Tainted dog food

[Jstpssng]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( A dog food manufacturer noticed it was receiving more contaminated corn a month before some eluded testers, contaminating food and killing dozens of dogs, a company executive said.

Diamond Pet Foods said employees were warned to test closely for the naturally occurring toxin called aflatoxin, but the sampling methods probably missed a pocket of it in one of the shipments, said Mark Brinkmann, the company's chief operating officer

)</font> (AP associated Press)

By now this must be old news; however I just found out about it last night.

I still haven't figured out why the main ingredient for many dog foods is corn anyways, as they can't digest it; if I was raising raccoons it'd be a different story. It makes as much sense as putting diseased cow carcasses into cow feed.

 

[NewToy]

A friend of mine handles that dog food (Diamond) at his store. He said they were diligent about rounding up the contaminated product. Terrible shame about all the dog's either sick or dead.

 

[Freds]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( I still haven't figured out why the main ingredient for many dog foods is corn anyways )</font>

1) Because it IS a protein source and can count in the food's protein level on the label, but like you said, it's an undigestible one as are most vegetables in the short digetive tract of a dog
2) They need to add some kind of grain so the kibble is "workable" and can run through the machines (quality foods will add whole rice)
3) It's cheap

Oh, was your question rhetorical? /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Hopefully this incident will bring on tighter restrictions (or any for that matter) for the ingredients dog food companies can use. I hope Diamond gets the pants sued off them, but it could have happened to any one of them.

On another note, I saw a commercial last night for Purina Dog Chow that I swear said, Can add two years to your dog's life. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif Over what, not feeding your dog at all? /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[Jstpssng]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( Oh, was your question rhetorical? )</font>

Not really. I tend to read labels, whether for myself or my dog. I also prefer locally grown meat even though it costs more, but I believe it's better quality. So I pay a lot more for dog food without fillers... which translates into smaller, tighter piles for me to clean off the lawn.
On the other hand my dog is my only "child", and one of the few luxuries I allow myself.

 

[texbaylea]

We have raised and shown Boxers for about 30 years. Retired from that now but have found over the years that feeding the high qualitiy dog food paid of in the long run. The dogs are in better health, coats are better, vet bills lower. For those of you with hunting breeds the dogs have better stamina. Clean up after the dogs is easier too. I know as I have scooped many a poop.

The foods I am talking about will cost you about $1.00 a pound unless you buy several sacks at a time.

Vernon

 

[Freds]

I certainly agree with what you've said, Vernon. I've seen many dogs getting along just fine on low end dog food, but you can't beat the benefits of a quality kibble. Switching to a quality food may add two years to your dog's life... I just can't see how feeding Purina Dog Chow would /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
I'm also wondering how many other corn based dog food companies, the mill with the bad corn supplied, besides Diamond...

 

[texbaylea]

Purina is probably the best researched dog food in the US. Their top lines are O.N.E. and Pro Plan. They are very good and we are feeding O.N.E. right now but when they finish building the PetsMart locally, we will go back to feeding IAM's Eukanuba (I can not get it this side of Houston). I strongly dislike IAMs marketing people but can not fault their dog food. Of all we have fed of currently available brands we think that it is the best.

Vernon

 

[texbaylea]

Freds
I forgot one thing, processed and cooked the dogs can and do get nutrition from the corn. Raw they can not digest it true. Almost all dog food except for the "natural" foods contain some grain. The "natural" or raw meat foods generally lack some essential nutriant and they can not be consistant. They are selling based on a phoney premise.

Vernon

 

[DUMBDOG]

You had better tell that to my Pomeranian, as whenever she can she will steal a cob of corn and devour it before you can take it away. She will also steal peas from the plants.

 

[Freds]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( processed and cooked the dogs can and do get nutrition from the corn )</font>

Do you have a source for this info? I have always heard and read just the opposite. Thanks.

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( The "natural" or raw meat foods generally lack some essential nutriant and they can not be consistant. )</font>

Do you mean a raw (BARF) diet or a natural/holisitc food (Canidae, Solid Gold, Innova...)? Either way I do not follow what nutrient they, either one, would be lacking or how they are inconsistent /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

I like when the dog food topic gets going (within reason). It usually has some interesting dialogue, like saying dogs get something out of corn if it is processed and cooked at high temps. It's truly too bad about the Diamond situation, though. That must be one tough fungus.