearing, not chewing.
Also their natural digestive enzymes start in the stomach (Human’s
start in the mouth when chewing). This means that any kibble you
buy for your pet should be very small and dense for optimal digestion,
the only exception to this rule would be dental kibbles, but I would
always recommend a dental bone for this.
Ground
Corn is one of the finest ingredients available in pet foods (not
as a main source of course) and I hope to see enlightenment to ground
corn in place of the stigma that low-quality corn and corn derivatives
have caused the grain in general.
Sue said,
I
hope all the pet food companies (not just the ones affected by the
recall) are taking a good hard look at their products, their suppliers,
their ingredients and making sure there is no problem with their
foods.
(I
know, I need to take off my rose-colored glasses.)
vt farmer said,
why
are you all stuck on the idea that you need to feed something made
by some corporation labeled ‘petfood?
fifty
years ago there was no petfood - the purpose of petfood is corporate
profit not healthy pets
even
before this disaster, the cancer, diabetes and other chronic disease
among pets was horrific - google ‘petfood rendering’
if you want some gory details
feed
them meat, eggs, milk, some cooked or pureed vegetables, some oatmeal
or bread whatever they would eat naturally
I
feed a lot of raw chicken and beef with the bone - as long as it’s
raw the bones wont hurt them, I make raw milk yogurt and feed a
raw egg a day each
Gunnie said,
Wow!
Thanks for all your efforts on educating us better on our food choices
for our pets. Good job!
Elf said,
For
all the stupid cat and dog owners that believe people food is no
good for our pets - WRONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
FEED YOUR PETS THE SAME FOODS YOU EAT!!! not the garbage that is made by all pet food companies. - DOGS LOVE FRUITS, VEGETABLES, MEATS ETC., EVERYTHING OFF OF YOUR TABLE IS WHAT YOU SHOULD BE FEEDING YOU PET!
Did you all know that the canned food for pets is cooked in the can-it’s not cooked before it gets packaged - it is actually cooked in the can.
DID YOU ALSO KNOW THAT DRY FOOD IS A MAJOR CAUSE OF KIDNEY FAILURE IN PETS- THAT’S A FACT!
FEED YOUR PETS THE SAME FOODS YOU EAT!!! not the garbage that is made by all pet food companies. - DOGS LOVE FRUITS, VEGETABLES, MEATS ETC., EVERYTHING OFF OF YOUR TABLE IS WHAT YOU SHOULD BE FEEDING YOU PET!
Did you all know that the canned food for pets is cooked in the can-it’s not cooked before it gets packaged - it is actually cooked in the can.
DID YOU ALSO KNOW THAT DRY FOOD IS A MAJOR CAUSE OF KIDNEY FAILURE IN PETS- THAT’S A FACT!
Gloria said,
My
daughter was frantic and didn’t know what to feed her cat.
I told Blue Buffalo and for a friend with a dog I suggested Natural
Balance. (Both dry food). Now after reading all these comments,
I am concerned. Can I ask how many of you are feeding this food.
I too had to euthanize my cat due to the pet food recall. I don’t
want to have them go thru what I did. I have read the posts here.
Yes, I agree with those who wish to boycot certain pet food stores,
but at the same time we need to feed these animals. No, it’s
not possible to prepare home cooked menus for them. Not everyone
is able to do this. We don’t wish to feed raw either.
Thanks
Sue said,
I
feed my cats Natural Balance canned food, venison and peas and the
chicken and liver. Also I feed them the venison and peas dry food.
None of these foods have wheat gluten in them. My cats love the
food and are fine. I have not tried the Blue Buffalo brand so I
cannot comment on that.
I’m
sorry to hear about your cat.
Mary Kelley said,
Thanks,
VT Farmer. I did one search and here is the link. There is a lot
of info for thought. Be sure you have your breakfast before reading
it.
Mike Weed said,
Gloria,
I
am glad you mentioned that”No, it’s not possible to prepare
home cooked menus for them. Not everyone is able to do this. We
don’t wish to feed raw either.”
It
gets frustrating hearing horrible comments about all dry and canned
foods in general, some of us subscribe to a higher standard of quality.
