Pet food recalls & Homemade foods

Is anyone else totally freaked out by the pet food recalls lately? I try to feed my dog good foods, but I found one can of the bad stuff in the cupboard. I would feel terrible if he got sick because of what we fed him.
Anyone here make homemade dog or cat food?
What do you make?
Any recipes?

 

well i decided today to switch to newman's own cat food. hubby and i bought a little bag today to ween them onto it. if i had time i could make them food myself. but it sucks i have a lot of stuff on my own plate. they seem to like the dry so far. tomorrow mornign they are getting some natural wet food. i think they'll like that too.

 

sweetersappe- if your dog ate any of that food I'd get him to the vet, even if he isn't showing any symptoms. The veterinary hospital that I work at is doing a whole pannel of blood tests and a urinalysis on any animal that may have eaten it. It's better to be safe than sorry, and better to catch it early if it is a factor. We are currently getting together a list of recipes for dog and cat foods that you can make your self at home, I'll try to pick up a recipe tonight when I go in and come back to post it here for you and anyone else that needs it. Whatever you get, I'd try to stay away from wheat gluten in any product, which seems to be at least one of the factors in the contamination. I feed my cats Inova Evo, doesn't have filler or any of the wheat gluten, it's actually the closest thing I found to a raw diet and it comes in kibble form. so I don't have to spend time making them the raw foods.

 

Evo isn't a bad kibble but it really is nothing like a raw diet in any way. It's just a kibble with a different formula from most

Raw feeding is not difficult or time consuming because you don't have to really "make" anything. You give them whole chicken backs, chicken necks, turkey necks and the such. Some people do veggies, some don't. Raw diets are actually fairly flexible if you have a good concept of them. I add a couple supplements - fish oil, kelp and yogurt usually but those are things which people should be adding to kibble as well IMO. It isn't as easy as scooping out dry food from a bag I suppose but it's not really hard either. I suggest reading up a bit on raw feeding - once you do you will understand that Evo isn't comparable at all.

A couple good raw sites:
The Many Myths of Raw Feeding

BARF for Beginners - Most Frequently Asked Questions

Homecooking is another alternative to commercial food. It is more time consuming, although you can make a large amount at once and freeze it.

 

Maybe I should have phrased that differantly, but it's closest thing I find that comes in a bag. I don't prepare my own food most of the time, so I need the convienence of just scooping it into a bowl for my pets. I think most people can relate to that. If I had more time to prepare foods I would do a raw food diet for my cats. If I had more time to prepare foods, I'd probably eat a lot better too, in fact, my cats probably eat better than I do nutrition wise. Either way, I find that EVO is much better than most brands of kibble out there, the best I have found yet, and my cats love it.

 

Innova isn't much different than most kibbles though - it's pretty far removed from a raw diet. The closest to "raw" that you can get is probably the highest end canned foods but even that is closer to homecooked than a raw diet. There isn't much preparing with the raw diet, which is one reason I like it I have 9 dogs and I can get them fed within 10-15 minutes - couldn't take me much less than that to feed them kibble.

 

question. i went out and bought natural catfood wet and dry for the "kids"? they seem to be adjusting it okay but i am paranoid they are not eating. think its just my imagination? any "trap" i can sorta set up to make sure they are eating the dry? i know they seem to eat the wet. i watch every morning.

 

it seems more dogs would rather have wet food than dry...... I noticed with our dog, he would let the dry dog food sit forever, until wet food, or leftovers were given to him

 

More dog food recalled....not just wet food anymore



Sunshine Mills, Inc. Issues Voluntary Nationwide Recall of Certain Branded and Private Label Branded Dog Biscuits


