Pongo Fund Food Drive Update!

Posted July 8, 2016 by Green Dog & filed under events, News.

Green Dog Pet Supply is gearing up to deliver the second half of our annual pet food drive to The Pongo Fund pet food bank. The Pongo Fund has called this donation “The BIGGEST single store, premium quality pet food drive in America”.

We do a pet food drive every December for the Pongo Fund. We offer a bag of dog food for customers to purchase (at our cost) for donation, and we’ve always matched each of them. Both our distributor (Animal Supply) and the food manufacturer (Nutrisource) also matched one bag for each 12 sold. This resulted in a VERY large donation this year, one we had to break into two deliveries to be able to afford to do it, which is why this update comes to you in July.

This delivery brings the total number of pounds of food donated to 15,550 (that’s more than 7 tons of food with a retail value of more than $21,000). Our food drives have always been impressive (last year’s was about 11,000 pounds) but this year, customers donated 183 bags!

We had to break it up into two parts, as this sort of donation isn’t easy. Green Dog is a local independently owned store. We believe in taking good care of our staff – we provide a living wage, and full time staff receive benefits. We have sacrificed most of our advertising budget to help support local pet rescues. The owners make the same salary as our senior employees. We exist to help people keep their precious pets in their lives as long as they can, and we work tirelessly to become the best resource for holistic pet care that we can possibly be. We donate over 200lbs of food a month plus additional supplies (many of which are donated by our fabulous customers) to local rescues and other causes, including Meals on Wheels (for seniors to feed their pets when they couldn’t otherwise afford it), Dignity Village via Safe Dogs by the River, Underdog Railroad Rescue, and Angel’s Eyes Dog Rescue (a small rescue operating on a shoestring), among others. We think this donation is a very exciting event – we are honored to be able to help the Pongo Fund.

Many cities have a food bank for humans, but a pet food bank of this size and scope is a very unique thing in this country. There is quite a bit of conversation these days about the homeless situation in Portland, and the things that are and are not being done to help. This amazing service makes a big impact for families facing food uncertainty, both for themselves and their pets. Sharing your only meal with your pet is a sacrifice many people are willing to make. The stories told by Larry Chusid, the founder of The Pongo Fund are always touching, regularly posting stories in his blog of people who have found themselves in terrible situations yet stay hopeful due to the presence of the pets in their lives. His stories do a valuable service, humanizing the people who are homeless or food challenged and reminding us all that this problem is not faceless. The Pongo Fund is critical to help keep pets with their families and out of the animal shelters when their families are homeless or having a difficult time finding the money to feed their pets. People can visit the pet food bank in Portland, but the fund also delivers food to distribution points in other parts of Oregon. They also have an Emergency Veterinary Care fund, (read the great blog post about this fund in this link and a wonderful story about one dog that really needed it here ). He often calls us to help a pet owner with tricky health issues, and we and he both donate products and money to help people get the supplements, etc that they might need. The Pongo Fund also has an Emergency Pet Food Response Team, a Spay and Neuter program, and provides high quality and nutritious pet food directly to many other social service and emergency food organizations that in turn provide that food to their own clients.

We are proud that our customers helped us to make this delivery of what is likely to be the largest ever pet food donation by an independent pet supply store, and proud to support the Pongo Fund in the endless work they do to support homeless and low income pet owners.

Read the super nice article they wrote about us when the first half of the food was delivered!

Reducing Your Pet’s Carbon Pawprint

Posted April 19, 2016 by Green Dog & filed under Green Tip.

Photo by Elizabeth Manley

By Christine Mallar.

When we go grocery shopping, many of us have learned to make choices that are both healthier for the planet and healthier for our bodies. We look for organic, locally grown produce, non toxic cleaners, and paper products made with recycled materials. But how many of us realize that we can apply these same sorts of good consumer choices when we’re shopping for our pets?
In the not too distant past, choices for holistic, earth-friendly pet products were few and far between. Food and treat choices were limited to ingredients that were simply waste products from the human food industry – grain fractions and condemned meat made more palatable by the addition of artificial flavors, colors and carcinogenic preservatives. Pests like fleas were only controlled with the use of toxic chemicals. Leashes, collars and beds were often only available from big chain stores and were made of the cheapest materials, with no regard for toxicity, durability, or wastefulness of resources. Many might have asked, what does it matter – they’re just animals, right?

