Gratuitous Drew blogging … and news call
By Gina Spadafori
May 30, 2007
How I feel after finishing a book project:
Now … we’re looking for some news links this morning … pet-related, please. Post ‘em in comments or e-mail them.
And let’s watch the hate speech in the comments. You can be angry at the Chinese government. You can be scared of the Chinese government. But we’re not going to let you make broad and basically unfounded comments about the people of China. It ain’t happening here.
Also … let’s do remember that this is a pet-related blog. I’m not sure how a man quarantined with TB relates to that.
So … send your links.
***
I guess we’re going to start with the sick-o stuff …
From AFP:
A British artist ate a corgi dog, famous for being Queen Elizabeth II’s favourite breed, in protest Tuesday after a group including her husband Prince Philip allegedly killed a fox earlier this year.
Mark McGowan, who has previously eaten a swan as part of a performance art show, tucked into the dog
alongside Yoko Ono, the widow of ex-Beatle John Lennon,[AFP issues a correction, noting that Ono was not present] live on a London radio station.[...]
McGowan said the dog, which died at a breeding farm, tasted “really, really disgusting,” and added that Ono “looked a bit strange” as she also tasted the dog.
Here’s the rest.
From Sports Illustrated:
Authorities have a search warrant to look for as many as 30 dog carcasses on property owned by Michael Vick that is at the center of a dog fighting investigation. But the warrant has not been executed.
In a news release, Sheriff Harold D. Brown said the warrant issued May 23 has not been executed at the request of Brown and Surry County Commonwealth’s Attorney Gerald G. Poindexter. The release did not say why the two officials leading the investigation into possible dog fighting on the 15-acre property made the request.
ESPN had previously reported that Vick is a major player in dog-fighting, dropping tens of thousands of dollars on fights.
Here’s the rest.
I’m kinda thinking we should put McGowan and Vick in with a few fighting dogs and see how those two guys it.
**
Pets still hurting after Katrina, reports the L.A. Times:
Animal advocates say many pet owners living in trailers and tight on cash while they rebuild their flood-damaged homes opt to give up their animals because they don’t have space or can no longer afford to keep them.
“So many people out there need help with their pets,” said Charlotte Bass Lilly, ARNO’s executive director.
Beaulieu estimated that the number of families surrendering their pets to shelters had gone up between 45% and 60% since Katrina. ARNO was founded shortly after the storm.
Laura K. Maloney, executive director of the Louisiana Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, said that although some of the animals being put up for adoption by her agency these days could be the offspring of animals separated from their families since the storm, most were pets that had been relinquished by their owners.
According to LA/SPCA statistics, about 259,400 families owned pets in Orleans Parish before the storm. As many as 104,000 were left behind after Katrina; about 15,000 were officially rescued. An estimated 3,000 have been reunited with their families, and at least 88,700 pets remain unaccounted for, Maloney said. Thousands of the pets unaccounted for are believed to have died, she added.
ARNO and other animal advocacy groups believe many of the strays that remain on the streets are “Katrina pets” and their fourth- or fifth-generation offspring. And most have not been spayed or neutered.
**
On the pet-food front, also from the L.A. Times:
BEIJING — By the standards of Chinese corruption cases, the $832,000 that the former head of the State Food and Drug Administration was charged with skimming over a seven-year period was not huge. But the death sentence given in the bribery case Tuesday reflected the growing pressure under which Beijing finds itself in the wake of medical and food scandals that have rattled the nation and spread anxiety abroad.
Dozens of Chinese died during the period that the condemned official, Zheng Xiaoyu, reportedly approved untested medicines. And China has suffered significant loss of face overseas.
The nation’s reputation as an export juggernaut recently has been tarnished by a pet food scandal in the United States, disclosures that exported toothpaste contained a chemical used in antifreeze and reports of Chinese medical ingredients being linked to deaths in Panama.
Beijing has responded by dispatching legions of factory inspectors and promising tougher oversight. On Tuesday, it announced its first recall system for unsafe food products as well as the death sentence for the 62-year-old former bureaucrat.
And hey, how ’bout those whales? They’re nearing the Golden Gate.
