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We’ve all seen it on TV and printed in magazines. Advertisements for commercially manufactured, highly processed cans and bags of unhealthy pet food.
Such ads have become a fixture in our media, an integral aspect of our culture for decades. They always seem to depict the happiest, most contented people, along with the healthiest looking, most beautiful, vibrant, clear-eyed, glossy coated, friendly, lovable and adorable cats and dogs imaginable.
Nothing could be further from the truth!
These advertisements, while seemingly innocuous, are actually extremely sophisticated in terms of the ways in which they’re designed to appeal very powerfully to our subconscious nature, so as to coerce us into purchasing the products they’re pushing.
They often anthropomorphize animals, causing us to identify with our pets even more closely than we already do. The ads sometimes also strive to convince us that the kinds of foods that are appealing to and/or perhaps healthy for us are also good for our animal friends to eat.
The Ploy of “Delicious” Pet Food
Many pet food ads also make a big point of focusing on how delectable their products are, driving home the point of how much our pets absolutely love and crave the taste of them. Since these ads are obviously not meant for the animals themselves to watch, it’s almost as if the advertisers are trying to make our human mouths water with the kinds of graphic descriptions they use to convince us of just how incredibly yummy and delicious these pet foods really are!
Besides the irresistible flavor of the products they’re promoting, these ads also often describe the ingredients pet foods contain as being utterly wholesome, exceptionally nutritious, and totally geared toward promoting the good health of our pets.
Pet food commercials often give us a very warm, fuzzy, comforting feeling. They can be very effective at engendering in us a sense of safety and security as if to convince us wholeheartedly that the products they’re selling are a really good, solid, nourishing foundation upon which the health of our pets can be built. These ads can make us feel that if we buy the products they’re selling and feed them to our pets, that by doing so we’re taking the best care possible of our beloved furry friends. The ads lead us to believe that by feeding our animals their particular brand of products, we’re making the best choice possible to ensure the good health and longevity of our precious, beloved animal companions.
Pet Food Is All About Branding
We get ‘branded’ when we get sold on a brand and plunk down our hard earned money to buy that particular one.
And yet despite how effectively these pet food ads evoke such feelings in us — feelings of being so safe and secure, so good about ourselves, and so comforted in the notion that the products they’re convincing us to buy are such a good healthy choice for our pets to eat on a daily basis – the real and startlingly contradictory truth underlying the pet food industry at large is a subject about which the vast majority of people remain quite blissfully unaware.
Most people have no idea that virtually all of what goes into those cans and bags of pet food are vast amounts of waste products – many of which are pretty darn nasty – that are left over from the manufacture of food for human consumption.
Another significant portion of the ingredients used in the manufacture of commercial pet food is derived from genetically modified grain crops, particularly soy and corn, which are virtually always heavily sprayed with toxic petrochemical pesticides and herbicides, and grown in depleted soils treated with synthetic fertilizers.
I believe the term “junk pet food,” which is the phrase I use to describe commercially manufactured pet food, was coined by Australian veterinarian Dr. Tom Lonsdale. He’s the author of two books about raw feeding for pets, entitled Work Wonders and Raw Meaty Bones.
The reason I call it junk is because after doing a great deal of research and digging very deeply into this subject, it has become abundantly evident to me that the majority of these pet food products are of extremely – nay, shockingly – poor quality. In fact when it comes to providing the kind of nourishment our carnivorous companions truly require to thrive, the vast majority of these pet foods fail miserably, and many, in my opinion, are downright dreadful.
That many pets can even survive at all on a lifelong diet of such abysmal junk food is truly a remarkable yet tragic testament to their incredible resilience and adaptability.
We who are interested in learning about, purchasing and preparing the most nutrient dense, wholesome foods possible for ourselves and our families, are all too well aware of what a profoundly deleterious effect the consumption of poor quality, highly processed junk food can have on our human health.
Pet Food Leads to Chronic Pet Ill Health
Well, the same is true for our furry friends. And the epidemic of chronic ill health in the form of debilitating ailments such as periodontal disease, obesity, diabetes, cancer, etc. etc. in the junk pet food-fed domestic pet population is surely a telling parallel.
So just what are the dirty secrets of the junk pet food industry? The most disturbing, nitty-gritty details, which are beyond the scope of this piece, can be found by reading several online resources that are linked at the end of this post.
To provide an overview here, what’s most important to know is that the bulk of ingredients used in most commercial pet foods come from places called rendering plants. Rendering plants are facilities designed to process a wide variety of leftover waste products, a number of which are quite unspeakable, and most of which are derived from the production of food for human consumption.
