Pet Connection Blog » Pet-food recall: The numbers, the meaning, the hearing

Pet-food recall: The numbers, the meaning, the hearing

By Gina Spadafori

April 8, 2007

If you have a sick pet or a question on your pet’s health, call your veterinarian.
If you’re new to the site, please check out our general information page (includes links to recalled foods).
If you’d like suggestions on what to feed, click here.
If you want to report a sick or deceased pet, click here.
If you want to know what you can do, please read our call to action
If you want to read all our recall-related blog posts, click here.

Thanks to itchmo for pointing out this link to a L.A. Times piece (need a log-in?) on blogging from Iraq:

But the CBS newsman found himself turning to the Web during a recent stint in Baghdad after he noticed the numerous pieces on the network evening newscasts devoted to the pet food recall in the U.S.

“There seems to be an inordinate amount of time spent on what started out as 12 dead pets,” said Pizzey, who can catch the American newscasts every morning on the Baghdad bureau’s grimy television monitors, beamed in via satellite like day-old dispatches from another world.

Don’t get him wrong: Pizzey is an animal lover. (He and his family have four cats, two dogs and a terrapin at their home in Rome.) But he was disheartened by the disconnect between the horrors of the war and the preoccupations of American viewers.

Rather than stew quietly, he vented his concerns in an online reporter’s notebook, posted March 22 on CBSNews.com.

“What is depressingly clear is that what seems important here is far removed from what viewers in the U.S. seem to be concerned about,” he wrote, adding: “How 12 dead animals in a country the size of the U.S. rates with the sliding scale of mayhem here is what I’m finding hard to gauge. When only 12 human bodies are found on any given morning in Baghdad with marks of the kind of torture the ASPCA would quite rightly have a pet owner in court for, it is judged as ‘progress’ for the security plan.”

No one’s denying the need for honest reporting on the war in Iraq, and I can’t imagine a person who doesn’t care about the sacrifices of our fellow citizens there, or indeed about the suffering of the Iraqis who are living and dying in a war zone. But with all due respect, this is not about 12 pets (which even the FDA says there’s more than that now, although they say they’re too busy investigating to say how many more.) Honestly, I respect and admire Allen Pizzey for the work he’s doing, but this isn’t a “people vs. pets” thing. (And besides: There seems to be plenty of room for reporting on a lot more news, if you’d take out covering things like Anna Nicole Smith and such.)

Pizzey is “disheartened by the disconnect.” Well, so am I.

This isn’t about 12, 14, 16 dead pets — or even, if you extrapolate from numbers such as Oregon’s, Michigan’s, Banfield’s, the Animal Medical Center, the Veterinary Information Network or even ours, hundreds or thousands dead. (The FDA has some 12,000 complaints to investigate, more than double in a month their two-year load on all other complaints combined. More on the numbers here.)

This is about our happenstance discovery of a vulnerability in our overall food-safety system, one that we’re fortunate to have found and to have a chance to fix before something else even bigger happens, either by accident (which this pet-food disaster may well surely end up being) or on purpose (at the hands of America’s enemies).

Look: Nobody who’s not wearing a tinfoil hat thinks pet-food companies set out to kill pets. That’s just nuts. But something went wrong, and now it’s time to fix it. I can’t imagine even the food companies (human and pet, which are often one in the same) don’t think so. After all, pets are part of their families, too.

Does this seem alarmist to you? It’s not meant to be. I honesty do believe the pet-food recall should be a wake-up call for us all, pet-lovers and pet-haters (oh, and believe it: I hear plenty from the latter, all the time).

We need to look at some changes. Our Pet Connection staff have taken heat for saying so — a lot of heat, in fact — but I honesty believe that as citizens of our great country, we all have a right to have a say in how our government protects us. This tradition, as I wrote yesterday, is more than a hundred years old in the case of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which was formed as a result of the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, the first sentence of which sums it all up:

For preventing the manufacture, sale, or transportation of adulterated or misbranded or poisonous or deleterious foods, drugs, medicines, and liquors, and for regulating traffic therein, and for other purposes.

At the PetConnection, we’ve been pretty clear on what we see will help:

Integration of our veterinarians into the public-health system, so information on pet-health issues can be rapidly sent out and collected in return. This is not “just about pets,” but rather about human health as well. Illness in animal populations can be the canary in the coal mine for human health issues. We need a centralized system for getting and sending this information, and we need to show our veterinarians the respect they deserve for their critical role in public health as well as animal healh.
Honesty in labeling, so consumers can have the information they need to make decisions, and get help when they need it. That means country-of-origin labeling on all foods, pet food included, and labeling on pet food that reveals not only the company that’s branding the product, but also the one that’s actually manufacturing it — and contact information, including 800 number, for both.

Is that asking for much? We don’t think so.

The column that appears this week in the newspaper clients of our syndicated pet-care column hits same points. It’s up on our site now. (Note: Dr. Becker and I wrote this piece three days into the recall to meet our column deadlines. Amazing how well our call to action has stayed relevant, through everything that has happened since.)

Now, will you write a letter to Congress to help?

Food for thought: The Kansas City Star reports on who might be testifying at Congressional hearings, and what they might say. A story from USA Today on FDA cutbacks in all food inspections broke the weekend of the first recall. It’s interesting to go back and take a look. Thanks to readers who pointed out both pieces.

And finally, this Associated Press piece from almost three years ago to the day about veterinarians working in human health at the Centers for Disease Control:

The importance of vets is highlighted at the CDC, which has 80 vets on its staff as epidemiologists. The agency recently created a new office to coordinate its vets, who work in different disease branches, and to recruit new ones as future disease detectives. It’s also working to add veterinary data to its national disease tracking and reporting network.

Hmmmm. So that national disease tracking and reporting network … how’s that working out, anyway?

Go to the latest blog post | Go to the PetConnection home page

|Technorati Tags: pet food recall, dogs, cats,veterinarian, veterinary

Share and Enjoy:

Filed under: 2007 food recall, animals: pets, medical, news — Gina Spadafori @ 11:46 am

Comments (133)

133 Comments »

Why does this have to be stated as an either/or situation by those who seek to diminish the problem or the ones who simply haven’t made the effort to be informed. In fact, if you look around, the same people who are concerned about animals dying uneccesarily are often the same ones standing out on the corners of small towns protesting the horrendous death toll in the war, the ones greeting soldiers returning from the war and the ones bringing petitions to their senator’s offices and being arrested for “trespass”. If we fail to care for the least and most helpless among us how do we address other issues of horror, death, destruction, lying, malfeasance? I for one am offended at the suggestion that because I care about my own affected animals, and those of others, I care less and am less proactive on issues of disaster, war and death.

Comment by Nancy Nielsen — April 8, 2007 @ 12:17 pm
Just one of many differences between the soldiers and pets.

The animals in our homes have no way to tell us through conversation that something is wrong with the food, so it just cuts in a different way. Many people get some comfort from interactions with their pets in this day and age of break neck speed of terrible news we are bombarded with on the war and many other things.

A big thank you to all the Military members and their families for their service. I am not going to get political on this blog, so I will leave it at that.

Comment by DeeAnn — April 8, 2007 @ 12:42 pm
This is the deciding moment which will map out the next two years, if not the future of the country for decades.

Comment by Steve — April 8, 2007 @ 12:44 pm
Steve, only if we utilize it to mean a brighter furture, or we will be back to same o, same o.

Comment by DeeAnn — April 8, 2007 @ 12:57 pm
I take our soldiers concerns very seriously, the war is a serious matter, my father, my brother, my nephew and many more members in my family have been fighting in one war or the other since I was born.

Even so, I do believe we have an obligation to protect our children and our pets here in the United States. Our food needs to be safe for our families and for our pets and I believe any soldier fighting for freedom and honor would agree if they knew all the facts and the news media wasn’t so pitifully behind. What soldier would want to come home from war and find his trusted animal pet and friend dead because those given the duty to protect our food supply were asleep on the job? And perish the thought if this Toxic Waste Wheat Gluten was silently poisoning all of us. The thought is terrifying.

On the labeling issues, I’d like to know the import information on all ingrediants - otherwise made in the U.S. doesn’t mean too much.

Thank you all for your hard work, and Gina for giving us so many wonderful updates and news.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 1:04 pm
Legislative decisions need to get back to being made on the basis of what is good for the people,
not for businesses. Business can or will adapt within set laws or they won’t be in business, and somebody else will step up to the plate that can. It’s a win—win for all involved.

Comment by DeeAnn — April 8, 2007 @ 1:06 pm
It’s really not a people versus pets thing and shouldn’t be framed that way. I’m not going to apologize for the feelings I have for my pets and the importance of this story to me and other pet lovers. Both the Iraq war and pet food recall are important issues which should both receive press - it serves no purpose to pit them against each other.

Comment by L. Kuz — April 8, 2007 @ 1:06 pm
I think Mr. Pizzey is being a bit disingenuous. As others have posted, if he had used the ridiculous coverage of Anna Nicole Smith’s death or the constant repetitive stories making light of dishonest, selfish, arrogant politicians prancing around Washington, or the constant diet of celebrity Pablum, I might have some empathy for his point of view.

