Pets, trains and rat poison

[bfskinner]

Recently, on one of the major toy train forums, someone asked how our pets reacted to our trains. Speaking of pets, check out the following two links regarding the ongoing pet-food contamination fiasco and recall:

http://www.menufoods.com/recall/product_dog.html

http://www.menufoods.com/recall/product_cat.html

The main link to the website is:

http://www.menufoods.com/

The "word" on FoxNews today is that there are likely to be many, many more deaths from this in the coming weeks.

I wonder how they can be sure that dry food in bags (as opposed to "wet" foods in cans or "pouches") are not affected also. Or is that another shoe waiting to be dropped?

Sincerely hope this helps some toy train lovers avoid losing a dear friend.

[IRONROOSTER]

We just tossed our dry dog food since the brand was on the list.  Until this is sorted out with some certainty, our two Yorkies get people food.  They love that plan!

But I do feel bad for the folks who lost their pets.

Paul 

[Kooljock1]

Even with a dog with a touchy stomach, you can't go wrong with cooked ground beef and white rice. It's easy to make, relatively cheap, and the little guy just loves it!

This was our vets' recommendation, your dog may be different.

Jon

[Andrew Falconer]

Several years ago I upgraded the cat and dog food to brands that do not have grains as main ingredients. Cats and Dogs eat mostly meat and vegetables.

These no-grain brands are Natural Balance, California Natural, and Innova.

Cats and Dogs can eat as much raw chicken as they can stomach and not get infections.

So far, my cats and dog are relatively healthy. 

Andrew

[espeefoamer]

My mom called ourvetaboutthe food for our two cats.He said that Science diet was safe.My mom was told to stay away from any wet food.Our cats are doing fine.

[Anonymous]

The cause appears to have been a type of rat poison, banned in the U.S., that was somehow introduced in the gluton that is only used in preparing "wet" pet food.  How it got into the food is not yet known.  Dry foods are not affected.

My dog eats only a special diet Hills (Science Diet) dry food (available only from vets, and not in stores) mixed with small chunks of boiled boneless, skinless chicken *** and a bit of water.

 

[bfskinner]

I believe Allan meant to say "gluten" rather than "gluton" but in any event, since we do not yet know how the rat poison got into the gluten,  or who is responsible, or whether it was accidental or deliberate, what do we really know? Spinach, anyone?

[Anonymous]

I was driving home from Cleveland Ohio last night. I caught a talk show by a rather caustic person "Michael Savage" on the car radio (WOR New York). He claimed ABC news reported that the source was contminated wheat from China. Apparently they are allowed to use the banned chemical (rat poison) there and it was a common supplier to all the pet brands which were affected. He then questioned if some of this made it into the supply of human food such as pasta,ect. He then claimed the story has been hushed up to avoid panick.

Dale Hz 

[njalb1]

Trains from China.   Now wheat from China ???  

[bfskinner]

I don't know whether the material reported by Dale Hz has any substance, but that's precisely my point -- I don't know, and have no reliable way of finding out at this point.

Remember back between 1981 and 1987 (or thereabouts) when the President Ronald Reagan held that the newly-identified HIV affected only a specific group of people, mostly in San Francisco, and that heterosexuals couldn't get it? Or in 1976 when President Ford went to Philadelphia and spent the night in a hotel that had experienced 34 mysterious deaths, ostensibly to prove it  was safe. As it turned out, the hotel was "infested" with Legionnaire's Disease and at the time was quite dangerous? Presumably, these two men had access to the best information available, and yet each of them was very much mistaken.

A couple of weeks ago, when I first heard of the pet-food contamination, I heard very clearly and authoritatively that only "two brands" were affected. Today, the number is 53 brands of dog food; 42 brands of cat food; and heaven-only-knows how many sub-varieties of each brand.

With the myriad of products with similar-sounding names contributing to the confusion, what makes anyone think that he (or his vet) has a monopoly on capital-T truth?

As for those who assert their particular  favorite brand is unaffected, I urge caution. For example, even the highly-regarded manufacturer of Hill's Science Diet is currently listing 5 of their products (all cat food) on the recall list.* So anyone who baldly states that "Science Diet is safe," may be partially correct, but clearly is not telling the whole story. At the very least, one has to read the fine print.

Along with IRONROOSTER and Kooljoock1, I personally will "err" on the side of caution, and not buy any more pet food until I know a lot more than I do now. In addition, I'm still considering the possibility that tainted wheat products have made it into the human food supply.

I feel certain that before this is over and done with, someone will assert that the contamination was caused by aliens spreading poison from low-flying UFO's. The problem is  how to separate the wheat from the chaff, (Grim joke intended.) We don't have all the answers yet, so what are you feeding your four-legged family member tonight?

*Source: http://www.petfooddirect.com/store/dept.asp?dept%5Fid=1&brand%5Fid=7&root%5Fid=&parent%5Fid=&Page=2

[cnw1995]

A few years ago, we went back to feeding the dog what I grew up feeding our dogs - leftover people food... I'm sure sad about the people losing their pets over this.

[laz 57]

Me too DOUG, we give our LAB people food as a suppliment but not to much.   Just can't figure out why our pet food is made overseas, sounds dumb to me?  But I guess thats why I don't make the big bucks.

laz57

[Anonymous]

Its made overseas because it is cheaper. The poison in question is banned in the US and not used as is DDT ect. However overseas the standards are different. Around the Pittsburg area here there were several food poisionings from tainted vegetables from Latin america. Bon Appetit!

Dale Hz

[csxt30]

I don't believe it's all made overseas. I used to have to go repair covered hoppers & boxcars in Dunkirk N.Y. at the huge Ralston Purina plant. Bags & bags of dog & cat food there & you wouldn't like the way the place smelled either !! Ha !! I couldn't wait to get out of there !!

Thanks, John  

[Anonymous]

Because the food is made here does not mean the ingredients are. I worked for a company which made automotive batteries. They spent millions a year removing lead from the water before it was discharged into the sewer as mandated by the EPA. Their solution was to build a plant in Mexico and make the lead plates there where they could legally discharge the lead into the Rio Grande. They could then ship the plates back to the US for assembly in the battery.
I hope the webmaster will not delete this thread. Here in western Pa we had 2 children die of food poisioning. These could be yours or anyones children. The issue tragically transends made in China trains.

I can tell you from experience they know the cause of the contamination,whatever it is. They want things to cool off before the **** hits the fan.

Dale Hz

[c50truck]

Being a licensed applicator of pesticides gives me some insight. A pesticide or herbicide may be banned for use in the USA. But that does not mean it can not be produced here and shipped out of country, than applied to food and shipped back in to the USA. 

To discuss this further would be getting into polictics, and I don't believe it belongs here.

Rod l.

 

 

[Andrew Falconer]

Cats like to jump up on the layout or model railroad to see what is new.

Fake fur makes great grass, but the cats like to sleep on the fake fur.

Andrew

[Andrew Falconer]

One food company that I trust is Natura Pet. They offer Innova and California Natural. I have been feeding their various dry and moist foods to cats and dogs and never had a problem.

www.naturapet.com

Andrew