Here’s a partial list of items that are routinely sent to, and processed by, rendering plants. Even the cheapest homemade dog food or cat chow would be light years better than this!
- Slaughterhouse wastes, including almost all portions of animals that are not generally considered to be fit for human consumption, such as heads, hides, spines, hooves and diseased body parts
- Diseased, disabled, dying or dead livestock deemed unfit for human consumption, aka 4D animals
- Expired meats from grocery stores, including their plastic and styrofoam packaging
- rancid, overcooked oils drained from fryolators, and filthy grease from grease traps from fast food and other restaurants
- The bodies of domestic cats and dogs that have been euthanized, sometimes right along with flea and tick collars still attached around their necks
- Road kill, YES ROAD KILL!
Rendering plants take the above sorts of items and throw them all into a giant auger to pulverize them.
The resulting ‘soup’ is cooked at extremely high temperatures, surely at least in part to kill off all the potentially harmful bacteria, pathogens and parasites that may be lingering on dead, rotting flesh. However this very high heat also destroys much of whatever nutritional value the stuff may have ever had to begin with. Then the fat is rendered off, and what’s left is made into various products that are known by the euphemistic terms we’re used to seeing on pet food ingredients lists.
If you haven’t already, I would strongly encourage everyone reading this post who is concerned about the health of our pets to start reading pet food labels.
Here’s a partial list of suspect ingredients that come from rendering plants:
- meat by-products
- chicken by-product meal
- meat meal
- meat and bone meal
- animal digest
- animal fat (often treated with things like BHA and/or citric acid)
Also, notice how many junk pet food ingredients listed on the label are grain based, such as corn, soy, wheat, rice, sorghum or barley etc.
As you begin to notice how many grain based ingredients are contained in these products, please bear in mind that dogs and cats are carnivorous animals whose bodies were never designed to consume grains in any appreciable quantities.
For those of you interested in learning the details, below are links to several relevant web pages and articles that delve even more deeply into this troubling subject:
http://www.rawfedcats.org/toxic.htm
http://www.homevet.com/index.php/diet-discussion/item/315-an-excerpt-from-the-book-food-pets-die-for
http://www.examiner.com/article/the-ultimate-recycling-the-rendering-industry
Sources and More Information
Hi Sarah – I commented the last time that you discussed the subject of pet food. While feeding raw may not be for everyone, I will not ever do anything else. It took my current vet about 5 years to accept that feeding your pets this way is safe. My bullmastiff is going to be 11 yrs. old this year and has made it through 3 major surgeries in good stead. Right now he is going to an underwater treadmill where is walks and swims. This has helped him recover from ACL surgery. And the swimming has taught him to swim in our pool with a lifejacket as bullys do not swim. He is in great condition and we attribute this to eating well. Thanks Sarah for your blog!
“driving home the point of how much our pets absolutely love and crave the taste of them”
In the same way we love and crave the taste of chips and candy bars.
Ironically of all the “stuff” they put in pet food, the road kill is the least offensive. However it wouldn’t be the fresh road kill (dear generally) that can be had locally to feed our raw fed pets.
Another great article! Thanks Linda and Sarah!
I love that you are sharing about this. I would love more information like recipes and links to raw food diets for dogs and cats. Thanks for the valuable information.
Please check out my website for more information on raw diets for cats, as well as the links page on my site, which is chock full of excellent websites, articles and resources on raw feeding:
http://www.rawfedcats.org/links.htm
Joining these online forums is another great way to get information and support, and learn from thousands of experienced raw feeders:
as for dry animal food, what animals in the wild eat dehydrated or cooked food?! none! there is just no way that even blue buffalo brand pet foods is good for our animals. yes, it may be better than other dry foods, but it still is *dry* food.
nope…I think it’s as bad or worse than people processed fake food.
we feed a raw diet, too with all of the animal products from pastured animals. it is wildly expensive for my husband and i (i am a bartender and he works at a bicycle shop) but we make it work. we love our dog so much!!
Wish I could AFFORD to make homemade food for all our pets!!
Look at whatever pet food you buy on a pound for dollar ratio just like you do the meat that you buy for your family. Sometimes the meat is a little higher BUT you have to factor in vet bills, skin issues (even if you treat them yourself) and so forth.
