A Recent Slew of Pet Food Recalls

Pet food recalls are reaching another all-time high.

Many pet parents are now wondering how to cope with the possibility that they might be feeding Fido or Boots contaminated food. Even premium pet food companies like the Amarillo, Texas based Merrick Pet Care are experiencing problems from that pesky bacteria known as Salmonella. In a July 6, 2010 notification from the FDA’s Vet Tech Institute division an alert was emailed out about Merrick Pet Care’s recall of Beef Filet Squares treats for dogs in the 10 oz. bag (item #60016, Lot # 10084TL7) with a Best By March 21, 2012 expiration date. The recall involves 86 cases of possibly contaminated dog treats. In another instance, the United Pet Group of Cincinnati, Ohio voluntarily expanded its recall of nutritional supplements for dogs and cats due to the same possible Salmonella health risk. If that weren’t enough, Feline’s Pride of Buffalo, New York has issued a voluntary recall of its Natural Chicken Formula Raw Food for cats and kittens.

What exactly is the problem with the pet food industry? And why has Salmonella become so prevalent in pet food?

For the answer let’s look at the source of Salmonella. This hardy (dare I say, indestructible?) bacteria lives in the intestines of animals. Most animal feed contains parts of slaughtered animals and these parts include intestines. As a matter of fact, the AAFCO does not even require that an animal is slaughtered in the traditional way to become part of your pet’s food. The process known as rendering allows for any animal parts, regardless of the type of animal, to enter your pet’s food chain. In the AAFCO’s Q & A regarding pet food regulations the reply to question 4 is, “Animal by-products which may include materials from animals which died by means other than slaughter are explicitly defined as adulterated unless* the materials are rendered in compliance with animal health and protein product regulations to destroy any potential microorganisms which may be in the products. The processes used are deemed to be adequate to control risk of disease.”

What’s wrong with by-products?

The term “animal by-products” sounds benign doesn’t it? However, the definition of by-products is rendered meat. This consists of animal carcasses and intestines, it also contains other ingredients such as fat derived from other more non-traditional animal parts — yes, gulp! even euthanized animals from laboratories — that are then cooked together at a high temperature. This rendering process is the first step to producing the by-product meal found in your pet’s food. This process also creates the fat added to your pet’s food. Keep in mind that both the by-product meal and the rendered fat include multiple body parts and intestines. Despite the AAFCO’s claim that rendering is an adequate method to control the risk of disease heat will not kill all strains of Salmonella bacteria.

What role does the Association of American Feed Control Officials play in pet food manufacturing?

Another interesting fact is the AAFCO’s checklist entitled Best Management Guidance Document for Manufacturing, Packaging and Distributing Animal Feeds and Feed Ingredients (download a copy of this by clicking on this link AAFCO Checklist for Best Mangement Practices). In paragraph 3 number (a) and (b), the AAFCO checklist includes appropriate clean-out procedures such as sequencing, flushing, or physically cleaning to prevent cross-contamination that may endanger animal or human health. In other words, the AAFCO recommends that before a new batch of pet food is processed all equipment be shut down and thoroughly cleaned out and disinfected before a new batch is initiated. This is a costly and time consuming procedure for manufacturers. There are no enforcing agents on the premises, so is it possible that some manufacturers are skipping this important step?

Does Salmonella affect the United States Economically?

Salmonella is not going away anytime soon, its rise will escalate as demand for manufactured and processed food grows. This bacteria’s impact on industrial countries is reaching an astronomical high. According to the World Health Organization the economic cost of food-born Salmonella in the United States hit $3 billion annually in 2001. Additionally, in Denmark the annual estimated cost of Salmonella was $15.5 million in 2001. Denmark took action and instituted a Salmonella control program that costs about $14.1 million annually but its government estimates that this saves the Danes approximately $25.5 million annually in public expenditure. Yet, there is no similar program in the United States and I suspect this is because it would be too costly to enforce.

The bottom line is that consumers need to be aware of the risks when purchasing commercially prepared pet food.

High dollar brand names will not necessarily protect your pet. But there are methods that you can take to dilute the risk. If you are feeding your pet kibble, purchase a high quality brand name, one that does not include meat by-product meal (which is a generic term for saying the meat source is unknown). Instead be certain that the first ingredient on the ingredient list is a named animal protein and not a by-product. Avoid kibble that contains grains (even rice). Next, purchase at least three bags of high-quality kibble from different manufacturers and mix these together. If you feed your pet canned food along with kibble be certain to follow the same process, alternating between brands. By doing this you are ensuring that if a product is contaminated your pet will not receive a high dosage of contamination.

Is there a method to guarantee a pet receives uncontaminated food?

There is only one certain method to guarantee that your pet eats healthy, untainted food and that is by making it yourself. My grandmother and mother were right, they never purchased commercial pet food products. All our dogs ate human-grade meat and veggies and grandmother made these nightly for Puk, one of our family’s many Springer Spaniels. My mother followed in those footsteps and Duke, our poodle, received a homemade meal every night, right along with us. I am the third generation and after owning several herding dogs who were all fed commercial pet food I have finally seen the light. My three multi-mix dogs receive a homemade meal every day, consisting of human-grade raw meats and organic vegetables. They are thriving, beautiful and happy.

* Emphasis by author and not part of the original text

About the author:

Gyvel Young is a journalist with several published books and articles to her credit. Her passion is canine nutrition and animal behavior.

Dog Food and Fats

Is it possible that the rise in hypothyroidism in certain dog breeds might be the result of diets low in saturated fats? Since 1996, dog breeders have noted that this condition has become common enough to test their breeding stock for. While some veterinarian practitioners believe that there might be a genetic predisposition towards hypothyroidism other experts claim that its cause is directly related to the commercial kibble fed to dogs. 

