The Shocking Truth About Commercial Dog Food

Not only Mexican people work there white ppl too.

Hi Kim –

Just so you know meat meals can (and likely do) contain by-products per AAFCO definition. Meat meal can also contain animals that haven’t died via slaughter – i.e.) animals that were euthanized or picked up dead in the field. It’s important to verify that the meat meal in your food came from animals that passed USDA inspection.

You might want to read this:

http://truthaboutpetfood2.com/are-ingredient-definitions-allowing-loopholes-to-quality

What you feed your pets has a tremendous effect on everything else in their lives, including pests. We also feed organic raw to our dogs; they get no fleas, etc cuz they don’t emit an odor to attract them. The biggest factor in health for any living creature is diet.

I agree with you to a point. I live in Florida, where it is flea season year round and my vet says we are the worm capitol of the U.S. I started feeding raw in September to my 3 dogs. I gave them monthly flea stuff at the beginning of Oct. but in Nov. they didn’t need it. My cats still had fleas. I started feeding my cats raw at the beginning of Nov. and I still used flea stuff on them in Dec., still none on the dogs. Jan., Feb., and March, no fleas. I found a flea on one dog a couple days ago. This is usually the time of year that they are starting to get really bad, not so far. I haven’t eliminated fleas in my environment, the ferret and the 2 cats that think raw is not food still have fleas, but the raw fed animals seem to be less palatable to fleas.

I have to disagree.. The immune system is dependant on nutrition to be healthy. Examples — Neutrophil white blood cells (which are one of the first of the immune system on the scene) are stimulated by good gut bacteria. Calcium can actually surround pathogens (calcium wave) and neutralize them. Foods like cruciferous veggies, berries etc can prevent and even treat cancer etc etc etc.

Garlic, cinnamon, raw pumpkin seeds and many other foods or supplements can actually kill parasites like worms in the digestive tract as another example.

MANY people don’t HAVE to use flea and tick treatments. It all depends on the health of the immune system. Which all depends on putting healthy things (like food) in and keeping toxic things out.

Yippee! Another crazy cat lady. I almost ended up with 5. A kitten showed up in our warehouse on an onion truck a few months ago. She looked to be only a couple months old. She was so little and scared. Very lucky she didn’t get ran over by fork lift. Needless to say I brought her home. I called home to warn my family. My husband and son who say they don’t like the cats and they belong to me had our game room all set up for her. Lol! Luckily one of my friends came over, loved her and took her home. Whew! Don’t need another pet. Oops! Getting off topic. But, I really wish there was a great website like this one for cat food. I think (and hope) that the good dog food brands most likely have good cat foods as well. The site I mentioned in an earlier post is the best one I’ve found, but not as extensive as this one. I have gotten a lot of good info for my pups from this one that’s for sure.

No problem. Have you had a chance to check out the website I recommended? She has a few different charts with many different brands of canned cat food that list protein, fat and carbs. Her advise is to use canned with the lowest carbs possible. She also says that she would rather see people feed their cats canned with by-product if that’s all they can afford rather than dry. My cats are at about 75% canned now. I have one shelter kitty that has been resistant to canned, but finally after a year, he is trying it out! I’m excited because he is a big chubby beautiful all white cat with six toes. Male cats are more prone to urinary blockages than females so very important for them to get their moisture to keep things flowing smoothly. On her site she does have recipes for raw and cooked meals if you are feeling energetic. Good luck with new kitty. But be careful though, having one for some reason tends to having more! I’ve collected four so far!

Thanks Patty! I’m actually relieved that I don’t need to feed cats a raw diet. What would you feed cats – would you cook fish or meat? And how would you get nutrients from the eyes and brain? I get kind of queasy around raw meats . . especially since I am vegan. Thanks!

I’ve never fed my cats a raw diet, but I do know that there are certain additional nutrients a cat needs such as taurine. I have found a great website on feline nutrition supported by Lisa A Pierson, DVM. I personally think it is full of great information. She is totally against feeding any type of dry kibble what-so-ever. I do love my dogs, but I’m crazy about my cats! lol!

Should a cat be fed the same diet as a dog – i.e. raw meat and pureed veggies? any suggestions? What kind of raw meat or fish would you recommend feeding cats? And what veggies? Should veggies be whole, pureed, Thanks!!!

You can join a BARF yahoo group/community.  They might have some resources to share with you regarding foods, supplements, holistic vets, etc…

JoAnn sorry to hear that your not feeling well, I hope you feel better soon.

I am too sick to write anything right now!

Hi Maxidancer –

Are you looking for a reasonably priced food that is also decent quality? Some that I’d recommend:

-Pure Balance: 3 1/2 stars, $31.88 for 30 lbs.
-MWhole Earth Farms: 4 stars, $42.00 for 35 lbs.
-Fromm Classics: 3 1/2 stars, $40.00 for 33 lbs.
-NutriSource: 4 stars, $45.00 30 lbs.
-Eagle Pack: 4 stars, $37.00 for 30 lbs.
-Pro Pac: 4 stars, $25.00 for 33 lbs.
-Victor: 4 stars, $30.00 for 40 lbs.

If you can’t find these locally check online, there are many sites that offer free shipping on dog food, you could probably find most of these brands online and Pure Balance is available at Walmart.

If you feel bad about not being able to feed all raw just pick up some cheap cuts of meat once in awhile and mix them with the dry food to give them some of the benefits of raw without the price. Chicken gizzards, chicken hearts, beef hearts and eggs are all budget friendly, quality proteins that you can get right at the grocery store. Giving a raw chicken leg quarter, beef rib or turkey neck a few times a week is a cheap way to keep their teeth clean as well. Just keep the extras to 20% or less of the dog’s diet so you don’t throw off the balance of the kibble.

