http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/...n6755580.shtml

Fido's food may be making kids sick, a government report warns,
detailing the first known salmonella outbreak in humans, mostly young
children, linked to pet food.

The outbreak sickened 79 people in 21 mostly eastern states, between
2006 and 2008. Almost half of the victims were children aged 2 and younger.

Char wrote:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/...n6755580.shtml

Fido's food may be making kids sick, a government report warns,
detailing the first known salmonella outbreak in humans, mostly young
children, linked to pet food.
..
..
..
..
..
..
..
..

There have been no known cases of human salmonella linked with wet
pet food.

WTF?


--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008

Phil L wrote:
Char wrote:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/...n6755580.shtml

Fido's food may be making kids sick, a government report warns,
detailing the first known salmonella outbreak in humans, mostly young
children, linked to pet food.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

There have been no known cases of human salmonella linked with wet
pet food.

WTF?

How can salmonella bacteria thrive in dry food but not wet?

--
Phil L
RSRL Tipster Of The Year 2008

On 8/10/2010 11:33 AM, Phil L wrote:
Phil L wrote:
Char wrote:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/...n6755580.shtml

Fido's food may be making kids sick, a government report warns,
detailing the first known salmonella outbreak in humans, mostly young
children, linked to pet food.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.

There have been no known cases of human salmonella linked with wet
pet food.

WTF?

How can salmonella bacteria thrive in dry food but not wet?


It tells you right in the article. Actually reading the entire thing
might help.

"contamination may have occurred during a later process when food
pellets were sprayed with flavor enhancers."

Hi,
I just saw on the news that dry pet food might be bad also, i have both dry food for cats and dogs, and i am wondering if any brand information has been released? As u can imagine i am quite concerned.

On 9/8/2010 4:20 AM, elywaldoya wrote:
Hi,
I just saw on the news that dry pet food might be bad also, i have both
dry food for cats and dogs, and i am wondering if any brand information
has been released? As u can imagine i am quite concerned.

The article mentioned " Mars Petcare US plant in Pennsylvania, including
Pedigree and Special Kitty.

But that was just the latest case.

However, this can be a problem with any dry pet food because they spray
"flavor enhancers" on the food. IOW the pets won't eat it unless they do
this because it's so bland and cooked to death.

Dry pet foods are also bad because they are dry which is not a natural
way for them to eat. Add to that the fact that kibble is primarily made
from grains which are not natural for dogs to eat. Even the grain free
kibbles just substitute other carbohydrates like sweet potato, many of
which can cause problems like itchy skin, kidney problems and worse.

You can avoid all of this by switching to a more species appropriate
diet of real meat, bones and organ meats. You don't have to use flavor
enhancers to get them to eat it, they love it! Cats can be a little
stubborn to switch over but it's totally possible. Dogs usually take to
it right away with little problems.

http://www.rawlearning.com/rawfaq.html

On Wed, 08 Sep 2010 10:59:09 -0400, Char
wrote:


Dry pet foods are also bad because they are dry which is not a natural
way for them to eat. Add to that the fact that kibble is primarily made
from grains which are not natural for dogs to eat. Even the grain free
kibbles just substitute other carbohydrates like sweet potato, many of
which can cause problems like itchy skin, kidney problems and worse.

I disagree with your mantra that all carbohydrates cause problems for
dogs - one of my dogs' favorite treats is dehydrated yams, which I
think are better for them than most commercial dog treats. I also
think that grain-free kibbles may be even worse for dogs than kibbles
with carbs; the protein contents are unnaturally high.

You can avoid all of this by switching to a more species appropriate
diet of real meat, bones and organ meats. You don't have to use flavor
enhancers to get them to eat it, they love it! Cats can be a little
stubborn to switch over but it's totally possible. Dogs usually take to
it right away with little problems.

My cat has flat-out refused to switch. She gets as much canned food
as she wants, so I'm not going to push it. Three of my dogs have made
the switch and they are definitely loving it. I found chicken backs
for $.49/lb and so am getting ready to switch two more dogs over to
all raw. I've not had any problems switching the dogs in terms of
reluctance or refusal to accept it, but a friend is trying to switch
her dogs over and one is enthusiastically eating raw and the other is
refusing it.

One thing that's interesting is that the raw-fed dogs don't head for
the water bowl immediately after eating the way the kibble-fed dogs
do. For dogs prone to bloat, this is a consideration.

On 9/8/2010 2:18 PM, sighthounds & siberians wrote:
On Wed, 08 Sep 2010 10:59:09 -0400,
wrote:


Dry pet foods are also bad because they are dry which is not a natural
way for them to eat. Add to that the fact that kibble is primarily made
from grains which are not natural for dogs to eat. Even the grain free
kibbles just substitute other carbohydrates like sweet potato, many of
which can cause problems like itchy skin, kidney problems and worse.

I disagree with your mantra that all carbohydrates cause problems for
dogs - one of my dogs' favorite treats is dehydrated yams, which I
think are better for them than most commercial dog treats. I also
think that grain-free kibbles may be even worse for dogs than kibbles
with carbs; the protein contents are unnaturally high.