Awwwwww - Amazing Pic!! Sooooo Cute and Happy!!
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 30, 2007 @ 7:41 am
Is that where Clara got all her fur?? ‘Cause my kittens are jealous of Clara and would like to have such pretty long fur like she does!!
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 30, 2007 @ 7:42 am
That is an adorable picture. Gina are you out of picture bouncing gleefully next to him?
Comment by Maudigan — May 30, 2007 @ 7:42 am
How much did you say we spend a year on our pets? Newsweek story - yikes.
http://tinyurl.com/38kyzg
Re: photo - gotta love that enthusiasm!
Comment by Linda — May 30, 2007 @ 7:51 am
Is the nutra nuggets recall old or new? I think its old but there are new articles, dated today, about it.
“Nutra Nuggets 40-pound lamb meal and rice formula with the following production codes NLR0404A2SL and NLR0404B2SL with the expiration date of Oct. 9, 2008.”
http://www.allaboutfeed.net/ne.....alled.html
http://www.knx1070.com/pages/5.....tId=554771
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 30, 2007 @ 7:53 am
That would make a cute painting.
On another note - My very long eared cooooonhound had an ear infection, yeast, over the long weekend - no vet apps - so emergency time. The poor baby and Labor Day the inside flesh of this very very long ear was alive with the yeast and the meds hadn’t taken it out yet - what to do? I spread plain yogurt on his tender hot fleshy red ear - and I did this several times on Monday - seemed to help. Anyone every try this - no I didn’t put the yogurt down his ear canal.
Comment by Linda — May 30, 2007 @ 7:58 am
From the WSJ:
http://online.wsj.com/article/.....lenews_wsj
BUSINESS WORLD
By HOLMAN W. JENKINS, JR.
Yes Logo
“Tara gum is partly soluble in water, and it increases the gelling properties of agar.”
[…]
“We couldn’t run a modern economy without this massive investment in communicating product attributes and imagery, however much the antiglobalization crowd likes imagining a “no logo” world in which advertising and brands are rejected by consumers. You wouldn’t be able to crack a pack of Twinkies or quaff a diet beverage with any confidence that you wouldn’t soon be writhing down at the local emergency ward.
“Take the pet food industry. Nearly a hundred brands, from Alpo to Eukanuba, put out by dozens of companies, have been recalled thanks to the Chinese melamine scandal (involving an illegal additive designed falsely to suggest a high protein content). Yet the actual food itself comes from a rather smaller handful of manufacturers, such as Menu Foods, Del Monte and Purina. The pet food market, in short, sustains more brands than true varieties of pet food, consisting of numerous marketers who are mainly rebranders of commodity pet food and whose chief stock in trade is their reputation with customers, built up through advertising and repeat purchases.
“These consumer relationships are now in flux, at great cost to companies and their investors. For a typical consumer product, 20% of customers account for 80% of sales. In the pet food business, nearly half goes to households with incomes greater than $70,000 — i.e., shoppers especially willing and able to spend money pleasing their furry friends.
“Pet food makers today are paying a price for failing a test they set for themselves in their advertising, which in recent years has been all about insinuating brand names into the emotional bonds between man and Fido. Purina has vowed to begin expensive testing of all ingredients. Bain Capital, the LBO group that owned pet food maker Nutro, is beating a retreat, selling out this month to Mars Inc. (yep, the giant candy maker). Mars last year snapped up Doane Pet Care from the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, which had bought the company just nine months earlier.
“Expect more such consolidation into the hands of stronger players capable of overhauling industry practices and imposing rigorous quality control. Here pet food follows a trail blazed by sneakers, clothing and other import-dependent and image-dependent industries. Wal-Mart, for one, spends billions regulating the behavior of its overseas suppliers, fearing otherwise their environmental and labor outrages might sully Wal-Mart’s brand equity.”
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 30, 2007 @ 8:00 am
Nutra Nuggets is relatively new, but it has been reported previously. Chances are some media are just getting it out after the long holiday weekend.
Comment by Gina Spadafori — May 30, 2007 @ 8:01 am
The WSJ piece … interesting.