We buy the cheapest meat/chicken that is out there and while I wish I could afford better quality for my pets I figure the junkiest store bought chicken is still better than any dry pet food. Junky chicken is still considered “live” food and ALL commercial pet food is “dead”. The best way to feed any dog or cat is open a bag of chicken, package of meaty bones, etc. and give them to your pet. No cooking, no clean-up, few if any vet bills = cheaper, healthier and easiest!
Ohhhh Jeanette , I so agree with your post. I can’t always get the best grain fed pastured meats either so I get the junky store brand but it’s way better than the so called dog food! And my vets small lobby is stocked with Science Diet too…….ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.
I have spent about $300 LESS so far this year on raw, than if i still fed kibble/canned. I have 3 dogs and 4 cats. It does NOT have to be so expensive! Buy in bulk. I get alot of free wild meat, geese, duck, deer, moose, elk. Free organs from butchers/farmers. Cheap beef heart from a butcher, chicken quarters by the case ($1.27/pound), chicken backs by the case, whole turkeys at 88cents/lb around xmas/thanksgiving/easter…. you learn how to source and find good deals. I get free meat from people cleaning out their freezers often. Bags of whole raw sardines($4 for about 8 or 9 in a bag). Make connections. I get tons of meaty moose/deer/elk bones at hunting season for free. Healthier, no vet bills… it’s so worth it! (I have 4 freezers for their food too lol)
i get all my sisters frozen food too and cook it up for the dog food….it’s not raw…but i add extra things like eggs chondriton for joints and flax ect…..then i can divide it into smaller portions to feed them! 🙂
I would love to know where I can get wholesome dog food. We have 2 dogs. Another poster had a great idea!! I would LOVE to see some dog food recipes!! Plus if it saves money that’s great too!!
At the meat counter. They just need raw meaty bones and organs.
There are no dog food ‘recipes’. Just plain old raw meat and bones . No cooking no adding ….wolves don’t get added anything ….nothing for the teeth….just good old bones with marrow and organ meats. It’s really so simple. I feed outside but if the weather was bad (there is no BAD weather to a Newfie) I’d simply feed on the kitchen floor and clean up after . It’s not a problem at all . Or put down a piece of plastic or something. It doesn’t take a dog long to eat a piece of raw meat , that’s for sure !
So glad to ‘see’ you again, LInda! I commented on your last post that my dogs have been eating the Raw Meaty Bones (RMB) diet since 2008. Miraculous, this diet has been for my canine companions. We switched to RMB because one of my dogs had horrible skin rashes and bloody sores, and everything the vet did failed. In fact, it was changing my dogs’ food that led me (and my husband, and of late, more family members) to radically re-vamp our diets, too. Today, I consider myself to be educated about the sad state of the pet food industry, and have seen first-hand what I refer to as the Hill’s Science Diet “branding/brainwashing” of our country’s future veterinarians (I work in higher ed – the vet tech program is now defunct, but before that, the Hill’s brand was on everything, in everything, related to the program). Even so, I learned new and shocking things from your post.
One thing I didn’t share before was that my husband and I were going through some severe financial difficulties (we’re past this! grateful!) when we switched our dogs to RMB, but we were determined. I stopped by the meat dept every time I shopped at our local grocery store to visit with the butcher. My husband visited wild game processors in the area, and called frequently. These visits paid off in deals on meat. And I stocked up the best I could every time I could (sales, etc.). We didn’t have much freezer space back then, so I was always on the lookout. It wasn’t easy, and there were times that I wanted to give up, but I’m glad we stuck it out. There is hardly a day that goes by that my husband and I don’t comment on the health, vitality, and beauty of our dogs: 14 year old Pepper (lab/heeler mix rescue), 8 year old Roxie (pit bull), and approx. 5 year old LD (short for Little Dog, a cairn terrier, we think – a street rescue). Roxie’s rashes and skin problems are gone. Pepper’s “mushy” muscle tone and joint pain has been replaced with shapely, sleek, muscular beauty and the agility of a much younger dog. And LD has the whitest teeth I’ve ever seen on any dog.
By the way, the only local canine vet wildly disagrees with feeding dogs this way. (Her small lobby is full of Hill’s products.) There is one other couple in the small town where I live who feed RMB, too, but I think we’re it for now. Thanks for your commitment to getting this information out there. Thank you, too, Sarah! Knowledge really is power. Sorry for the long comment, but I’m passionate about this.
We feed raw meat, organ and bone, too, after our first dog died of cancer (and *that’s* when they finally admit corn is bad for carnivores and start pushing wildly expensive canned meat-based food). We rotate the type of food at a feeding rather than grind it all together.