I wonder what "component" was inadvertently used?? and interesting that they said the food tested negative even though there is salmonella???  I don't understand, if it were something in the food prior to heating seems it should be killed and if it was put on after heating than it should test positive. I guess I don't understand -

Katie

I hope kaffe is doing better today.  Hope blood test results provide some answers and quick treatment.

Katie

Saying prayers for Marshal to recover fully. 

Katie

Offy, sending healing thoughts for Scooter.  I second the use of clindamycin. Worked very well for a dog we had that had a broken premolar.

Katie

Thank you Itchmo for getting us back online.  Went out here on Friday evening; made my day having it back this AM!
Withdrawl symptoms were getting really bad..... now I can be happy for the rest of the day!

Katie

I hope Consumer Affairs continues to follow the problems with Nutro and also hope that Dr Hille is able to find a lab to test the dogs food.

5cat mom, I'm wondering the same thing, based upon:" Dr. Calley Hille suspects that food may have played a role in the recent death of one of her client's dogs — a 13-year-old German Shepherd named Elvis.

That healthy dog, she said, died one week after his owner switched him to Nutro's food with glucosamine. And he showed worrisome symptoms immediately after he ate the food"

She specifically mentions food with glucosamine... I'm not sure if all pet foods with glucosamine also contain chondrotin sulfate?

And, I don't understand why the FDA isn't releasing info. especially since there is a FOI form from CA? or are they going to cry it's an ungoing investigation..

It sure doesn't surprise me that people who noticed problems and immeadiately started feeding a different food saw improvement; it's like deja-vu all over again.

Katie

"FDA does not believe raw meat foods for animals are consistent with the goal of protecting the public from significant health risks, particularly when such products are brought into the home and/or used to feed domestic pets."

Guess the raw meat I purchase to feed both my pet and myself is safe; it's only if I make that purchase to feed my pet? So if I understand their statement correctly.. I am exposed to a significant health risk only on the days when I buy meat for my pet. I am so glad they clarified that for me.

So leaking raw meat packages on the meat counter, in the shopping carts, over the market floors, on the conveyor belts, in the hands of baggers and cashiers, on the home counter tops, in the home sinks, on the dishes, in the refrig, in the freezer; presents fewer problems than the "significant health risks, particularly when such products are brought into the home to feed domestic pets"; thank you FDA, I feel so much safer now!

Katie

My knee is still jerking too.

Here we go again with the scare tactics; guess the PFC's don't want competition. If they posted those 20 diets - how many more consumers might they lose. It's all about the money.

Katie

5CatMom, I would be careful purchasing pet diets over the Internet; unless you know the person's qualifications. BalanceIt is a mix of "chemicals" similar to what the pet food companies add as a vitamin/mineral premix to commercial food. If memory serves me...it was developed by a vet at U Cal Davis and he was hired by Wal Mart to push it for home cooking while the pet food recalls were on going and until "safe food" was brought back on board. I don't have that info. in my files anymore; maybe someone else still has it in memory?

Katie

Jewell; saying prayers for your Dad for a successful and speedy recovery.  I'm glad your vet will board him, he will take good care of him and remember that he is familiar with Champs medical condition.

Katie

JustMe; this is what I'm feeding with alot of help from friends who feed raw and home cooked. I also had some input from a friend who is a human nutrionist. As a disqualifier, it has worked for Reddie but may not work for all dogs. My dog is a 12 year old golden retriever (survived the pet recall and has an autoimmune disorder on prednisone), moderately active - so this was tailored to her needs.

A total day consists of:(divided into 2 meals)
8.5 oz cooked mixture of brown rice,sushi rice, oatmeal and barley (sometimes equal parts, sometimes more oats and barley, it's made in a 7day batch and portioned out and frozen). Sometimes I will add quinona, or couscous, or whole grain pasta if we had for dinner the night before.