The pet recall story involves corporate lies and deceit, woeful inaction by federal agencies, deception by major pet food manufacturers, the deaths of thousands of pets, the lack of security for food products entering our country, and the exposure of appalling production conditions in plants in China that export foodstuff to our country. The pet food story has NOTHING to do with lack of reporting about Iraq. I hope Mr. Pizzey is not upset because his own reporting may not be getting all the attention he feels it should. I hope he is not trying to subtly imply that what he sees as too much coverage of poisoned pet food is an example of lack of patriotism or lack of support for our armed forces (that card is getting a little old).

He may be right about the lack of reporting of the human suffering in Iraq, but his use of the pet food poisoning story to focus on that lack of coverage is way off base. He looks ridiculous for using the pet food poisonings as a basis for his complaints.

I’m willing to bet the coverage of Anna Nicole Smith was tens times that the pet food coverage, yet Mr. Pizzey is complaining about a REAL news story?

Comment by MFEMFEM — April 8, 2007 @ 1:21 pm
My vets office just called to aske how Katrina my cat was doing. In the conversation I said two independant labs confirmed rat posion… she did not know that information. It could have been a weekend office worker that called…but still.

I asked, Have you received a lot of pets due to the recalled food? The answer was yes.

I asked, How many are making it? The answer was it depends on how soon they are treated and their age.

Just a reminder if you are new here—don’t wait to see what happens if there are symptoms or you know the food was eaten.

Comment by DeeAnn — April 8, 2007 @ 1:22 pm
Oh, I forget to add that the last time I asked the question about a lot of pets due to the recalled food the answer was no. That was about two weeks ago.

Comment by DeeAnn — April 8, 2007 @ 1:24 pm
Thumbing through the April 16 issue of People Magazine, I came across a full page ad for Blue Buffalo Co. Ltd.

“You love them like family”
“So feed them like family”.TM

3 pages later an IFAW ad r.e. the Canadian seal hunt.

“If this was your family pet would you let it be clubbed?”

Comment by Peg — April 8, 2007 @ 1:26 pm
Re: The FDA inspecting only 1% of the imported foods and then only the ones that have a high failure rate - like beef and also fish I suppose:

We live under an umbrella of false ideas regarding our food safety - and this umbrella needs to be discarded and then maybe we can beg our lawmakers, all of them, to make improvements so that the United States does not allow questionable food into our country. And I believe the least of which should be that manufacturing plants on foreign soil should meet the same health and safety standards as their ounterpart U.S. plants. I mean really, if we aren’t going to test so much, then we at least need to inspect foreign plants wouldn’t one think?

We go to the store and happily buy these items believing our government would not allow hurtful or poisonous items into our food chain -WRONG. Even though mistakes happen, still we needs some degree of certainty higher than one crying out loud percent.

Happy Easter everyone.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 1:32 pm
how dare mr pizzey complain about the covarge of the pets that have died this horrible horrible death due to food we as their owners fed them thinking it was s-a-f-e! that’s why cbs news is no 3. how dare he. MY GOD,what is wrong with him.he should act as a reporter and ask menu foods why our pets had to die from food they got from china.why???,thats what almost 4,000 pet owners what to know Mr Pizzey!

Comment by Mary Ann — April 8, 2007 @ 1:32 pm
Maybe he doesn’t like pets?

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 1:41 pm
The thought that keeps echoing in my mind is this “As horrid as this is for pets and the people who care about them, what if a similarly lethal ingredient had gone to gerbers or beechnut?” Hopefully some bit of good will come out of all this and we will treat food safety with the concern it is due.

I can understand that someone who is seeing people killed in front of his own eyes might not be seeing the rest of the big picture, but I certainly hope that those who are in the position of safegaurding all American Citizens and their “property” will see the need to act and not wait until more innocents are lost

Cindy

Comment by Schnauzer — April 8, 2007 @ 1:44 pm
Linda … he likes pets just fine. Has a bunch. That’s NOT the issue. :)

The issue is this isn’t pets vs. people. It’s about how we want our government to protect us, all of us … people AND pets. And saying this is “just a crazy pet-lover story” is missing the point.

Comment by Gina Spadafori — April 8, 2007 @ 1:47 pm
I am in agreement with many of you who said it isn’t a people OR animals question. I feel awful for those people (and animals) who are casualties of a war not of their making. With that said, if Mr. Pizzey would kindly watch all of the news, he might see more of the “fluff” that is broadcast as “news” and rethink his position on the pet food debacle.

These innocent animals are dependent upon us for their care and safe being. We have been depending on companies to have enough integrity to be honest and above board with us. If we can get a safe-food system in place that works, then it will be better for the animals and better for the people.

And just because we love our animals and show compassion toward them does not mean that we don’t have the same compassion toward those victims of the wars.

Abraham Lincoln: “I am in favor of animal rights as well as human rights. That is the way of a whole human being.”

Comment by dottie — April 8, 2007 @ 1:52 pm
The CBS Newsman is going by what has been reported to him as “12 Dead Pets.”

I can understand his problem, looking at it from this standpoint (although 12 dead pets is also inexcusable).

When is the news media as a whole going to wake up and say that there is the probability that there are thousands? Who are they protecting…hmmm?

I was under the apparently mistaken belief that they were here to give us the news…without restraints or apology.

Silly me.

Our troops are of great and utmost importance to us, but we all need to realize that if we don’t take care of our homeland…there’s not going to be one for these soldiers to return to.

Comment by Marcy — April 8, 2007 @ 2:37 pm
Maybe we should send in our National Guard to protect our food plants ? Oh, wait ! We barely have any National Guard — on OUR soil. They are defending other people’s soil….

Comment by Kat — April 8, 2007 @ 2:42 pm
Well i think that everyone is missing the big picture here, the war in iraq, pets,crime,what every the story is about pales in comparison to the really big issue that we are killing the planet.

Global warming and the fact that our poles are melting at an alarming rate, polar bears losing their habitat, 4000 year old cultures on the brink of disapearing is the major issue out weighing all others.

Because if we don’t take action now and focus on the big picture nothing eles will matter cause humans,and pets will be gone.

just think about it the weather patterns are changing rapidly above average hi’s in the west and below average in the east , its not just freak weather either its getting worse from year to year. so if you want to save your pets we should all fight to save the planet first.

Comment by Greenpeace — April 8, 2007 @ 2:50 pm
Gina,

I wasn’t serious about him not liking pets. It’s just that his reporting seems so backwards to me - just like the statement, he doesn’t like pets is backwards.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 2:55 pm
From the article: “But he was disheartened by the disconnect between the horrors of the war and the preoccupations of American viewers.”

We are fighting many battles at the same time. We all new that we had to jump on this one—first to stop the pets from dying by figuring out what is happening. Would he rather no other important matter be considered or acted upon because there is a war going on? He must not of thought that we can multi-task many issues.

Comment by DeeAnn — April 8, 2007 @ 3:11 pm
I wonder since Mr. Newsreporter has so many pets how he’d like to come home and have his children or his family in tears with their pets dead bodies stiff in the living room and the children having nightmares.

I wonder who’d he blame then and if he’d think indeed reporting about it to stop more animal deaths is senseless or seems heartless considering the horrors of war he’s experiencing.

Mr. Pizzey me thinks you needs some R&R. Come home for a visit to all your many pets that I hope are healthy and well thanks to the Newsmedia for broadcasting all the PET FOOD RECALLS.

While you’re at it, please put a bug in the ear of your Congressmen to beef up the FDA food inspections so we pet lovers can sleep at night knowing our pets aren’t being poisoned by toxic waste pet food.

And then go back to the war and do your good job of reporting.

Linda MS.

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 3:22 pm
Mr.Pizzey is just another example of media carrion suckers who make their living off reporting death. if he’s not able to make an exapmle of the suffering then it’s taking
someting from his wallet.. i was a Marine durring Vietnam , we had more problems with
journalists getting killed,
than the butthole warriors running the war.
i got this to say to mr.pizzey if you got heart?
why are you sitting at a desk, instead of collecting stories? go collect some bullets,
get shot at dude? instead of commenting on things you have not seen?
you haven’t even been close to the iraqi killing. most journalists are so chicken $hit..
bullest fly and they disapear. i never heard of 1 picking up a weapon and defending a fallen
marine, or g.i.? and you can dispute that mr.pizzey ( from rome,right?)

to anyone concerned/offened by his worhtless comments?
ignore this maggot, he’s in that same class as
other media mouths “rosey” comes to mind?

Comment by johnypaycut — April 8, 2007 @ 3:25 pm
I think the reason this CBS reporter picked the pet food recall for his comparison was to not upset CBS executives. How much time has CBS given to the pet food recall story? In contrast, how much time has been given to finding who the biological daddy is for Dannielynn, the TomKat may be splitting story, or any of the other petty news stories. If this reporter had made a comparison to stories that CBS is running like crazy, he would have raised a few eyebrows with his bosses. It has nothing to do with whether he likes pets.

Comment by Jackie — April 8, 2007 @ 3:26 pm
Not my sight but its getting started.

Check it out

Comment by Terri Ro — April 8, 2007 @ 3:50 pm
I want to thank the Pet Connection team for all their hard work. I check the site daily, and it has become a mainstay for me.

My dogs are the “wind beneath my wings.” Their love has kept me going the last year, as I lost my youngest son last May. He actually purchased the dogs and loved them as I do.

I feel this reporter in Iraq finds himself in the middle of a war, which is similar to what those of us in the middle of this “pet food recall” are finding ourselves in…at the same time in history.

