What is your PET eating?
Purina, Pedigree, Gaines, Iams, Eukanuba, Science Diet, Nature's Recipe, or any other brand from your
supermarket or pet supply store? Except excluding the commercial foods who do not use chemicals, byproducts and fillers. These are called commercial (or artificial) diets. They can include: 4D meat. Livestock
that are dead, dying, diseased, or disabled when they reach the butcher's stockyard will not pass USDA
inspection. Their meat goes straight into the pet food bin. Meat by-products. Chicken beaks, feet, lungs,
and intestines left over after the muscle meat has been pulled off for the human market Rejected grains and
cereals that didn't pass muster (because of mold, etc.) for the human market. All grains and cereals are
contaminated with pesticides. In other words, pet food tends to get what is left over after the decent
ingredients have been pulled out. Pet food gets what you and I are not legally allowed to eat. It gets worse.
The California Veterinary Medical Association confirms that "meat and bone meal" can legally include
dead pets (from roadkill or vet's offices) that have been ground up in rendering factories. If they were
wearing chemical flea collars or had been treated with antibiotics or steroids before they died, those get
ground up with them. So does the plastic bag around their bodies.
This is disgusting! Why do we buy this stuff?
Because of the convenience and advertising. Pet food manufacturers are multi-million dollar businesses
who lure you with pictures of steaks and brown eggs and raw veggies. Four of the top five major pet food
companies in the United States are subsidiaries of huge multi-national food production companies:
*Colgate-Palmolive makes Hill's Science Diet (and also tests their cosmetics and cleansing stuff on
animals)
*Heinz makes Nature's Recipe
*Nestle makes Alpo, Fancy Feast, Friskies and Mighty Dog
*Mars makes Kal Kan, Mealtime, Pedigree, Sheba, and Whiskas
Does anyone believe that these corporations have the slightest interest in your pet? Their bottom line is
money. Commercial diets began in the 1930s when big cereal companies were trying to find something to
do with their rejected grains. They discovered that the meat industry faced the same dilemma - leftovers not
fit for human consumption. The idea of mixing it all together and calling it "pet food" was born. Huge
advertising campaigns planted this term in the public's mind, but the combination and quality of these
ingredients is not "food" as it was ever intended to be. No living creature was ever intended to obtain their
nutrition from a bag or can. Holistic veterinarians believe that these sterile commercial diets are playing a
huge role in the shortened life spans and tremendous increase in canine health problems that we are seeing
today. "*Commercial diets can keep your pet alive, but they cannot keep her in optimal health. There's a
long-term drag on her system. The immune system is hampered. Overall health is compromised in subtle
ways. Genetics probably plays a role in how well a pet copes with this, but in the end, this chronic suboptimal health allows organs to fail, or opportunistic infections and cancer cells to take their toll - sooner
than would have happened if the pet were fed a natural diet. It's impossible to measure, and "PROVE"
would involve long-term, expensive studies. Who would pay for this? The pet food companies? They have
nothing to gain. They're very happy with the status quo."
Just check out the labels
Spend a half-hour in your supermarket reading labels. What you're hoping to find is: The FIRST ingredient
AND either the second or third ingredient should be lamb, lamb meal, chicken, chicken meal, turkey, or
turkey meal. Not byproducts (beaks, feet, lungs, intestines) or animal digest. Pet food manufacturers have
lobbied for these vague categories so they can use whatever "meat-like" substance they can find most
cheaply. You have just cut out virtually every bag and can in the supermarket. These brands are all based
on cereals and grains (wheat, rice, corn, soybean, etc.). Manufacturers use these because they're cheap, but
a pet's short digestive system has a very hard time digesting them. Many pets are allergic to them and
develop chronic digestive problems, crummy skin and hair, foot-licking or face-rubbing habits. Keep
reading. How many ingredients do you recognize as food? Rice gluten, wheat mids, dried beet pulp...do
they sound like anything that anyone was ever meant to eat? You won't find these listed on the label, but
commercial diets can legally contain straw, corncobs, peanut hulls, and the blood-soaked sawdust swept up
from the floor. These ingredients are considered acceptable by that AAFCO label that is reassuring you of
how wholesome and nutritious this food is. Ignore protein percentages. They are only useful when the
protein is coming from sources that a pet's digestive tract can actually use. If byproducts and animal digest,
filler grains and 4D meats are providing the protein, and it's been processed to death in a bag or can, the
protein percentage may indeed exist on paper but it probably won't be used by your pet. The preservative
should be Vitamin C/Vitamin E. No chemicals such as ethoxyquin, BHA, or BHT. Manufacturers use these
because they make the diets last longer in their warehouse and on store shelves. It's your pet who has to
take these toxins into their body. Ethoxyquin is manufactured by Monsanto as a rubber preservative. The
containers are marked POISON. The Department of Agriculture lists it as a pesticide. OSHA lists it as a
hazardous chemical. Ethoxyquin promotes cancer of the kidneys, bladder, and stomach. Knowing this,
some clever companies have taken to listing it on the label as E, which fools people into thinking it is
vitamin E. Oh, the scruples of Big Business! BHA and BHT can cause liver and kidney dysfunction, and
bladder and stomach cancers. These chemicals are already banned in most European countries.