I was aware about it since long time that is way all my dogs ate, eat and will eat only home cooked food!

Mojo :”(

I hear you sister… I would put my words into verse but the only poem I know is about a man from Nantucket. It is timeless but it really doesn’t pertain to bandanna masked men grinding up the neighbors Airedale Terrier or the demise of mankind.  

So when they say dog food they literally mean “dog” food. I hope the same does not go for Girl Scout Cookies or Chinese Food. Shari, don’t be so doom and gloom your 13 years old. Wait till your $160,000 home gets appraised $40,000 less then what you paid for it and your 401k holds it’s value about as good as a spaghetti strainer. Well gotta go the dog is chewing up Ninjagos. 

I’m posting them here to show that we are not as smart as we think we are otherwise we would of changed our behavior a long time ago. we aren’t smart with animals OR ourselves. We need to change.

 Shari- your poems are very good. But this is a dog food site….not sure why you’re posting them here.

BULLYING BY: (ME) (13 years old)
a person that,
owns no heart,
is cold, selfish, and mean,
for inside,
I’m pretty sure,
is treated like a queen,
enough is not enough,
for them,
because they sleep at night,
wondering,
if they’ll get,
what they want in time,
Bullying,
is what they do,
to achieve more self-esteem,
though not caring,
for the person,
crying down in streams.

LIFE by: (me)
life is to thrive for,
though we don’t do that now,
with all these technologies,
we’re all going down,
our air we breathe,
is chopped down,
for me,
Though is that really true?
is paper worth the lives we live,
and people we go to,
our planet,
is to the point that,
there’s no turning back,
for loggers know,
the vast effects,
and that our planet,
will not last.

 This is so sad i felt nauseated just reading it, it sickens me, people are in my opinion the stupidest species alive. we think about ourselves now. and don’t think about any long term affects. our pets, all of you have owned a pet. most of you have seen your beloved pet die. I own an adorable Shih Tzu and two cats. I hate what WE are doing to this planet, and our own pets, innocent animals DIE from OUR mistakes, and none of us try to stop this. and its too late for those that do. when PEOPLE were evolving, THAT obviously was the mistake! Not these animals, not the planet. US. WE are all jerks. WE don’t deserve to be around, all we have accomplished is ruining our planet to the point were its irreversible. Life stinks. but we deserve it. not the animals. I am 13 years old and of all people I’ve met NO ONE cares as much about this subject as I do. PEOPLE ARE MEAN AND CRUEL! We DON’T treat OURSELVES or the ANIMALS with respect. We are TRASHING our planet so bad that I am positive there’s no changing the outcome. We can hold it off, but the outcome is inevitable. The government knows it, the loggers know it, I know it. These JERKS turning OUR PETS into kibble know it.

THE DOG: SHARI D.G (ME)
She knew your emotions,
I’m sure she felt them too,
happy, sad, angry, excited,
For her heart, was filled,
with love for you,

The smell, the look,
as sweet as can be,
The love, the voice,
makes you happy,
the hyper, the lazy,
the right-in-between,
Makes the right pet,
for both you and me.

The eyes sparkle like,
the stars above,
for you never know,
what she’s thinking of,
the nose, so wet,
the ears, so soft,
the tong,
like velvet on a dove.

This friend of man,
can never be described,
as just good or great,
but as perfect,
as well-behaved,
or as mischief,

Greatness blooms in hearts that do,
for we all know,
who we go to,
for me, for love,
for years to come,
Man’s best friend,
Will forever be the only one.

 I sure wished I knew this long ago!!! I’m glad to know now at all…thanks for sharing!!

Wow!!!  This is disgusting!  Someone told me about Acana, a Canadian dog food brand, that uses only human grade products.  I know exactly what is going in to the dry dog food kibble.  Thank you for this article!

Hi Shawna…
I have articles by Becker and Mercola.  
I’ll look at all your info…..especially ‘Scared Poopless’ ….sounds fun LOL.   Thanks  
Yes Catherine is awesome.   She did a seminar in Lancashire (GB)  about 18 yrs ago and I never forgot what she said and since then I’ve read so much by her.  Even though I was already doing what I do now….it felt so good that someone like her basically agreed with me. Well, that was how I saw it then LOL.    I tell all my puppy buyers to read her…as much as they can. 
I must say, between her and me, we have converted so many dog owners to having healthier dogs…..and cheap or non existent vet bills.

Yes Betsy, I can really mess up when technology’s involved.  
Thanks for the welcome  
Not sure what you might learn (lol) but…conversation and exchange of ideas is brilliant on here as I just don’t get out to the shows as I did, and do most of my talking on line now.
The one thing with this way is, sometimes we might say something and be misunderstood, then all hell breaks loose…like all of a sudden what you think/feel/know is all wrong and you’ve offended someone.   I never intentionally offend anyone …but by the same token everyone has a right to say what they think/feel without being abusive or malicious of course.
I hope I learn something here there’s always room for more knowledge….but I can’t share some things because I’m in GB and it looks like most folks so far are in US/Canada ??? I don’t know the different feeds….but I will learn here too I’m sure   .     

I have fed every Honest Kitchen food except for Preference and Verve. My dogs love the stuff! The only downfall is for one of my dogs, it causes more frequent larger stool. I’ve fed it to 6 dogs beside her and did not have that outcome. Right now, I’m not feeding it but will again as I have a box of Zeal and a box of Embark here. If you feed it and will continue, make sure you sign up for their emails so you get coupons and save your UPC’s as they have a frequent buyer program.