The hypothyroidism question might be a matter of which came first — the chicken or the egg? A dog will pass on to its offspring any weaknesses in its genetic code. When generations of dogs are fed a steady diet of dried kibble their bodies are placed at risk to develop hypothyroidism. Why? Because commercially produced dog food contains primarily polyunsaturated fats. These fats are not conducive for the absorption of certain vitamins, particularly vitamin A, D, E and K.

Vitamin A is a huge player in the body’s ability to kick on its immune system. This wonder vitamin gives the body its ability to fight off cancer and it helps prevent the thyroid gland from shrinking. As the thyroid gland shrinks it begins to lose its ability to function and hypothyroidism sets in. When vitamin A is coupled with vitamin D, the result is a dynamic duo that work together to increase thyroid hormone circulation within the body. But both vitamin A and vitamin D need saturated fat for absorption through the intestine before the body can utilize it.

Although there is no conclusive evidence that a diet lacking saturated fats causes hypothyroidism, it is certainly worth avoiding this condition by providing pets with a wholesome diet that contains a variety of organic food— including quality animal protein and fat. This becomes even more important if you own a dog breed with a genetic predisposition towards this disease. Dog breeds at greater risk for hypothyroidism are: Akitas, American cocker spaniels, Beagles, Boxers, Briards, Brozois, Doberman pinschers, German shepherds, Golden Retrievers, Great Danes, Irish setters. Labarador retrievers, Old English sheepdogs, Rottweilers, and Shetland sheepdogs.

Unfortunately it is often difficult to tell if your dog has hypothyroidism because its symptoms are common to many other diseases. Keep in mind that as your dog ages, he becomes more prone to this condition. That’s why it’s important to start them off with the right type of diet. Variety is key. Supplement your dog’s dried kibble with healthy servings of organically raised meat because it contains the fat your dog needs to absorb certain vitamins. Additionally, provide your pet with cod liver oil at each meal. There are many brands available made specifically for pets. My personal favorite is Nordic Naturals Pet Cod Liver Oil for Dogs & Cats.

About the Author:

Gyvel Young is a journalist, published author and a certified canine nutritionist.

Sources:

Articles

Nockels CF, Ewing DL, Phetteplace H, et al. Hypothyroidism: an early sign of vitamin A deficiency in chickens. J Nutr 1984;114:1733-6

Oba K, Kimura S. Effects of vitamin A deficiency on thyroid function and serum thyroxine levels in the rat. J Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo) 1980;26:327-34

Books

Pottenger, Francis Jr. (1983). Pottenger’s Cats: A Study in Nutrition. California. Price-Pottenger Nutrition Foundation, Inc.

Dog and Cat Food Safety Issues

One thing is for certain, the food industry is changing — on many levels. The Monsanto Company is the leader in diversifying agriculture to the point of engineering foods that appear on your dinner plate and in your pet’s bowl. The most recent travesty involves corn. The MON863 is a genetically modified corn that contains the Bacillus thuringiensis gene. Why is Monsanto inserting the bacillus gene into a corn’s gene? Because this lovely little gene actually causes the corn to produce a pesticide!

This is nothing new. Genetically engineered grains have been distributed since 1996. We are talking about corn, soy, wheat, rice, barely, and various types oil seeds, even alfalfa. The seeds are labeled “hybrid” seeds and the rationale behind using these seeds is higher crop yield. In today’s corporate farming world, the bottom line is what counts, not your safety and certainly not the safety of your pets. The defense is that these crops are used primarily for livestock. Yet, there is no evidence that this is the case. In fact, there are no laws preventing these crops from being sold for human (or pet) consumption.

Back in 1998 corn, wheat, soy, and other grain seeds developed by Monsanto to resist the Roundup herbicide were approved by the FDA. The corn is a GA21 and contains a modified epsps gene that results in the plant’s resistance to the Roundup herbicide. However, it also results in the plant’s absorption of this herbicide. (All plants exposed to an herbicide will absorb the herbicide, resulting in death of the plant.) The argument is that most plants treated with herbicides are not slated for the dinner table, hence the reason for killing them off. In the case of the GA21 corn, it is the opposite. The plant is sprayed, it absorbs the herbicide, but it resists the herbicide and does not die. Ultimately this corn ends up in the human and animal food chain.

In the case of humans or livestock, it can be argued that there is not enough concentration of the herbicide to create problems. In fact, many studies support that these genetically modified foods are perfectly safe for consumption. This is despite many reports that reveal just the opposite. Additionally, this argument can not be made for our pets, who are much smaller than us. Furthermore, independent laboratory tests have revealed that genetically modified grains can create liver, kidney and spleen damage — at least in rats. What exactly does this mean to your pet? Damage to the kidneys can result in renal failure. Damage to the liver results in liver toxicity. And damage to the spleen is fatal. For our companion animals damage to any of these vital organs spells out a death sentence.

Despite all the modern advances in pet health care and the nutritional information available to consumers, our pets are developing some alarming diseases: Diabetes, kidney failure, and cancer. These common human ailments are on the rise in our pets. Why jeopardize your pets’ health by serving food that can place them at risk? By taking the initiative to purchase only grain-free food for your pet, you will reduce their exposure to harmful GMOs. The conclusion is that any genetically modified grain that enters your dog’s and cat’s food is counterproductive to their health.

Gyvel Young is a journalist, published author and a certified canine nutritionist.

Sources:

Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part B, 6:211-225, 2003

Food and Chemical Toxicology, Volume 44, Issue 7, July 2006, Pages 1092-1099

de Vendômois JS, Roullier F, Cellier D, Séralini GE. A Comparison of the Effects of Three GM Corn Varieties on Mammalian Health. Int J Biol Sci 2009; 5:706-726.

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