Too many have died and are dying in Iraq, and I am sure as this reporter does his job…he also feels powerless to stop the dying. Too many vunerable pets have died and our dying, and those of us who love them feel powerless to stop their dying.

As a pet owner, I feel powerless at this time…in a profound way. I check Pet Connection daily, and I watch CNN. CNN has been wonderful in their reporting of the PET FOOD RECALL. I can never thank them enough! However, as one of my dogs is a diabetic she has been on HILL’S Perscription Diet now for over a year. I cannot feed her just anything.

She has developed a urinary tract infection, and I am taking her for a vet visit tomorrow. As a diabetic, she does develop them from time to time. However, this one has special significance to me, as I am so concerned about what is in the food she is eating…a food that has been perscribed by her vet.

Feeling powerless and feeling a system you have trusted has let you down is one of the most difficult situations to cope with in my opinion. At this time, we are coping with this situation on several fronts.

This is only my opinion. However, my heart goes out to all of us: human beings who are feeling powerless and all creatures, who truly are powerless to help themselves. May we all pray for better days.

Pam Williams

Comment by Pam Williams — April 8, 2007 @ 4:08 pm
Here in southern Arizona, we are STILL seeing recalled foods and treats on stores shelves. One store I was in this weekend (the manager said he could not remove the food because “corporate” hadn’t told him to do so) even has the recalled foods AND treats ON SALE!!!! CHEAP!!!!!

Wasn’t someone keeping a list of offending stores or something somewhere? I thought someone was keeping a running list, but I can’t seem to find it. Anyone know?

Comment by Dawn Turner — April 8, 2007 @ 4:25 pm
any one who see’s recalled food on the shelves call the FDA asap to report it. enough pets have died and are sick because of this.

Comment by Mary Ann — April 8, 2007 @ 4:31 pm
dawn go to http://www.fda.gov and for the state u live in there will be a 800 no to call an file a complaint. please do this. thank u.

Comment by Mary Ann — April 8, 2007 @ 4:33 pm
Dawn,

There is a small group of us putting a system of sorts in place where people can report stores who still have food on their shelves. Look for an announcement tomorrow, Monday, April 9th, on http://www.howl911.com, http://www.itchmo.com and http://www.petfoodtracker.blogspot.com (We will be putting out a call for citizen volunteers to help identify retailers which are not in compliance, steps to take to report the retailers, phone numbers, etc.)

Comment by Nikki — April 8, 2007 @ 4:36 pm
The problem with calling the FDA to report food still on shelves is getting through. In some districts, it is downright impossible to get a live person to answer the phone. Beyond this, the FDA operates in true bureaucratic fashion - they move (as they’ve demonstrated with this recall) at times at a snail’s pace. In the meantime, poisoned food is still on shelves and pets are in peril of eating it. We think it’s time for we citizens to begin policing retailers ourselves, as we have a potential army of thousands, whereas the FDA is both short in staff and budget. Please, anyone who can, check the sites I posted above tomorrow and help us get this food off the shelves.

Comment by Nikki — April 8, 2007 @ 4:40 pm
The Fda Are The Only One’s Who Can Contact The Stores And Tell Them To Remove Food Now

Comment by Heather — April 8, 2007 @ 5:01 pm
The war in Iraq is an important long-term issue for me, but I want to make sure that our food suppy is safe, so our soldiers can come back home to their beloved pets and safe food for all.

As for the Kansas City Star piece, ya just gotta love that Duane Ekedahl. Or not.

Comment by Pamela J. Betz-Baron — April 8, 2007 @ 5:05 pm
Here is a little background on just one of the Menu Foods bigwigs:

Robert W. Luba

Robert W. Luba of Toronto, ON has been a trustee of the Fund and a member of the Board of Directors of Menu Foods GenPar Limited (administrator of the Fund) since July 2002. He was appointed the chairman of the Board on August 31, 2005. Mr. Luba is the President of Luba Financial Inc, a mid-market merchant bank investing in selective special situations. Mr. Luba was President and Chief Executive Officer of Royal Bank Investment Management Inc. from 1991 to 1993 and President of Crown Life Insurance Company from 1986 to 1988 and Sr. Vice-President of John Labatt Limited from 1976 to 1983. Mr. Luba is also a director of Vincor International Inc., ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc., MDS Inc. and KPC Income Fund. Mr. Luba is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and holds an MBA from the University of Western Ontario. Mr. Luba is an independent Trustee and Director, and is a member of the Compensation and Corporate Governance Committee.

http://web.archive.org/web/200....._luba.html

As stated he is a director for KCP Income Fund:

KCP Income Fund through its operating subsidiaries, is a leader in the North American private label market. With 19 integrated manufacturing facilities strategically located throughout North America, KCP (operating as KIK Custom Products) is one of North America’s largest custom manufacturers of consumer products. KCP’s product lines include Laundry, Household Cleaners, Personal Care, OTC Medicated and Pharmaceutical, all supported by KCP’s in-house technical expertise and value-added services. KCP produces leading consumer products for Fortune 500 companies including Albertsons, Colgate-Palmolive, Dial, Johnson & Johnson, Kroger, Loblaws, L’Oreal, Procter & Gamble, Safeway, SC Johnson, Sysco, Target, Unilever, Walgreens, and Wal-Mart.

http://www.investcom.com/cgi-b.....mp;sym=yes

All the industries are inter-related somehow. I will see if any of the other Menu Foods members have an “interesting” affiliations.

Comment by mal — April 8, 2007 @ 5:06 pm
It hurts seeing the sweet loving eyes of the pets that died or had to be euthanized because of this toxic waste garbage Wheat Gluten. Such beautiful souls and all they wanted was to be loved.

Here’s an article - what’s in Fido’s food from Howl911

http://www.pjstar.com/stories/.....LD.027.php

a much crying Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 5:08 pm
You notice Pizzey lives in Rome. I suspect he is one of those American hating, traitor type reporters that do their best to turn in soldiers trying to do their duties. Just commenting from what I’ve seen as some journalists covering the Iraq war.

Comment by Gary — April 8, 2007 @ 5:24 pm
again saving OUR Mother earth falls on def ears, not surprised….but it is sad :-(

Comment by greenpeace — April 8, 2007 @ 5:29 pm
Rome is a beautiful wonderful City, it truly is, and the Italian people are gracious and kind, but I like America so much better, no, I love America. I’ll take tacky Americana anyday of the week, cowboys and indians, missions and ghost towns, over castles and ancient ruins.

But that’s just me.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 6:16 pm
I would like to say to Mr Pizzey, that I watch the news every day & see the heartbreaking and frustrating news and bloody scenes and dead soldier pictures that the news shows have been covering for years now. Does that mean Im not allowed to cry over my cat who died in my arms because of someones negligence amidst the biggest pet food poisoning in the history of the U.S.? Does that mean I shouldnt try to do something about this and stop it from happening again to me or someone else? I dont think this shows a disconnect at all. I have done alot of things to help our troops over the years so this kind of talk is very insulting.

And to Mr Greenpeace above, I think that you arent understanding the true scope of this pet food recall. Perhaps if you go back and read all of the info out here you will see that there are toxins involved and by this group trying to find answers and stop this from happening again, you will see that we are in turn trying to help the environment. So you might want to educate yourself on this pet food recall and what is truly behind it all before you also make implications that there is a disconnect as Mr Pizzey did….Also just a note, we might be helping you to continue your Greenpeace cause by stopping these toxins from ending up in the very food you are eating. So instead of coming here and implying that we dont care, I think you should be handing over a big thank you to us!

Comment by Sandi K — April 8, 2007 @ 6:22 pm
I could not agree more with Sandi K. Unfortunately we are powerless to change the situation in Iraq but we can do something to help save out pets. There is no disconnect -anymore than there was before the pet food recall, Mr. Pizzey. Since when it is new for Americans to be disconnected from anything that does not personally affect them.

Comment by maria — April 8, 2007 @ 6:25 pm
And I have to say one more thing. I have spent one of the worst weekends of my life grieving over the loss of our beloved kitty who died at the hands of money-hungry companies. I dont think Mr Pizzey or Pizzle or whoever he is truly speaks for our soldiers out there. I cant believe any of our soldiers would want their wives or kids or parents being torn apart because a beloved pet-member of their family died from someone being negligent and allowing poison to enter their food supply. I truly dont think they would be happy with this & if they werent fighting a war, they would also be trying to do something about this. OK, Ive said my peace.

Comment by Sandi K — April 8, 2007 @ 6:32 pm
greenpeace - I agree with you.

Sometimes people can’t see the forest for the trees!

All this is intertwined…we are seeing the deteriortion of our planet’s delicate balance.

Man has been throwing his waste materials all over this planet…and now in outer space…thinking that it makes no difference.

Artificial substances that are, or can become toxic are working their way now through every part of our world…and it’s coming back to “bite” us.

What do we expect???

Comment by Marcy — April 8, 2007 @ 6:39 pm
One more note on the integrity of Menu Foods.

In February 2007 the USDA won their case against Sinclair Research, who Iams and Menu Foods used for contract testing.

http://www.usda.gov/da/oaljdec.....022807.pdf

Although I do not appreciate much of PETA’s deceit in what THEY do, the investigation was brought about because of their efforts.

Menu Foods and Iams severed ties to Sinclair Research but only when the public outcry and the investigations from the USDA made it clear the whole truth would be coming out.