Okay if you don’t watch any other video about feeding meat to dogs you gotta see this one. Best i’ve seen in a while!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=nGeKSiCQkPw

Patsyfagin,
You go girl! your posts are not the least bit boring. It is very refreshing to hear someone who gets it. When a dog thrives it doesn’t need vac’s. It doesn’t get worms, it doesn’t get torn up by fleas, It doesn’t get loaded with ticks. It naturally repels mosquito’s so heartworm isn’t and issue either. And the vets don’t get to take all your money. Kinda explains a lot doesn’t it!

The Honest Kitchen line of foods is quality food. They are rare in that they have legally achieved the label of being safe for human consumption.

The only – slight – controversy with their food is the use of whole vegetables. A dog’s digestive system has issues breaking down veggies. Raw veggies should be steamed or, even better, puree’d into a sauce. Some users of Honest Kitchen have reported whole pieces of veggies in the dog’s stool.

My opinion is that the debate on Honest Kitchen is like debating if a food is in the top 3 or top 10 best out of the top 1000 dog foods. It doesn’t matter as in the end your dog has hit the jackpot.

what do you think of The Honest Kitchen food line?

This is OLD NEWS. They discovered all that back in the late 70′s and 80′s. Became even more News worthy when the first case of mad cow desease appeared. Same thing was being used in the fertilizer that grew vegetables and soybean. When I moved to NC, The first spring when driving through the Farming area the smell was horrific  

Nice post!!  Couldn’t agree more!

 Good, fellow dog owners… it’s easy to fall victim to dishonest and exploitative industries if one does not critically examine and logically deduce!
I like to apply one simple rule of thumb when determining what’s the optimal dog food (or human food for that matter)… evolutionary time!

In other words; What have humans been eating for most of their existence? What about dogs… before and after domestication? Dogs, for all intents and purposes, can be considered wolfs. They are so closely related to them that interbreeding should pose no particular problem (if one were so inclined).
I’m not saying that you should feed your dogs a fresh kill every day, since dogs have actually been eating human food scraps, leftover meaty bones, organs, entrails and etc. for (tens of) thousands of years (dogs were the very first animal known to have been domesticated by us).

So before you listen to “expert” and “non-expert” advice about what dogs can and cannot eat, just consider; we raised dogs without knowledge of physiology and biology with great success in the past!

A few things that are practical to cross off the list though, are many modern foods, like processed foods, ultra sweet and otherwise unnaturally energy dense foods. The thing about food today is that humans have meddled with every stage of food synthesis in both plants and animals, from fetus to plate and seed to plate.
So to claim that some food is 100% natural is only true in the sense that everything that exists is part of natural reality! But truly natural food, like wild game and wild, self propagating edible plants/herbs/fruits are tricky to find (except in mostly undisturbed native habitats). It’s even possible that our best, most natural organic produce is not as “healthy” as food used to be, before people began doing the job of mother nature… for one because humans may choose to f.x. cultivate the biggest apples… but those are not necessarily the healthiest and most nutrient dense.

At least it is known, from evidence found in fossil records that before man started cultivating the earth with agriculture he was very healthy. It shows best on the impeccable white teeth of hunter-gatherer sculls and their tall healthy bone structure, compared to the arthritic, small skeletons of early agriculture peoples and their black, degraded teeth. These remains can be found from around the same time (c.a. 10000 bc) from when humans were transitioning to agriculture.

The punchline of this way too long comment of mine… is this; humans don’t have all the answers today any more than they did a 1000 years ago… we’ve just got a hell of a lot more questions! So don’t trust any claim, especially not those that claim absolute certainty or make large promises. That line of thinking applies to dog food and everything else in life!

A list of companies who do this would be helpful.

The more the merrier Hound Dog Mom! I want to get to 1,000 and then who knows.

We met a lovely bloodhound called Fred a few months ago, he had his nose stuck in my treat bag (home made dried liver) in a flash

Well I’ve got 354 dogs on my blog who don’t have to be concerned with this poison being fed to them. Finding out about raw feeding is the best thing I could have done for my dog and so now I spread the word http://tinkerwolf.com/1000-raw-fed-dogs/raw-fed-dogs-1-to/

JUST WANTED TO THROW UP

urbabymama, Really? What is the reason that you feel the need to show everyone your pit hair? NASTY!

Good God… I’m on a fixed income & cannot afford ‘prescription food’ for 3 dogs.  I’ve advised my Vet of their diet – they verify @ each visit, & she’s expressed ‘her’ approval.  She’s a Purdue University grad., & of recent years.  Are the vet practices aware of these issues or are ‘they’ in the dark as well?  I thought I was doing well buying at PetSmart as opposed to grocery store, shelf food.  I couldn’t even read it all word for word…. I just ‘skimmed’.  That was as much ‘graphic imaging’ that I could handle… stuff like that stays in my head keeps me awake at nite.  Ugh… 

Urbabymama….

most likely anything from a supermarket. 

you’re welcome!

No, not the ones I mentioned.  They are all reviewed here under 5 star dry food. All have named meats and named fats according to their labels…

Amicus is a toy breed dog food, it is very small kibble and has a weight management formula.  Instinct is a very small kibble as well.  I’ve used both of these.  As far as weight loss is concerned, I wouldn’t get a “diet” food unless it was Amicus or Blue Buffalo Wilderness Healthy Weight or Core Reduced Fat but this one is a larger kibble (I’ve used it too) or a handful of others.  For my obese dogs I just used regular food (above average protein and average fat, Blue Wilderness and Instinct at the time) and reduce their portions and be very strict on treats and exercise and they lose weight, no diet food needed. You should be able to feed less than what you were feeding before if you pick a better dog food.  Regarding the warm chip smell, he may have a little yeast or mange.  One of mine smelled like a bag of Fritos when he was mangey but some of my fosters have that “doggy smell” and they have some yeast/fungus. Or it could be neither! My dogs (4 pugs) don’t have any body odor any more after changing to a good grain free/potato fee diet.

http://www.amicuspetfood.com/

ericapd – What dog foods are available in your area?  Do you have a budget?  What are you currently feeding your dog?  Why the change?  How old is your dog?  What breed?  How is your dogs, coat, ears, eyes, skin, weight?  Itching?  Scratching?  Smell?  Dandruff?

