bad news
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rodriguezpoultry
Loving the herd life
This leaves me the odd woman out...
But I don't see the huge issue from a humane point of view. Animals are being put down by the minute, why should these carcasses not be used to feed other animals? It's not different than a dog eating a rabbit or other carcass that's been on the side of the road for a week.
If it's a means to save money by the company, as well as maintain low prices for pet owners, I see no issue.
Animals will continue to be put down as long as overpopulation is still an issue...this could be one way to deal with the overpopulation as well as provide ingredients into dog/cat foods.
I don't see how it's any different than feeding bone meal from chickens? The chicks are being butchered anyway...so why not use as much of the carcass as possible?
But I don't see the huge issue from a humane point of view. Animals are being put down by the minute, why should these carcasses not be used to feed other animals? It's not different than a dog eating a rabbit or other carcass that's been on the side of the road for a week.
If it's a means to save money by the company, as well as maintain low prices for pet owners, I see no issue.
Animals will continue to be put down as long as overpopulation is still an issue...this could be one way to deal with the overpopulation as well as provide ingredients into dog/cat foods.
I don't see how it's any different than feeding bone meal from chickens? The chicks are being butchered anyway...so why not use as much of the carcass as possible?
Wynette
Exploring the pasture
I wouldn't think it's such a bad thing, honestly - that's a good use of a carcass if you ask me.
There are several things mentioned in the book I posted the link to - it's been awhle since I read it, but I recall the author speaks about euthanized pets from vet hospitals being picked up to be used in pet foods. The problem lies in that the drugs they use for the euthanizing remain in the pet...also, many folks leave collars on (believe or not) as well as flea collars & such. Foods have been tested to have very high metal content due to the metal in the collars and tags. Also, roadkill is used...which many times is already rotting. I can't imagine that would be good for pet food.
In my personal opinion, if you stick to a premium brand (I stick with Wysong, Solid Gold, Natural Balance, etc.), it's probably less likely that it will have these things in it.
There are several things mentioned in the book I posted the link to - it's been awhle since I read it, but I recall the author speaks about euthanized pets from vet hospitals being picked up to be used in pet foods. The problem lies in that the drugs they use for the euthanizing remain in the pet...also, many folks leave collars on (believe or not) as well as flea collars & such. Foods have been tested to have very high metal content due to the metal in the collars and tags. Also, roadkill is used...which many times is already rotting. I can't imagine that would be good for pet food.
In my personal opinion, if you stick to a premium brand (I stick with Wysong, Solid Gold, Natural Balance, etc.), it's probably less likely that it will have these things in it.
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meme
Loving the herd life
I am the person who wrote the bad news story.I forgot to say one thing after they kill the cat, or dog they put plastic over the dog, and they do not take off the collar. This can give your dogs diseases.Like mad cow disease, and many others.My sister and I both have been looking at many sights about dog food.
please make a change today and switch your dog food.
thanks
bye
please make a change today and switch your dog food.
thanks
bye
michickenwrangler
Loving the herd life
A disease like mad-cow is caused by things called prions, usually related to proteins.meme said:
At a veterinarians office, euthanized animals are disposed of according to the wishes of the owner: owner burial, vet burial or cremation. Usually the animal is put in a plastic bag if it is to be cremated. Years ago, my horse hurt her leg in a trailer accident. I hauled her to the vet when it was time to get her stitches out. The tech came in and said the vet would be late since he had to perform emergency surgery. The dog didn't make it (gastric torsion) and the owner--quite stricken--opted for cremation and left to break the news to the kids at home. Since the vet was frazzled and not thinking straight, he wheeled the dog in the bag into the large animal clinic where my horse and I were waiting. My horse has been past a lot of roadkill so she wasn't terrified of a dead dog in the room with us, but it definitely made me uncomfortable. I don't recall if they left his collar on or not.
What Wynette was mentioning is that flea collars contain pesticides in them absorbed by the animal. If you were to eat it, it would be eating a burger with bug spray on it.
Honestly, I don't have an issue with putting herbivorous zoo and circus animals in dog and cat food, but you'd just be asking for trouble feeding ground up lion to cats or jackals to dogs.
ETA for spelling
jodief100
True BYH Addict
Cost effective is the key here. The amount of time and labor required to round up roadkill and dogs at ten's of thousands of locations is enormous. They would have to have trucks waiting to pick up animals in small groups all over the country and bring them back to a central location. Dozens of people would be needed to coordinate the efforts, plus the transportation costs, driver, fuel and refrigeration. Would the Pet Food Companies really invest the time and effort to go and pick up a few hundred pounds of meat at a time when there is "leftovers" available by the thousands of pounds at every slaughter house in the country?
I read the article someone linked into. The author states a lot of "facts" but nowhere does he cite the source of his information. Why? He is selling his services.
Meme, I know you have good intentions but you are young. You need to learn that just because someone prints something in a book or newspaper, or publishes it on the internet does not mean it is true. Look at the source of the information, see who wrote it and why. Do they back it up? Do they say where they got the information? Most importantly, why do they say it? Do they have something to gain? Can you find it in multiple, reliable sources? And does it make sense? In this case, the premise is illogical and the source of the information is questionable.
