Foo - Dry Pet Food and Salmonella in Humans

Here we go again.....



Eight new cases of human salmonella infections linked with dry pet food have been reported this year, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Last year, the C.D.C. reported on a Salmonella outbreak in 2006 and 2007 that was traced back to dry dog food. The C.D.C. has identified a total of 79 cases in 21 states, according to the latest Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The illness was tracked back to an Everson, Penn., pet food plant operated by Mars Petcare US, Inc. The company closed the plant in July.

http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/11/06/dry-pet-food-and-human-salmonella/

Recall List
http://www.petcare.mars.com/OtherNewsReleases.html

uuummmm.......okay......you kinda have to wonder why those people were eating pet food to being with....:rolleyes:

Now that I read the article, it is possible to get salmonella without eating the food directly....hmmm.....never thought of that.

uuummmm.......okay......you kinda have to wonder why those people were eating pet food to being with....:rolleyes:

Now that I read the article, it is possible to get salmonella without eating the food directly....hmmm.....never thought of that.

Also if you read article you'll see that most humans were under the age of 2.

Dog food is actually a pretty cheap and complete diet.

I think I'll stick to my noodles......

Also if you read article you'll see that most humans were under the age of 2.

Not much earning power at that age, so I could see why they might buy dog food to eat.

It makes my coat shine.

It makes my coat shine.

Better for when you're walking/cycling in dark areas.

they also clean plaque and tartar build up.

Most commercial dog food is crap I wouldn't feed to a dog. These cases are much less frequent in high quality kibbles.

Most commercial dog food is crap I wouldn't feed to a dog. These cases are much less frequent in high quality kibbles.

True that.....but not everybody can afford the good kibble. When most "good stuff" runs about $40-50 for a 20 lbs bag (and that's for the low-medium grade "good kibble") its hard to afford. I have two 70ish lbs dogs. I can't afford a couple hundred dollars a month for their food (yet).

Of course, that doesn't mean I feed them Ol' Roy either. I get the best commercial stuff I can find (price/quality).

pet food is really expensive for some reason.

Better for when you're walking/cycling in dark areas.

Can I have a biscuit now? :D

uuummmm.......okay......you kinda have to wonder why those people were eating pet food to being with....:rolleyes:

Now that I read the article, it is possible to get salmonella without eating the food directly....hmmm.....never thought of that.

*cough* I can answer that. Collegiate bender. 'nuff said.

True that.....but not everybody can afford the good kibble. When most "good stuff" runs about $40-50 for a 20 lbs bag (and that's for the low-medium grade "good kibble") its hard to afford. I have two 70ish lbs dogs. I can't afford a couple hundred dollars a month for their food (yet).

Of course, that doesn't mean I feed them Ol' Roy either. I get the best commercial stuff I can find (price/quality).

The premium stuff you feed so much less of, the difference is pennies a day. I used to pay $39 a bag for california natural and it'd last my very active german shepherd over a month. About a buck a day for dog food isn't bad. She had a sensitive stomach so I'd give her about 2/3 kibble and 1/3 ground turkey (90 cents a lb frozen at aldi), rice and bone meal powder (from the health food store) and then a bag lasted almost 2 months.

My dog tears through a 35# sack of kibble in a month. I'd go broke and end up having to eat dog kibble myself if I fed her expensive food.

My dog tears through a 35# sack of kibble in a month. I'd go broke and end up having to eat dog kibble myself if I fed her expensive food.

Did you not read what I just posted?

The **** in a bag you buy, dog probably needs to eat 5 or 6 cups a day.

With a super premium, that'll be 3 cups or less. So it costs about the same per day, even though it might be twice as much per lb. As a bonus the dog gets better nutrition, not a bunch of corn and soy protein they can't digest.

pet food is really expensive for some reason.

Try the less expensive stuff they leave the poop on. Just microwave it for the salmonella though.

Did you not read what I just posted?

The **** in a bag you buy, dog probably needs to eat 5 or 6 cups a day.

With a super premium, that'll be 3 cups or less. So it costs about the same per day, even though it might be twice as much per lb. As a bonus the dog gets better nutrition, not a bunch of corn and soy protein they can't digest.

"Results indicated that as the level of textured soy protein was increased, the prececal digestion of protein and carbohydrate was reduced from 77 to 71 percent and 80 to 62 percent, respectively."

Hill, R.C. and co-workers. 2001. The effect of textured vegetable protein from soy on nutrient digestion compared to beef in cannulated dogs. J. Animal Sci. 79(8):2162-2171.


That's only a 6% decrease in protein digestion and, specifically regarding the non-digestable carbohydrates in TSP, a 22.5% reduction in carbohydrate digestion (which is accommodated with the addition of rice or other carbohydrate sources*.)
Comparing the nutrient analysis of California Natural to what ASCII currently eats, the kcal/cup are less than 5% different, and the nutritional analysis is within 1.5% on all critical measures (protein, fat, carbohydrate, linoleic acid, etc. If you follow the standard rationale of calories in vs. calories out, she'll need to eat an equivalent amount of $40/20lbs food as she currently does of $25/35lbs.

*the other source is commonly *gasp* corn! It's nothing more than a sugar source, plain and simple.

pet food is really expensive for some reason.Human food is really expensive for some reason.

dam it, I've lost some weight this past month - now what am I going to nibble on.

The KIND of beef they use changes the absorbtion, AND it's well known it's one of the least digestable animal proteins for dogs.

