Things Iams Don't Want You To See

[trayi52]

I cannot imagine why they would test in that manner in the first place. Don't they have eyes? Can they not see if a dog or a cat is doing well on the food they make? I can look at Grover and see she is doing well, I had been feeding her Iams too, and guess what I did not have to slice off her muscle tissue to see that.

I also got great revues from all you nice people here at Pet Talk! And Iams cannot see without mutilating a poor animal and doing cruel tests on them. Shocking!!! They should grow eyes and a heart.

I have to find something else to feed my Grover and my other pets too. I live in a small town, and it is very hard to find anything at all. Science Diet is out too? Oh I wish they would let us do the testing on our own pets, we know when they are doing good or not, and we aren't expensive as the lab test they perform. Not as cruel either.
Tray

[Logan]

Here is the response I received from IAMS.

Dear Logan:

Thank you for sharing your opinion regarding our animal research policy. I'm
glad you wrote to us so that we can update you on the events that inspired your
message.

On March 25, we learned that nutritional studies being conducted for us at an
independent facility in the U.S. may have violated our company's strict research
policy. On March 26, we completed an unannounced visit of the facility to review
procedures and ensure the well-being of dogs and cats at the site.

On March 27, we concluded that the facility did not meet our strict standards
regarding air temperature, ventilation, resting beds, and socialization (even
though the facility recently passed U.S. government inspections). We made the
decision to end all research at the facility.

In addition, we worked with the facility to relocate Fifi, Maisy, Mickey, and
the 16 other dogs to an Iams animal care center. We have an established program
for socialization and employee adoption that will give these dogs the
opportunity for a successful transition to a family.

On April 10, we met with PETA to look over the facts and to share our plan for
the review of our contract research facilities.

We have now completed comprehensive reviews of all external facilities involved
in dog and cat nutritional studies for Iams. This was a major effort which
included Iams researchers, P&G veterinarians, non-technical Iams employees who
served as the "eyes and ears" of our consumers, and where possible, independent
animal welfare experts.

All of the facilities reviewed comply with government regulations, and the
health of the dogs and cats is not at risk. However, we've decided to
consolidate our nutritional studies at fewer contract facilities, and we will
focus more on the implementation of our high standards for dog and cat care.

In addition, we are pleased to announce that we have established an
International Animal Care Advisory Board to evaluate our industry-leading
research policy and advise us on new research alternatives that provide for
advanced levels of dog and cat care.

The Iams International Animal Care Advisory Board, an independent group,
currently consists of seven members, representing various disciplines and fields
of study, including veterinary medicine, animal husbandry, behavior, welfare,
and ethics. They are:

* Mr. Michael Arms of the Helen Woodward Animal Center (a leading
California-based shelter and adoption facility).
* Dr. Kathryn Bayne of the Association for Assessment and Accreditation of
Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC).
* Rev. Kenneth Boyd, a professor of Medical Ethics at Edinburgh University
Medical School, and a research director of the Institute of Medical Ethics,
Edinburgh, Scotland.
* Dr. Stephen Hansen of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals (ASPCA).
* Dr. Robert Hubrecht of The Universities Federation for Animal Welfare (UFAW).
* Dr. Irene Rochlitz, an independent veterinary consultant in feline welfare,
Cambridge, England.
* Dr. Andrew Rowan of the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

The Advisory Board's first task will be to conduct a comprehensive review of The
Iams Company research policy and steps taken to implement that policy since it
was last updated in June 2002. The Board will also establish a series of next
steps and recommendations. In addition to work with our Board members, we are
actively seeking the perspective of other animal welfare consultants.

The formation of this board was a top priority for us and a major step in our
continued efforts to enhance the health and well-being of dogs and cats around
the world. While we already have an industry-leading policy on nutritional
studies - which requires that our research be equivalent to nutritional and
medical studies acceptable on people - we believe even more can be done.

If you would like to read about our research policy in more detail, it is posted
on our website at:
http://www.iams.com/en_US/jhtmls/faq...randcode=I&loc
aleid=en_US&pagetypeid=FQ (or go to www.iamsco.com and access this document
through the horizontal navigation bar by clicking onto News/Stories.)

We are deeply committed to dog and cat well being, and our research policy
reflects that commitment. I hope our actions detailed in this message have
convinced you that we are worthy of your trust.

Sincerely,
Cindy Achor
Group Manager
Iams Consumer Care

[Logan]

The link she provided doesn't seem to work. There are many articles at www.iamsco.com , although I don't know which one she is specifically referencing.

[lizbud]

Seems to be repeating what's already been said in the part
about moving the dog's from contract tester site.

"What’s going on with the dogs now?

