Pet Food Ingredients - J - JUNK

J

Junk

Flea Collars

Plastic Bags

Ear Tags

Pesticides

Styrofoam

Plastic packaging

Spoiled Grocery Store Meat

Restaurant Grease

Ethoxiquin

Melamine

Propylene Glycol

E coli

Salmonellaa

Amantadine

Feathers

Hooves

Beaks

Mold

Myotoxins

Cancerous Tumors

Carcinogens

Decaying animal parts

Worms

Bowels

Hair

Fur

Excrement

That is a small list of what could possibly be in some pet foods. 

But don't worry! It's all rendered. 

I mean seriously.. Opening up a bag of ol roy and finding a flea collar would even deter the cheapest of cheap. 

At least the worms would add protein. 

I am just kidding. 

The rendering process would remove all of that. 

How do they get away with any of these items being included in your pets lunch?

Unethical companies. 

These are just my thoughts - my ideas of what constitutes bad food, junk food or an unethical company.

I am going to list two bags of Dog food - because I have a story to tell.


Purina. 

I personally think this company is filled with a bunch of money grubbing, unethical jackasses. 

Every day I am learning more and more about the pet food industry - and it is making me angry. 

I heard a person talking about their dog, he was not acting like a young dog should. Not enough energy it seemed. 

What was this dog eating?

Pro Plan Puppy


Ingredients: Chicken (20%), wheat, maize gluten, dehydrated poultry protein, rice (8%), animal fat, maize, digest, beet pulp, dried egg, fish oil, calcium phosphate, potassium chloride, sodium chloride, minerals, colostrum, calcium carbonate, DL-Methionine, L-Lysine.

In red are the ingredients that I currently consider to be filler or junk.

DL - Methionine is added to pet foods that are low on the meat protein and heavy on the cereal grains - chances are you will not find this in an actually high protein food, because it can be found naturally in meat and fish. 

Recall the ingredient splitting information? 
Do you see what I am seeing?
I see a low quality bag of cereal with meat sprinkles. 

Maize - Fancy words for Corn does not make it contain less corn!

Dehydrated Poultry Protein? - me thinks that is - Poultry by-product meal.

Not chicken.. poultry. 

A pretty way of saying - rendered- feet, undeveloped eggs, intestines and necks of unidentifiable origin.

 





But hey, the bag is kinda nice looking. Just under $40 for a 7kg bag

*Chicken, brewers rice, corn gluten meal, poultry by-product meal (natural source of glucosamine), whole grain corn, whole grain wheat, animal fat preserved with mixed-tocopherols (form of Vitamin E), pea fibre, fish meal (natural source of glucosamine), dried egg product, animal digest, salt, potassium chloride, fish oil, calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate, potassium citrate, L-Lysine monohydrochloride, dried colostrum, choline chloride, zinc sulphate, Vitamin E supplement, ferrous sulphate, manganese sulphate, niacin, Vitamin A supplement, copper sulphate, garlic oil, calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, Vitamin B-12 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin supplement, calcium iodate, Vitamin D-3 supplement, menadione sodium bisulfite complex (source of Vitamin K activity), folic acid, biotin, sodium selenite.*

Same Bag - but this is not off their website. This is off their bag.


Dogs and Cats need protein. 
A growing puppy needs nutrients to keep it going - they burn a lot just being silly !

That bag of food could absolutely be the reason for his lack of energy. 

 - I of course am not a vet - I do not make pet food - I am not an animal nutritionist - I am just a random person listening in on a conversation and biting my tongue in regards to my own opinion. 
 
How I have a tongue left at all is a miracle.

