With all of this talk about pet food...

[catmandu]

I Remember Reading An Article That Said A Lot Of Vets Are Helped In Thier Schooling Costs By Hills And Thats Why They Recommend Science Diet.
I Think That Like Iams , Science Diet May Well Be Living Off Thier Reputation.
My Cats Love Thier Canned And Michaels Adores The Chicken And Liver Dry. So I Will Buy It Although The Nutro Complete Care Indoor And The Technical Are Now The Bulk Of The Found Cat And Starry Diets.
Along With Whskas Pouches And Friskies Pouches And The Odd Purina Premium.

[Catlady711]

Meow Mix & also Kit-n-Kaboodle (I believe), have lots of dyes (colors) in them. Some animals can develop allergies to the dyes in pet foods. We've seen MANY skin problems in our hospital caused by allergies, most of those pets were being fed foods with dyes/colors in them. After a few weeks of being on a non dye food their skin/allergy problems went away.

[momoffuzzyfaces]

My Leonardo who will turn 17 in August (and all the other 3) take exception to you calling their Meow Mix JUNK!!!

They have eaten it their entire lives and never had problems. They also eat 9 Lives now. Please note that those foods aren't on the recall list!

They tried Science diet: their response was to try and bury it!!!

[Freedom]

Much of it comes down to reading labels, and to understanding what the terms mean. Many of the lower priced foods include animal renderings, including those from former companion animals. I just can't cope with doing that, buying that to feed to my pets. Other folks don't mind it.

Cats in a wild setting will eat a chicken (if they can catch it) but the won't eat the feet, beak and such. Yet some foods will grind up those parts and put them in the food. I won't feed that to my pets as it is not what their bodies have developed to digest. (My grandparents on . . one side (I won't say which) ate that stuff, so they likely wouldn't have an issue feeding it to the pets.)

Both Ebony and Billy came from homes feeding Meow Mix. When they arrived, they had scaly skin, tons of dandruff, itched. Four days on a better quality food and that all cleared up.

Here is just one of many sites which explain the ingredients (I always confuse chicken by-products and chicken meal, as just one example) defintions and such: http://www.doberdogs.com/menu.html

And I think it is Gary who often will refer folks to a book called "Foods Your Pet Dies For," as an excellent reference, as well.

Finally, I agree with this from Mr Spunky's Mom:
This is not really any different than the few smokers/drinkers/junkfood-eaters that live to 90 while the rest of us that try to eat right have problems and such.

We would all feel better if we ate right, but as long as junk (or easy) food is available, many won't.

[catmandu]

Thats a book , Food Pets Die For that more or less foretold some of the Pet Food Problems that we are having now.
They told of Pet Food Companies also using Cattle who had died and been lying in the field for months, road kill and euthanized Pets.
I am glad I now get subsidized lunches a whole Roast Chicken that I can share with the Cats.
And so are they!!

[momcat]

Our pets are like people when it comes to food. Some have special needs that require a specific food, some pets are picky eaters, like us they have their likes and dislikes. Groucho is a healthy 6 year old neutered male who simply will not touch canned food of any kind. On the advice of our vet, he eats Iams weight control and loves it! Occasionally he gets other food like Purina Indoor Cat formula and gobbles it right up. He loves fried chicken and the gravy from beef stew, both occasional treats. Choosing the right food for our sweeties comes down to individual choice. We know our cats...their likes, dislikes, preferences. We all want our companions to be healthy, active (well, to a point), and happy. The best food for one kitty may not be right for another. It's up to the individual owner to determine what food is best for their cat.