Let me try once again to explain this to you. A dog cannot digest carbs,
gets no nutritional value from them and they cause problems for dogs.
That's all fact so please stop comparing facts to your opinions.


You can avoid all of this by switching to a more species appropriate
diet of real meat, bones and organ meats. You don't have to use flavor
enhancers to get them to eat it, they love it! Cats can be a little
stubborn to switch over but it's totally possible. Dogs usually take to
it right away with little problems.

My cat has flat-out refused to switch. She gets as much canned food
as she wants, so I'm not going to push it.

Cats have to go slower in switching. First the move from kibble to
canned. Then switch to carb free canned, then switch to raw. Some cats
take a week, some take many months. There is an excellent group for
support for moving cats to more appropriate diets at
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/WholeCatHealth/

Rosemary is a genius when it comes to cats.


Three of my dogs have made
the switch and they are definitely loving it. I found chicken backs
for $.49/lb and so am getting ready to switch two more dogs over to
all raw.

What else are you feeding? Chicken backs are high in bone and lack zinc
and iron dogs need. I buy chicken by the case. Got a 40 lb case of
chicken necks for $14 and leg quarters for $15.

I've not had any problems switching the dogs in terms of
reluctance or refusal to accept it, but a friend is trying to switch
her dogs over and one is enthusiastically eating raw and the other is
refusing it.

She needs to try a different meat source or try a little garlic. Last
resort is to sear the meat just a little. Green tripe is an easy food
for switching over. Few dogs can resist it.


One thing that's interesting is that the raw-fed dogs don't head for
the water bowl immediately after eating the way the kibble-fed dogs
do. For dogs prone to bloat, this is a consideration.



That's because eating food with plenty of water already in it is natural
while dry kibble is not.

"sighthounds & siberians" wrote

You can avoid all of this by switching to a more species appropriate
diet of real meat, bones and organ meats. You don't have to use flavor
enhancers to get them to eat it, they love it! Cats can be a little
stubborn to switch over but it's totally possible. Dogs usually take to
it right away with little problems.

My cat has flat-out refused to switch. She gets as much canned food
as she wants, so I'm not going to push it. Three of my dogs have made

Hehe I had trouble getting Daisy-chan to switch as well. I just took it
slow. For her now, kibble is a treat.

With cats, it really does show in time if they are on dry. Not every cat
will have problems, but a significant portion will by age 10. They start
having urinary tract and kidney malfunction issues in much higher numbers.
Mixed feeding of dry and canned helps a great deal over pure dry feeding so
you are doing fine.

Canned is better than dry for a cat (even cheap canned) but raw feeding a
cat is (per my vet who IS a raw food fan) difficult to get right so he
doesn't suggest it as more than a side item to augment cans. My suggestion
would be to try different brands and types of canned if you want to convert
her more fully. Like, I've not had a cat yet that will touch a can that
lists 'tuna' (just an oddity, they wouldnt sell it if lots of cats didnt
like it). Daisy-chan will eat any canned type as long as it's not tuna but
she prefers to have a sort of soft pate in the morning and something
shredded/sliced in evening.

The main problem with dry feeding cats is they tend to have non-functional
'I'm thirsty' settings. I am pretty sure you can beat that with broth added
at the side of dry if you have a tough to convert cat. Daisy-chan gets 3 TB
a day. Ok, she pees alot on this canned wet food and broth diet (grin) but
that's fine.

On raw-feeding Cash, we remain and will be 50/50 due to his gulping habits.
Morning he gets his blue wilderness kibble and evening he gets normally
something raw (last night, it was a hunk of boneless salmon fillet and about
1oz hog jowl). Battling weight again as he's not getting as much exercise.
Charlotte is in school, Don's hip is giving him grief, and my neck is not
happy with me so can't ride the bike these last 3 weeks.

"Char" from rpd.health wrote
sighthounds & siberians wrote:

(snippies)

You can avoid all of this by switching to a more species appropriate
diet of real meat, bones and organ meats. You don't have to use flavor
enhancers to get them to eat it, they love it! Cats can be a little
stubborn to switch over but it's totally possible. Dogs usually take to
it right away with little problems.

My cat has flat-out refused to switch. She gets as much canned food
as she wants, so I'm not going to push it.

Cats have to go slower in switching. First the move from kibble to canned.
Then switch to carb free canned, then switch to raw. Some cats take a
week, some take many months. There is an excellent group for support for
moving cats to more appropriate diets at
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/WholeCatHealth/

Rosemary is a genius when it comes to cats.

Char, stick to dogs. You don't even have a cat as far as I know. Advising
a cat owner on how to swap (if he wants to pursue that) is better done in
the RPC.anecdotes which I added to this thread as it is relevant. S&S, *if*
you want some help and desire to swap your kitty to canned more fully, join
that group where it's totally on topic and there are many people who can
help.