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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Sunday, June 03, 2007 - 6:44 am
You're welcome, Kar. Good luck! (Since Costa is on a diet that is heart-friendly, I've quit looking for alternatives for him. Other than seriously investigating the canned foods. Because I refuse to pill him, he's gonna get a tablespoon of wet every night, even if it's five times more expensive to buy the organic food.)
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Happymom
Member
01-20-2003
| Sunday, June 03, 2007 - 8:48 am
Kar, there is a company called Wysong that makes high quality food. I don't have time to check on all of it, but it might be worth a try. We fed our cats Geriatrix dry cat food for a few years. It is lower in cals. It is about 32% protein. They make canned food also that is 100% meat. But some of it (the 100% meat, not the regular canned cat food, I think...)was make by Menu Foods I think. I don't know if it was recalled and I don't think they are still using Menu Foods, but I don't know. The website has a lot of info, but I don't have the time to look there much now. Anyway, they have quite a few types of dry food and it is high quality. It is expensive. The only two places I found it were at my vet and at a local independent grocery store, not even at the local independent pet store. Oreo was overweight all her life until she began having thyroid problems. Even then, she still keep the puffy tummy. It all began when we bought some high protein cat food when they were maybe 1 or 2 yrs. old. We'd gone grocery shopping and came home to find the bag ripped open. Naughty kitties. Anyway, she gradually gained weight and after a few yr we realized we couldn't leave food out for eating whenever they wanted. At one point the vet put her on Rx diet food, I can't remember the brand or if it was canned or dry. No amount of exercise really helped her. When she got old, her hips bothered her a lot. The other cat was always very physically active even at age 19. She stayed at a lower weight all her life too. Re: the food, sometime during the cats' first three years, we had heard how bad by products were so we avoided those (except when they were sick and tried anything to get them to eat). I really believe eating high quality food helped them to live 19 years and through various med. problems. I really think the healthy food helped. (sorry for such a long post and it's probably in the wrong area...) Back to Wysong, Dr. Wysong is one of those that ...while maybe he isn't a fanatic...he does have opinions on the best food for animals. He does have all these different types of pet foods available for purchase, but, he has this list of what he believes are the best foods for pets and I think way down on the list is dry pet food. I did find it very interesting...been a long time since I've read it. (I think raw meat and bones are probably first, I don't remember)
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Sunday, June 03, 2007 - 9:14 am
Many of Wysong's cat food products are lower in protein, higher in fat and carbs. The Archetype diet is higher in protein (50%) but also higher in fat (28%). Note that this diet is not specialized for felines and is, instead, targeted at "carnivore companion animals." And again, while the ancestors of our domesticated kids ate animals that they caught, ours don't. (Remember, too, that wild animals will eat the entire critter they catch... including bones, entrails, stomach contents, and the like. So they get various vegetables and other vitamins/minerals from whatever the critter has eaten. Yuck!) Truly, some of these "specialized" diets, such as Wysongs, worry me. I wouldn't feed Archetype to my cats without talking to my vet first. And again, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. It's all well and good to be concerned with what we put in their little bodies. But my cats are indoor only, have never eaten raw anything, and I'm not sure they'd adjust. (Aside from the fact that Costa does have very specific frequirements, I mean.)
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 2:31 am
Doane Pet Care is announcing today a voluntary recall on a specific single lot of 55 pound bonus bags of Ol’ Roy Complete Nutrition dry dog food. This voluntary recall has been issued because FDA detected Salmonella in the product. Product: Ol’ Roy Complete Nutrition dry dog food Size: 55 pound bonus bag UPC Code: 6 05388 72076 4 Lot Number: 04 0735 1 Best Buy Date: Apr 13 ‘08 Best Buy Date Location: Back of bag Affected Stores: Only 69 Wal-Mart Stores potentially received this product from 2 distribution warehouses in Virginia. The 69 stores are located in Maryland (4 stores), North Carolina (10), Ohio (1), Pennsylvania (3), Virginia (40) and West Virginia (11).
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 2:39 am
Texas lab finds pain medicine in pet food From that article: The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is investigating a Texas laboratory's finding of acetaminophen in dog and cat food, an agency spokesman said Monday. The medication was found most often with cyanuric acid, a chemical used in pool chlorination, Coneley said. Varying levels of melamine, a chemical used to make plastics, also were found among the hundreds of samples ExperTox tested, she said. The contaminants were found in foods that are not among the more than 150 brands recalled since March 16, Coneley said. The highest level of acetaminophen was found in a dog food sample submitted by a manufacturer, she said. Coneley declined to identify the company but said its officials were given the results "well over a month ago." That company should have -- but did not -- notify the FDA, which first learned of the acetaminophen findings after pet owners posted lab reports on the Internet, Arbesfeld said.