Luckily, times are changing. Our animals have moved inside and become an integral part of our family unit. We respect and depend on the positive roles our pets have on our emotional and physical health; many studies have shown an increase in the quality and even length of our lives through mechanisms like the reduction of our blood pressure when we’re touching them. Greater awareness of global climate change has resulted in a significant increase in the range of available sustainable pet products. Furthermore, the demand for better products for our beloved furry friends has supported a veritable boom in the number of independently owned, holistic-minded pet supply stores. We did a lot of research before we opened, and we believe we’re fairly certain that we were the first environmentally friendly pet supply store in the nation when we opened in 2004! Many other stores have followed suit, and now, though those things I listed above still exist, it is so much easier for people who care about the health of their pets to also make choices that are good for the environment. (more…)

Recycling Tips for Portland Folks

Posted April 17, 2016 by Green Dog & filed under Green Tip.

(and some handy links at the end for everyone!)

Happy Earth Day Month!!

We’re continuing with green tips this week to help people find simple ways to live more sustainably.

Amp up your recycling!

Portland helps us recover a lot of our waste at curbside. Curbside composting really has decreased the amount of waste in our landfills; in fact, a report released in January showed that more than 63 percent of what businesses and residents threw away in 2013 was recovered through recycling, composting or energy generation, which was a new record. Do you recycle reuse, repurpose, or compost 60% of your waste? Maybe not, but as far as recycling goes, there are good ways to increase the amount of non-curbside waste you can recycle without too much effort – our friends at Whole Foods in Hollywood (who are sponsoring the Fremont Fest Parade again this year) have a wider array of items that can be recycled than you’d expect.

– In the parking garage, there are bins for both “soft clear plastic” and “non-curbside plastic”. Soft clear plastic are things like clean clear (not colored) plastic bags, bubble wrap, shrink wrap and cling wrap. (Crinkly crunchy plastic like potato chip bags aren’t considered soft). It’s important it is rinsed – food contaminates plastic recycling and could make a facility reject and landfill the entire load.

– “Non curbside plastic” are things like clamshells and the flexible lids that come on tubs like yogurt, cottage cheese or deli items. Our curbside only allows plastic tubs (like cottage cheese), plastic buckets (like for kitty litter) or plastic containers with necks (like a water bottle), but these other items are not allowed. New Seasons also has a bin for clean clamshells and flexible lids as well.

– You can also bring hard bottle caps to Whole Foods. They have a little collection bucket in their dining area, or you can bring them to the customer service counter. Wine corks (real cork only) are another thing you can easily recycle there.

– The other interesting thing at Whole Foods is the bin (looks like a dumpster) in the parking garage where you can recycle clothes and fabrics. Wearable items will be donated and unusable fabrics will be recycled. This makes it a one stop solution for many of your household recycling needs, and it’s convenient to drop things off on your way in to do some shopping.

– Do you have other things like styrofoam, TVs or other electrical appliances, batteries, or CFL bulbs? Metro will help you find a place to bring them! There are many nearby options (a few right on Columbia Blvd) that will take them for free or for a small fee.
Springtime cleanups are a great way to unload a lot of waste easily.

Neighborhood Clean-ups are plentiful this month
The Cully Cleanup takes place on April 23rd! Check out the list of accepted items as well as tips on where to bring items they can’t take

There are actually over 40 neighborhood cleanup events scheduled around Portland in April and May to give residents a chance to remove unwanted clutter from their homes, basements and garages. Keep your eyes open in your neighborhood for signs advertising cleanups.

You can recycle computers and electrical gadgets at Free Geek – they accept “nearly everything that plugs into a computer or uses electricity (including smart phones, tablets, e-readers, video game systems and any old gadget you can think of) whether or not it’s in working condition. We are happy to accept your printers (including extra ink and toner), scanners, routers, UPS, digital cameras, PDAs, cell phones, and a whole lot more!” Link here

Things we take or give away at Green Dog:

We save packing materials that come to us (cornstarch and styrofoam peanuts, etc) and donate them to people who have needs for them. If you have a local business and would like us to call you when we have bags of peanuts or other items you might be looking for, let us know!

Cardboard Boxes – are you moving? Check with us for loads of boxes of different sizes. We normally have a lot of them to give away, unless the recycling truck just picked them up.