No
prepared pet food will ever be as good as home-cooking by a knowledgable
chef, but we come damned close. Back to Basics amongst a select
few others use all Human-Grade ingredients and go the extra mile
to ensure that your animals are getting the nutrition they need
not just to survive, but to thrive.
Are
most prepared pet foods horrible? Sure… but not all of them.
Say what you want, some of us are doing the right thing and the
bottom line is not a dollar sign.
meg said,
I
went to costco and looked at their brand of dog and cat food. The
Kirkland brand has no wheat in it.
Just
out of safety for now I have switched my big dogs off pedigree and
on to kirkland. I am throwing away a 40lb bin of it keeping a sample
jsut to be safe. I did notice lately that our 2 dogs were not eatting
alot of it a marked difference. Now that I have the kirkland out
they are eatting like no tommarrow….. DOGS no better than
we do.
meg
Mary Kelley said,
On
that last link I left… It is written by Animal Protection
Institute. Best information about the pet food processing that I
have read yet! On the same website, there is a link
which
is called “Selecting a Good Commercial Food” They don’t
recommend brands, just helpful tips. Scroll down and read “Pet
Food Shopping Checklist”. I am taking that to the store when
this is all over, to make my choices. Meanwhile we still need to
get through this crisis. But now is the time to change old habits,
while it is still painfully in our faces. Later on life will return
to normal and hopefully we will have done our homework! Weekend
reading…check it out!
amy said,
I
have switched my cat from Nature’s Variety and Wellness canned
due to the problems–I don’t want to take any chances.
One of the brands I am using now is Fromme. I e-mailed Bryan Neiman
several times with questions regarding the food quality, processing
and China. He responded promptly and with very detailed e-mails.
I appreciate that in the situation that we are in, and feel better
about choosing the brand. I would encourage people to consider them
or to e-mail him if you have questions. My cat loves the beef dinner
so far, and I would think the chicken will go over well also. Just
wanted to let all of you know that I think that some companies are
trying to do the right thing, but we have to be careful and educated
when choosing products.
Also,
I just ordered a bag of Orijen dry to replace Nature’s Variety
Raw Instinct–like I said I am trying to be safe here. Anyone
tried Orijen yet?
My
condolences to everyone who has lost a pet in this crisis. I can’t
imagine your pain and anger.
Nan Wetherbee said,
My
dogs are on Natural Balance dry dog food. I recently bought a large
bag and no one shows any sign of illness. I can’t find this
on any of the lists as tainted dog food. I have a 5 year old Yorkie
that weights only 2 1/2 lbs and I am sure he would show signs of
illness before the others. Has anyone heard of this food having
a problem?
lynn carver said,
thank
you so much for this list of foods not on a list-could not find
it anywhere else,thanks lynn
Ted said,
Does
anyone know anything about timberwolf organic dog foods
Angel said,
I
feed my dog Eukanuba matienece small bite and my cat Iams Indoor-
I knew very little about cat or dog food before all this blew up
in the media- I just fed my animals what the vet suggested.
About
four weeks before the recall I opened up a new can of Eukanuba wet
food- I would usually mix in a spoonful with the dry kibble as a
treat for my dog (a 4 year old beagle/lab/pit bull mix)- and I did
so that night. I was woken up early the next morning by my dog vomiting
on the bed (something she never does) and got her outside where
she finished vomiting up her dinner from the night before. At the
time I didn’t think much of it, I thought that maybe she had
a bug, or ate too fast. That night I talked to my dad on the phone
and he suggested that I not give her any more wet food because he
has never trusted wet food and said maybe it was a bad batch (thank
God for my dad). So I just kept feeding her the regular Eukanuba
kibble and she recovered- I did noticed that she drank large amounts
of water for several days afterwards, but otherwise she seemed fine.
Since she had no other symptoms, stopped vomiting, and was merrily
chasing the frisbee again I did not take her to the vet. I had no
reason to think it was anything more then a one-time stomach upset.
Fast-forward
4 weeks, and I discovered that the canned food I gave her was recalled.
I cannot tell you how grateful I am for my Dad’s advice at
the time because it kept me from feeding her any more of that stuff.