***********************************


For just under $40 for a 13.6kg bag


Lifetime Large Breed Chicken & Oatmeal

 Chicken Meal, Oatmeal, Whole Barley, Whole Brown Rice, Chicken & Turkey Fat (preserved with mixed tocopherols, a source of Vitamin E), Canola Meal, Beet Pulp (sugar removed), Rice Bran, Natural Flavours, Flaxseed, Herring Oil (source of DHA/EPA), Sodium Chloride, Potassium Chloride, Calcium Carbonate, Dicalcium Phosphate, Mannanoligosaccharides (MOS), Chicory Inulin (FOS), Glucosamine Hydrochloride, Yucca Schidigera Extract, Chondroitin Sulphate VITAMINS Vitamin Supplements (A,D,E), Niacin, Calcium Pantothenate, Riboflavin, Thiamine Mononitrate, Biotin, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Vitamin B12, Folic Acid MINERALS Zinc Sulphate, Ferrous Sulphate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite, Chelated Minerals (Zinc, Copper, Manganese, Iron), Manganese Sulphate, Copper Sulphate
 
 ***************************

Do you see the difference ? Cuz I see a difference. 


You will also notice a difference in their web sites. One is much more put together - bright and very professional. 

The other is a bit basic - a no frills kind of site. 

Would you rather have money spent on marketing, or creating a higher quality product at a price that is affordable. ( That also happens to be a Canadian company *bonus)


** I am not stating that Pro Plan contains any of the Junk list..I am also not saying it does not**

Would you be happy with pouring a bowl of cereal for your dogs breakfast every morning?

You may be doing that without even realizing it. 


Read read read read read read... read the damn bag! 
Weird looking word?
Look it up!

Ask me, I will do the digging  - it makes me feel like a detective. 
A detective with horrible grammar and punctuation ...that has conversations with cats. 

Meep Meep

Human
Kenya

 ****************

Well That Was Fun

Seriously Kenya.. 

Sorry. 

Are you? 

No. 

I was trying to be nice!

That was your first mistake. 

Just kidding, I appreciate it.. Really I do! But when I saw them I felt complete. 

Aww. 

Actually I take back that aww - I spent a half hour trying to catch your boney little ass in the basement. 

I was worried about Sebby or Cubby freaking out  and smacking you upside the head - But I swear they did not even see you go past them!

I should have been a Cheetah.


I was thinking more along the lines of Road Runner, but Cheetah works. 


You almost shut the door on my head you know!


Of course I know - I was standing right there trying to stop you from running out of my room. 

Don`t mess with a Grandmas need to be with her family.


Clearly!



So should we talk first about the day or how I had to catch you?



Well, I prefer the readers to leave with a sense of love and family...not of dumb ass cat shenanigans. 

Catching it is.



So Cheetah books it through the house and into the basement. 
Normally Onyx and Molly hang out down there, but at that point they were playing in the box in the living room. 

I shut the door to the basement so she could not do an about face and try to book it back up to the room. 

Clearly I was confused and scared.

I would think so, since your target location was 15 feet away from my room and not 2 flights down behind a Christmas tree!


You should get rid of that. 


I should, it makes for a fantastic bad cat hideout.

I move the tree and you run to the other side of the basement, behind the dryer. 

I get you to run out of that spot because I can not reach you.

Yeah, what are you a Witch? Enough with the broom!

I didn't even touch you with it!



Anyways.. you run back to the stupid tree, then under the stairs, through the stairs to the landing, back to the tree then back behind the dryer, then into a box under the table. 



I should never have given you that idea. 


Technically you got what you wanted in the end so maybe it was a good idea. 



Of course you ran out of the box - but I took the box to the next location.

Okay that was a stupid location. 


I agree, the only way past me was through me. 


I was thinking about attempting to go over you. 


Well good thing you did not or you could still be down there. 


You wedged your silly ass between the wall and the stairs. 

My plan was to grab you - which I had tried previously but you are a sly and squirmy little feline.

I have been working on it for awhile. 

You looked like you were going to lunge at me any second. 

I wasn't.

I could see you contemplating whether or not your nails were long enough to draw blood.

That may have crossed my mind. 


Well I was not going to wait for your brain to catch up with your body so I scruffed you and put you in the box.

Normally I enjoy boxes - not so much this time. 


Well I am guessing the box is normally not closed. 

True. 

I then carried you back to my room - in the box.

I betcha Sebby wanted to check out inside the box. 

I think I had a train of meows following me up to my room. 


I did not enjoy the ride. I want my money back. 


No refunds. 

Okay now we can talk about the good parts.

I got to see my family!
I had not seen them since you live trapped me.