Paper Shopping Bags – Bring them to Green Dog! We love reusing clean paper bags with handles. We don’t mind if it has a logo from another store on it, it just lets people know we like to reuse things!

Good links for folks everywhere:

Recycle your empty pill bottles to benefit this charity

Recycle any old sneakers at a Nike Store! They have a bin labeled “Old soles never die”

Here’s a good list of many ways to recycle common household items that you may not have thought of before. Click Here

Recycling Guide from Earth 911 has even more nifty tips

Apple is doing an amazing job with recycling and other sustainable practices these days. They’ve invented a new robot that can quickly disassemble something like a phone and recover even every tiny screw and recycle or reuse them. They’re growing their own forests for paper as well as other initiatives. Check it out here (as well as a nifty video of the robot in action). They often have programs where you can bring your Apple products to the Apple store for recycling and in turn you can get a better deal on a new item.

Note: From now until April 24th, go to the Apple App Store and look in the Featured app section. You can choose from different causes and 100% of the proceeds from those participating apps will go towards that cause.

It should go without saying that the greenest things you can do are to reuse things (the bag that sliced bread comes in makes a good poop bag!), re-purpose things – a jar with a lid makes great food storage, a smoothie to go cup, or transport for bulk foods), or better yet, choose a product that comes with less packaging waste to begin with, and tell that company why you skipped buying it!

Colostrum for digestive health and immune system support

Posted April 16, 2016 by Green Dog & filed under diet and health, skin issues, specific ingredients.

For the first few days after giving birth, all mammals produce something called colostrum in their milk. This amazing substance is critical for the early development of newborns, as it serves as a concentrated source of proteins, growth factors, and antibodies. Its properties have been revered for thousands of years across many cultures, as it is a powerhouse of nutrition and tools for healing and protecting the body. Many human health benefits have been attributed to bovine colostrum including: increased energy levels, lower risks of upper respiratory illnesses, reduced risk of intestinal damage from anti-inflammatory drugs, increased ability of the body to burn fat and increase muscle, and the acceleration of injury healing.   The immunoglobulins in colostrum have specific immune system activity against many common pathogens such as E.coli, Cryptosporidium, Salmonella, Staphylococcus, and Rotavirus. Another of the many beneficial attributes in colostrum is that it is rich in “Proline-Rich Polypeptides” or PRPs, which are specifically designed to modulate the activity of the immune system, stimulating its activity when needed to fight off an infection or quelling its activity to prevent tissue damage once the infection has been defeated. PRPs have also been shown in studies to be potent stimulators of natural killer (NK) cell activity (cancer fighters).
One of the most important things that colostrum can do is to help seal the lining of the gut. The gut lining (ours and those of our pets) is fragile, and can be damaged easily by the many stresses of life which include a poor diet, chemical exposure, vaccines, medications (especially NSAIDS), and adrenal stress. The lining is naturally permeable to allow tiny nutrients to enter the blood stream, but when the lining is damaged, larger gaps are created, allowing things like toxins, microbes and waste materials to travel into the blood stream. The immune system is designed to spring into action to prevent these things from hurting the body, but when this condition is chronic, it can cause the immune system to become over reactive. Holistic vets and Naturopathic doctors believe that it can lead to a host of symptoms, such as seasonal allergies and asthma, skin issues, yeast overgrowth, chronic problems with stool quality, food intolerances, and IBD. Colostrum has a unique ability to help to seal and heal the lining of the gut and calm and support the immune system. It also helps probiotics to work more efficiently, preventing their loss through that leaky gut, and providing the soil for the seeds of probiotics, so to speak.   Colostrum can also be used topically! On the VCA Hospital’s website it says that it’s “useful for accelerating the healing of insect bites, wounds such as abscesses or ruptured cysts, warts, and surgical incisions”.

The good news is that the benefits of colostrum are not species specific – the colostrum produced by cows is just as beneficial to humans and pets as it is for cows. When cows are born, their needs are met first, as calves will likely die or have serious health issues without colostrum in the first hours of life. Luckily, the mother continues to produce enough extra colostrum that it can be collected for use in supplements. The other piece of good news is that colostrum has been proven to be safe and therapeutic. Colostrum is food and should be thought of as such. There have been no significant side effects from supplementation with bovine colostrum reported in the abundant literature. It is best taken on an empty stomach with liquid – you could also add it to a small spoonful of food, like yogurt, cooked sweet potato, etc, or even better, added to Answers brand of probotic-rich goat’s milk! When shopping, look for colostrum that is from grass fed cows, ideally organically raised. Read more about colostrum here

Play Games With Your Dogs for Science!