After considerable pressure from PETA, Iams finally agreed to have the dogs from this particular laboratory removed. We’ve been informed by Iams officials that the dogs are now in an Iams facility in Dayton, which they have refused to let us see. We have no idea whether the dogs are in a better situation now than they were before. We are continuing to press Iams to let us see the facility and urging the company to adopt the dogs out to loving homes, but until we have a confirmation from Iams that this has happened, we will assume otherwise."

PETA has also contacted members of the Animal Advisory Board
and made some recommendations for changes in Company
policies & procedures regarding the use of lab animals in pet
food testing.



"So Iams’ International Animal Care Advisory Board is in a predicament. While it can evaluate Iams’ program of animal experimentation and make recommendations, nothing it can say or do (short of calling on Iams to stop experimenting on dogs and cats) will change this one simple fact: Iams’ use of animals in laboratories is inherently cruel and, for that matter, unnecessary. In addition, Iams as well as the members of this board have no way of knowing what is happening to the animals inside the company’s numerous contract testing facilities at any given time.

No person, organization, or corporation that truly cares about animals would ever condone or support the use of animals in pet food tests. This is why we have asked those individuals who sit on Iams’ International Animal Care Advisory Board to call on Iams to stop conducting nutritional experiments on cats and dogs and, instead, rely only on laboratory analysis of formulas for nutritional composition, in-home palatability studies using dogs and cats whose human companions have volunteered them for such tests, and collaborative studies with private veterinary clinics that have patients who have diseases or conditions of interest to the company.

We have sent each of the members of Iams’ International Animal Care Advisory Board a letter and videotape detailing the results of our investigation into the company’s use of animals in nutritional experiments and explained why we believe that the best advice one can give the company is to end its use of animals in laboratories. We will share with the public their responses and profiles in the near future. Thank you for your efforts in behalf of animals."

The story of Fifi & the other 15 dogs is mentioned here;

http://www.peta.org/feat/iams/iams-fifi.html

[Kiia]

I can't believe in this day and age we treat animals as shown on their website and links to other pages. What in the hell gives humans the right to hurt, prod, poke, hit, cut, kill, test, neglect, and any other form of hurt in general to these innocent animals? Why do we think we are so powerful that we have the right which dog has the right to live and which ones will die? We're not God! We shouldn't try to play the role of Him either, we do such a poor job of it. We can't even get along with each other, look at the hatred of the world, look at the wars of the past and present. It's really sad, human beings are idiots! We can't even take care of each other! I don't know why the human race was left in charge to manage things, look at us we kill each other every single day, there is so much hate and negativity in the world!

I ABSOLUTELY HATE ANIMAL CRUELTY IN ANY FORM, it makes my face red, my blood boil and the emotions start flooding. I hated watching those videos and seeing those poor helpless animals being treated that way. Did you see the look in their eyes, it made me break down and I cry. Teeko was sitting on my lap, I gave him such a big hug I didn't want to let him go, he's such a sweety he licked away my tears and stayed right there in my arms comforting me.

"don't watch it" "ignore it" some people say (not on this site I mean just people in general) I ask them WHY? If it's not watched and ignored it will get worse! Why should we turn a blind eye to this cruelty?? IT HAS TO STOP!!!!

Damm I wish I could afford to adopt all the sheltered animals, the ones who are let go in the fields, the ones who are tortured, hurt, the ones who are left to die, the ones who are sitting in those puppy mills, ALL OF THEM! I wish I could afford them all, provide them all with a fresh bowl of water, big bowl of of the finest food, a warm house and a loving hug!

I am really sickened by this! Exactly, if other companies can produce a good quality dog food WITHOUT testing, torturing, harming animals why can't they or the rest of them who perform those sick acts??? I mean seriously, I can tell if a food is good or bad just by the way my dog acts, poops, how shiny his skin is, his eyes, etc.. why can't these people with diplomas or so called "professionals" as we call them?? How can these people go home at the end of the day and say they had a productive day at work? How can they look at their pay check and think they earned an honest salary?? How can they go home to their families and not feel guilty?

Animals do have feelings! Just look at those eyes if you don't believe me, look at the way they back away when a hand goes out to reach towards them, they back away! Fear fills them! All they want is a good petting, some loving and yes respect. They are always so happy to see you, their tails start wagging full of joy and we think we have the right to do this to these poor helpless animals, NO THAT IS NOT RIGHT!! They are not judgemental of us, they love us unconditionally, they are always there for us, no matter what, they don't care if we put on 10 pounds, we as humans have a lot to learn, we have a long way to go.

I can go on but I think you get my point.

*sends out hugs and love to those poor animals, may they find peace one day*

-- I'm not talking only about those Iams links, I am talking about ALL of the companies that test, the cruelty, the kill-shelters, and so on --

[Russian Blue]

Originally posted by Uabassoon
..... I highly recomment Wysong. Not only is it 100% cruelty free but the ingredients are all human grade....