Menu Foods, Iams and maybe the entire pet food industry does not seem to have morals or scruples. Their bottom line is:

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Comment by mal — April 8, 2007 @ 6:44 pm
Personally, I’d really rather not bash a man who works in a war zone, no matter what you think about the work he and other reporters are doing. After all, I do my reporting with my pets at my feet. Easy life, compared to a war correspondent, and I do realize that fully.

I don’t want to make it about this reporter (who’s trying to do his job), Iraq or even Rome.

I DO want to point out that anyone who’s looking for “fake news” in the still emerging story of food safety we have here is in the wrong place.

Comment by Gina Spadafori — April 8, 2007 @ 6:59 pm
Mal,u made my day .peta was 1st to expose IAMS AND menu foods.did u see that video on peta’S web page On how them poor pets were treated. these dam pet food co’s know about IAMS AND Peta’s claim,and not one pet food co. pulled out of haveing menu foods make their pet food. the food i fed my pup was made by menu foods i was in shocked as many pet owners were that menu foods made the wet food instead of the co. whose name is on the bag or can or pouch,i did not read on the can or pouch nutro but made by menu foods. i’m livid to the max.i’m so angery so many people lost a beloved pet.and have a sick pet because some one wanted to make more money and our pets paid the horrible price of this. i hope gina and the staff from pet connection can go to these hearings.

Comment by MARY Ann — April 8, 2007 @ 6:59 pm
Is this man who lives in Rome with the many pets and doesn’t get it what all the hubbub is about, well no wonder - we haven’t heard of pet dying in Rome, not yet at least.

He may love America and Rome just may be convenient place to work for his job - and I hope he seeeeees the error of his words and prints a retraction or at least something that shows his great mind - as I’m sure he has one -

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 7:22 pm
It seems Mr. Pizzey is disconnected from where I sit. First off, he’s not here in America trying to find safe foods for his animals, which then begs the question, is it *really* only in the pet food? I don’t purchase many processed foods, but I did have that good ol’ chicken broth with wheat gluten in my pantry. And the beef broth also had many wheat and other things that could be suspect in it. Then you move on to the supplements that you take daily or use in the preperation of your pets food and realize ChemNutra is also impoting those from China . . .

Does anyone know if the FDA is checking any human foods that contain WG from China (not neccessarily imported via ChemNutro) that may already be on the shelves? For some reason I feel compelled to hang onto my chicken broth . . .

Comment by straybaby — April 8, 2007 @ 7:24 pm
Nikki,

I agree that something needs to be done to remove food from shelves.Just wanted to add that some stores *think* they have done that.I was at a Home Hardware store yesterdy in Ontario,and did a quick check of their dog food,much of which was on sale.I noticed some pouches which contained wheat gluten,so I asked at the check out if they were confident that the food on their shelves was ok.The clerk assured me they were because they had checkd the recall list on the 16th of March,so they knew which ones had been recalled.She was astounded when I filled her in on the recent recalls.
It was an honest mitake,and I’m sure they’re not the only retailer thinking they have done what is required.
Very worrisome.

Comment by Lorna — April 8, 2007 @ 7:26 pm
Maybe I’m not understanding, if so I apoligize but it seems by this reporter coming out and saying there are “bigger issues” than how many pets died”, is doing great harm to our cause. It tells the world we may be inflating the recall issue. Again, he is doing great harm, especially with the help of the name of CBS with their coverage. It was irresponsible for him to publish a story so casually without any deeper thought, whoever, wherever he is/was.

And this food issue hopefully raises the awareness about the very food the world eats before it’s too late, including this reporters food.

Lastly, he did chose to go to war zones, our pets did not have a choice to die or not.

Comment by Gary — April 8, 2007 @ 7:31 pm
Gina: My apologies on using a long link. I am reposting my earlier comment using tiny url.

Again my apologies.

Menu Foods’ director Robert W. Luba, used to be the president of Safety Kleen, a hazardous and industrial waste collection company.

http://lethaldose.wordpress.co.....-food-yum/

Here is a list of violations from that company:

http://tinyurl.com/2rjo84

Luba was allowed to resign from that company just as they filed bfor bankruptcy.

http://www.secinfo.com/dwDdf.315.htm

Lots of scandal at this company and look who’s a bigwig for Menu Foods now…hmmmm….

Comment by mal — April 8, 2007 @ 7:37 pm
Gina & Dr Marty…

Regarding your new syndicated (UP?) column… why is there no mention of the morbidity & mortality numbers from this Pet Connection website, or the Oregon and Michigan state veterinary offices that refute the “16 dead” so often parroted in the (other) mainstream news? This is a key part of making the “general public” take this situation more seriously. *You* have been railing about this discrepancy for weeks… not to mention it now is a glaring “disconnect,” to be polite. What gives…?

Please take this in the spirit that it is intended… not as a criticism, but as a request for illumination…

Comment by David — April 8, 2007 @ 7:47 pm
Great question, and a pretty simple answer.

We have to write our weekly page of pet-care information two-three weeks in advance (breaking news isn’t usually part of a pet-care columnist’s job!). We wrote that piece and sent it to our editor at Universal two days after our database opened for entries. We had no idea what sort of entries we’d get.

So … we had to work with what we had at the time. And the column as we’ve posted it on the Web site here is as the newspapers will be running it this week.

Not a perfect system, but … there you have it.

Thanks for asking, and giving me the chance to explain it.

Comment by Gina Spadafori — April 8, 2007 @ 7:59 pm
Nestle-Purina,claims another dog.Bronx N.Y. resident,unaware of Alpo recall.My wife ,having Stomach issues,”Sugar Free Nips Coffee Candy”.Produced by ,You guessed it,.Nestle Co..Back of bag reads;”Made on Equipment that also produces Peanuts.”fda.gov recall list last 60 days.,Picked up a good book at a local “Dollar Store”,-The Bush Betrayal,by James Bovard(2004).Chapter 4:”Hollow Steel:Bush vs.Free Trade.Ch.7;”Bush’s Farm Fiasco.Ch 8.”Spending as caring”.,..Our Dog was cremated 1/24/07 Nestle-Purina Alpo Prime Cuts 3/26/07 fax to St.Louis Nestle Food processing Rep was informed by us.3/31/07 She called to “Assure us it was NOT from our Purhased Dates in Dec.and Jan. Alpo Prime cuts is not being sold.Any Questions?

Comment by joe Romano — April 8, 2007 @ 8:02 pm
And thanks for answering… keep on keeping on!

Comment by David — April 8, 2007 @ 8:03 pm
To Gina and readers, if I came across as bashing the reporter that is in Iraq, I didnt mean to & I sincerely apolgize. My emotions are raw right now but that is no excuse for my rude behavior. I admire and respect the reporters and journalists who are over there risking their lives to bring the info and stories home to the U.S. They have more courage than I could ever muster. But I also dont feel that he should be saying there is a disconnect simply because he is seeing some much-belated news coverage on the pet food recall. We had months and months of coverage of various other subjects such as the Natalie Hoffman case missing in Aruba, Anna Nicole stories, stories about the Nasa astronaut attempting to harm her boyfriends other girlfriend, etc. Did he write in at those times to talk about disconnect? Maybe he did, I dont know…but if he did that hasnt been reported here.

I think this is all getting away from what the purpose is here regarding the pet food poisoning, so I will refrain from making comments about other people’s opinions in the future. I again apologize for my rude behavior, it was unforgiveable.

Comment by Sandi K — April 8, 2007 @ 8:12 pm
I’ve been feeding my cat Friskies Special Diet dry for a while now, because it contains no wheat or wheat gluten (which the dog, who lives for stolen cat food, is allergic to.)

I went to the Friskies site today, and they have their little piece on the recall, and that no Friskies products are involved, along with questions and answers. (From memory, sorry.)
Do you import wheat gluten from China? Yes.
Do you intend to keep importing wheat gluten from China? Yes.
Do you intend to test the wheat gluten for purity before use? No.

Their answers were obviously more than that, but the point I’m trying for is—they just don’t get it.

It’s supposed to be business as usual after these whiny people who claim their pets are ill go away, and then everything will go back to normal.

Well, I don’t think it should EVER go back to normal, but I’m worried that there’s not enough people involved to force a change.

BTW, I was also feeding my cat Chef’s Blend, and the last bag made him—and the dog—throw up. There’s no wheat or wheat gluten in it. Scary.

Comment by carly — April 8, 2007 @ 8:34 pm
I came across this piece on a web site:

“The Similarities Between the Tobacco Industry of 1950 and The Pet Food Industry of 2007 Should Scare Us All”

There is a lot of information that relates to the demands of proper labelling and accountability for pet foods.It is a very sobering article and gives a person a real pause for thought.

http://home.att.net/~wdcusick/tobacco.html

Comment by mal — April 8, 2007 @ 8:52 pm
Straybaby - they are checking everything because the FDA is scared just like we are. They are checking 100% of all wheat gluten imports now and checking on tons of wheat gluten brought into this country.