Posted April 15, 2016 by Green Dog & filed under funny, interesting.

Fun idea! You can play games with your dog and contribute data to the science of dog cognition at the same time. Ever wonder how your dog measures up to other dogs in the way they think and problem solve? This program’s evaluation component could be a fun thing to see!
For more info, check out this link

Why we Discontinued the Sale of Retractable Leashes

Posted January 25, 2016 by Green Dog & filed under behavioral tip, dog safety, dog training, training, Useful.

Forward by Christine Mallar:
This is a blog post written by Dr. Karen Becker, DVM. She’s a veterinarian with an active blog discussing many aspects of pet health and behavior. This article sums up the issues we had with these leashes so well that I thought I would paste it here for your benefit. When I was a trainer teaching classes I quickly banned them from class time, as dogs can suddenly dash into the space of another dog that might have social issues. This has continued to plague us at the store, as many dogs are reactive on leash or simply overexcited by other dogs. Some dogs are painfully frightened of being in a store to begin with, and being in close space with other dogs nearby can exacerbate this. When another dog on a retractable leash can quickly rush into their space, fights can break out. Stopping a fight is very difficult and dangerous if you can’t pull them out of the situation with their leash, and reaching in to remove the dog on a retractable leash would put the human in danger of being bitten. This also creates an unfair disadvantage for other people that are carefully trying to train dogs with social issues, as their ability to manage their dog’s space to keep their dog comfortable is destroyed easily by a dog that is suddenly 16 feet away from their owner and in that dog’s space. It can be a huge training setback for these people who are trying to provide positive experiences for their dog in a place that contains other dogs within sight range.
Another problem for us is that when people are distracted by shopping, they may not notice when their dog is getting into trouble, eating treats on counter displays or marking our antique furniture (old wood is so porous!).
I do think there are some times that a retractable can add to the fun of an outing while still being “on leash” for safety, such as on the beach, or on a hike in areas that are not busy with people and other dogs, but please be aware that dogs leaving a trail at all in some habitats can damage fragile vegetation, etc.

The safety concerns for dogs and people are many when you use a retractable leash in a populated area. Even if your dog is tiny and wouldn’t break a leash, wouldn’t it be terrible if an off leash dog attacked your little dog and it was 16 or more feet away from you when it happened? Please read these ten reasons below before deciding to use a retractable leash. Remember: if you use a retractable leash, keep it retracted and locked so it is as short as or shorter than a regular leash in places with other dogs and people. When you are in an open space, you can give them more room to explore. If you are looking to buy a retractable leash for trips to the beach, find one with a “belt” or “tape” instead of a cord. This can be safer for your skin.

Why I Don’t Recommend Retractable Leashes
June 11, 2014
http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2014/06/11/retractable-dog-leash.aspx?i_cid=retractabledogleash-rb-pets
By Dr. Becker
A retractable leash is not so much a leash as it is a length of thin cord wound around a spring-loaded device housed inside a plastic handle. The handles of most retractable leashes are designed to fit comfortably in a human hand. A button on the handle controls how much of the cord is extended.
Retractable leashes are popular primarily because they aren’t as confining as regular leashes, allowing dogs more freedom to sniff and poke around on walks. But unfortunately, there are many downsides to this type of leash.

10 Reasons Not to Use a Retractable Leash

1. The length of retractable leashes, some of which can extend up to 26 feet, allows dogs to get far enough away from their humans that a situation can quickly turn dangerous. A dog on a retractable leash is often able to run into the middle of the street, for example, or make uninvited contact with other dogs or people.

2. In the above scenario, or one in which your pet is being approached by an aggressive dog, it is nearly impossible to get control of the situation if the need arises. It’s much easier to regain control of – or protect — a dog at the end of a six-foot standard flat leash than it is if he’s 20 or so feet away at the end of what amounts to a thin string.

