Posted on 03/13/2012 7:38:49 PM PDT by ColdOne
Stumped by mysterious illnesses in at least 600 dogs in the U.S., federal health officials have turned to consumers for help investigating problems possibly tied to chicken jerky pet treats made in China.
A log of complaints collected from pet owners and veterinarians contains references to at least three popular brands of jerky treats that may be associated with kidney failure and other serious ailments, according to internal Food and Drug Administration documents obtained by msnbc.com.
Of 22 “Priority 1” cases listed by the FDA late last year, 13 cited Waggin’ Train or Canyon Creek Ranch jerky treats or tenders, both produced by Nestle Purina PetCare Co., the records show.
(Excerpt) Read more at vitals.msnbc.msn.com ...
ping
I think I saw a TV commercial for one of those today
Anyone test for Melamine?
It seems the best way to keep one’s dog safe is to either bake treats at home and/or give meat scraps and raw bones as “treats”.
According to the article, yes:
****
Since 2007, FDA scientists have analyzed jerky treats for evidence of dangerous toxins, including heavy metals, melamine, melamine analogs and diethylene glycol, chemicals used in plastics and resins.
So far, they’ve found nothing convincing, a point emphasized by Keith Schopp, director of communications for Nestle Purina. He noted that FDA officials also suggest that illnesses may be a result of causes other than eating jerky treats.
“Our chicken jerky treats are safe to feed as directed,” said Schopp. “The safety of our products — and the pets who consume them — are our top priorities.”
The company has a comprehensive food safety program in place, he said, including at manufacturing plants in China.
Pierre, who lost her dog, has little faith in pet food manufacturers — or in the FDA.
“Actions speak louder than words and there has been no action from them up until now,” Pierre said. “Waggin’ Train has hid behind the technicality that the FDA cannot find the link and the FDA has let them.”
Chinese love trucks!
Salmonella?
I saw this stuff when it first came out, saw it at PetSmart. I picked up a package, saw that it was made in China and put it back. I am not about to feed any Chinese crap to my dogs.
We bought these treats for our 3 beloved Cockers until we heard about the illnesses of other dogs last year. They loved them.
We usually buy Milkbone marrow treats but they are also made in China.
More melamine added to increase the protein content readings.
* I said "from China" not "Chinese Food" from America. I like my Yeung Chow Fan (10 ingredient fried rice) without ricin or lead.
b)As a food service professional... I'll eat raw fish with good provanance, I'll eat raw beef with superlative provanance, or that I have personally butchered. I'll eat rare pork (these days).
But I cook chicken to an internal temp of 165F. Always.
Chickens are dangerous. Eggs the same. No so much as the '50s, but dangerous enough.
Chickens are bad for dogs. Feed 'em beef, gravy and cornbread. The way God meant. Actually, that sounds pretty good....
/johnny
I like to cook and frequently use Asian spices and ingredients but I will buy NOTHING that is produced in the PRC. The horror stories about what health authorities have found in everything from toothpaste to children’s formula to frozen nibbles imported from China into places like Japan make the dog food scares we have had here mild. They have no qualms about poisoning their own people, much less foreigners or their pets.
Thanks so much for posting this! I’m so picky about my cat’s food that I have it custom made by a local butcher from a formula I derived from several other formulas for homemade cat food found on the Internet. I get 50 pounds made at a time and he packages it raw in plastic sausage tubes that are about 1.5 pounds each. He freezes it all and I keep it frozen and thaw them out and cook them as needed in the microwave.
Two weeks ago a friend of mind took me to Sam’s Wholesale Club where she bought some Waggin Train chicken jerky for her dog and commented that her cat loved it too. I gave a cutup piece to my cats and they went crazy for it, so I bought part of the bag from my friend. Fortunately, I didn’t feed anymore of those “treats” to my cats since then. I just tossed them in the trash after reading your post. Never again will I feed ANY commercial pet food to my cats!
I feed my dog raw chicken all the time. There is just the correct about of glucosamine and condroiten in chicken bones to keep his joints healthy and he has enough stomach acid to kill any bug that might be in chicken. I used to worry about it until I saw him dig up a chicken leg a couple of days after I fed ;it. He ate it and was just fine.
Sometimes it's ok, sometimes it's not.
Other than the chickens in my back yard, I don't know what radioactive asbestos radon gas raised ergot infested rye store bought chickens might be eating.
And my chickens are for eggs here.
Store bought stuff? Nope. It might come from China.
Just umpty decades of experience with dogs and living rough and having to make do with rough food.
Fresh beef, cornbread and gravy works.
/johnny
Well, I have a dog that has a couple thousand year history of feeding himself on whatever was available, birds, ground hogs, what ever they could find, doubt there was much beef where they were from, but they manage to survive on whatever they get. I feed raw so his stomach acids would birn through a metal plate LOL
But my dogs do/did love cornbread and gravy.
Problem I have is with the crap the ChiComs put in what they pass off as food.
And the fact that chickens pass it right along in eggs and meat.
Which is why I have chickens.
But not enough to feed dogs (in fact, that's a very bad idea which must be clearly explained. With a boot, sometimes).
/johnny
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