I know, but I had to wait until you were healed.

*This visit was prior to the big chase scene.

The little ones have grown, they are so beautiful! 
And my baby, my baby looks healthy! 
She was so skinny last time I saw her. 

Not eating does that.

Yeah that was horrible.
Just look at her little ones! they are thriving now!


They are cute little monkeys.

You do realize it has only been 2 weeks since you were live trapped.

Feels like forever. I could smell them but I didn't know for sure if they were here, or if they were okay. 


I could tell you felt better with your whole family together.

I did. So why did you take them away again?

Well, you are on a special food. One for your gastrointestinal issues. 

So?

So I was not ready to transition you to their food yet. 

Why couldn't we all just eat my food?

I didn't even want you eating your food!

Huh?

The food was good for an upset system, easy on the digestive tract. That is where the goodness ended. 

You were not actually gaining weight on that food. It was not meant for a long term diet - and the others would have not benefited from eating it.


I guess I see your predicament.

Thank you, I did not want to keep you from your family. 


So this was a win-win situation?

It ended up as one.

Now we get to talk about the next capture.

You are very dramatic. 

Says the Cheetah.

Touche.


I was waiting for you.

Yup. 
You positioned yourself directly behind the door so I could not see where you were.

I knew you were there. I'm not new. 

You tried this tactic a few times. Each time resulting in a battle at the door. 

Door battle Champion. 


Yeah yeah, you win...well actually.

You won. 

Yes I did. 

I decided that I was going to move you back with your family. 
I mixed a bit of your food with their food - I am expecting some not so fantastic bathroom breaks in your future. 

It's worth it. 

Now, I had to get you into the carrier or carry you to the room. 

If only I understood human.

It would be helpful 

We did a bit of a chase, but you had nowhere to go really. So I just needed a way to get you, without freaking you out more than you already were. 

I think I believed you were going to torture me or something else a cat would normally think. 

I would never ever do that!

Part of me knows that.. the other part is a cat. 

Well you went into the scratching tower with the 2 holes .


One Kenya - packed and ready for shipment. 

Pretty much! I put a pillow over the hole and turned the tower on its side and brought the whole thing into the other room.

It was a bit of an ordeal but...

You do look happy.

I am. 

I am the Matriarch of the family. 
I could not have them in the same house and be separated from them. 
They are my family. 


Adoptions should be fun. 

It will be okay. 
I know they have to go, they will have new families. 
They will be safe and loved and that is all I can ask or hope for. 
But while they are here, I need to be with them. 

Kenya.

Yes?

You have a beautiful family. 

I know. 
Thank you  - we all thank you. 

That Box makes my butt look big

Family

Pet Food Ingredients - I - Ingredient Splitting

I

Ingredient Splitting


Hello, welcome to one of the pet food industries Dirty Little Secrets 

So you have been doing your best to find a quality pet food for Fido and Fluffy.
At first you were unaware of what to look for on the back of a can.

Actually you, like most people ..including myself...did not even look at the back of the can or bag. 

Now you are doing your best to read the ingredients. You know what you want to see - MEAT- as the first ingredient. 

Sure it's still confusing what kind of meat you want to see.. trying to figure out the difference between whole chicken, deboned chicken, chicken, chicken by product, chicken meal, chicken by product meal...you may need a pet food to English dictionary. 

But you do know you want to see MEAT. 

Companies are also aware you are looking.


Now for your higher quality and more ethical companies , the fact that you are looking at the ingredients makes them happy. 

Finally the consumers will know that their product is worthy of being looked at under a microscope. 

Do it! They want you to!!


On the other hand...

Some of the big name brands are terrified. 
They are shaking in their money lined boots. 

They are profiting off of consumers lack of knowledge. 
Big time.
We are talking Billion Dollar Industries. 


They do use some of that profit towards improving their brand...name...
Marketing tactics that make Apple jealous. 

I would not be surprised if Blue Buffalo received a call from Blackberry, begging for use of their marketing staff. (with sales jumping 200% for Blue Buffalo I don't blame them) *not stating Blue Buffalo splits ingredients - I am speaking only on their rather fantastic marketing

So what am I talking about?