Thank you all for your replies to my post. They mean the world to me. I am sorry for letting my anger flow outward into print. I blame the government and the big companies who care about profit and paychecks. They have no soul. Thank you anyway for sharing. Our animals are no different than children. They just have more legs and more fur. I love them all the same.

Hi Stangfast…….

I’m sorry and saddened by your post. I know the pain 
felt, at the loss of a pet. try to remember the love of blue, and if you can let go of the hate. this world is far from perfect, but that should not turn us into what we loath.

I wish all pet food company top officers would commit suicide…my dog is dying of cancer directly caused by my ignorant daily feeding of “poison pet food” made by them. They deserve no less than the same agony my dog
Is enduring. I spent loads of money on tests that prove unequivocally what caused his cancer. I needed to know. He’s just like my own child. I love him.

His name is Blue. I cant watch him suffer anymore. He will be put to sleep today. I will bury him at home.

Hey Crazy I’ll take you up on the million dollar offer.I totally agree with everything you said but a million bucks?? I’m all in lol

Actually some of the foods on the list above are perfectly fine – even healthy – for animals and humans.  Slaughterhouse waste, often including organs, is usually extremely nutritious but is wasted because humans insist on only eating choice cuts. The idea that pets too should not eat this food, which would be wasted then, only means that more animals are produced for animal feed, causing unnecessary resource use (water and land) and pollution (methane).  

Road kill too is fine, people in rural communities sign up to lists to be called after an animal is hit so that they can come to the scene immediately to collect, butcher, and eat it.  It’s about not wasting animals (and nutrition).

Furthermore, the spoiled supermarket food you speak of is probably not actually spoiled.  Much of what supermarkets throw out is perfectly edible, just blemished and since people don’t want to eat imperfect food, it is wasted.  

I highly suggest you re-evaluate your message to consider sustainability.  Dogs don’t need to eat only chicken breasts, lean steaks and pork chops… in fact, that’s not even natural, for small dogs especially.  They do need nutritious and uncontaminated food certainly – but most of the animals raised to be made into dog food are treated with a host of drugs, so that’s not entirely safe either.

I never knew this until the age of twelve, that was when I started recording my cat’s sicknesses and when he vomited… –Kinda sick, but it enlightened me to what was exactly being thrown into his, small, innocent body– I am now the age of fifteen, as I had my recent birthday on 12/30/1997. I looked at these two videos- 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAZrpWzAzww and ,  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03jOl1xG084  . And instantly I watched them both; they were informative but I was about to spittle from what I saw. I saw what you described as when the bodies were being mixed, and THAT alone just made me sick. THIS is the one that REALLY made my stomach turn- 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03jOl1xG084 . I learned all I needed from the first, and a tibit from the second; which isn’t all that much considering what twelve year old minds go through. The worst part was that when I saw what by-products were, I KNEW I was injecting my cat with “Sodium Penitobarbital” which isn’t all that good; in fact… It’s horrible, and it euthanized the pets to be thrown into what they ate: cat food. Sodium Penitobarbital is in by-products, and that’s what we had in the so-called “9 Lives” brand. I switched to the HEALTHY purina brand, and it’s not the one with the same ingredients.

Have you looked at the lists yet?  That’s a good place to start.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/best-dog-foods/best-grain-free-dog-foods/best-grain-free-dog-foods-dry/

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/best-dog-foods/best-dry-dog-foods/

I’ve also  noticed that alot of the better brands are not at Petco and Petsmart.  There are a few new additions at Petco fairly recently like Merrick Before Grain and Natures Variety Instinct (and they  have Wellness &  Blue Buffalo and Natural Balance) but alot of the better foods are at the feed store/tractor supply/lawn & garden stores/pet specialty stores. Petco might have 10 to choose from versus 30 to chose from at the feed stores. And you can always email the company’s website and ask for samples or the retail stores may carry those as well. A good diet now means less vet bills in the long run.

Marilyn are there a list of ingredents any where on the website?

I am the owner of a new dog daycare and dog food retailer called the Boston Dog Company. I wanted to sincerely thank you for the information you have published. For years I have suspected that there was truth behind the rumors of “roadkill” and euthanized animals in commerial dog food. I wanted to find out if I would have permission to place your link on my dog website warning dog owners of the dangers of commercial dog food. My website is http://www.BostonDogCompany.com or http://www.BostonDog.Co.

Thank you again for your article and await your reply to if I have permission to post a link on your website.

Sincerely,
Kent Leung

Managing Director,
Boston Dog Company

I have just begun producing made-to-order, natural, kosher dog food. I would be happy to send you a copy of my Press Release. Please visit my website at http://www.caninekosher.com. Call me at [phone number blocked by editor] or email me at [email address blocked by editor].
Thank you,
Marilyn Shapiro

It’s easy to recognize me. I’m the one with the cute yellow Lab.

Two different people with that same strange but cute spelling of Aimee? That’s weird…

Shameless stated, “…..veiws to this forum in a non-threatening style.” re Dr. aimee’s rhetoric. I couldn’t agree more. When she disagrees or disputes someone elses statements, she will do so in a civil and secular manner. Contrary to jumping to conclusions and making baseless assumptions.