"Premium foods" like Science Diet and Iams
You've probably fled from your supermarket and are combing the shelves of PetSmart, hoping for better
results. You'll find the situation improved in that the first ingredient may be meat. But remember...that meat
didn't even pass USDA inspection. Do you really want your pet eating that? Keep reading and you'll find
the byproducts, animal digest, wheat gluten, corn gluten, beet pulp, rice flour, cheap vegetable oil, and
other unrecognizables. And many of these manufacturers are still using ethoxyquin, BHA, or BHT as a
preservative. Even when it doesn't say so on the bag, they can be using them, because...AAFCO rules only
require manufacturers to list what THEY themselves put into the bag. If they buy their ingredients from a
supplier who has already added the preservative, the pet food company doesn't have to disclose that on the
bag. Isn't that nice?
*But my vet sells Science Diet! We would not feed Science Diet to our PETS on a dare. In our opinion, this
soy- and corn-based diet is AWFUL.
*My vet doesn't agree. That's not surprising. The Hills Company, who make Science Diet, is one of the
most profitable divisions of that giant corporate machine, Colgate-Palmolive. Hills was the first to spot the
lucrative potential of getting their product into vet's offices. They got their foot in the door and kept it there
through smart marketing. Hill's is heavily involved in funding veterinary education. They offer bags of
kibble to vet students at tremendous discounts, so the vets will get used to them and will hopefully
recommend them to their future clients. Vets receive only a few weeks instruction on nutrition...often run
by nutritionists connected to Hill's. Hill's also sponsors "nutrition classes" for vet techs and gives out those
plaques you see on your vet's walls proclaiming the vet techs to be Animal Nutritionists. Talk about your
conflict of interest! Many vets will tell you that the pets who eat Science Diet and other artificial diets are
in dandy health. No mention of the epidemic of licksores, hotspots, itchy rashes, foot-licking, intermittent
loose stools, gas and belching, greasy coats, flaky skins, constant shedding, tartar-clogged teeth, and
chronic digestive upsets that parade through their offices every day. What are the vast majority of those
pets eating? Artificial diets. But instead of even considering that, these problems are called "typical breed
problems" and treated with drugs. Or the owner is told to switch to a different artificial diet, which is no
better than the first one. While they may have changed brands, they haven't changed foods. It's all the same:
meat-like products, grain fillers, and other non-foods.
Just as an example!
Skin and coat problems are almost an epidemic in Golden Retrievers today. Vets will shake their heads and
say, "Yes, Goldens tend to have skin problems..." and go straight to steroids and other drugs. Yet breeders
report that when these dogs are simply taken off artificial grain-based diets and fed real food based heavily
on meat, the skin and coats clear up like magic. Odd, eh? And as for the poppycock that "If your dog likes
it and does well on it, you should leave well enough alone," should we allow our children to eat nothing but
junk food simply because they love it and don't look sick for the moment? Many dogs do gobble up their
kibble - because they're desperate for some kind of food and because it's sprayed with greasy fat to tempt
them to eat it. That doesn't mean it's even remotely good for them.
Holistic vets have made the connection
Your vet may have chosen not to make the connection between over-processed, chemical-laden, artificial
diets, and illness after illness after illness, but LOTS of other vets have. It is important to understand the
Different Types of Vets so you will understand the philosophy behind a particular vet's opinion. It always
surprises people to learn that there are TWO widely different "schools" (philosophies) of veterinary
medicine, the AVMA and the AHVMA. They have completely opposing views on many, many canine
health issues. Most holistic (AHVMA) vets warn their clients, in very strong terms, NOT to buy the vast
majority of commercial food. We are using the term "food" loosely here. It is our position that artificial
diets are not even related to food. It is disgusting to hear them referred to as "pet food" simply because
huge corporations and their well-paid minions have conditioned us to believe that it's so.
Real pet food
Real pet food is food. Simply food. Fresh chicken and turkey and beef. Fresh raw vegetables and fruits.
Fresh brown rice and oatmeal. Fresh yogurt, eggs, and cottage cheese. Fresh raw honey and garlic. It's not
people food, it's not human food, it's not table scraps. It's fresh, wholesome, nutritious, real food. The same
food that generation after generation of pets thrived on and lived to ripe old ages on...before the pet food
corporations flooded us with their advertising. "Pets should not eat real food," they say. "They should eat
the same dry or canned artificial diet, day after week after month after year. In fact, they actually need the
exact same diet every day or they'll get sick." This is pure and absolute lies and crap.
*We recommend this marvelous book:
Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health for Dogs and Cats , New Updated Edition (1995), by Dr.
Richard Pitcairn DVM Ph.D. As you can see, this book was written by a vet, so don't let anyone tell you
that all vets recommend commercial diets! Dr. Pitcairn is not only concerned with nutrition, but with taste
and variety. Imagine if YOU had to spend the rest of your life eating the same thing every day, for every
meal. Your little one has taste buds and a keen nose. That's why she becomes so excited when you take
fresh food from the refrigerator. She is not begging for "people food" - she is craving real food and variety,
just as you do.
