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What is safe to feed our pets?

For the latest recalls, go to:
Dog Food Recalls or FDA website

The pet food recalls continue to happen. Many pet owners are confused about what is safe to feed their pets. Their assumption that commercial dog and cat foods are both safe and healthy has been shattered. Many owners are learning that the pet food industry is unregulated, unlike the human food industry. While there are standards for how ingredients are listed on labels (such as listing them by weight), there are no standards for the quality of the ingredients in pet food. In fact, the pet food industry exists, in part, to make a profit on the food that is not fit for human consumption. It is no coincidence that most pet foods are made by huge conglomerates that also produce human food products.

bullet Statistics show that the life span of America's companion animals is now half what it was in the 1950's and 1960's.
bullet Nearly 50 percent of natural deaths in older cats and dogs are attributed to cancer.

To help prevent your pet from becoming a statistic, click on the happy dog below.

Give your pet the fountain of youth and holistically help prevent cancer!

For a FREE report on What Pet Food Companies Don't Want you to Know, sign up for our monthly e-newsletter.

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What is happening to our pets' food? Why all the recalls? There have always been problems with pet foods. It was inevitable that one day these problems would become widespread and the sources of these problems exposed. We feel the reason these problems have suddenly reached critical mass, in part, is due to the easy dissemination of information with the Internet and the ability to sort through massive animal cases in a national database. Also, people are more concerned now about what their pets are eating, due to the increased status of the family pet. Pets are no longer "just a dog" but a full-fledged member of the family. Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald (Animal Planet) stated that a survey was conducted in 1957 posing the question: Do you consider your pet(s) a part of your family? The same survey was repeated in 2004. Here are the results.

 

Do you consider your pet(s) a part of your family?
  • 1957 = 43% answered "yes"
  • 2004 = 97% answered "yes"

Clearly society's values have changed. If people think of their pet as a member of the family, then why are we feeding them food unfit for human consumption? It is no longer acceptable to have even just 10-15 pets die from contaminated food any more than it is to have our children's school lunch snacks contaminated. So, what can you do to safeguard your pets' food?

 

  • Learn what is really in pet foods. Educate yourself by reading the Born Free USA’s updated article What's Really in Pet Foods with the assistance of Dr. Jean Hofve, a veterinarian specializing in the dietary needs of companion animals.

Animal Protection Institute - Saving animals is our reason for being.

  • Research what Nature designed our dogs and cats to eat to be healthy and feed biologically appropriate food. This is not necessarily the cheapest or most convenient food (such as dry kibble). Read our e-Book: Save Your Dog or Cat.

e-Book

  • Find a trusted manufacturer that uses high quality ingredients in its pet food and uses no by-products, wheat, corn or soy products or any artificial preservatives. If they outsource their manufacturing, find out if they provide their own ingredients to the manufacturer and if they test the final product. Even some super premium pet foods may be outsourced to manufacturers as it is cost-prohibitive for every pet food company to build their own manufacturing plant.

  • Always make sure your pet's immune system is 100%, to help your pet tolerate less than pure foods (these can be unavoidable at times, no matter how carefully you select your pet's foods). We give our pets a bio-algae concentrates type product to balance their immune system and help them process toxins.

bio-algae concentrates

Dr. Jean Hofve (www.LittleBigCat.com) recommends avoiding wheat or corn products of any type when selecting pet foods. They can be contaminated with pesticides, molds and other toxins. Also, corn is commonly genetically modified. Following this rule increases the safety of what you feed—many recalls involve contaminated grains. For instance, the Menu Foods recall in 2007 involved wheat gluten contaminated with the plastic melamine. A Diamond Foods recall involved contaminated corn. We do not feed our pets any food or treats with wheat, corn or soy products in them.

Dr Jean HofveDr. Jean Hofve also has an excellent series of audio books on how to feed your dog or cat: How NOT to Kill Your Cat or Dog - What the Heck Do We Feed Them Now? Go to this page to order: How NOT to Kill Your Pet

Dogs and cats are both carnivores, designed to eat whole prey animals, not grains. However, grains are widely used in pet foods because they are cheap fillers and sources of protein. Despite what the commercials say, pet foods were not invented to improve the health of dogs and cats—they were invented for our convenience and to make money. They have only been widely used since the middle of the 20th century. We now think that feeding dry kibble is the "normal" way to feed our pets and anyone who does otherwise is coddling their pet or just plain weird. Even many veterinarians scold their clients for feeding something other than an "approved" commercial pet food. However, commercial pet foods have been fed for less than 100 years out of the thousands of years that humans have had pets. How did our pets survive before then? Dogs were fed raw bones from the butcher and table scraps. Cats typically lived outside and hunted and were fed table scraps as well. If they lived on farms, they also drank raw milk, a very healthy food. In other countries where pet foods are less widely used (such as Italy), people often cook for their dogs, just as they do for their children.

Cats were domesticated by the Egyptians to protect their granaries from rodents. They were the perfect animal for the job since, as pure carnivores, they ignored the grain and feasted on the rodents. And yet today we insist on feeding these descendants of the African wildcat dry kibble that contains more grain than meat because it is cheaper and more convenient. In fact, people think they are "spoiling" their cat if they feed it canned food rather than kibble. For an excellent reference on why cats should not eat dry kibble, read Dr. Jean Hofve's article Why Cats Need Canned Food. While dogs are more omnivorous than cats (obligate carnivores needing 70-90% meat), their diet should still be 60-80% meat with limited grains. So, why are we feeding dry kibble, which cannot be manufactured with more than 50% meat because it literally gums up the kibble making machines? Dry kibble is nutritionally equivalent to feeding meat-flavored cookies to our pets.

To learn more about the problems with commercial pet foods read our Holistic Choices e-Book Save Your Dog or Cat on optimal nutrition for your pet.

e-Book

Click picture to order from our website

In our e-Book we discuss the following nutritional myths:

  • Dry kibble cleans pets' teeth
  • Raisins are healthy training treats for dogs
  • Raw food is a dangerous "fad diet"
  • Commercial pet foods provide a healthy, balanced diet

All these myths and other holistic questions are discussed in Optimum Choices' e-Book, Save Your Dog or Cat. Based on our 90+ years of holistic experience, we utilize our scientific degrees to research what dogs and cats are really designed to eat. We compare our commercial pet foods with the diet nature designed our pets to eat. By looking at the nutrient deficient foods we serve our pets, you will understand why our pets have a higher cancer rate now than humans. According to the Morris Animal Foundation, nearly 50 percent of natural deaths in older cats and dogs are attributed to cancer (63% for Golden Retrievers, Kali’s Wish Cancer Foundation). We go on to explain why most holistic vets recommend a home-cooked or raw meat diet for dogs and cats.

If you cannot do a home-cooked or raw meat diet, we suggest you visit your local natural pet supply store for suggestions on brands to purchase. If you do not have a store near you or you would like home-delivered food, we suggest Life's Abundance pet food from (only available for shipping within the U.S.). All Life's Abundance foods are formulated by famous holistic veterinarian, Dr. Jane Bicks, DVM. They are completely safe and have never been involved in a recall.

If these expert dietary suggestions seem like too much trouble or cost too much money, think about this final parting thought:

"Those who cannot find the time and money to
feed their pets healthy food now,
will be obliged to find the time and money later
for expensive veterinary care."

 

 

 

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