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 6:58 am
With all the scrutiny and independent testing going on, I'm not surprised that more products are gonna be found to contain things they shouldn't. Acetominophen should never be given to animals and I can't imagine why anyone would even consider using it in pet food. Scary, actually. (And LOL... I hadda buy litter yesterday so checked out the aisles at PetSmart to see what brands are there. There's lots of missing brands, one new organic brand, and Purina has another all natural product on the shelves. Of course, I needed my damned magnifying glass so I could read the ingredients list on the 3 oz. cans!)
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 7:12 am
Think we'll be seeing any acetaminophen recalls? I just LOVE that the company got the test results a month ago, but didn't notify the FDA. The FDA found out through internet postings! Wish I knew which company. I'll have to do a little surfing to see if I can find names anywhere (if I find anything more than wild speculation, I'll post the info). Did they not learn from this melamine thing or do they just not care. I wonder what the Duane Edekahl and the Pet Food Institute would have to say about this one. I also wonder if I got his name right, but really don't feel like putting the energy into looking for it. I know I'm close...
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 7:16 am
Alright, y'all. Don't know how I missed this one...but here's a release from the Pet Food Institute from May 27th (Costa, get ready to giggle...): Consumer Confidence in Pet Food Remains Strong in Opinion Surveys Conducted by PFI Washington, May 29, 2007 – Seventy-three percent of consumers say they are “confident or very confident” in the safety of their pet food according to three rounds of public opinion surveys conducted by the Pet Food Institute. PFI, which represents the makers of 98 percent of the pet food sold in the United States, today announced the results of three public opinion surveys conducted since April 4. Results also show that nearly an identical percentage say they are staying with their preferred brand of pet food. “Continued, strong confidence in pet food products is a testament to the fact that Americans’ cats and dogs are living longer, healthier lives due in large part to the carefully formulated, safe and nutritious pet foods on the market,” said Duane Ekedahl, president of the Pet Food Institute. Results reflect surveys conducted April 4, April 24 and May 18-21. In all three surveys PFI asked participants the following questions: * In general, how confident are you that the pet food you purchase is safe to feed to your pet? * As a result of the recent pet food recalls in the news, are you more or less likely to continue purchasing your primary brand of pet food in the future? The first two surveys were commissioned by PFI and had a margin of error of +/- 3%. The third survey was part of an omnibus poll and has a margin of error of +/- 4.5%. Since 1957, the Pet Food Institute has been the voice of U.S. pet food manufacturers. PFI is the industry's public education and media relations resource, representative before the U.S. Congress and state and federal agencies, organizer of seminars and educational programs, and liaison with other organizations. PFI represents the manufacturers of 98 percent of all dog and cat food produced in the United States.
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 7:21 am
Giggle? Well, maybe, in horror! I have to wonder... they polled people on April 4th. News about the melamine was just barely beginning to surface then. And based on what all of us here have been talking about, I'd really question the "Seventy-three percent of consumers say they are “confident or very confident” in the safety of their pet food" statement. Um, no, I'm not confident at all, thank you! And no, I've actually been less likely to use the same food. In fact, I haven't been using the same food. I'd just bought about $30 worth of canned foods (mostly Friskies and Authority) right before the pet food recall. I haven't used a single can. Instead, I've been buying organic and all-natural foods (Newman's Own, Wellness, Organics). Good lord. Who the heck did they survey? People who haven't been informed? Who don't have a Cdbga to dig around and come up with important info before it even hits the news wires? Giggle? Hmm... appalled more like it! (Does any of this remind any of you about the proverbial ostrich-head-sand?) <sigh>
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 7:47 am
Appalling I agree, I was giggling at the absurdity of it all. And I wondered the same thing...Who did they survey? Also wonder, since they did 3 rounds of surveys, whether the numbers were consistent as this progressed? The first survey was, as you say, really early on, so you could have 99% positive at that time, but a really low confidence level now and still average the 75% they talk about. But it could just go to show how the mainstream media has mostly ignored/underplayed this story. Most of the informed people have gotten their information from the internet. And a LOT of Americans still aren't accessing the internet. Perhaps PFI polled people who don't own computers! Maybe they polled the Amish? Or their own friends and family members...