Deception. 

Ingredient Splitting :
The practice of subdividing a less attractive ingredient such as corn, in order to make it appear lower on the ingredient list. 
In doing so, meat floats up to the top of the list.
Giving a false impression that Meat is the predominant ingredient in the food. 

You may see a list like this (but not this, I just made it up)
Chicken Meal, Ground Yellow Corn, Animal Fat, Corn Gluten Meal, Turkey By-Product, Wheat Gluten, Brewers Rice, Corn Bran

If it were illegal to split ingredients you would see: Corn, Chicken Meal, Whole Grain, Turkey By-Product

That still looks better then most of your grocery store pet foods
(I could be wrong on the renaming of the rice and wheat gluten as whole grain)


Here are some of the Corn words used.
 
Corn, corn bran, corn flour, corn gluten, corn gluten meal, corn grits, corn starch, corn husks, corn syrup, corn meal, corn oil, ground corn, ground yellow corn, whole grain corn, maize


That is just a list that I could think of...I am really starting to hate corn. 


This is also done with other grains. 
There are some pet foods that are basically just grains.

How is that possible????
Damn plant based protein.
But that is another post...


Here are a few cat foods I have been looking at that currently seem to be good 
(seriously, tomorrow I could change my opinion because of an ingredient I currently know nothing about that happens to cause crazy cat syndrome or something equally fun)

 Nature`s Variety - Instinct

 Wild Calling 

 Orijen

Innova

Wellness Core












So what the heck does a person look for?

Honestly?

Grain Free.


But you also have to be aware of some of the grain free products being higher in fat and lower in protein - why? $$$



Once again I end this post with a hope that we all start to READ THE LABELS 

One of these days I will be able to get through a whole ingredient list on a Meow Mix bag ( why meow mix- long list with strange scary words)



 

 

Bored

Willow
Sebby
Cubby
 (no human today, out trying to find homes for kitties)
******************

What do you wanna do?

I dunno, what do you wanna do?

Pull out all the bags from the cupboard ? 

Can't. Human locked it.

Knock over the recycling ? 

Already did.

I also already took 3 naps, carried the humans clothes into the living room, snarfed down some kibble, tossed some on the floor and yarfed a bit up on the carpet. 

You have been busy. 

It's rather unfulfilling without fosters to teach bad habits to. 

Who knew we actually liked them eh?

Never admit that to the human.

Deal. 

Sounds like Cubby is bored too.

He is meowing his face off at the humans bedroom door.

Yeah, I told him that the human was still home. He is just ticking off the foster meow inside. 

Who's in there? 

Kenya.

Oh, will we meet her?

Nope, shes an adult.

There are 3 kittens in the cat room though. We will be meeting them in a few weeks. 

One of them is named Gotham.

Really? Don't tell Zulu! Poor kitten will be stalked by a crazy meow that thinks he is Batman.

What about the other 2?

Saber & Bronson. 

Fantastic. A prehistoric tiger and England's most notorious prisoner. 

Could be worse. They could all be named Cubby.

I heard that.

Pet Food Ingredients - H - Harmful - Jerky Treats

I was trying to find an ingredient that started with H that was found in at least a few cat foods... 
The ideas I had were - Herbs, Holistic, Hairball, and Herring. 
None of those peeked my curiosity.

I could have done something like 'Red Herring Ingredients' and talk about things added to distract you from all the other crap that is being added. 
That's actually not a bad idea.. But I like my current train of thought which is - Harmful Pet Treats
When you think of harmful pet treats, the first thing that comes to mind??
Other than toxic foods...
Jerky Treats. 
This is still an issue.



H -(kinda, sorta)

Harmful

Jerky - Talk about a killer treat! There have been so many poor dogs and even cats reported to have died or become seriously ill due to damn Jerky Treats! 


These companies are two of the major players in this fiasco:
 
***Nestle Purina’s:   
Waggin’ Train Jerky Treats or Tenders
Canyon Creek Ranch Jerky Treats or Tenders

***Del Monte Corp’s: (Now called - Big Heart Pet Brands)
Milo’s Kitchen Home-Style Dog Treats
Chicken Griller Home-Style Dog Treats

STOP GIVING YOUR PETS JERKY TREATS MADE IN CHINA - JUST STOP IT - STOP IT RIGHT NOW!

