Every time I log into my computer it seems some company is recalling another brand of dog food. A few weeks ago Iams recalled their veterinary formula Ddets (dry), Eukanuba Naturally Wild, Eukanuba Pure, and Eukanuba Sensitive Skin due to possible health risk . The risk is our humans that handle the dry pet food can become infected with Salmonella. For more information go to the ASPCA Article.
My mommy even got an e-mail from Petsmart saying I had eaten a whole bag of naturally wild months ago that was infected. This really bothers me! It takes months for the company to realize oh no we messed up this food is infected. I was actually sick a while back with as mommy put it the worst diarrhea ever..so gross that mommy said she was actually lucky that she had a sinus infection and couldn’t smell anything while she cleaned it up without getting sick Now we wonder if I had a case of Salmonella but of course there is no way to determine how I got sick or if my food caused it. We are dogs you know and eat pretty gross stuff off the ground sometimes. But I do give Iams props for recalling the food and letting us know to try to prevent anyone from getting sick. It is always good when companies take responsibility for their products and stand by them through the good and the bad! However, I think all the recalls lately show that there is a bigger issue out there about the quality of the food (as well as how they prepare the food) that these companies make for us. Dog food is a big debate right now..grain-free, low grain, raw diets, dehydrated foods, etc. I know it is enough to make mommy’s head spin. She wants to do what is best for me so I have a long healthy life but everyone you talk to tells you something different. So what do you feed your dogs? And why?
My little Tinker eats Science Diet Adult food for Small & Toy Breeds.
She turned a year old on July 10th so I switched from the same kind in puppy to adult.
My last dog Mitzie, passed away in December 2009 at the age of 17.
She ate Science Diet for most of her life.
I am like your mommy and want to feed all of my furry family the best food for them, but I really never know if I do or not.
My Vet. of 34 years told me Science Diet is a good choice.
Oscar is on a combination of a commercial frozen raw mix and a dry kibble. The raw is Stella & Chewy’s Raw Frozen Lamb; and the dry is Addiction Salmon Bleu. I feed a combination so he doesn’t get too much protein but remains on a high quality grain free diet. (He also gets a little yoghurt, kefir, acidophilus and sardine oil to further help with his hisotry of malassezia.) I selected these two products based on the absence of ingredients to which he is allergic, their grain free status, the overall quality of ingredients, manufacturing standards and reputations of the two manufacturers. The other foods we highly recommend are Acana & Orijens grain free formula made by Champion Pet Foods of Canada. They have their own manufacturing plant, use human grade ingredients and direct source all ingredients. Unfortunately, their products — like many dog foods — contain alfalfa, which Oscar cannot have. I encourage everyone to read the ingredients labels on their food.
Vets know surprisingly little about the contents of commercial foods — most of them receive incentives from Hills/Science/Prescription to push those foods, and they actually contain a lot of surprisingly bad stuff. It’s like the relationship doctors have with the pharmas. I’m ashamed that I fed my late Westie Prescription Ultra Z/D for many years — I didn’t know any better. It was only when he got cancer and I talked to the oncologist about dog foods that I started getting educated. I switched him to Acana. Dealing with Oscar’s broader allergies has caused me to educate myself even further. We are lucky to have two natural pet food stores in my town so it’s been easy. I agree it can be overwhelming. After Oscar’s recent blood based allergy tests came back I wanted to scream because so many grain free foods contain alfalfa!! But I researched on line, read labels, narrowed it to three brands and made a decision.
Mommy feeds me Nutro Ultra Weight Management because i have a heart problem and this food was the lowest in sodium with the least amount of empty calories. Mommy spent two days calling EVERY dog food company she could think of and asking about their food. Lots of companys put the nutrition info on the package, but rarely do they include the sodium content. Mommy is always looking for a better food and treats for me, but for now the best my mommy can give me is Nutro Ultra.
I was on my way to visit a friend who is in a coma at the hospital subsequent to a car accident. While travelling a couple of kilometers I was able to think about how relevant it is to tell your loved ones each single day how much they mean to you and the relevance of life in general.