Ahhh don’t worry Shawna, you’re quite capable of taking on Dr. aimee, as am I actually, but I like to be nice and allow others to go head on. Shameless can as well as Jonathan and Richard. And of course, Mike, has shown he is more than capable of matching it with aimee, aka Dr. aimee.

BTW, Dr. aimee, is not the Aimee who has just posted under 2 different threads just then.

remember, kids… corn makes you fat!

I agree with you though, in that, too many commercial raw brands whether frozen or air-dried (I prefer the term air-dried over dehydrated because air-drying process actually retains most of the moisture from my understanding), have intentional formulation higher in fat than what is found in Nature.

Shawna – You are a great adversary and also like minded. I think when it comes to sources in the subject we’re referring to, you would be the best adversary/opponent to challenge Dr. aimee, and her consistent attempts to dispel many advantages of higher protein to carb facts.

I vote you as our team leader to combat Dr. aimees many spin doctoring arguments of the latter, lol. It’s all in good fun and my “Dr.” title for aimee is an inside joke between us, though I am suspicious of her agendas

Actually those aren’t “ideal” but rather the minimums

Oops, I posted before reading your 2nd comment….

2nd last post I wrote, “Though, in Nature, protein is not 2:1 to fat”. I meant to write, “Though, in Nature, protein is not ALWAYS 2:1 to fat, which is dependent on the prey. Kangaroos for example, though native to Australia, are way down on the fat scale.

Not at all, Shawna. Butt in as many times as you like. You seem to know what you’re talking about and so far, I am in concurrence with most of what you write.

Though, in Nature, protein is not 2:1 to fat. It is more closer in levels than that, and carbs are way down the scale. But then again, wolves have no choice but to be active. My 2 dogs, are class 2 (Terriers) and have an abundance of energy beyond that of Carl Lewis in the 100m sprint of 1988 Olympics, lol.

Oh for sure there are, Jonathan. Grass fed meat sources, in regional NSW, that is. Just a matter of finding the time one day to find such source I can trust.

Speaking of time, I’m not working now (tonight) but can’t sleep, so I’m on here, lol.

Re ‘grass fed and grass “finished” –
On the weblink I provided, most of the listed farms grass-feed and grass-finish their beef.
http://www.eatwild.com/products/farmsthatship.html

Here’s an example of one that is “grass-fed and spring-watered”:

Waterfall Beef is the oldest grass-finished beef producer in the Ozarks region; we’ve been “grass-fed and spring-watered since 1995.” We’re woman-owned and our pastures are managed organically. Our production methods meet or exceed the standards for the American Grassfed Association, Animal Welfare Approved, and Certified Humane.

Gordon – I would think that Australia has similar availability of superior meats and bones from small local farms.

I’d love to write a book about DFA, Cathy… maybe a story that encompasses all the commentators lives in a fictional sense, but also blows the whistle on dog food… kind of like Upton Sinclair’s “The Jungle”, but for the pet food industry. lol

And yeah, Gordon, I forgot you are an Aussie. Texas may be a bit far… lol I would think you could probably find a source of grass-fed local lamb out there though…

Wow, this thread moves fast…

Gordon — thank you soooo very much for your kind words. I’m very much enjoying myself here on the site… My “home” is actually another site but it’s not as stimulating as this site… I get to help a lot of people on the site but I don’t really feel I learn much any more…

I couldn’t agree with you more on grass fed and “finished”. Here in the states if it doesn’t say “finished” then it may be a marketing ploy. ALL beef is grass fed — til they move to the feed lots the last 2 – 3 months of their lives to be fattened up for market.

You mentioned you are still investigating ZiwiPeak. Would you mind if I offer a thought on the food? Guess I’m not waiting for an answer so sorry if it is no Per Mike’s page on ZiwiPeak — the dehydrated food is 40% protein, 31% fat and 21% carbs. What I find in my classes and on my other forum is that people are only concerned about protein and carbs. Fat can be problematic as well though IMO.. Here’s why I say that — there are 4 calories in every gram of protein and carbs. There are 9 calories in every gram of fat. So this food provides 160 calories from protein, 84 calories from carbs and 279 calories from fat.. For less active or older dogs — the dog may be satiated and quit eating, due to the higher calorie content from fat, before he/she actually meats his/her protein nutritional needs. This is one what that manufacturers can keep their costs down — more fat then protein. Dr. Karen Becker DVM, Mike has linked several of her videos here, says fat should not be more then 1/2 the amount of protein to prevent protein malnoutrision. So ZiwiPeak should be about 20% fat instead of 31%. I don’t think this is as big an issue if feeding a rotational diet but if this were the only food fed — it could be problematic over time.

Add to this — IF, I didn’t see info on, the omega 6 to 3 ratio is off and additional omega 3 needs to be added to balance the food (or if coconut oil needs added for medicinal purposes) this throws the balance off even more…

Hope I didn’t butt in where I wasn’t wanted

Thanks again..

Congratulations Jonathan and mom!
When you have spare time, I figured you’d be the perfect person to write a book about DFA, titled something like Dentist Reveals Dog Food Renegades. I think you have a nice writing style!
And you provide a good balance with your raw food comments.

Thanks Mike! I’ll start posting a little bit more regularly again, but yeah, it’s still kinda overwhelming sometimes.