I sure hope our Rome Reporter in Iraq never learns first hand what it’s like to lose a beloved pet to poisoned pet food. I hope he stays safe and writes great stories and reports the truth and I hope he finds the time to read the truth of what we are trying to do here in America and I hope it matters to him. I hope it matters to him a whole lot and he softens his hardened heart and maybe one day he will cry with us, I hope that too, and he cries because he understands and for no other reason than it touches his heart. And on this Easter day I pray God touches his heart so he too understands deeply and takes up our torch.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 8:53 pm
Comment by Marcy — April 8, 2007

Thank you Marcy at least someone here see’s my point, its not just one group or company its all of us and now that this tragity has come upon us we start pointing fingers.
we really need to look in the mirror and point that finger.

Comment by Greenpeace — April 8, 2007 @ 8:54 pm
Comment by carly — April 8, 2007 @ 8:34 pm

I had been feeding my two cat kids Friskies canned and pouched for a long time. With the recall I started to re-evaluate, but my male cat kid was so finicky I bought a few new tins last week. The first tin I opened and fed him caused him to throw up within 10 minutes. After cleaning up I cut up some steak which he gobbled down with great enthusiam…and DID NOT throw up.

Friskies may not be on the list..and the canned one does not contain wheat gluten..but it will not be used by me again.

Comment by mal — April 8, 2007 @ 8:58 pm
I’ve been watching cable tonight and there sure seems to be many pet food commercials - one showing healthy vegtables and wanting us to buy this Organic brand and the other purina - I don’t like these commercials - I just don’t like these companies trying to poison our minds so we buy inferior products and also these pet food companies are capitalizing on our fragile state - our worried and upset state.

I’m trying to check my hostility and think rationally during all this even though I think most pet food is toxic waste but really, I don’t appreciate these commercials very much today.

Comment by Linda — April 8, 2007 @ 9:07 pm
RE: Comment by mal ? April 8, 2007 @ 8:58 pm

I’ve seen several comments about sick pets and Friskies on these threads.
Maybe they will be next on the recall list. Do they have any wheat products
in them?

Also a reminder - if the company itself did not add the ingredent
it does not have to be listed on the label. If another company has combined
ingredents together before it came to them, they only need one of the combined
to be listed on the label.

Comment by Mary Smith — April 8, 2007 @ 9:25 pm
I just came back from your fellow site at itchmo.Dr.Michael W. Fox 4/5/07 “Largest Pet Food Recall Ever-A Genetic Engineered Food Disaster.”Wow” http://tedeboy.tripod.com/drmichaelwfox/id74.html
Thank You Pet Connection!

Comment by joe Romano — April 8, 2007 @ 9:32 pm
Found this EXCELLENT article:

Pet Food Regulation

By Jean Hofve, DVM

A note from Dr. Jean: I wrote this for The Whole Dog Journal about 7 years ago. Now, due to the massive confusion surrounding the current pet food recall scandal, I thought it was time to put it online so you can understand how such a thing could happen, and who’s in charge of fixing it.

http://www.littlebigcat.com/in.....regulation

Comment by mal — April 8, 2007 @ 9:41 pm
RE: Comment by Mary Smith — April 8, 2007 @ 9:25 pm

Friskies food varies as to whether it has wheat gluten in it. The canned Friskies Pate Chef’s Dinner does not list wheat gluten.

The Friskies Fine Cuts with Chicken in gravy pouches DOES list wheat gluten.

As Friskies does not list the ingredients on their site that is the only two I can tell you about.

Comment by mal — April 8, 2007 @ 9:45 pm
Thanks Linda MS! I do hope they are working beyond overtime on this. It’s just a tad scary that they only check approx. 1% of imported food items.

When I was seeng the vit D issue being brought up, it made me wonder if some of this possibly GM gluten had been brought in prior and maybe this was *just* a bad few tons.

I hope along with the Rome reporter, many others who still haven’t connected what happened/is happening do become connected. Not only is this heartbreaking, it’s very eye opening to what is happening in this global world.

Comment by straybaby — April 8, 2007 @ 9:55 pm
I gotta say … I continue to be so grateful for the comments here. So many are contributing so much. So many tips, so many leads, so much to think about for us all.

It’s late, and I’m tired, but I can’t sign off for the weekend without thanking everyone who cares so much for people and pets both, and wants to help in whatever way possible.

We have plenty of disagreements, almost all respectful, but we all want to help solve the problems. That just lifts me, I can’t tell you how much. And, of course, my heart goes out to those who have lost pets, or are dealing with the illness of a pet.

Citizen journalism, citizen democracy. What a wonder the Internet can be.

Comment by Gina Spadafori — April 8, 2007 @ 11:00 pm
Re: prior comments about Friskies canned food.

There’s several varieties of canned cat food that have no wheat or wheat gluten—usually the ‘loaf’ type rather than gravy type. You’d need to check each label.

I can attest that if it doesn’t say on the label that it has wheat or wheat gluten, it truly doesn’t. My dog goes into allergy mania with itchy, scratchy, whiny bounce-off-the-walls behaviour when she gets ANY wheat, so I’d know if they were lying.

Comment by carly — April 8, 2007 @ 11:12 pm
THANK YOU PET CONNECTION!!!!

Comment by MonkeyKitty — April 8, 2007 @ 11:19 pm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/chin.....96,00.html

The Guardian reports:
“Quarantine authorities in China said on Monday that the country had never exported wheat or wheat gluten to the US. But there is a possibility that firms in China may have sold on products made in other countries.”

Also a nice mention of the petconnection website in this article.

Comment by Hornblower — April 8, 2007 @ 11:35 pm
WOW!! It was painful for me in Feb17th to have lost my Angel kitty Miss cuddles it Totally devasted Me.. as I had no hubby or kids.. just me and her for 12 yrs.. she knew me, I am so Grateful she was in my life.. Then to come home and see her listless body, have blood /foam from her mouth, not able to stand.. me holding her sobbing and sobbing knowing she could die and praying then to have her have a seizure next to me. in my bedand die… I got a casket made for her.. Her body hads been in Cold Storage.Will bury her in the Spring . Now, a Month later. March 17th . a 60 million dollar cat/dog food recall.. that’s NEWS worthy.. and more and more are dieing daily more and more food is found Tainted .. it could be in human food next??
So, I have not slept in my bed since..
That total pet food Recall killed our furry babies
and I lost my Cuddly Companion Needlessly..
THIS is Extremely Serious/these Big Corporations need to be held Accountable..
and Changes have to be MADE NOW!! We need Compensation and Healing and Trust..
It’s important and Serious Why? Because it affects us.. Emionally and Spiritually.. and can we trust pet food companies again ? Even human food?? Who knows.. ?????
All, I know is my Sweet Cuddles will be for Ever Missed, and WE need to Appreciate our Pets/ Our Lives and Each other.. and Make SURE this Never Never Happens Again!!!!!
God Bless

Comment by kelly B — April 8, 2007 @ 11:58 pm
Nice link Hornblower! Good to see the UK media taking the FDA’s number with a grain of salt.

I have been looking at the regulations in the UK and in Canada neither really seem to have any set guidelines or way of doing product recalls. A little concerning to say the least.

Comment by MonkeyKitty — April 8, 2007 @ 11:58 pm
OFF TOPIC

http://tinyurl.com/yoz28v

Comment by Sue Dunn — April 9, 2007 @ 12:08 am
YES, not even sure if Canada has any Regulation??? Not too much is off their shelves..
Very Very Concerning.. it must go back and forth as alot of no name labels was made in the USA..They Canada needs to take this seriously..
Th ey need to TEST All Pet Food. as and their Companies.. before more and more Sweet Pets die Needlessly..!!

Comment by kelly B — April 9, 2007 @ 12:12 am
So sorry for your loss kelly B. I know we’re all wondering how this could have ever happened. We’re all looking for answers and it doesn’t seem fair that so many of our innocent and beloved pets were victims of this. How can it be that somebody opens a can from trusted brands and it’s deadly poison?

Comment by Sue Dunn — April 9, 2007 @ 12:27 am
from the UK article:

“It has dominated the US media for weeks, . . . “

dominated?! did they miss the Anna Nicole coverage?!

it would be interesting seeing total air time this has gotten here (sans CNN) vs other stories . . .

Comment by straybaby — April 9, 2007 @ 1:19 am
How strange that we have our young men and women dying in war to protect US from terrorism and the very people that are sending them to die are failing at protecting US here in our own homes. My nephew is in Iraq to help “protect” the United States from terrorism…who’s protecting us here?

Comment by Jamie — April 9, 2007 @ 6:30 am
And, don’t you think that the other countries (UK and Canada) are following our news about the recall so that they, too, can keep abreast of what foods are not safe? Regardless of where a person lives, they really aren’t stupid (as our government is finding out). So, if there is a massive recall of 100’s of different brands of pet food in the USA, don’t you think that pet owners in other countries are going to take notice of what they feed their pets? I know I would.

And, what happened to the other contaminated gluten that was sent out and unaccounted for? Which less fortunate country is using that product in its human food processing?

Could you imagine if 3,570 people had died here in the USA from having that poison in the food? The world would take notice…

Comment by Jamie — April 9, 2007 @ 6:39 am
Kelly B,

I’m so sorry for your loss of Angel Kitty Miss Cuddles. Everytime I read of a beloved pet dying it breaks my heart, over and over again.

It’s just so unbelievable that of all the risks we take each day, crossing the street, turning the corner, now it’s the danger(s) of choosing a pet food.

I pray one day we all have peace and at least in the future we can feed our pets without fear in our hearts.

May you forever cherish sweet memories of your kitty.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 7:05 am
Canada and Pet Food Regulations NONE!!!

