Be Sure Your Pet's Food Is Safe

Last year pet owners spent $16.2 billion on food for their animals. Yet we’re not sure if the food we’re giving our pets is 100% safe.

MSNBC.com reports that in 2007 thousands of dogs and cats were killed due to a contaminated pet food recall. One manufacturer, Menu Foods, recalled about 60 million cans of dog and cat food - 91 different brands all together.

The pet food contained imported Chinese ingredients tainted with the chemical melamine and cyanuric acid. These contaminants were added to plain wheat flour, enabling it to be sold as more expensive, higher-protein ingredients.

According to the Pet Connection blog, not much has changed since the pet food scare.  The inspection of pet food plants has not improved; pet food industry standards have not been overhauled and pet food labeling has not been revised.

Legislation that has passed relies on pet food companies to voluntarily recall any contaminated product. Even China is expected to police its own product safety without outside inspection.

To be fair, some pet food manufacturers claim to be using better ingredients in their products and are more careful about where their ingredients come from.

Are our pets any safer one-year later?  Here are some questions you need to ask to make sure your pet is eating the right stuff:

•What should pet owners expect to find in animal food? The common ingredients in pet food include grains such as corn, wheat, rice and grain by-products. The meat products found in pet foods are chicken, beef, seafood and meat by-products.

•What should you look for when reading pet-food labels? The FDA informs us that ingredients must be listed is descending order by weight.  MSBNC.com informs us, “Meat and poultry are heavy ingredients that contain about 60 percent water, so it doesn’t take much to land them at the top of the ingredient list. They might be followed by wheat, wheat middlings and wheat meal run.”

Connection.com tells its readers to choose a food with meat as the primary ingredient. However, be sure the specific type of meat is listed on the packaging, such as chicken, lamb or turkey. Don’t settle for the generic word “meat.”

•Is organic pet food any safer? Feeding your pet an organic food product is definitely better for your dog or cat. However, there’s no guarantee against contamination.  Some toxins can occur naturally.

•Is our best choice to give our pets a homemade diet? Some people refuse to purchase commercial pet foods. They prepare their own, using the same meats and other ingredients they cook for themselves.

Giving your pet a home-cooked diet gives the owner the assurance their animal’s food contains no by-products or mysterious meat.  Some animal nutritionists are concerned that a home-prepared diet may not provide the animal a complete and balanced recipe.

•How do I know if a commercial pet food is contaminated? Once you open a new bag, pouch or can, check for an unusual appearance or odor.  If you find something “off,” don’t feed it to your pet. If your pet becomes sick after eating a new diet, stop feeding and get in touch with a vet.

If you suspect anything wrong with any pet food, check the packaging for the manufacturer’s phone number and contact them immediately to report a problem.

Your pet relies on you to provide it with uncontaminated food. You should be able to depend on your pet food producer to sell a product that has been tested for contaminants.

John
Email John:  johnsblog@teshmedia.com

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