The California natural was $39 for 36 lbs! The measures on the back of the bag DO NOT take into account bioavailability. The corn has almost NO BIOAVAILABILITY to dogs. It's nothing but a filler to make the numbers similar and keep you buying cheap crap. I'm guessing right now you use purina one or something similar. I have tried those, and can promise you no matter what the bag says, you have to feed a lot more of them. Most super premiums have a satisfaction guarantee. If you feed it for several weeks and don't notice much of a difference you can return the unused portion and get a full refund. How is free dog food more expensive than what you are feeding now?

Human food is really expensive for some reason.

try feeding 7 cats

try feeding 7 cats

To what?

To what?
It depends on the bioavailability of cats.


The KIND of beef they use changes the absorbtion, AND it's well known it's one of the least digestable animal proteins for dogs.

I'm interested to know more about this, specifically. Are you talking about cuts vs. extrusion, or one cut vs. another type? I wasn't aware of the canine digestion issues around beef. (Although it makes sense, since in the wild I'm pretty sure dogs aren't taking down cattle.)
I'm actually feeding ASCII Purina's Beneful Original, not Purina One. She grew up on Beneful Puppy formulation, and we switched her over to the Original when she was about 45 pounds. Beneful Original uses chicken by-product meal as the primary protein, which I know is a post-packing extrusion process rather than a prime cut, but at least the primary protein isn't beef or soy.
Now, I've looked into the corn issue and found some more research in the J. Animal Science that shows a 20% decrease in digestability of high amylose corn; but in the same article is mention that amylomaize corn has a similar canine bioavailibility as conventional corn, both of which are high. This is where I'm confused: Amylomaize has a 55% or greater amylopectin content, and most HA hybrids are listed at >55%. In the study, the specific HA amylopectin content was listed at >86%. Where pet foods are concerned using HA hybrid corn extrusions, is 55% considered the average, or is 86% (which is typically a candy, textile and adhesive milled cornstarch)

pet food is really expensive for some reason.


Human food is really expensive for some reason.

Wait till you have a cage full of pet humans to feed.

I'm interested to know more about this, specifically. Are you talking about cuts vs. extrusion, or one cut vs. another type? I wasn't aware of the canine digestion issues around beef. (Although it makes sense, since in the wild I'm pretty sure dogs aren't taking down cattle.)
I'm actually feeding ASCII Purina's Beneful Original, not Purina One. She grew up on Beneful Puppy formulation, and we switched her over to the Original when she was about 45 pounds. Beneful Original uses chicken by-product meal as the primary protein, which I know is a post-packing extrusion process rather than a prime cut, but at least the primary protein isn't beef or soy.
Now, I've looked into the corn issue and found some more research in the J. Animal Science that shows a 20% decrease in digestability of high amylose corn; but in the same article is mention that amylomaize corn has a similar canine bioavailibility as conventional corn, both of which are high. This is where I'm confused: Amylomaize has a 55% or greater amylopectin content, and most HA hybrids are listed at >55%. In the study, the specific HA amylopectin content was listed at >86%. Where pet foods are concerned using HA hybrid corn extrusions, is 55% considered the average, or is 86% (which is typically a candy, textile and adhesive milled cornstarch)

I'm talking about both cut and processing. Leather is an extreme example, lots of protein but almost no bioavailability. I am pretty sure the protein in tendons is less digestable as well, but don't have a study in front of me to prove it. The most bioavailable proteins for dogs that have the most of the amino acids they need are egg first and chicken second. byproduct meal has a lower bioavailability than meat or meat meals from the same animal. Which makes sense, considering it's a waste product from the human food industry, and the most easily digested portions are removed for the humans.

The problem with corn is a combo of bioavailability, allergy (very common to have corn allergies in pets, symptoms can be anywhere from a dull coat to hot spots to increased shedding to digestive issues) and carbs being a very poor source of energy for dogs and cats. it's much harder for them to process carbs than fat. An ideal pet food would contain almost no carbs, since fat is a much better energy source for them. So what is absorbed from the food is not utilized very efficently, and corn does not have any nutritional value beyond the carbs. Far better to feed them something that contains calories and nutrients (such as fish oil to increase the omega 3 content of the diet).

Then comes what's not in the better foods. No byproducts means to cancerous tumors (you think they bury cows with growths? Nope, go to the rendering plant), downers, or other undesirable things (such as euthanized horses) that end up at the rendering plant. That's why I prefer foods with human grade ingredients. No cancer causing chemical preservatives. No poorly digested grains.

If you go from Beneful to a super premium you will probably be feeding 30% less or more. I know that my dog was highly active, and if I fed her the amount on the bag for Cal. Natural she started getting a little chubby, but I had to feed her more than suggested for purina one to keep her weight stable because of the low bioavailability of the ingredients, irregardless of what the bag might say about calorie content.

Beneful is really overpriced for what it is, IMO. You can get better quality stuff for the same price. Call the local feed stores, and ask what the best food they have is and how much it costs. I've always found the best value in pet food by doing that. A lot of them carry chicken soup for the pet lover's soul line. Stupid name, but it's Diamond's top of the line and an excellent value.

Forgot to add, when I fostered a jack I fed him the chicken soup puppy food. He was an adult, but it's higher in protein and fat which is what I prefer in a pet food (fewer carbs, feed a little less and no problems with weight gain).

I'll stick to canned dog food, thank you very much.