Comment by Gina Spadafori — May 30, 2007 @ 8:03 am
No news, that I can find, out the Canadian corn gluten. Had been searching on that yesterday and this morning…The Whiskas kitten food I used to feed was made in Canada and has corn gluten; so I’ve been watching for this story to unfold… but it hasn’t yet…
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 30, 2007 @ 8:04 am
Yes, good article in WSJ. Found myself wanting to take notes…
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 30, 2007 @ 8:05 am
carcasses?!? they’re gonna look for carcasses…I think I’m gonna be SICK, like right now!
Comment by Peggy (AKA: Big Fat Momma Cat) — May 30, 2007 @ 8:07 am
Comment by Linda — May 30, 2007 @ 7:51 am
my pup would LOVE a mud bath! lol!~
Comment by straybaby — May 30, 2007 @ 8:40 am
Linda, you might try Purple Power on your coonhound’s ear. A gal who uesd to post on a list I was on did Cocker Spaniel rescue, and she saw some UGLY ears! And this is the remedy she swears by, when all else fails.
Caveat (even though the article says otherwise): Do this OUT OF DOORS, and stand back when your dog shakes his head - because the stuff DOES stain!
http://mooreshaven.com/pets/do.....power.html
Comment by The OTHER Pat — May 30, 2007 @ 8:48 am
Goooooooooo Humpbacks!
Comment by slt — May 30, 2007 @ 8:56 am
Hey, I go the yearly dog run in SF Golden Gate Park and they had a place where the doggies get this massage with blueberry stuff - well the funny thing is that the dogs just loved it and I mean went nuts and were so happy and delighted afterwards, it was a panic to watch.
Thanks for Purple Power tip - don’t know what it is but I will look it up.
Comment by Linda — May 30, 2007 @ 8:57 am
WHO has a lot of info on these food additives:
http://tinyurl.com/38dusg
Comment by Linda — May 30, 2007 @ 9:15 am
Multiple articles, multiple comments.
Gack! on McGowan and Vick. And also grrrrrr.
The Katrina thing makes me want to cry. I have a big enough car to take them all should I need to evacuate—not likely where I live, but still—but if I were caught unprepared I’d be one of the people who refused to go without my pets.
Comment by Katherine — May 30, 2007 @ 10:08 am
Gina,
I have had thoughts all along that we need to remember that the people of China are forced into some of the situations they find themselves in, after all, China is a communist govt. that doesn’t care about human rights, and the Chinese people are pretty much slaves.
I don’t give their govt a pass at all!
Comment by Elaine — May 30, 2007 @ 10:28 am
Gina, great doggie pix. Oh, he’s worldwide and oh so hansome!!!!
Comment by Rose — May 30, 2007 @ 11:07 am
The Costa Rican Health Ministry raided businesses last week and confiscated about 350 tubes of the tainted toothpaste, some from a company called (I’m not making this up) La Bomba. Today’s news reports that La Bomba turned over a truck loaded with three tons of the “Mr. Cool” toothpaste — brought into the country illegally from Panama and with labeling that didn’t reveal its true contents — and is facing criminal prosecution.
http://insidecostarica.com/dai...../nac01.htm
Comment by Ticocats — May 30, 2007 @ 11:23 am
This isn’t a news link, but it’s funny. Have you seen “I has a sweet potato”?
Comment by Katherine — May 30, 2007 @ 11:28 am
Its astounding that so much pain and misery was caused by one guy. He can fry, as far as I am concerned.
Folks have been saying of the melamine scandal, “Oh its only pets” or saying that Americans have twisted priorities. However, it points to, and has pointed to, the larger issue of safety of all ingredients in any manufactured product. Children have died in China, South Americans have gotten tainted toothpaste. Who knows what else has gone on? It could have been something else, but because of our first amendment rights and the fact that we’re a nation of loudmouths, the outcry here got a government of 1.3 billion people off their butts and into the 21st century.
Yes, we found out when housecats with their tender kidneys started dying. However, we’ve been scratching our heads over the rising breast cancer rates (probably multiple causes) for years. I wonder how much plastic and toxins got into human food that might have triggered these cancers. I keep boggling at what other evils have come out of that guy’s administration.
Comment by Elaine — June 1, 2007 @ 1:05 pm