$This graphic is from Flexi's page on safety, outlining the risks of cuts and burns, finger amputations and fractures, eye and face injuries and falls. http://www.flexi-northamerica.com/us/operation/$

This graphic is from Flexi’s page on safety, outlining the risks of cuts and burns, finger amputations and fractures, eye and face injuries and falls. http://www.flexi-northamerica.com/us/operation/

3. The thin cord of a retractable leash can break – especially when a powerful dog is on the other end of it. If a strong, good-sized dog takes off at full speed, the cord can snap. Not only can that put the dog and whatever he may be chasing in danger, but also the cord can snap back and injure the human at the other end.

http://www.leashyourfitness.com/dangers-of-retractable-leashes/

4. If a dog walker gets tangled up in the cord of a retractable leash, or grabs it in an attempt to reel in their dog, it can result in burns, cuts, and even amputation. In addition, many people have been pulled right off their feet by a dog that reaches the end of the leash and keeps going. This can result in bruises, “road rash,” broken bones, and worse.

5. Dogs have also received terrible injuries as a result of the sudden jerk on their neck that occurs when they run out the leash, including neck wounds, lacerated tracheas, and injuries to the spine.

6. Retractable leashes allow dogs more freedom to pull at the end of them, which can look like aggression to another dog who may decide to “fight back.”

7. The handles of retractable leashes are bulky and can be easily pulled out of human hands, resulting in a runaway dog.

8. Along those same lines, many dogs – especially fearful ones – are terrorized by the sound of a dropped retractable leash handle and may take off running, which is dangerous enough. To make matters worse, the object of the poor dog’s fear is then “chasing” her, and if the leash is retracting as she runs, the handle is gaining ground on her – she can’t escape it. Even if this scenario ultimately ends without physical harm to the dog (or anyone else), it can create lingering fear in the dog not only of leashes, but also of being walked.

9. Retractable leashes, like most retractable devices, have a tendency to malfunction over time, either refusing to extend, refusing to retract, or unspooling at will.

10. Retractable leashes are an especially bad idea for dogs that haven’t been trained to walk politely on a regular leash. By their very nature, retractables train dogs to pull while on leash, because they learn that pulling extends the lead.

If your dog is well trained, gentle mannered and smart enough to master a regular leash and a retractable leash without being confused, you could be one of the rare guardians that can walk your pooch on any kind of leash without increasing risks to either one of you.

Cat Nutrition

Posted January 18, 2015 by Green Dog & filed under cat health, Cat nutrition, diet and health, digestive issues, kidney/UT problems, pet food ingredients, raw foods.

By Green Dog Pet Supply

Nutrition can be the key to keeping your kitty healthy, avoiding chronic illness and ultimately saving lots of money at the vet. We might be called Green Dog, but the owners and staff of Green Dog are actually made up of some pretty serious cat people. We know there’s a lot of info in here, but after 10 years of serving the cat community of Portland, our hearts are often heavy from the overwhelming numbers of cats with chronic illness, much of which we feel could have been prevented with better nutrition. Whether you’ve gotten a kitten or an adult cat, we hope that these tips will come in handy for you:

(more…)

Happy Halloween – a Few Tips

Posted October 22, 2014 by Green Dog & filed under behavioral tip, dog training, poisons and toxins.

By Green Dog Pet Supply

Happy Halloween!

Halloween can be fun, but there are a few important things to keep in mind to help keep pets safe.

Beware of Toxic Things on Halloween

Don’t forget to be on guard for dogs getting into that Halloween Candy stash! Chocolate isn’t the only thing that’s toxic to dogs; macadamia nuts, raisins, and especially the sweetener xylitol are all on the list of things that can be very poisonous and sometimes deadly to dogs, but the wrappers and other decorations can also cause problems when ingested. Check out this link to other common household items that are toxic to dogs, and what to do if your dog gets into them.

Behavioral Tips

Make sure that if your dog is stressed out by strangers to have him in a secure area of the house where he won’t be plagued by constant scary monsters ringing the doorbell. Conversely, if you’re up for it this is a great time to work on door manners with a dog that isn’t frightened, just excited. The doorbell rings, dog on leash sits, door opens, dog and costumed kid both get their own treats. Lots of repetitions available on Halloween equals lots of chances to practice how to act when people come to the door.