Seriously, wtf is wrong with some people?
These are treats - they are not necessary! 

I do not in any way shape or form care if your pet likes them!
They like being alive better!

A few interesting facts - 

• Big Heart Pet Brands is no longer sourcing their meat from China. They are sourced 100% from the USA now. 

They also reformulated their products - which may be helpful since the FDA still does not know what actually caused the animals to become sick or die. 

• Nestle Purina on the other hand has decided to continue to support the Chinese meat market. 

They are only using one supplier and one manufacture - That is a part of a USA based company 

That irks me. Pets are dying, people are scared to buy your product - people are afraid of meat from China...but your (what I consider) money grubbing company will still not source directly from the USA. 

FDA information as of May 1st 2014

FDA information as of May 16th 2014

Possible culprit? 
Amantadine


First thing that came to my mind..
How in the hell did Amantadine get into Jerky?

Put your hand up if you thought of Bird Flu...In Chickens.

Read this.



Notice the date?
2005!

It was illegal even before they used it in 2005, but the Chinese Agriculture Ministry approved production and sale for its use in Chickens.

And their Government was aware...
And their Veterinarians were also aware...


Regardless of its role in the current jerky issue - They are just telling people know that they again found it in chickens from China! 
In 2014!



The FDA does not believe Amantadine is the culprit. 
They say that the illnesses the animals had or died from did not correlate with anything Amantadine would do. 

I wish I knew more about this kinda stuff. 

When dogs die of kidney failure... and Amantadine is removed from the body by the kidneys ...I oddly want to connect the 2.




A Deal with the Devil

6.5 Million Dollars is the price to shut up a Nation. 


6.5 Million Dollars, and that is without actually taking blame for anything.

How much do these companies save by sourcing out to China?




We live in a world that cares more about money then it does life. 

A world where even when people know that a company is willing to put your pets life in danger...you still buy their product. 


Will we ever learn?

I find it interesting that people get stopped at the border and charged for trying to bring in meat from China - people - not companies. 

Companies are magic! 
They make everything safe.



There are many fantastic products made in North America.

There are many fantastic products made in Canada

There are many fantastic products made locally. 



Read. 
If you see Made in China.. put it back. 
Your pets will thank you for it.

Pet Food Ingredients - G - Guar Gum

G

Guar Gum

Not to be confused with Gwar

That makes me picture those Bazooka Joe comic strips - but with crazy Gwar band members.

Guar Gum is: Ground endosperm of Guar Beans.

When ground it looks like this 


Guar Gum Powder 

 

It is used in:

• Adhesives
• Bakery Industry
• Cosmetics
• Detergents & Soaps
• Electrodes & Brazing Fluxes
• Fish Farming
• Food, Pharmaceutical & Dialectic Industries
• Foundry
• Grass Growing / Erosion Control
• Insecticides & Pesticides
• Leather Industry
• Mining
• Oil Well Drilling
• Paper Industry
• Paint Industry
• Plywood
• Pencils Crayons

The plant its self is grown mainly in India, but is also grown in China, US, Pakistan, Australia and Africa

*Guar Gum is used as a gelling or thickening agent in many wet foods

It always amuses me to see the different uses for things.

Hey, while you are making those pencil crayons do you mind sharing so I can make some Cat Food? 
Unless you have used it all on Detergents & Soap

**************

*Guar Gum is used for people trying to lose weight. 
It makes you feel full by expanding in the intestine.


Yeah, great for those trying to lose weight - not so great for trying to provide appropriate and substantial nutrition in a Cat. 


Having recently dealt with a Cat who had to have part of her Colon removed due to a blockage ( not guar gum related to my knowledge ) the idea of possible obstruction of any sort is freaking scary!

Ask Kenya! She was the kitty who had the operation. 

**************
 
*The water-holding capacity and gel-forming tendency of guar gum permits it to swell in size 10 to 20 times its size!

I think I will do a little exploring of what Cat foods contain this product.