But how do you balance these meals?
No animal (or person) needs each meal balanced. No living creature anywhere eats like that. The concept of
a "complete and balanced diet" is a marketing gimmick to persuade you that you're too stupid to feed a pet.
By promising "complete and balanced" or "balanced by veterinarians", it sounds as though you need to be a
rocket scientist to feed a pet. That would come as a shock to your great-great-grandparents, I'm sure. They
certainly had no problems doing it. Their pets lived 15 to 20 years on meat, meaty bones, veggie stews, and
wholegrain breads...and rarely saw the vet. How balanced is our own diet each and every day? Do we
weigh and measure all our food and compute the proteins and carbohydrates and vitamin B in each bowl of
cereal? Of course not. We're simply told to eat a variety of good foods. What a pet really needs, and how
much, is simply a guess. It changes from one scientific study to the next, just as human studies do. Pet food
companies have no idea, nor are they concerned with, what your pet really needs for optimal health. They
are only concerned with minimal health, i.e. existence. Artificial diets are balanced on paper, yes, but to
prove a point, one neat vet made a "food" out of old leather, crankcase oil, and wood shavings. It met the
pet food industry's recommended proportions of protein, fats, and carbohydrates for a pet. Obviously, then,
the numbers aren't important...it's the quality of the ingredients that counts. And the only way you can
know and control the quality is to buy the ingredients yourself and mix them. General balance is needed
only over a few weeks period, and it's very easy to do. Just follow Dr. Pitcairn's recipes. Or try this book:
The Holistic Guide for a Healthy Dog , by Wendy Volhard.
"After a brief period on a high-quality diet,
it is fairly common for an animal in sub-optimal health to discharge accumulated toxic material or to
undergo a brief aggravation of its symptoms (often called a healing crisis). These apparent setbacks are
normal, often necessary, bumps on the road to well-being." Dr. Pitcairn
Dr. Pitcairn devotes an entire chapter to this phenomenon. He explains that your pet usually feels better at
first, with increased energy, as the improved nutrients begin recharging her. Her digestive system gets
down to some much needed "housecleaning" and begins scrubbing out the junk that has accumulated in
there. Toxins and hidden parasites exit through the urine (turning it dark or strong-smelling), through the
colon (turning stools soft or mucousy or wormy), and through the skin (causing dandruff or dead hair). This
is normal, and it is healthy. "Malnutrition and the toxic condition of the animal fed commercial diets can
result in the inability to digest and assimilate basic food components of the fresher, more wholesome type
we are describing here. The body will sometimes expel these accumulated poisons during periods of
diarrhea, hair loss, and scaling of skin. These periods are known as Healing Episodes." Dr. William Pollack
DVM
"Human-grade kibbles
Are there any good kibbles? If you mean Good, compared to the nutrients and variety in fresh foods, no. If
you mean Good, compared to other kibbles, yes, there are a half-dozen small companies who make humangrade pet food. They use human-grade ingredients that have passed USDA inspection. They include no
junk fillers or chemical preservatives. You can recognize every ingredient on the label as a whole food.
Turkey, chicken, chicken meal, whole ground barley, whole ground brown rice, whole steamed potatoes,
ground white rice, chicken fat (preserved with natural vitamin E and vitamin C), herring meal, whole raw
apples, whole steamed carrots, cottage cheese, sunflower oil, alfalfa sprouts, whole eggs, whole clove
garlic. Then the vitamins and minerals. (This is Innova brand. made by Natura)
The typical protest of AVMA vets The vet says table scraps aren't good for pets. Sadly, table scraps in most
households includes hot dogs, bacon, bologna, pizza, buttered and salted leftovers, and so on. If this is what
someone means when they warn about a pet getting sick from "people food" or "homemade food", then
they are absolutely right. That greasy junk is not fresh food or real food. No pet could live on it and be
healthy. People can't live on it and be healthy, either. Fresh, real food means just that. You feed the exact
same food groups that are in commercial diets...except your ingredients are wholesome. Your ingredients
have been passed by the USDA. They are not rancid or tumorous, and there is no blood-soaked sawdust,
peanut hulls, or ground-up pets mixed in. If you buy organic, your ingredients include no chemical
preservatives, antibiotics, or hormones. Your ingredients are raw, as much as possible, so they are packed
with vital living enzymes. Finally, your ingredients include variety, and nutritious supplements.
For any vet to apply the term "table scraps" to your homemade diet of fresh meats and veggies and
oatmeal and other wholesome foods would be as ridiculous as applying the term "pet food" to the bags
of processed, artificial Science Diet in his waiting room.
Email me at chey_belle@hotmail.com with your questions or comments. THANKYOU for at least
getting this far and reading this vital information.
we b s i te De s i gn and Gr a ph i cs Copyright © 1998*01 * Cheyenne Designs* All Rights
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*Information gathered and put togehter from the API report *Several cat and dog breeders
*Other Holistic pet care websites *And personal experiences