Contacts:
Media InquiriesEarl Clements(256) 356-9541, ext. 212 Consumer InquiriesMitzi Wammack(800) 705-2111, ext. 117FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Red Bay, Alabama, April 5, 2007 As a precautionary measure, Sunshine Mills, Inc. (“Sunshine”), a branded and private-label pet food manufacturer based in Red Bay, Alabama, is voluntarily recalling a portion of its branded dog biscuits made at its Red Bay, Alabama biscuit plant during part of March 2007. These brands include: Nurture Chicken & Rice, Nurture Lamb & Rice, Pet Life Large, Pet Life Extra Large, Pet Life Large Variety, Pet Life Large Peanut Butter, Lassie Lamb and Rice, and Pet Life People Pleasers Dog Treats. Private label biscuits for five of Sunshine’s customers were also affected. A complete list of affected biscuit brands, sizes, and codes is available below or at our website, www.sunshinemills.com. Sunshine’s other biscuit brands and products that include small and medium sized biscuits were not affected. It is also important to note that dry dog and cat food and soft and chewy treats for dogs or cats manufactured by Sunshine are not affected and not included in this recall. The company is taking this voluntary action of recalling the dog biscuits listed below after learning from the FDA that wheat gluten supplied to Sunshine from a specific manufacturing facility in China contained melamine. Melamine is a substance not approved for use in food. The FDA made this finding as part of its ongoing investigation into the recent pet food recall. The recalled dog biscuits are marketed nationwide by many pet food retailers including the mass channel, traditional grocery, and pet specialty stores. No dog illnesses or deaths have been reported to date in connection with these dog biscuits. The recalled dog biscuits contain one percent or less by weight of wheat gluten.Consumers should immediately stop feeding their dog the dog biscuits with the specified date codes and consult with a veterinarian if they have any health concerns with their dog. Sunshine’s products are 100% guaranteed. Consumers may receive the full replacement value of the recalled dog biscuits by returning them to the place of purchase or consumers may contact Sunshine’s customer service number at (800) 705-2111 for further information about the recall and for other instructions on obtaining a product refund.The safety and well-being of pets are Sunshine’s utmost concern. We deeply regret this unforeseen situation. The following products are being recalled: Branded Product and VarietyProduct Size:UPC CodesPlant Code / Best By DateNurture Chicken & Rice Biscuit26 oz.70155-13606Plant code:RB Best by:31208 Nurture Lamb & Rice Biscuit26 oz.70155-13607Plant code:RB Best by:31308 Pet Life Large Peanut Butter Biscuit4 lb.41746-00950Plant code:RBRB Best by:3060831308 Pet Life Large Biscuit4 lb.41746-02545Plant code:RBRB Best by:3030831908 Lassie Lamb and Rice Biscuit26 oz.45352-07005Plant code:RBRB Best by:3070831908 Pet Life Large Biscuit25 lb. 41746-00008Best By Date – last 5 digitsBest by:3030831408 Pet Life Extra Large Biscuit25 lb. 41746-00010 Best by:30408308083140831508Pet Life Large Variety Biscuit25 lb.70155-00073 Best by:30408 Pet Life Peanut Butter Large Biscuit

25 lb.41746-00078 Best by:3030830808 Pet Life People Pleasers Dog Treat25 lb.41746-00266 Best by:314083160832308 Pet Life People Pleasers Dog Treat50 oz.70155-11006Best By Date – 5 digitsBest by:3020830508308083130831408Pet Life People Pleasers Dog Treat40 oz.70155-11007 Best by:309083120831808 Private Label Product and VarietyProduct Size:UPC CodesPlant Code / Best By DateCompanion's Best Multi Flavor Biscuit4 lb.50700-49270Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3030830808311083140831608Plant code:RBRB Best by:3230832708 Stater Brothers Large Biscuit4 lb.74175-18801Plant code:RBRB Best by:3090831308 Ol'Roy Peanut Butter Biscuit5 lb.78742-34501Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3050831008312083150831608Plant code:RBRB Best by:3210832308 Ol'Roy 4 Flavor Large Biscuit10 lb.81131-46959Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3030830408305083060830708Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3080830908312083130831408Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3150831608317083190832008Plant code:RBRB Best by:3210832408 Ol'Roy Puppy Biscuit28.8 oz.81131-92197Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3020830308304083060830708Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3090831008314083150831608Plant code:RBRBRBRBRBBest by:3170831808321083220832308Champion Breed Peanut Butter Biscuit4 lb.72000-26063Plant code:RBRB Best by:3210832308 Champion Breed Large Biscuit 4 lb.72000-26065Plant code:RBRB Best by:3220832308 Perfect Pals Large Biscuit4 lb.12333-00260Plant code:RB Best by:31808 Stater Brothers Large Biscuit26 oz.74175-18802Best By Date – 5 digitsBest by:3030831008

 

omg! this really sucks. its a pandemic.

 

Well i have a show cat

i noticed my cat was staggering one day
and didn't clue in that the pet recall was active
So i immediately called the vet
my cat has a liver malfunction
poor cat had been on meds for 1 month shes done now
GETS BETTER
So the vet wanted me to put our cat on this new stuff so it would help her and her immune system
And ITS RECALLED
I feel like i'm killing my friggin cats
what do i do?