We aren’t sure yet if they are identical because they haven’t been tested, but we can’t tell ‘em apart! lol

Thanks, Mary Lou, everyone is going great! Well, the not getting any sleep part ain’t no picnic for mom and dad, but hey, what do you do, right? lol

Yeah, one of these days, Gordon, I’ll get her switched to raw or at least a high quality canned. For right now, though, I have a daughter, and two new baby boys, so it’s going to be a minute before we can afford any extras! By the way, you mention grass-fed meats, and let me tell you, they are not readily accessible. You can’t get them in a grocery store on anything like that. You really have to find local farms that raise grass-fed meats, and even then, you have to make sure they are truly grass-fed and not just “pastured”. Grass-fed is quite expensive, too. Have a look at this website… he sells grass-fed meats for people and pets, and has a bunch of interesting omega-3 essays…

texasgrassfedbeef.com

Having said the above, and as much as I’d like to find the time to formulate my own BARF meals for my dogs, as I said I would now do, thanks to Dr. B’s profanity, I realistically can not do this, time-wise. And because, I’m more limited in my choices down under re commercial type BARF dog foods, due to less competition (309 mill people in US as opposed to 21 mill in Australia), I am considering K9′s raw frozen (Not freeze-dried, as we have access to the actual raw frozen version down under), until my investigation into that product is complete. The other consideration is ZiwiPeak’s air-dried raw brand, which is not exactly cheap.

I’m not usually here at this time, but I’ve woken up early afternoon on a Saturday afternoon AEST and won’t be working tonight.

Thunders Mom – Your situation is all too often the case. Kibbles and all processed dog foods for that matter, are a man made concept (Not Nature’s concept), born out of convenience, business, and these days, greed!

All mainstream kibbles (including commercial holistic type kibbles, albeit lesser of evils) are so far away from what Nature intended for dogs or cats for that matter that they are as unnatural as possibly could be. There are so many expert anecdotal evidence (Never permitted or accepted as scientific evidence. i.e. a threat to the establishment) that mainstream grain, generic meat and bone meals (containing even euthanised dogs, cats, cattle etc, hence containing traces of pentobarbital and even sodium thiopental), most by-products unfit for human consumption, and high carbohydrate (A reversal of Nature’s rule on the amount of carbs dogs were meant to consume), riddled kibbles in fact, almost certainly have increased cases of pet cancers in the last 50 to 70 years.

Thunders Mom – I feed my dog mostly raw. I am very frugal, but also quality-conscious. Often, there is a way to get high-quality BARF ingredients, like pasture-raised meat, from farms near your area. Most of the smaller local farms are either certified organic or they use organic practices.
http://www.eatwild.com/products/index.html

Some meat deals can be found through some of the raw dog food co-ops. Some are ‘clean’ meat:
http://www.dogaware.com/diet/rawgroups.html

Costco sells a lot of organic foods for a fair price.
Coleman Whole Organic Chicken $2.29/lb
http://www.thethriftymama.com/2011/01/costco-organic-price-list.html
http://www.thethriftymama.com/2011/05/organic-costco-shopping-trip-2011.html

I also get some organic meat at my local organic market – chicken and turkey necks and backs for 50 cents/lb. Organic organs average around $2/lb.

After losing my beautiful German Shepherd to cancer I considered a BARF diet for my other dogs. But I became concerned about the level of hormones given to feedstock to increase weight and milk/egg production. Organic is just too expensive to be an option. I decided to go with Wellness Core as the best alternative for my pets. It seems like there is no best choice, but lots of bad ones!

So are you saying that Taste of the Wild is not a good dog food? Face it it’s got to be better than Ole Roy, Alpo, or any of those other dog food out there that have less than 3 or 4 star ratings. I’ve been feeding TOTW for a couple of years to my APBT and she’s doing great on it. She’s been on it all of her life. She’s 2.5 years old.

Jennifer – Unless you see it yourself, you’re likely to never be able to confirm anything about petfood manufacturing plants. For some insight, here is a comment written by a petfood manufacturer:
http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/dog-food-reviews/brothers-complete-allergy/comment-page-2/#comment-27084

Jane – People should heed your warning about consuming ‘secondhand recycled garbage from these rendering plants’, (although most Won’t, because they think they Can’t).

For those who desire local meat and dairy that is as clean as possible on this toxic planet, for you and your pets, click this link – http://www.eatwild.com/ – where you can find “your source for safe, healthy, natural and nutritious grass-fed beef, lamb, goats, bison, poultry, pork, dairy…and other wild edibles.”
Choose your location at this link – http://www.eatwild.com/products/index.html

“Every day, hundreds of rendering plants across America ship thousands of pounds of this recycled garbage to ranches, farms, feed lots… and pet food manufacturers.”
So remember, boys and girls, that this is also fed to the animals you eat; you are just getting it secondhand

Dogs and cats should not be given dry food at all, especially food containing cereals. Dogs are carnivores and should be eating a fresh raw meat diet including fish and eggs (inlcuding meaty bones!). Some shredded raw vegetable may be included but only very little to simulate the stomach of a fresh kill. Do a google search on BARF feeding and treat your pets with the nutrition and wholesome diet they deserve and stay away from ALL commercial dog food.

Mary Lou, while I guess Tomato Pomace may be a problem, I do believe beet pulp is colorless.

Smart dog. lol! No, but really, I’m glad you found this site. Have a look at some of the 3, 4, and 5 star dog foods. Be sure to transition to a new food by mixing it with the previous food for about a week.

Jenn- That is why we are all so happy that Mike Sagman has taken the time for this advisor site!