Don't worry, even adults forget this sometime. People believe things just because they want to.
I read the article someone linked into. The author states a lot of "facts" but nowhere does he cite the source of his information. Why? He is selling his services.
Meme, I know you have good intentions but you are young. You need to learn that just because someone prints something in a book or newspaper, or publishes it on the internet does not mean it is true. Look at the source of the information, see who wrote it and why. Do they back it up? Do they say where they got the information? Most importantly, why do they say it? Do they have something to gain? Can you find it in multiple, reliable sources? And does it make sense? In this case, the premise is illogical and the source of the information is questionable.
Don't worry, even adults forget this sometime. People believe things just because they want to.
Wynette
Exploring the pasture
The source I quoted is not questionable - if you read the book, you will find many, many citings of research, even to the point of copies of letters the author received from ONE particular pet food manufacturer she had issues with. The book was her "catharsis" (sp?) if you will; her hope was to inform others so that they wouldn't have the same issues she did with her two dogs...extreme illness, and I believe one passed away before she realized what the cause was. The never stated the manufacturer in name, she was legally bound not to; however, she stated many times that it was an extremely large one. Believe what you want - but reading the book, at least for me, sure changed my mind on the food I'd been currently feeding. That said, I'm quite sure that the company in question did follow all the legalities they were supposed to...it's more than likely that the general public just is ill informed on things such as this.
aggieterpkatie
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I'm sorry, but until I see actual written proof I refuse to believe that dogs and cats are made into pet food. Pet food companies have standards, and they have to list ingredients. The idea that they would collect roadkill or dead cats and dogs is so ludacris it's laughable.
This is just more loony propaganda.
This is just more loony propaganda.
Wynette
Exploring the pasture
Honestly, I don't much care who believes it & who doesn't - it's just info. to me. I'm not trying to "convince" anyone either way - I was just commenting that I'd read the book that I provided the link to. It's a wonderful thing, living in a demoratic society - you can believe whatever you like. And, I truly hope you are right!aggieterpkatie said:
patandchickens
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I notice that book's synopsis on its website only alludes briefly and in passing to the allegation of euthanized pets being used in petfood. Not passing judgement here, but that makes me think that their "evidence" is at best tenuous, and unlikely to hold up to close scrutiny. Because otherwise, my gosh, what a selling point, and as others have said, the story would have been SO run with by the major media. (Note that saying "I have actual correspondance from a real petfood company who admitted to doing this, but I can't tell you which company it is from" is not *evidence*, it is unsupported allegation. I could show you letters or emails and say they're from the King of Spain who affirms that I have borne his illegitimate children and he instructs all Spanish citizens to send them half of every paycheck... but, <shrug>)
Honestly though, if I stretch my imagination to the point of imagining that perhaps some euthanized pets *are* conceivably used in some pet foods... the amount and quality they would represent, compared to the vast amount and generally scary quality/nature of the OTHER ingredients typically used, seems to me like a drop of water in the ocean.
I should be quite surprised if some petfoods did NOT test high in heavy metals, but it seems silly to attribute that to collars left on dead pets being squooshed up in a grinder... many of the major ingredients of petfoods have all SORTS of KNOWN ways to be heavy-metal contaminated. We do not need to imagine implausible and mathematically-inadequate scenarios to explain it, the cause (when it occurs) is staring us in the face
Nonetheless, as dismal as the quality of most commercial petfood is, it is worth noting that *most* animals eating it do pretty reasonably ok. This may say as much for the resiliance of animal physiology as for the petfood manufacturers, but, still, it's where the rubber meets the road
And I mean, really. What do dogs not-infrequently eat ON THEIR OWN INITIATIVE? Rotting roadkilled groundhogs, things out of muddy stenchy drainage ditches, childrens' toys, Cheetohs, chicken manure, hoof trimmings, etc.
Just sayin',
Pat
Honestly though, if I stretch my imagination to the point of imagining that perhaps some euthanized pets *are* conceivably used in some pet foods... the amount and quality they would represent, compared to the vast amount and generally scary quality/nature of the OTHER ingredients typically used, seems to me like a drop of water in the ocean.
I should be quite surprised if some petfoods did NOT test high in heavy metals, but it seems silly to attribute that to collars left on dead pets being squooshed up in a grinder... many of the major ingredients of petfoods have all SORTS of KNOWN ways to be heavy-metal contaminated. We do not need to imagine implausible and mathematically-inadequate scenarios to explain it, the cause (when it occurs) is staring us in the face
Nonetheless, as dismal as the quality of most commercial petfood is, it is worth noting that *most* animals eating it do pretty reasonably ok. This may say as much for the resiliance of animal physiology as for the petfood manufacturers, but, still, it's where the rubber meets the road
And I mean, really. What do dogs not-infrequently eat ON THEIR OWN INITIATIVE? Rotting roadkilled groundhogs, things out of muddy stenchy drainage ditches, childrens' toys, Cheetohs, chicken manure, hoof trimmings, etc.
Just sayin',
Pat