Since she has been fine with the kibble, I have kept feeding her
the dry Eukanuba. However in the last few days she has refused to
eat the dry food, so today I went out and bought her some Blue Buffalo
food because at this moment it is the only premium pet food I can
get around here easily. My cat, a 2 year old male tabby, has been
fine on the dry Iams- he hasn’t shown any symptoms at all-
and I was going to move him off the Iams onto Petguard (because
the local hippies who run the organic food co-op swear by it) but
now I am not so sure. I might have to go Blue Buffalo with him too-
but now I am not even sure what to feed him. I’m a grad student
and my budget is so tight that increases in my pet food cost will
eat into something else.
I
am frusterated and angry about this whole mess. I ran into a former
student of mine and she told me that her dog had almost died eating
the Walmart wet food. He’s okay now, and she returned several
cases of the stuff to Walmart. My parents have stopped feeding their
3 cats any manufactured food at all- my mom now cooks for them every
day (she’s retired, and money isn’t so much of a problem).
I can’t cook for my pets because I can’t afford much
meat for myself (ahh the perils of student living.) My father is
furious with the pet food makers who have endangered his cats and
“granddog” and “grandcat.” He has ordered
me to never buy from Iams again.
So
anyway, my question is, where is a good on-line place where I can
get high quality cat food? Should I stick with the Blue Buffalo
brand? Or go elsewhere? I’m so confused, and my budget is
taking a beating, but i would do anything to keep my cat and dog
safe. Feel free to e-mail me if you had advice. Thanks
Angel
Lisa said,
After
I found out that Evo canned is made at a Menu Food plant, I stopped
feeding it to my 3 cats. Interestingly enough, in the past few weeks,
they didn’t seem to be “chowing down”, for lack
of a better term, on their morning Evo. I now feed them, in addition
to Halo Spot’s Stew, Merrick which they absolutely love. I
have also ordered a pet food called Instinctive Choice from Healthy
Pet Net - the 3 ounce cans of Chicken, Turkey and Shrimp. This is
to replace the recalled Nutro packs I was feeding them. I am not
using any products manufactured in ANY Menu Foods plant as I just
can’t trust them. It may make me seem paranoid, but I just
don’t want to chance it. After reading the post written by
the temp that works there, about some of the conditions she saw,
I am certain I am making the right choice. Even IF companies have
their own standards in the Menu Food plants, how can we be certain
of the standards ourselves? It’s not as though we can visit
and tour the conditions of their factories.
My
other feeling is that since it is all about “the money”,
we don’t know whether there is enough staff to keep a place
clean. Most companies cut staff to save money, and when you cut
staff, you can’t help but cut some standards at the same time.
In my opinion as well, you can be certain that the guys at the top
are making their money, while cutting the staff at the bottom. And
we all know the guys at the top are not cleaning the equipment.
I feel bad for the employees that work there because this is not
their fault and you know with money lost, comes more job cuts as
well.
Anyway,
just my thoughts.
Homer said,
I
called the Hill’s pet nutrition folks on Friday, March 39th.
As a user (make that “an ex-user”) of their dry feline
foods I am very concerned about the recall.
A
customer service lady who identified herself as “Kara”
explained that the wheat gluten used by Menu Foods (to make some
of the Science Diet canned foods) was not used in any of Hill’s
Science Diet or Precription dry feline foods. She said that Hill’s
had good quality control procedures that that their dry foods were
safe from the tainted gluten.
I
had the above conversation with Kara at 5PM CDT. Thirty minutes
later, the CBS evening news announced that Hill’s was also
recalling their dry Feline M/D.
Obviously,
Hills’ Custormer Service personnel were not promptly told
about problems with their dry food, and were still giving worried
customers erroneous information.
Also,
prior to Noon on Friday, the FDA knew the name of a company that
had either supplied the tainted gluten, or (like Menu Foods) had
used some of the gluten. I’ve heard both versions of the story.
At any rate, the FDA wouldn’t reveal the name of the company.
Shame on them. They should all be fired!
This
morning, I returned all of my unused Hill’s food to the local
Petco. I will never use another can or bag of any Hill’s product.
Let’s
hope that all hell breaks loose for these dishonest companies and
the dishonest politicians who protect them. Did you notice that
the expanded recall was announced very late on Friday afternoon?
My
heart is sad for the pets and their owners who have suffered because
of the stupidity and greed of others.
Homer