Too bad that the general public chooses to ignore. In reality all manufactured food is suspect, most are obvious. By the way, i see here that taste of the wild is 5 star here. We used this for a while but learned that Diamonnd makes it. Although we had no problems with it Diamond has one of the worst quality control programs after Walmart. Recent corporate buyouts and interests will continue to bring quality down ….

i just recently in the last 7 month became aware of the bad food out there. one is 7 years old b4 those 7 months for 6 years she had wal-mart food. i feel so bad for not knowing how horrible it is. i will never feed crap with my future pups

Hi –
I’m just figuring out what to feed my pup, she’s 8 months old, and I’m starting to have to think about what sort of adult food to feed her. There are a million different “better” products out there and I have no idea where to even start when picking one for her. She’s extremely athletic, (She’s a Basenji with a little bit of terrier, and she is in love with agility) so I’d need something higher in fat and protein to keep her weight on, but I also want something that is good for her, and is going to give her a long happy life. Anyway, can you guys give me an idea of what is good? Something a college student on a budget could afford. (i.e., not $30-40/bag) Thanks!

I wish I lived where meat was under a dollar a pound! I have a very energetic 60 pound Australian Cattle Dog and here in Canada’s north, it would cost $10.00 a day to feed him a diet of raw meat. He is on one of the 5 star grain-free dog foods evaluated on this site. I make sure he gets nice meaty bones every week, and add leftovers and when available and on sale, different kinds of meat. Even just the bones cost more than a dollar a pound.

This week in addition to his Before Grain Chicken, he had beef kidney (raw), beef heart (cooked) and 2 bones to gnaw on, plus strawberries, avocado, banana, broccoli and mushrooms.

There is no way I could afford to feed him raw all the time. Harry is high energy and needs “jet fuel” to keep weight on, and he is allergic to grain. I fed my old female raw, and homemade, but she was the “easy keeper” type.

I’m really glad this thread is still going strong… I just now came across this site and I may be able to shed a little light on the issue of “is this still going on today or not”…

The following quote is taken from the FDA’s website (doesn’t get more credible then that does it?). This article was “last updated” in September of 2009 – FDA link at the end of quote.

“There appear to be associations between rendered or hydrolyzed ingredients and the presence of pentobarbital in dog food. The ingredients Meat and Bone Meal (MBM), Beef and Bone Meal (BBM), Animal Fat (AF), and Animal Digest (AD) are rendered or hydrolyzed from animal sources that could include euthanized animals.” http://www.fda.gov/AboutFDA/CentersOffices/CVM/CVMFOIAElectronicReadingRoom/ucm129134.htm

Science Diet and ProPlan are two companies that are still using animal fat, animal digest and meat and bone meal.. Many have removed these products but not all.

4D (dead, dying, diseased and downed) animals are also used in dog food. This is also from the FDA’s website – link provided.

“CVM is aware of the sale of dead, dying, disabled, or diseased (4-D) animals to salvagers for use as animal food. Meat from these carcasses is boned and the meat is packaged or frozen without heat processing. The raw, frozen meat is shipped for use by several industries, including pet food manufacturers, zoos, greyhound kennels, and mink ranches. This meat may present a potential health hazard to the animals that consume it and to the people who handle it” [emphasis mine].” http://www.fda.gov/ICECI/ComplianceManuals/CompliancePolicyGuidanceManual/ucm074712.htm

I included these links in an article I wrote for a local magazine last April. Not sure if I can include the link? If so, here it is http://omaha.net/articles/pets-need-good-nutrition-too#comment-318

Keep up the great reporting!!!

I belive what da says regarding pet food manufacturing.
I do a lot of research into foods and whats best for cats.
I would doubt road kill would be in pet food, as you say who will take time to travel the miles required to collect just a couple of bodies, that would be rendered down to a couple of tablespoons of meal.
I would be more careful on ANY pet food that in manufactured in China, or foods made elsewhere that contain ingredients from China. Melemine poisoning of not just peoples pets, but also there own people seems ludicrous, but they havent learnt. This year (2010) it was found again in human grade products from China.
We also have a rendering plant local to us. I kill my own cows for our 30 cats, and bones, hide and offal are taken to this plant. There is only chooks, goats, sheep and cows rendered there. No pigs, as the meal produced is sold to the Middle East (god knows what for!) and they have religious ethics about pigs.
Mike, an old saying goes, ‘believe have of what you see, and none o f what you read’.
People are very good at twisting things around to make them worse than they are. Unless you can physically see what you have read, dont believe it

Mike I am not sure where you are getting your information from. It is wrong. It is really wrong. Posting quotes from 1983? this is 2010!! Who do you we think we sell this stuff to? Do you not think it is not controlled by goverment? Our company, produces a high quality product and because of that it expects top dollar for it.

Do you think another company would pay top dollar for a product that they themselves do not lab test? I will admit it is a smelly line of work that not a lot of people can deal with. I mean a lot of people. That does not mean that we do not take care, pride or monitor the product we produce. It does not mean that those customers that buy from us do not either. You sell a lot of people short by not being able to see your own limitations.

anyone doubting the truth of whats allowed should bring up the PDF containing the allowable ingredients.
and Australia sadly:-( imported the same!! exact laws regarding what our pet food can contain.
we had a brand called Bonnie it was roo meat and aus made. then purina, now Mars, own it.
they say …they use aussie suppliers for ingredients but that does NOT mean aus grown Non GM Grains..just supplied by! ( clever wordplay) australian merchants-can be imported from heaven knows where.
uncle bens WAS the only g/teed all aus grains etc used, now I see Mars owns them too.
Raw or butcher supplied fresh made pet mince is ok, and consider making your own dry kibble, it isnt that hard.