6oz pureed lightly cooked vegtables (could be a mix of or a singular; sweet potato, zucchini, carrots, gr beans, black beans, kidney beans, peas.  This dog does not do well on acorn squash,alfalfa,spinach or broccoli)

12 oz cooked white meat chicken (we have kept her off of high fat meats, with the pred she could lean torwards pancreatitis) or turkey or lean ground beef,salmon,cod.

1oz of chicken liver, cooked a couple of times a week (this was the toughest for me - I saute on a pan on an outdoor grill so the order isn't in the house).

1 hard boiled egg each AM (if I have been a bad human and have no cooked meat, I feed 1 whole egg and 2 egg whites at that meal).

1T goats milk yogurt or ricotta cheese if I have some in the frig. (provides a probiotic)

1T organic safflower oil, 200mg Vit E, 2000 mg Salmon oil, 1/2 of a human Vit pill, calcium to balance out the phosphorous at a 1:3 ratio

1-2 oz of cut of bananas, a few blueberries if in season, maybe a couple of cranberries if we have them, cantalope, peaches, apples, apple sauce, pears, etc. These are in limited quanity as a snack since they are high in sugar.

I religiously weigh her pan before feeding and strive for 14 to 16 oz/ meal and try to feed 1200 Kcal/day

The amounts and weights or type of food can vary by meal or day, but I try to meet her needs on a daily to weekly basis. Again this is specific to this dog and her needs. What I found is that it is not hard to cook for her, and having cooked chicken in the freezer has made for quick human emergency meals! I shop the sales and have worked out a deal with the butcher, etc. to cut costs.

JustMe; I won't say homecooking is ultra easy. Takes time once a week to cook the bulk meal, we need to be home to put her meals together, I can't imagine a boarding kennel doing this for me, the vet has said if she came in to them - they would feed canned or I could bring in meals, traveling:I need a place to heat up her meals; so there are negatives. I think there are good alternative out there now - that weren't there a year ago. We are dealing with an autoimmune disease that has now gone into remission and kidneys that were thought to have been functioning at only 25% - with the homecooking things are looking so great that I've been warned don't quit.

Katie

Klondike, Great News!!! so glad Poco's doing great and alk phos came way down - that is so great! Sounds like the commercial raw is doing the trick - 

Katie

5catmom; they are looking great!! My dog just had her six month geriatric physical yesterday, and I'm happy to report that not one single blood result or urinalysis was abnormal. In fact her SpGravity is now 1.030 and Urine/Creatine is less than 0.1. The vet tech's all came in to see her, they could not believe it was the same dog! I gave them a copy of her home cooked diet which the Vet scanned into their computer for future reference for other dogs in the practice! They went over every square inch, and could find nothing wrong! Homecooking has been the answer. Now they don't want to see her for a year. I hope everyone else is experiencing the same.

Katie

Re: human food labels

Having known someone who worked in the food industry; ex. mixed processed cheese product: the amount of swiss, cheddar etc. could change depending upon leftover cuts and trims but would not require a new label - as long as the label stated the major ingredients, the % changes of ingredients could differ. A new label would only be required for a brand new product or a brand new ingredient in a product.

Re: pet food labels
When calling pet food companies about formulation changes, I believe they always said new product could be in an old bag - they had x time to use up the old bags.

Maybe pet food companies are trying out new formulaes in food trials so that quick changes can be made, would go along with what 5CatMom said: substantially equivalent or scientific judgement. Wasn't that something that came up during the pet food recall, we found out some bags contained products in allergy formulaes that shouldn't have been there?

Katie

JustMe;

We don't have a pool either; didn't want the chemicals,upkeep or the animals it draws in! It never makes sense to me that an area that has limited water, major drought, etc.; allows people to fill swiming pools with water from the faucet.
The swiming pools get very little use (neighbors have them) never hear them being used. Either it is to Hot, or to Cold; would have to swim at 6AM. They need to be kept running so the water doesn't stagnate and become a source of West Nile.  However our retriever probably has it on her wish list...

Katie