Hints:

-Practice this a day or two beforehand with someone familiar that rings the doorbell, rehearsing the routine 8 or 10 times of sitting quietly before the door opens, and staying calm with the help of treats to keep attention on you and reward the good behavior (the first time is hard, then it gets easier as they’re seeing the same person over and over. This lets the dog get better and better at the behavior because you’ve removed the novelty of someone at the door)
– work on a leash for control, but reward the sitting calmly without lots of yanking. Remember, the familiar person can hang out on the step for a few minutes while you work on achieving a sit or at least calm attention before you open the door.
– On Halloween, have two people work the door, one for kid treats and one for working with the dog
– When the doorbell rings, don’t jump up. Walk calmly to the door, and practice these skills of staying calm while people are greeted.

If you have a new puppy this can be a good socialization exercise: monsters = good treats for puppy! First put on masks or hats several times in the few days before Halloween, but don’t act scary, just be yourself and encourage your puppy to come get treats and interact with you in this strange get-up. Do multiple repetitions at different times until your puppy isn’t reacting fearfully. On Halloween night, encourage them to say hi to the funny monsters, but don’t force them into it – you want socialization exercises to be positive. Offer your puppy really delicious treats like bits of cheese while they interact with the people in costumes, and if you feel like it’s safe, have the monsters offer the puppy some yummy dog jerky or pieces of cheese. Soon the puppy will think people in costumes are a good thing!

Other things to keep in mind:

– Make sure all of your pets are wearing i.d. tags, even your indoor cats. That door is opening and closing many times during that evening, giving opportunities for your pets to slip out.

– Watch out for candle flames – often there are decorations that might be novel to the pet who wants to investigate them.

– Keep indoor/outdoor cats inside for the night – you do hear strange and terrible stories sometimes of cats who are the victim of cruel treatment on this night.

Fun Stuff
check out this link to cute dog breed stencils for your pumpkin carving! Each one can be downloaded by clicking a link under the description

Foods We Carry at Green Dog

Posted August 8, 2014 by Green Dog & filed under diet and health.

Here is a list of the current foods we carry at Green Dog Pet Supply

Some of our guidelines for pet foods:
Our criteria for foods are that they all be made from human grade ingredients. None of our foods have corn, wheat or soy and are naturally preserved. We also make every effort to evaluate the safety standards of the company that manufactures the foods, seeking transparent companies that have 3rd party inspections with excellent marks for manufacturing safety and quality control. We also want to ensure that ingredients like fish meal are not pre-preserved with chemical preservatives that would not be on the label, and that they are making an effort at sustainability with sourcing. We try hard to avoid factory farming of meats (especially battery cages for poultry, feedlots (CAFOs) for cattle, and gestation crates for pigs). We are opposed to the use of farmed salmon in foods and treats. Our treats and foods contain no chemical preservatives, nitrates, propylene glycol, carrageenan or artificial flavors/colors. Note: We can often special order foods for you that are not stocked on our shelves.

Check out our blog posts on how to read a pet food label and learn which ingredients to avoid (and why):

Your Bag of Kibble Might Have Pretty Pictures, But Do You Know What’s Inside?
A Discussion of Sustainable Choices in Foods for Pets
Cat Nutrition – Please read this if you have a cat
Tips for New Puppy Owners
Claiming Raw Foods Are Dangerous Isn’t Backed Up With Data
Why Dry Pet Food Isn’t The Best For Your Cat
Carrageenan and our Quest to Change the World One Ingredient at a time
Just Say No to Soy in Pet Food

Raw Foods and toppers:
Rad Cat
Answers Foods (dog), as well as Cultured Goat’s milk, Cow’s Milk Kefir and Cultured Fish Stock
Small Batch (cat and dog)
Vital Essentials (cat and dog)
Primal foods (cat and dog) and bones
Nature’s Variety (cat and dog)
Northwest Naturals (1# bars and breeder bars for dog and some bones)
Nugget’s Bone Broths
Green JuJu

Freeze Dried/Dehydrated Foods:
Honest Kitchen (dog)
Sojos (dog)
Stella and Chewy’s (cat and dog)
Small Batch (dog)
Honest Pet

Kibbles:
Nature’s Logic (cat and dog)
Orijen (cat and dog)
Acana (cat and dog)
Open Farm (cat and dog)
Stella and Chewy’s Raw Blend and Raw Coated (dog)
Nutrisource Grain Free (dog)
Pure Vita (cat and dog)
Pulsar (dog)
First Mate (cat and dog)
Nature’s Variety Prairie (dog)
Nature’s Variety Instinct (cat)

Cans:
Caru Stews (BPA Free Boxes)
Nulo (cat and dog)
Nature’s Logic (cat and dog)
First Mate (cat and dog)
Koha (cat and dog)
Lotus (cat and dog)
Tender and True Organic (cat and dog)
Hound and Gatos (dog)
Nature’s Variety Instinct (cat)
Tiki (cat)
Weruva (cat and dog)
Tripett (dog)
Wellness (stews for dog)
Wild Calling (cat and dog)

Raw Foods Unfairly Treated (Again) By the FDA

Posted July 2, 2014 by Green Dog & filed under cat health, diet and health, raw foods.