Someone asked about the Canadian system for regulating pet food. This is none. It is left to the agencied below to monitor. None of these agencies are government run.

. Associations

Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC)
A national organization dedicated to ensuring the highest level of pet care attainable and a guarantee of a fair and equitable representation for all facets of the Canadian pet industry.

Canadian Veterinary Medical Association (CVMA)
The national body serving and representing the interests of the veterinary profession in Canada.

Canadian Association of Professional Pet Dog Trainers
The CAPDT mandate is to further the concept of dog-friendly and humane training techniques and to provide a forum whereby professional pet dog trainers can be educated, exchange and generate ideas and network with other professionals.

International Professional Groomers, Inc.
IPG, Inc. is an international nonprofit organization for professional pet groomers to upgrade and benefit their industry.

http://tinyurl.com/26n8wd

These associations are all private and inter-connected with the pet food industry. The emphasis is on the financial side, not the safety of the pet foods in Canada.

Pet food labelling in Canada is more concerned with the advertising area and is covered by the
Competition Bureau of Canada:

http://www.competitionbureau.g.....9&lg=e

The rules are basically a mirror of the US rules (which are not adequate to say the least)
Canada uses the same AAFCO guidelines for ingredients:

) Feed ingredient definitions can be found in the current version of the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) Official Publication. They are recommended as the definition guidelines for ingredient labelling in Canada.

b) The onus is on the manufacturer or importer to ensure that all ingredients are allowable under Canadian law and that the addition of any ingredient, or the addition of any ingredient beyond certain levels, does not make the product a drug as defined by the Food and Drugs Act.

So for pet owners in Canada there are no government agencies monitoring or policing the pet food indusrty. Which is very scary, considering that the home base for Menu Foods is in Streetsville, Ontario. Due to a lack of exposure or information, there is no news about any steps being made to ensure the safety at that plant.

Comment by mal — April 9, 2007 @ 7:26 am
Comment by kelly B — April 8, 2007 @ 11:58 pm

Kelly B, I wanted to tell you Im so sorry that you lost your dear Cuddles. I can relate to your feelings with losing my kitty. One thing I have noticed is the emotions that this has brought out in me and some not very good ones. Gina’s comment about some of the comments here not being so polite Im sure was partly directed at me, if it wasnt directed at me it should have been, I was rude (I did apologize earlier). I have found that this has unleashed some feelings that I am not used to handling. Friends and loved ones that know me well know that I am not normally disrespectful or rude. I have found that since our kitty has died I have been bitter, rude, angry, picking verbal fights alot, distrusting, anxious, not able to sleep well (kitty used to sleep with me) and depressed. These are emotions that I do not normally have. So on top of losing my best friend to the hands of these negligent companies I now have a baggage of feelings that I need to deal with and learn how to handle better. I hope others out there dont have these awful feelings to deal with but I know Im not the only one. So to others that are having these emotions I can only offer my sympathies and very best wishes for you to find the peace you deserve in mourning your beloved pets. Best wishes to you.

Comment by Sandi K — April 9, 2007 @ 7:47 am
Well, I guess Canada is like the U.S. Marginally healthy pet food - just good enough so that pets don’t die all the while making certain production costs are way down.

I don’t like pet food commercials - brain washing nonesense - and there’s no nice way to say it.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 7:47 am
After reading the Jean Hofve article about pet food regulation (linked above), I’m wondering if we should focus on contacting someone at the state level or…?

Comment by slt — April 9, 2007 @ 7:58 am
Actually Canada is worse than the States. There is no agency within the government that alerts people to warnings with pet food UNLESS it directly affects public health of people.

The FDA has a site where people can look for pet food recalls that affect the health of their pets. Canada has no such agency.

Canada only does inspections of pet production plants to look for enviromental concernsor work place safety issues. There is no inspection(random or otherwise) of the actual pet food products.

Canadian pet owners have no one to turn to for information or to direct demands for better control of the pet food industry, since no government agency is assigned to those issues.

Very sad!!

Comment by mal — April 9, 2007 @ 8:03 am
Homecooked Meals for Dogs:

I own several large dogs, Dobermans and two coonhounds and homecooking meals for them is quite a task.

I’ve learned a few things that I wish to pass on if a person has a several large dogs to feed. It’s virtually impossible for me to cook several days in advance.

So I cook one days meal ahead of time and feed in the evening. There’s lots of good books out and with your vet’s help I think one would be fine cooking homemade meals and that is just my opinion of course.

I boil hamburger and the meat holds heat so trying to cool it down enough with the dogs anxious for their dinner so cooking after work before just feeding is difficult. And I cook the veggies and they too hold lots of heat especially in stainless steel dog dishes.

So, I’ve learned that cooking before feeding doesn’t work so well. So I put the veggies is a slow cooker the night before and then also defrost the meat and boil late in the evening, the dogs are full and sleepy so the smell doesn’t drive them nuts. Meat goes in the frig that night.

Then before I leave for work everything else is put in the frig and warmed up before I feed. I do the same with rice.

I also take the oil ration for the dogs and slow cook eggs in it in a frying pan and I do this right before I feed, because the eggs cool quickly after I chop them up.

Just a tip for what works for me. Hope it helps a little.

Linda MS
Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 8:25 am
Situation in Canada with their pet food:

Mal:

It is very sad. And then if the pet food is sold here in America their lack of oversight effects us also.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 8:28 am
Just phoned Sen Durbin’s office this morning. The guy who answered put me on hold, came back, put me on hold again then transferred me to voicemail. Wasn’t clear whose voicemail it was but I left a detailed message requesting the hearing be televised LIVE on CSpan rather than just hearing a 30 second wrapup from the media. Left name and phone number. Wonder if I’ll get a response.

Comment by VJ — April 9, 2007 @ 8:48 am
All I can say is that we that have lost pets and those of us who still are fighting to keep alive pets that are sick havebeen totally let down by THE PET FOOD INDUSTRY THE GOVERNMENT (FDA) THE NEWS MEDIA…who have better connections to see that the true depth of this is reported.I”am disgusted heart-broken and weary from trying to make a difference in this NATIONAL TRAGEDY.May all of us who have been affected by this find the strength and persistance to find JUSTICE and PEACE for all the pets big and small that have been murdered by the greed of corporate america..and the lack of responce from our OWN GOVERNMENT…May these people have answers on judgement day.

Comment by Mitchell — April 9, 2007 @ 9:06 am
Pizzy is a good reporter and certainly no one can deny that Iraq is the central issue of the times.

But I think what we are looking at is the far far end if the elephant. What we are seeing is as Stepen Colbert put it “limited government at work” (or not working).

When this story broke and it became aparent that Brandy had gotten some of the bad food I was interviewed by a reporter from http://www.nbc26.com. I repeatedly told her that the story she needed to get out was that all of the lots had not yet been identified and people need to know that. The heavily edited story just went for the tear jerk aspect with no real usable information.

Isnt that what got us into Iraq? The brain dead acceptance of the official government line got over 3,000 of our people dead and how many wounded? Would that Mr. Pizzy expressed the same consternation in 2003 and perhaps we would have the luxury of focusing on all of the issues of lesser importance.

Yeah, these are just pets. But does anyone remember the destruction of New Orleans when people were told they had to abandon their pets on the spot in order to get on evacuation busses? What was that a symptom of? We are all in this ark together and we have been heading for the rocks. Time to change course.

Comment by Bernard J. (Bernie) Starzewski — April 9, 2007 @ 9:36 am
The Pet Food Industry obviously does not take us customers seriously. That should be clear by now.

The Senate hearings are the next stage.

And people need to use the power of the purse to teach these companies who won’t come clean and are playing games with Americans a lesson.

Let the Buyer Beware.

Comment by Steve — April 9, 2007 @ 9:37 am
Comment to: There is no agency within the government that alerts people to warnings with pet food UNLESS it directly affects public health of people.
Now we know why Menu Foods operates in Cananda…… China said they did not sale to the US, no they sold to Canada.

Comment by marcy — April 9, 2007 @ 9:46 am
Problems with Gluten - corn and wheat:

Here’s an article that I read on animaltalknaturally that is interesting - dated 4/6/2007

http://www.animaltalknaturally...../#more-382

I have vowed to stay away from all Gluten (Wheat and Corn alike) for me and my family as well as my pets - also to stay away from wheat and corn in any form for my pets. I use different veggies and then sweet potatoes as carbs and also some red potatoes boiled and mashed.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 9:47 am
One simply can’t believe official statements issued from other countries, especially China. I’m not saying that all official positions are wrong or a lie, but simply official statements don’t hold much water to my way of thinking.

Corporations also just lie, not all the time, but it’s difficult to know what to believe, especially now.

And as yet we don’t know what really may have killed the pets - the Wheat Gluten as a marker sounds interesing - where’s the rest of the story?

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 9:51 am
Comment by marcy — April 9, 2007 @ 9:46 am

Menu Foods Income Fund
(Public, TSE:MEW.UN)
Apr 9, 11:28AM ET
+0.03 (0.68%)

Comment by Steve — April 9, 2007 @ 9:51 am
_Comment by kelly B — April 8, 2007 @ 11:58 pm

Kelly, I am so sorry for your loss, and I pray you will be comforted by knowing you gave such love and care to your kitty. You will be with her again…and she with you.

