Scary Ingredients Approved By The Government: Why is gluten even in dry pet food? Answer, there is a constant search by manufacturers to produce lower cost food that still meets government protein and nutrient requirements. Gluten is not the only cheap and threatening additive approved by the government and added by manufacturers.
Dry Pet Foods are much like breakfast cereals. They are cooked in a mash, then extruded through nozzles at high heat and pressure. This process not only destroys nutrients, it makes much of the rest indigestible. If the ingredients originally had any nutritional value, the extrusion process is sufficient to destroy them. About the best things you can say about dry pet food is that they are cheap and convenient!
Feral cats and dogs would have to be starving before they would eat the ingredients found in dry pet foods. If for no other reason, these ingredients do not provide the nutrients they need to sustain life, let alone health.
Wet Pet Foods are made from the most distressed meat, animals with pus bags and tumors. Even though these animals are approved by the USDA for human consumption, some, but not all, manufacturers are reluctant to use them for humans. Even the meats that are not visibly distressed contain growth and fattening hormones, antibiotics, and highly questionable feed. Additionally, among many scary ingredients, pet foods may legally contain euthanized cats and dogs!
If you own a cat or dog, Google Dog Food Secrets. I was aware of much of what this book exposes, but it still left my mouth agape.
Pay Me Now, or Pay Me Later: GI and immune diseases are at an all time high. Humans and animals are on multiple medications. What are the common denominators? Fast, nutrition-less foods, chlorinated drinking water, not incorporating bioavailable vitamins, supplements and digestive aids into the daily diet, and lack of exercise.
GI disorders among cats and dogs is epidemic. Conventional medication treatment is archaic, potentially causing further damage to animals already weakened from lack of proper nutrition.
According to The Royal Society of Medicine Great Britain- Fully 90% of all chronic disease is caused by an unhealthy intestinal system.
It is OK to Domesticate Cats and Dogs, but Not Their Diets
The original purpose of domesticating dogs and cats was cheap labor. Cats are used by farmers as mousers, dogs as herders, hunters, and protection.
These working relationships no doubt led to some close relationships. Over time, working animals (or more likely their offspring) were sold or given away to city folk. Today, over 90 million suburban households own an average of 1.67 cats or dogs, or over 150 million domestic cats and dogs.
Wild or feral animals hunt and eat fresh kill. They also instinctively eat grass and dirt for the micronutrients and soil-based organisms needed to properly digest the meat.
When they kill an herbivore they first consume its entrails which usually contain plenty of greens and digestive enzymes needed to break down, digest and eliminate the flesh. The closer pet owners come to replicating the diet of their feral relatives, the healthier and happier their domestic pets will be.
Genetic Predisposition at The Blink of an Eye
Without healthy foods, even healthy animals will decline genetically within several litters.
The best way to assure that your pet lives a long healthy life is to know how well the breeder cared for the mother, and the mothers mother. Pets are capable of having multiple litters within their lifetime. This is common in feral animals and commercial breeders (mills). Each subsequent generation inherits the weaknesses of the previous generations. Today, many millions of kittens and puppies are predisposed to an unhealthy life.
Resorting or Maintaining Pet Health: The good news: Animals that are predisposed to diseases are less likely to develop them when fed a healthy diet. Genetic predispositions can be bred out over several generations of proper feeding.
It is up to the pet owner to take responsibility for the health and wellbeing of their pets. Like food choices, choose your professionals carefully. Veterinarians that recommend a raw food diet combined with supplements and digestive aids- before medications- have your pets best interest at heart!
Local bookstores, libraries, and the internet offer a wealth of knowledge regarding proper care and feeding. The American Holistic Veterinarian Association website has a national directory.
We all want the best for our beloved dogs, especially when it comes to the foods they eat. We want to give them only the healthiest food available to make sure that they will live a long and healthy life. But what if the so-called "healthy pet foods" that are being sold in the market today are not reliable anymore?
What do we do when we can no longer trust the food manufacturers who is supposed to provide us with safe and healthy foods for our animals?
When The Food Is Killing Your Pets, Something Has To Change: The widespread recall of pet food has created a scare to all dog and cat owners who rely on commercial brands to feed their pets. All over the country, contaminated pet food has caused many dogs to become severely sick, while a large number of them have died.
In March alone of this year, Menu foods, an Ontario based manufacturing company, recalled more than 90 brands of "cuts and gravy" moist foods (both dog food and cat food) after more than 14 animals died from eating them. A few weeks later, the same company added 20 more varieties of their brand to be taken off store shelves.
It was later discovered that wheat gluten, an ingredient found in the said pet foods, was contaminated with rat poison. The risk of Salmonella contamination has also been the cause of a recall for two brands of pig ear dog treats.
Cases of toxic pet foods go back to December of 2005, when several dogs died and dozens fell ill after eating kibble manufactured by Diamond Pet Foods. It was later found out that the food was contaminated with aflatoxin; a naturally occurring chemical produced from fungus and can be found on crops such as wheat, corn, rice, and beans. This chemical is also toxic to domestic animals, livestock, and even humans. Other pet food recalls during this past decade also involve the risk for Salmonella contamination.
Are These Pet Food Companies Breaking The Law? FDA regulations state that pet foods should be manufactured similar to the way human foods are manufactured. They should be processed under a sanitary environment, do not contain any harmful ingredients, accurately labeled, and safe to eat.
All pet food manufacturers are expected to comply with these regulations to ensure that the food is safe and healthy. However, due to limited resources, the FDA can only inspect pet food issues after consumer complaints are made or if the FDA has a reason to believe that there is a threat to animal health. A recall is then announced by the FDA or the manufacturer if a defective product is found.
Both Stephen Becker & Jane Saeman are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Stephen Becker has sinced written about articles on various topics from Alternative Medicine, Puppies Dogs and Types of Cancer. Stephen Becker is a nutritionaist and President of Vitality Science, where he formualtes scientifically proven remedies and supplements for cats, dogs, kittens, and puppies.. Stephen Becker's top article generates over 9900 views. to your Favourites.
Jane Saeman has sinced written about articles on various topics from Movie Reviews, Music and Cooking Tips. Jane Saeman loves dogs and strives to keep other dog lovers informed.A whole world awaits other dog lovers.Find out how at my website wh. Jane Saeman's top article generates over 74000 views. to your Favourites.