This is an excerpt from the Truth About Pet Food’s article about this issue. We at Green Dog are frustrated by
the lack of logic that seems to go along with pet food safety warnings. Saying raw foods are dangerous implies that kibbles are inherently safe, but kibble recalls are far more frequent for bacterial contamination. This is frustrating, as no warnings are ever issued warning people of the dangers of salmonella in kibble, which had 400% more incidents in the past 12 months than raw foods. Even more upsetting is that even though more than 1000 dogs have died and many many more sickened (many with permanent kidney damage) from eating Chinese chicken jerky, there has never been a warning issued by the FDA suggesting it could be unsafe to feed it. Why is there a warning against raw foods when they refuse to issue a warning against these treats which have killed so many? It just doesn’t make any sense!

FDA Warns Against Raw Pet Food (Again)

July 2, 2014 9 Comments

FDA “suggests consumers carefully consider the risks of feeding a raw pet food to their pets”. This is not only a bias against raw pet foods, it is a lack of understanding (on FDA’s part) of lightly processed pet foods. Here’s the story and what our consumer association asked FDA regarding this bias.

In a not so surprising FDA press release, the FDA again tells consumers that raw pet foods are a risk to not only your pet’s health but a risk to human health as well. In a very strong statement (strongest I have noticed yet) the latest press release from FDA says…

FDA does not believe feeding raw pet foods to animals is consistent with the goal of protecting the public from significant health risks.

The FDA’s Dr. Burkholder states “Feeding raw foods to pets increases the risk that both the pet and the people around the pet will encounter bacteria that cause foodborne illness, particularly if the products are not carefully handled and fed,” Burkholder says. “This is certainly one factor that should be considered when selecting diets for your pet.”

In the past twelve months…

There have been five recalls for bacteria contamination of dry/kibble pet foods – in total 37 different varieties of kibble pet food recalled.

There have been 3 recalls for bacteria contamination of various dried jerky treats, 5 varieties of pet treats recalled.

There have been 2 recalls for bacteria contamination of raw foods – 9 varieties of raw foods recalled.

Statistically – based on number of products recalled during the past 12 months, a consumer has had a 400% higher chance of exposing their family to a bacteria from kibble than it has with raw pet food. Where is the FDA warning that ‘Consumers should carefully consider the risks of feeding a kibble food to their pet’ – ? There is no such warning against kibble pet food – the FDA did not issue a warning against kibble pet food.

Where is the FDA statement ‘FDA does not believe feeding jerky treats imported from China to animals is consistent with the goal of protecting pets from significant health risks’ – ? There is no such warning against jerky treats from China.

Jerky treats imported from China have killed and sickened thousands of pets for more than seven years – yet the FDA has never once warned consumers to ‘carefully consider the risks of feeding jerky treats from China to their pet’. The agency has issued “alerts” sharing that the agency continues to investigate the treats – but never a warning. The strongest FDA stance on jerky treats from China has been “Pet treats are not a necessary part of a fully balanced diet, so eliminating them will not harm pets.”

Clearly, the FDA has an unfounded bias against raw pet foods. Actually, I believe the agency is biased against any pet food that does not come in the form of kibble or can and that is not made with typical ‘feed grade’ ingredients. This is a significant problem for all educated pet food consumers (not only to raw pet food consumers). FDA’s bias hurts us all. Read more of this article, including Truth About Pet Food’s letter to the FDA in response to this warning

Read more – Green Dog’s Christine Mallar wrote a blog post last fall detailing this strange discrepancy in recalls – check out all of the salmonella recalls for kibble in the past few years, including a few that have sickened fairly large numbers of people. There have been no documented cases of humans sickened by raw pet food…Why doesn’t the FDA warn about the dangers of handling all pet foods? Why isn’t there ever a warning about the safety of feeding kibbles, when they are more commonly recalled for Salmonella?

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