_Comment by Mitchell — April 9, 2007 @ 9:06 am

Mitchell, I agree with you. We have been so let down by the powers we are told to trust.
We are very fortunate to have Pet Connection to keep us posted with the truth and to bring us together to find answers. After it is all said and done, each soul will answer to its Creator.
Our pets are at the mercy of mankind, and we must remember this…for it is the bottom line.

Sincerely, Pam Williams

Comment by Pam Williams — April 9, 2007 @ 9:57 am
I am still disheartened by the string of pet food commercials running on network and cable channels, especially during this crisis.

I even saw one with photos of lovely veggies, like the ones I cook for my dogs, and I wondered if they look that wholesome and good in the vats they stir up? Probably not.

In light of the many recent pet food recalls, it is simply up to the individual to make wiser choices - government can’t do it all (granted they can do better than their sorry job so far) but still we need to take the power back - and stop looking for the quick solution - of course, as always, that’s just my opinion. And maybe even slow down a bit, smell the roses, and begin buying locally from farmers markets and avoiding the chain supermarkets with their so many quick fixes - pet food included.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 10:04 am
There is no CHANGE. The Pet Food Industry is doing exactly what they did before March 16. We have absolutely zero reassurances.

Business as usual. Menu Plants are churning out product, not a single Pet Brand has stepped up to the plate.

We have absolutely ZERO information to rely on.

Ingredients from China are probably on the way to the states. From the same companies and traders. You know the names. Going into the food right at this moment.

NOTHING. ZERO ACCOUNTABILITY

Comment by Steve — April 9, 2007 @ 10:20 am
Steve,

More the reason to make it ourselves or to do lots of research and buy not much pre-made or pre-packaged or from the chain stores.

The CNN interview this weekend from the rep. of consumer reports.org said we can’t trust anything and to buy most of what we get locally from farmer’s markets.

I know the meat from Safeway in CA. is not imported and comes from a local feed outfit, but the rest of the proucts one simply can’t trust. I was going to buy some greenbeans and I asked the produce man where they were from - MEXICO.

We can all kick and scream and fuss about, but what we are facing is the wave of the future. And if we as pet owners and consumers simply divert our money elsewhere for heathly reasons, then the producers will follow.

Of course, that’s just my opinion. I also believe our government should do better on the safety of food imports.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 10:26 am
_Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 10:04 am

Linda, you are so right. The number of commercials advertising pet food has increased. I guess that is their idea of possible damage control, but they are wrong.

I am finding that the group here at Pet Connection are highly intelligent and “right on target” with information and viewpoints.

I feel that many humans skated through the “spinach and peanut butter” issue, but they are not skating through the PET FOOD RECALL issue. This tells me so much about our society…in a deeply spiritual sense, as well as a courageous sense.

We may not worry so much about ourselves, but we are truly devoted to our pets. We know what unconditional love and loyalty they give us, and we know they are at our mercy. We are standing up for them in a way we have not stood up for ourselves…at least this is my opinion.

I am very proud of the love and courage being shown by those, who are not willing to skate through the PET FOOD RECALL…without stopping to walk slowly and search for the truth for those, who cannot do it for themselves.

Comment by Pam Williams — April 9, 2007 @ 10:31 am
Comment to Steve: WOW, business as usual. I see……..

Comment by marcy — April 9, 2007 @ 10:43 am
Brands have been misrepresenting themselves and in some case outright lying in their marketing.

You would believe some of these brands were made in Mom’s kitchen when they in fact came out of Menus Emporia Kansas plant.

This is another issue.

How many premium brands at this minute are having food churned out of Emporia?

I’m mad as hell

Comment by Steve — April 9, 2007 @ 10:45 am
we recently had to put our friend down, 15 yrs old kitty, march 29th, he was fine 2 months ago, also, he had liver failure , it happend so fast he went down to 8 lbs, our vet says not do to the recall, it would have been his kidneys, but the timing , the coincidence i still dont know, too much the timing,it was sad to see how bad he got, they tried all they can, this recall has us all fearful what to give our pets, now i heard alot of people are going organic,,

Comment by dorothy — April 9, 2007 @ 10:52 am
JUST RECEIVED A CALL BACK FROM SEN DURBIN’S OFFICE. THE HEARING IS SCHEDULED FOR THURSDAY, APRIL 12 AT 2:00 PM. BELIEVE THIS WOULD BE WASHINGTON DC TIME.

Comment by VJ — April 9, 2007

Thankyou VJ. Every pet owner should be paying close attention to these developments.

Comment by Steve — April 9, 2007 @ 10:54 am
The lies abound everywhere and the more we know the angrier we get, and rightfully so.

We should know the company and location who is producing the products - pet food or not, but does the plant make it according to standards of each contracting pet food company - in all fairness just because it’s at a Menu plant does not mean it is all menu quality (not necessarily, but does Menu supply the raw ingredients? Now that’s important to know, and if Menu does then it is all about the same to me.

We see a nice picture and we hear an old fashioned name that conjures up images of warmth and love and safety - and all the while the food is just “rot gut” for dogs and cats.

Pet food should be of such a high quality that it can be safe for human consumption - and the label should state that also.

Nothing else will be good enough. Otherwise we are treating our pets as inferior beings and even though they can’t write (some can read) they understand and have emotions and should be treated with respect and not fed rot gut toxic waste garbage from our landfills packaged and marketed by savvy companies out dub us.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 10:58 am
The day after my precious “Shadow” a 21 year old beagle died..I contacted all the 3 major tv stations here in Baltimore.They basically (laughed out loud) not literally but it was in their voice”s.Aweek or so after the start of all of this I was contacted by 2 of these stations who wanted to do a story. I declined because I knew it would be just a fluff story and that it would be them asking questions to make me cry and sensationalize the death of my dog.My vet who has been wonderfull in this she said if my little boy was younger he may have survived all this. She has been wonderfull with all that I have dealt with so far…she told me that this is going to be a long process and to stay strong because she is behind me 100% and wants JUSTICE for all of us..she said that so far her practice has been able to save all the other little guys and girls brought in from eating this poison. I cried like a baby again because I was so glad they were saved. Iam still grieving for my loss.I cant describe the hurt and pain of comming home and not seeing my Shadow asleep or jumping around for his treats and a walk.Yes he lived a long time but he should not have been murdered by just eating his food. He trusted me to keep him safe.I want to thank this Site for all they have done to keep us informed..cause the media sure isnt except maybe CNN with the scroll on the screen. I was able to contact what I think is a good lawyer to allow me to be in a class action suit from advice from a poster on this site…Thanks Steve..they said after speaking to me that I had a very compeling story and may use me to testify if it ever come to that. I have the empty cans the unopened cans the receits frozen vomit (I know that is gross) But I knew that some thing was wrong for my buddy to die so suddenly and horribily..even though he was old. God he fought like a champ…but when he looked up at me the last time and those sad eyes said what is happening to me? I lst it.I still cry at least once a day…Please forgive me for venting so much here..I need to release this or I will explode. May God or whoever you believe in help keep us all strong and persistant! Hugs…in Shadows name maandmyshadow58@aol.com…aka Mitchell

Comment by Mitchell — April 9, 2007 @ 11:33 am
Steve,
We all are mad as hell……… we all fell for the same marketing gimmicks/schemes.

Eukanuba “Feed the Breed. Unique Breeds. Unique Needs.”

Iams “They Make Your Life Better. We’ll Help You Return the Favor.”

Iams “Lifes Better”

“Foods of Del Monte ~ Nourishing Families. Enriching Lives, Every Day”

Hill’s Prescription Diet ~ “Clinical Nutrition To Improve Quality of Life.”

Purina ~ “Your Pet, Our Passion”

I just pulled these from the website today………… It just makes me sick!!!

Comment by marcy — April 9, 2007 @ 11:35 am
meandmyshadow58@aol.com aka Mitchell

Comment by Mitchell — April 9, 2007 @ 11:35 am
Mitchell, words can’t comfort at a time like this. Our pets take part of our souls with us when they pass and leave so much of themselves behind too. Nothing will ever fill the hole they leave.

I’m so sorry for your loss of sweet Shadow. Take care.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 11:38 am
Marcy, don’t you just detest those ads? We are being fooled by slick ad companies out to make a mint off of our pets. I bet they even hire psychologists to design ads that to sell their inferior pet food - gag a maggot!

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 11:50 am
A heckuva good read with some solid suggestions for the pet food industry from Forbes Magazine:

http://tinyurl.com/323x57

Comment by GingerTom — April 9, 2007 @ 11:50 am
I apologize if this has already been posted — it’s an alert regarding Purina Beneful dog food — I would stay AWAY from any Purina pet products:

http://www.doggybling.com/newsarticle.php?id=1099

Comment by Elizabeth — April 9, 2007 @ 11:52 am
dagnabit…sorry folks that did not work..moderator..feel free to kill that one — google pet food recall and under last hour….will lead to the article.

Comment by GingerTom — April 9, 2007 @ 11:52 am
GingerTom that link we someplace odd.

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 11:52 am
Elizabeth - Beneful by Purina - is it part of the recall too? I can’t keep up with it all. I read the article and read the comments - my goodness why didn’t Purina recall right away.

These companies…..well it isn’t nice but everyone here knows it already. They simply stink!