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 8:04 am
Well, remember that news bit that I heard a week ago? And you'd posted about it a week earlier? It was only THEN hitting the news wires, yet you'd dug up the info on the 'net way before then. I don't know if it's uninformed (or under-informed). Or people practicing my favorite Ignore Theory (if I Ignore it, it'll Go Away). And I forgot about the "averaging" of poll results. Yeah, if you had 99% positive at the first poll, and then 50% positive at the last poll, you'd end up with a 50% average. (Assuming some midrange for the second one.) Numbers are just numbers, and polls are notoriously not always a good indication. You'd also have to poll a statistically significant number of people. And considering how many of us own pets, that would have to be a fairly large number (polling 200 people just wouldn't be enough). Maybe they polled people who'd just gotten off an airplane, from a three week vacation in Antartica? (Actually, any three week vacation! It was only by chance that I picked up a paper in Greece the day after OJ's sentence came down in his criminal trial. Otherwise, I wouldn't have known anything till I got back to the States.)
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 4:41 pm
Alright, y'all. I have a couple of brand names of the foods that tested positive for acetaminophen: Pet Pride Cat Food - from the article I posted this morning. Pet Pride is made by Menu, the tainted samples came from food NOT on the recall list. Pet Pride is a Kroger brand and Kroger pulled all of it from the shelves May 23rd, when other Pet Pride products were recalled. So, yay for Kroger. Hill’s Science Diet Sensitive Stomach (Dry Cat Food) - From Itchmo, reported by a poster there who had the food tested after one of his cats died. Reportedly, the largest amount of acetaminophen was found in a sample of dog food, but they are not naming the brand. *SIGH* I just do NOT understand not naming names. The labs have tests...this isn't just wild speculation. Unless...well, these samples were sent from individual consumers...and we all know they can't be trusted. Not like the pet food industry. Anyway, I'm tired and getting a little cranky, so I'll spare you all an angry rant and head for bed. I will have more to post about all this tomorrow. 'Night all.
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Thursday, June 07, 2007 - 5:07 pm
Pet Pride is one of the brands I used to feed my kids, until the recall. And although the cat food that I used wasn't on the original recall list, I did notice that the brand had been pulled from the stores around then (actually, I think it was sooner). Ralph's (my grocery store) is a Kroger's store. I can understand how they'd think that the food might've been tampered with by the pet owner. But still... I just hope they are independently testing those lots, and others, to find out.
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Friday, June 08, 2007 - 10:39 am
Oh, I can understand suspicion of tampering. I guess it all depends on how the samples are presented. The lab report for the Hill's sample says it was submitted in a ziploc bag. But, if an unopened bag/can/pouch was submitted in other instances, you'd think that would lessen the odds of tampering (I'm not saying the Hill's guy tampered with his sample, just saying that in that situation I could see wanting to get an unopened sample to test). BUT, I was reading a bit more this morning, and the dog food sample that had the highest level was submitted by a manufacturer, not an individual (don't know if I missed it last night or it wasn't in the article I was reading then). The lab says the manufacturer was notified a month ago. In that case I don't get why they can't release a name. But, maybe the lab really can't do that. Perhaps there it is like doctor/patient confidentiality. The brand names we have are from individual consumers who had their food tested. And this just makes me shake my head: China blocks US shipments amid food safety row - From the article: 'The products failed to meet the sanitary standards of China,' And, if you've been following this whole thing, you know just how high those standards are!
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Friday, June 08, 2007 - 10:43 am
Sounds a bit like sour grapes to me... if we can't play in your sandbox, you can't play in ours! Puhleeze!
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Friday, June 08, 2007 - 10:47 am
Yeah, that was the feeling I got, too Costa! Here is a site where the lab results for the Pet Pride and Hill's samples are posted: Pet Food Recall Facts - lab test results From what I've read elsewhere: the Pet Pride samples were submitted in factory-sealed unopened cans, but both Hill's were presented in Ziploc bags.
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Serate
Member
08-21-2001
| Friday, June 08, 2007 - 4:29 pm
China blocks US shipments amid food safety row OK I'm so fed up! Let's just not buy ANYTHING from China and not sell ANYTHING to China. Who'd lose out in the end? Sure it'd be rough because alot of crap is made in China but eventually China would be the one hurt. I'm soooooooooooo for American made items even more now than I have been in the past!
