'The only requirement that the industry must meet is to adhere to the Labeling Act, which states that food must contain the name and address of the producing company, whether the product is intended for dogs or cats, the weight of the food, and the guaranteed analysis. The source of the protein included in the analysis can be anything: condemned material from slaughterhouses, road-kill, zoo animals and even euthanized companion animals. Of course, the industry denies all this, especially the use of dead dogs and cats in pet foods. However, a senior official from a large rendering conglomerate in the United States wrote to me, "I know of no rendering company in the U.S. that will segregate companion animals from the rest of the raw material they process."It's not all about enforced cannibalism, there's plenty of other ways that pet food gets contaminated. The article mentions excess levels of vitamin D, mycotoxins from mouldy grain, and melamine contamination.
I personally have been able to trace euthanized pets from veterinary clinics in the city where I live to rendering plants where they are processed; the end results are shipped to pet food companies. Pentobarbital, the drug used to euthanize these animals, ends up being fed to our pets.'
I don't know how this applies to the UK, but the article mentions brands sold in the UK, Iams and Purina, among others. I've dumped our Purina and found a brand made from pure Salmon and vegetables. As I live in the land of the mad cow, I've been aware of the quality levels of human food for a long time. I had never considered the quality of pet food.
- Alternet article Why Is the Pet Food Industry Killing Our Pets?
- Report on the risk from pentobarbital in dog food
- Extensive article on NewsTarget.com
- Useful page on PetCareTips.net
- An article on Homestead.com that mentions studies from 1985
1 comments:
I live in the UK and when my yorkie died an horrendous death about 7 weeks ago (vet diagnosed kidney decease), I came across the melamine scandal in the States and Canada quite by accident. Although the FDA in the UK has tried to assure me that there was no problem here, I still have my doubts. The speed with which she became ill and died didn't seem right to me. I have been trying to find out whether anybody else here has had a similar experience but have not succeeded. The more I read on animal feed the more disgusted I become. Why have these things been allowed to go on and not shown up in the media?
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