My one big problem with how to fix this gross industry is this: When we hyper focus on the singular importance of healthful ingredients and real meat, we don’t stop to think where that will come from. As it stands right now, with our massive demand for meat so that the fast food joints can sling .99 cent cheese burgers at us and KFC can flash-boil millions of pounds of chicken wings, we are already using meat, in America alone, at an unsustainable level. As you read this, acres of rainforest are being slashed and burned so that BK can raise cattle on the land. land that will be leached bare of nutrients within a few years and made useless for many more years to come. And here in America the government subsidizes the growing of corn so that it can be sold below cost and fed to cattle that can’t digest it and chickens that are grown so rapidly with hormones that they often cannot walk for more than a few steps without having to lay down under the stress of their own bodies.
So if tomorrow they shut down all the rendering plants with new government rules and all the dog food makers had to use real meat, where does this extra meat come from? It would have to come from an industry that is already stressing our environment to the limits. The honest and correct solution would be for us to eat a lot less meat so that there would be plenty for the dogs! We don’t’ NEED it. Dogs do. We are omnivores and sustain a healthy life better with veggies, legumes, and limited amounts of meat. Eating meat every meal, every day, is a relatively new practice for our species and has certainly had it’s consequences on our health and environment. But people will not stop. Particularly in America where fast food is so prolific in our culture. So what is the answer? should dogs suffer for our environment? or should we speed up our over consumption problem by making it mandatory that all dog food be made with real meat?

What if they simply made it so that the truly gross stuff… the grease, diseased animals, dead pets, road kill… were not allowed, but instead, used only the meat packing industries leftovers? I mean, as long as it is fresh, what is wrong with feeding dogs heads and feet and guts of chickens, cows, and pigs? In the wild, carnivores eat their entire prey animal. Their intestines evolved to handle such items. And I would see nothing wrong with using those parts we don’t eat, unspoiled and clean, to make meat meal. That way it could still be a way of recycling the non diseased, clean parts of the animals that we simply don’t like to eat (and some people even do! Haggis? Eww!) The hearts, brains, livers, guts, feet, eyes, snouts, etc, all sound disgusting to us, but that’s an emotional reaction. There is nothing wrong with a dog eating these items, so long as they are clean and fresh, and they would be happy to eat them all, as anyone who has ever seen a nature documentary on wolves knows all too well. So would that be a more acceptable solution for “lower priced” dog foods? I think so. But our meat usage still needs to be curbed by multitudes. Let the pups have the chicken and we can go get some hummus and carrot sticks.

Hi there,
I live in South Africa, Johannesburg, My dog of 2 years gets quite a bad rash in summer from the dry grass, i was feeding him hills science diet – i even tried sensitive skin; then somebody suggested i feed him fish pellets – there’s a company called maxhealth – please can you have a look at their website – http://www.maxhealth.co.za – would you be able to tell me if their ingredients are on the level? – they only supply in south africa – please advise, many thanks and best regards Denise

Check out http://www.swaggerbout.com.au all natural dog food, raw diets, no preservatives.

Why some people find this hard to believe beats me, Are we all ignorant to think the world is a perfect place and that we treat other things with respect? Because we don’t infact humans are the most cruelest species that will probably ever live. This makes me sick and it’s sad that we treat animals like rubbish (dead or alive). Has anyone seen the chinese fur farms? Another sad thing. This is not only disgusting to the animals put through those machines and minced up but also that this would be fed to another living thing. See the website re the Fur farms.

Also Eddie, don’t talk up Natura too much, it’s been bought by Proctor and Gamble…

Good job with this site Mike. Don’t listen to Mr Cook, and Mr Martin, these are dolts who will continue to feed the crap pet foods like Beneful, or pedigree, and think it’s !!AWESOME!! food. Thank god I got my little guy off Iams and other garbage and onto Orijen and Evo. Now that I have him on a prey model raw diet, he is doing incredible and will be 21 soon! Companies that make the pedigrees, and Benefuls of the world will not change a darn thing, as they sell 1,000 times more than good wholesome companies like Natura, or Champion. I’m just glad I’ve done my research, and have “gotten” it, and don’t blindly follow companies that make the sub par foods.

Hey Mike, I think you need to get off your high horse. Restaraunt waste oil or what you refer to as “grease”, Is more often than not used as a source stock to produce bio-diesel, which is what my car runs on. I get a real anti-recycle vibe from you. You also come across as a bit of a shock jock and know it all. You condemned glenn martin ealier in this forum for being affiliated with a company that produced a product that recycled restaraunt waste oil. Really? That waste oil could be recycled into any number of things including fuel. Do you have any idea how much dog food would cost if every aspect of its production was on the up and up? Most people would not be able to justify the expense of owning a dog. The shelter in my town is already full of animals that were given up by their owners who could not afford them.

Mike i looove your site! thankyou for the time you take for ALL the research you do to help us…the consumer of such garbage”
Im a first time dog owner and became obsessed with whats in our dog food. ITS INSANE and so hard to believe but when you read the SAME thing on hundreds and hundreds of diff people companies etc you know it HAS to be true!
i keep trying to spread this horrible news to friends and family,,,,but they just think im nuts its so frustrating i just want them to be aware of what they r feeding their precious pets :O/
I loooooove the answer you came back with to that skeptical man mark. the video says it all. he must believe it in the back of his head otherwise why is he reading all your info :O)
i wanted to get your feelings dealings experiences with raw pet food. I love the idea its scarey but seems to be the best. I would appreciate and info you have on it. Thank you so much. im wondering….lol…how do i know when or if you answer this?? i guess keep checking back everyday?
Thanks again and hope to hear from you real soon. I want to place an order asap of Primal or bravo or paw naturaw raw dog food!
Have a great day!

Sounds like a far stretch of the truth. No sources cited, no pictures. Probably 90% made up.

okay, thank you, and I was also wondering if I asked you some questions if you could answer them so I can conclude them into my research paper also?

Hello, I was wondering if you could give me the article name or at least somewhere where I can find it. I’m doing my senior project on the truth about commercial pet food. I’d really like to use it in my research paper.

Could you please list companies that actually manufacture dog and cat food.