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Happymom
Member
01-20-2003
| Saturday, June 09, 2007 - 10:58 am
I am too! I'm checking everything now. Maybe some Chinese are going to lose their jobs if many start refusing to buy anything made in China. I feel badly about that; however, our personal safety (and the safety/health of our beloved animal family members) needs to come first. The use of melamine added to pet food has been explained. What in the world could be the reasons for cyanuric acid and acetaminophen being in the food? I am so disgusted by all of this. Oh...and there is a beef recall for beef sent to WalMart stores. This is human food.
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Happymom
Member
01-20-2003
| Saturday, June 09, 2007 - 11:00 am
http://www.tyson.com/Corporate/PressRoom/ViewArticle.aspx?id=2742 Here is a link for it. It was sent to Walmart in 12 states.
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Wednesday, June 13, 2007 - 2:47 am
1. Lab Finds Toxin In Unopened, Unrecalled Pet Food The same Texas lab that has reported acetaminophen in pet food, has reported finding cyanuric acid after receiving an unopened container of Hills Science Diet Light Adult canned dog formula. This is the first report we have received that was tested from an unopened container. The picture above shows 2 more cans from the same batch. Science Diet Light Adult formula has not been recalled by the manufacturer. The lab report from Expertox obtained by Itchmo states that the tested product had a best before date of 01 2009 and had the lot number T0520917 7048. Cyanuric acid was reportedly found in concentrations of more than 400 ug/g — that’s micrograms/gram. Hill’s representatives declined to be interviewed over the phone and emailed questions were not returned in time for this deadline. An Itchmo reader tested the food based on veterinary tests on a dog. 2. A cat survives eating recalled food not taken off store shelves Months after a nationwide recall, Andy Tonetti bought tainted cat food from the Save Mart in Angels Camp. After eating only six pouches of Iams Select Bites, 14-year-old Rasputin was hiding in dark spaces, gagging and losing weight from dehydration. Six days after Tonetti's purchase on May 29, a veterinarian said the family pet had acute renal failure, the ailment the U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned about at the time of the recall. "I saw a sale, thought 'Good, we'll get that,'" Tonetti said, noting that his wife had sent him to get Fancy Feast. "Geez, we got the death box." Ten days later, Save Mart could not explain why a single box of recalled pet food was on the shelf, especially after so much publicity about an industrial chemical that had been added to Chinese wheat gluten used by pet food manufacturers.
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Wednesday, June 13, 2007 - 6:27 am
How sad, but I'm glad that cat survived. How the heck recalled food could stay on shelves is amazing. When I was at PetSmart last, it was interesting to note how "bare" the shelves were. I don't mean, no product. I mean, there was noticeably less manufacturers' products on display.
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Cdbga
Member
10-04-2004
| Thursday, June 14, 2007 - 2:37 am
1. FDA rules out painkiller as pet food contaminant 2. Union of Concerned Scientists says FDA is not taking scientific concerns seriously 3. HBH Pet Products, Inc. is voluntarily recalling certain fish (food) found to contain the contaminant melamine. Listed products are included in the recall: 20002 Crab and Lobster Bites 1.3oz 11012 Goldfish Bites 1.5oz 11013 Goldfish Nibblets 4.3oz 11024 Goldfish Nibblets 8.0oz 11015 Goldfish Nibblets 32oz 11016 Goldfish Nuggets 32oz 25000 Shrimp Pellets 1.6oz 25001 Shrimp Pellets 4.6oz 25002 Shrimp Pellets 9.1oz 22001 African Cichlid Attack 3.8oz 22008 African Cichlid Attack 8.0oz 22009 African Cichlid Attack 28oz 11017 Oscar Bites 1oz 11018 Oscar Grow 3.8oz 11019 Oscar Show 8oz 22012 Super Cichlid Sinkers 29oz 20007 Baby Bites 1.2oz 4. Menu Foods units plunge 25 per cent after loss of 'significant' pet-food customer 5. Investors believe Del Monte is poised to take business from Menu Foods
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Thursday, June 14, 2007 - 2:07 pm
Jeez, now the fish aren't safe! Thanks so much Cd!!
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Hypermom
Member
08-13-2001
| Monday, July 23, 2007 - 8:22 am
Four varieties of Natural Balance Dog Food was recalled on Saturday for botulism.
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Serate
Member
08-21-2001
| Friday, July 27, 2007 - 12:14 pm
Here's a link to the list. The dog food is way at the bottom, after all the PEOPLE food that has been recalled. http://www.castleberrys.com/news_productrecall.asp
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