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 11:57 am
I don’t know if Purina has recalled Beneful — but there’s been lots of buzz that they NEED to recall it. Just like the other cases, where the companies eventually do recall. Let’s just say, I would stay away from this, and other Purina products.

By the way, the Forbes article mentioned above is excellent — I wish the pet food industry would read it and take it to heart.

Comment by Elizabeth — April 9, 2007 @ 12:06 pm
WHEAT GLUTEN SOURCE

I’m puzzled. This has been spinning around in my head for awhile. Think about the route of the wheat shipment:

Brokered by a Las Vegas based company licensed in California with offices in China that advertises main exports from South America.
Came through a Chinese trade distributor, shipped via the Netherlands, delivered to a dock on the West coast in Los Angeles for delivery to manufacturing plants on the East coast in New Jersey and mid-U.S. in Kansas.

Hunh?

Comment by Nadine Long — April 9, 2007 @ 12:13 pm
WHEAT GLUTEN SOURCE

Oh, and the Chinese government says the wheat gluten is not sourced from China.

Comment by Nadine Long — April 9, 2007 @ 12:15 pm
A little side stepping here for comfort uh?

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 12:18 pm
How will we ever know where any products really come from with all these deals going on? And about the cost of an excess of middlemen. Seems also that the cost of our food/pet food is tied up in passing through many channels, and seriously not on quality.

Comment by Nadine Long — April 9, 2007 @ 12:22 pm
Whatever the source, it needs to be located. And all foods entering the U.S. needs to be safe to eat, and we should care no less about our pet food.

Test wheat gluten around the globe and get to the bottom of this; also corn gluten that junk isn’t any better.

I don’t care if they shipped it via a slow boat on the back of sharks - just find out what’s going on.

My five cents worth.

Linda MS

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 12:24 pm
Good point, Nadine. “…the cost of our food/pet food is tied up in passing through many channels, and seriously not on quality.”

I’m still looking for canned cat food that is safe and bought some By Nature Organics under the Blue Seal brand because it didn’t have wheat or wheat gluten in it. He liked the food, but it appears that Menu Foods manufactures the “loaf style” canned food. I’m assuming this is a loaf-style food, instead of a “cuts & gravy” format.

I want NOTHING TO DO WITH MENU FOODS, so this food is going back. The same holds true for InnovaEvo — (at least some) wet foods are made by Menu Foods in the S. Dakota plant. Those two cans go back as well.

I’m just refusing to buy any type of product that uses Menu Foods for even partial manufacturing! I already called BlueSeal (about the can of By Nature Organics) and told them I was not going to buy ANY products from them because they deal with Menu Foods.

It’s very difficult trying to find a pet food that is NOT made by Menu Foods, but I looked and called, and now have a list of 10 -12 that I will investigate further. I think it’s important to let companies know WHY we will NOT BUY THEIR BRANDS. (I’m not shouting, just capitalizing so those who skim this thread can do a quick read.)

And I’m not just complaining about Menu Foods as the manufacturer. It’s the other big companies that bought the cheap, untested wheat gluten/ wheat/ ingredients as well that used different processing plants.

Comment by petlover — April 9, 2007 @ 12:42 pm
I have to run shortly, but did you see that CNN was making a bridge between the pet food recall and the safety of the human food supply? A woman from Consumer (Affairs?) named _____ Holloran (sp.?) was talking about the importation of food/ingredients for humans and the fact so little is inspected/tested when it comes into the U.S., the idea that the FDA has a smaller budget, etc. Maybe someone else can fill in more……

Comment by petlover — April 9, 2007 @ 12:45 pm
Comment by Sandi K — April 8, 2007

And to Mr Greenpeace above, I think that you arent understanding the true scope of this pet food recall. Perhaps if you go back and read all of the info out here you will see that there are toxins involved and by this group trying to find answers and stop this from happening again, you will see that we are in turn trying to help the environment. So you might want to educate yourself on this pet food recall and what is truly behind it all before you also make implications that there is a disconnect as Mr Pizzey did….Also just a note, we might be helping you to continue your Greenpeace cause by stopping these toxins from ending up in the very food you are eating. So instead of coming here and implying that we dont care, I think you should be handing over a big thank you to us!

First of all thats Mrs greenpeace thank you,
and i don’t think you understand the whole picture. Yes this sad to be happening to pets but i hardly think that the actions here will do much for the ozone being depleted, and the ice caps melting and i dont think that toxins in food (pets or humans)and of course nobody wants to be eating tainted food, has any bearing on the fact.

If the crops die from climate changes and animals die for the lack of no water due to global warmimg then there will be no cause for you to fight for as there will be no food.

Anyways i’ve said my peace and thats my opinion i never have been one to just ramble on and i do appreciate pet connection and what everyone here is trying to do.

Comment by Greenpeace — April 9, 2007 @ 12:50 pm
Is there any way that Pet Connection can email 3,598 people who have sent in reports of pet deaths, asking each of them to individually email CNN telling them that their pet died due to contaminated food. Maybe then the media will start reporting accurate numbers! Or better yet, get Vets to start emailing in numbers, which the media may be more inclined to believe.

Comment by Barb — April 9, 2007 @ 1:31 pm
Comment by Greenpeace — April 9, 2007 @ 12:50 pm

Mrs Greenpeace, I stand corrected. And I do understand more than you know and I commend you for your actions. I do see the global warming, I live in Alaska & our weather has been out of the ordinary for quite some time now. I do respect your passion and I hope you can understand mine in wanting to find answers on why my pet had to die…I had a meltdown of my own yesterday with trying to cope with my grief so I have been apologizing to folks I insulted and I owe you an apology also. I am ashamed at my behavior. Thank you and best wishes

Comment by Sandi K — April 9, 2007 @ 2:21 pm
Thank you :-)..and iam sorry for your loss by the way :-(

Comment by Greenpeace — April 9, 2007 @ 2:51 pm
ARE YOU PUTTING RENDERED PROTEINS ON YOUR FACE???

“Aside from reducing the amount of waste produced by the meat processing industry, these rendered fats and proteins have many uses.
…….
The protein is used in the production of gelatin and COSMETICS (capital lettering was done by me)and is sold to feed manufacturers as a high quality protein source, primarily for swine, poultry and pet feeds.”

http://tinyurl.com/2j2one

SO let me try to get this straight. The products left over from food processing which are not safe for human consumption are rendered and besides being used for animal feed and pet food, they are also used in COSMETICS. Excuse me while I go and scrub my face with some disinfectant. This is all too much!!!

Comment by mal — April 9, 2007 @ 3:36 pm
GREENPEACE:
My vet STILL does not count Brandy in that total even though all her symptoms and all the circumstantial evidence points to it because…

1. Menu Foods has not specifically identified her lot # as one of the contaminated lots.

2. The FDA has yet to collect and test the food per their representations to me.

I can accept (as we all should) that it is not scientifically proven that any of these reports will turn out to be the result of pets eating their products. But, (and this is a big BUT) the real problem is why have they not been investigated?

Hey, Mr. FDA? The cans are here waiting for you!

Maybe we should all be grateful that this was not bird flu?

Comment by Bernard J. (Bernie) Starzewski — April 9, 2007 @ 4:43 pm
Just as it’s not pets vs. soldiers, it’s not pets vs. the planet either. We need to act where we can, when the situation arises.

Comment by CathyA — April 9, 2007 @ 4:52 pm
Pet food contaminated with an industrial chemical may have sickened or killed 39,000 cats and dogs nationwide, based on an extrapolation from data released Monday by one of the nation’s largest chains of veterinary hospitals

This story is being carried by many AP news sources now.

http://news.google.ca/news?hl=.....+food+news

word is getting out

Comment by mal — April 9, 2007 @ 6:33 pm
Mal,

good article - maybe now this problem will get the needed media attention.

Comment by Linda — April 9, 2007 @ 6:55 pm
Yep is it not nice how the American public has no problems with American jobs being given to Non Americans who get in our country legally or not and allowing the feds to sell our country out and even now with the pet food issue not one person is saying how come a Non American company could buy up other pet food compaines in the USA and control 90% of that market ?
Then to make it worse is flooding the pet shelves with food injected with food from china where neither companines are inspected or watched by the FDA
Its clear since there is no rush to solve this problem that all will be covered up and they will continue to pull crap like this and I think this tainted food has been going on much longer then they are saying.

Also even on this website I cannot find one bit of info as how to know if your pet has been effected, yet all they say is go see a vet when it smells like hey here is a way for all vets to make a ton of money in everyone taking there pet in to even find out if they have been effected.

Then there is Saveway where I have been buyig their dog food for 4 years, I find out 2 weeks ago about this issue so I ask what hard info they had to be told ” we only know what we see in the news “
Go to the pet section and there is not even anything posted there to inform people not only of the problem but what foods are good or not.

There should be laws that no Non American company can own or control any product that is sold nation wide or allow as in this case that no matter if you bought costly brands or cheap brands they really are ALL the same in makeup only a different label stuck on.

Demand that this Menu foods out of canada be forced to sell out and no vendor supplying to over 100 vendor/brands

Comment by JR — April 9, 2007 @ 10:19 pm

RSS feed for comments on this post.

pet connection

Pet-food recall: The numbers, the meaning, the hearing

By Gina Spadafori

133 Comments »

Leave a comment

Syndication

Recent Comments

Categories

Recent Posts

Pet Connection Team

Search

Read more from the Pet Connection team

Worth reading

Archives