Be careful when you say that a specific product is advertising it's food as 'human grade'. This term has not been defined by the AAFCO and therefore is used just to catch the consumers eye. It's the new catch word for today's marketing group. In reality, the terms 'human grade' and 'natural' currently do not have to be proven and therefore can be used by any company marketing it's food.

So consumers have to be careful not to believe the marketing, it's more important to believe in the ingredients. And people ask why companies do this type of testing? Because they can get away with it! General consumers don't investigate where their products come from. They are usually only concerned about the price of the product.

Personally, I don't believe any large company that has a huge marketing budget. When a company's advertising budget gets that big, they are most likely trying to cover up lesser quality foods to reduce their bottom line. Then they up the price, up the marketing and put cute and healthy images of animals in their commercials and food bags. It's all in the marketing, and they use their spin doctors very well in the process.

I have never used IAMS foods for the plain reason that you are paying good money for an inferior product. As an example, the first few ingredients for the IAMS Original Cat food are: Chicken, Chicken By-Product Meal, Corn Grits, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum, Corn Meal. You are buying a bag full of filler and by product!! When there are so many pet food options out there, your pet deserves more!

If anyone is looking for cat food: Wysong, Solid Gold, and Nature's Balance are all easily found at most independant pet food stores and are really good foods. Plus, they are all on the cruelty free list which was posted earlier in the thread. I've been feeding Nakita Wellness/Innova/Felidae, so I will have to see why the are not on the list.

When looking for a pet food, research for yourself first. Don't let the marketing spin doctors suck you in to their game.

[Russian Blue]

Originally posted by wolfsoul
Are you sure ALL of the dog foods are owned by soap companies? I'm not sure why, but I have a feeling Go! Natural isn't?

Go! Natural just had a recall of it's food because of pet deaths. Check here -

Food Recall

Some of the pets had liver failure! I guess proper quality control methods were not used for that batch of food!

[Miss Meow]

Originally posted by IttyBittyKitty
Whups! I guess this is out too. Well, that leaves no pet food brands left in Australia - except the supermarket stuff, but that makes Randi REALLY SICK!

What is a meowmie to do?

Cuddle her cute kitties

Seriously, we found Innova dried dog and cat food at a local pet store and it's good quality. I think it's a Pets Paradise, which whitepages.com.au says you have in your state. Give one of the stores a call and see if they stock it. Our store had little sample baggies for $1 so we could try before we bought a larger bag.

I couldn't find Innova on the 'bad' list, so I hope it's animal testing-free.

[tatsxxx11]

I haven't been able to catch up with all the responses on this thread yet, but needless to say, much of what I have read so far has left me speechless, horrified and angry!! I've heard for years, so many terrible things about Iams. And it horrifys me to know that so many vets continue to carry their products, especially the Rx diets. Solid Gold was recommended to me when Star was a baby and both girls have been on it for years now. Luckily, although I live on a virtual isalnd, we are packed with stores carrying all of the top premier/holistic brands such as Wellness, Wysong, Innova, Candide, Bil Jac., etc. I believe Innova is animal testing free.

[wolfsoul]

Originally posted by Russian Blue
Go! Natural just had a recall of it's food because of pet deaths. Check here -

Food Recall

Some of the pets had liver failure! I guess proper quality control methods were not used for that batch of food!

Yes, I've heard that. But Go! Natural had recalled all of the food they had produced and solved the problem, so it's no longer a risk.

[wolfsoul]

Originally posted by Russian Blue
I have never used IAMS foods for the plain reason that you are paying good money for an inferior product. As an example, the first few ingredients for the IAMS Original Cat food are: Chicken, Chicken By-Product Meal, Corn Grits, Ground Whole Grain Sorghum, Corn Meal. You are buying a bag full of filler and by product!! When there are so many pet food options out there, your pet deserves more!

I agree 100%! I'm very picky about what foods I like. Iams is terribly discusting; mostly fillers and not enough meat. By-products, harmful preservatives like ethoxyquin and BHT/BHA.... Yuck!

[G.P.girl]

OMG! that's so terrible! buti dont understand why they cut chunks out of thier legs?????? well i'm happy i've never boughten Iams before.and i never will!

[trayi52]

Have any of you ever heard about Diamond dog or cat food? I know that is available around here close. I just don't know if they use the animal testing or not. Anybody know anything about this company?

[wolfsoul]

Originally posted by G.P.girl
OMG! that's so terrible! buti dont understand why they cut chunks out of thier legs??????

I imagine they are testing to see which formula can increase and speed healing.

[Tonya]

That is so sickening. I had no idea. I thought we lived in a civilized country. Thank you for bringing it to my attention. I will be sure that myself and everyone that I come into contact with never uses their products again.