And the results of my quest are.....


Damn near all of them have guar gum  - Or Xanthan Gum or Carrageenan 


*All of which have been blamed for intestinal issues.


Okay so which foods do not have any of these ?

Oh look a Unicorn! 
It's hanging out with Big Foot 

 Natures Variety Instinct

Taste of the Wild

The search is giving me a headache. 



Just assume it is in almost all cat foods.

*************
 
How bad can it be if it's basically in everything?

It is very confusing to think about 'natural' things as being bad. 

Guar Gum is from a plant
 ( then again so is opium, cocaine, heroin ..and other drugs)

Carrageenan is from Seaweed - I thought seaweed was like a super food! 
 You can tell because it tastes like you just licked the bottom of a pond.

Xanthan Gum is made by fermenting corn sugar with a bacteria
Xanthomonas campestris

***********
I feel the need to order 

This Book

Food Pets Die For

In fact I will order it.

************
 
I have no idea how much this post will help you in deciding if Guar Gum is bad enough to change which wet foods you use.

A few points I would like to make 


If your pet already has gastrointestinal issues - try and avoid the 3 items I have listed.. if at all possible.

If your pet is not known for drinking much water - try and avoid the 3 items I have listed..the blockage issues tend to be geared towards lack of water intake. 


Like in all things - Too much of a good thing is bad.

Too much of a not so good thing must be worse.

Too much of a bad thing....

I am only on letter -G and I already wish I fed raw food.

If you only have 1 or 2 pets - you may want to consider a raw food diet.

I would, but I constantly have foster cats and kittens coming through my house.

I can't just mess around with their little fur bellies by switching them to raw - just to get switched back when they are adopted. 

When I get to letter -R , it will be about Raw food
So I have till then to learn about it.



Read the labels - because the cheap companies are making money off of the fact that we don't!

 

Peace & Quiet

Human
Sebby
Willow
Cubby
Onyx



The brats are gone! 

It's quiet!

I don't have to share! 

...I'm bored.

...It's to quiet.

...These toys suck.

I think.. I may possibly ... Miss them.

I'm conflicted. 

They are at Pet Valu, they will be back Sunday night.

I change my mind.

Unless Chino gets adopted. 

If he gets adopted then the kittens will stay at Pet Valu in the big cage.

Stop toying with me human!

I'm not!

I'm fragile!

No your not!

Okay, but I am bored.

That I believe.

Willow wont play with me.

Neither will Cubby. 

You spent the morning ignoring Willow and you smacked Cubby for no reason last night!

I had a reason. 

What was your reason.

He annoys me.

Then I should smack you every hour.

Nobody should be smacking anyone!

Stop looking at me.

I'm not!

Yes you are!

No I am not!

Human will you sell Sebby on the Cat Market?

It's Black Market and no. 

I beg you. I would bribe you if I had money.

Not a chance! He may be a jerk .. But he's my jerk.

Hey!

Put Cubby in a home. An old folks home.

Send him off to the Wrinkler Ranch!

You guys need to chill out.

We need our distractions back.

They are small and furry little distractions, but they are ours!

Not yours.

I think you should get me a kitten.

If anyone is getting a kitten it's me!

I never got to be a mother.

Actually can we keep Tango? She looks like me. It was meant to be.

No.

No? Just no? No conversation, we can't even consider it? 

No.

I would like an explanation. 

Cuz I said so.

Invalid. Try again.

I can't keep an adoptable kitten. It's not fair to the possible unadoptable kittens down the road.

So we get the rejects?

Thats a horrible thing to say!

They are not rejects. 

Look at Onyx, you love him. Molly as well!

They were both unadoptable.

Fine. I want a baby Onyx.

I am a baby Onyx!

You have offended Onyx.

Fine. You can be my baby.

I don't want to be your baby.

Screw it! Get me a puppy!

No.

Bunny?

No

Turtle? Guinea Pig? Ferret?

No no and no.

What can I get then?

Elephant, Otter, Lion or Pony.

Really?? 
Omg!!
I don't know which to pick. 
This is so amaz... 
Crap you're talking about the stuffed animals.

Sometimes you're mean for no reason.