Gross ingredients in dog and cat food
By dragon54u
@dragon54u (31634)
United States
July 24, 2009 1:44pm CST
I was visiting my cousin the other day--haven't seen her for 30 years, it was wonderful! She, like I, am a dog lover and she has 3 long haired chihuahuas. Although she's on a tight budget she wants the best for her best friends! She told me about an ingredient "animal digest" that is in most of the lower priced dog foods including Purina One, the food my dogs were eating--but don't eat anymore, I threw what was left away!
Animal digest comes from animal parts that are all process and ground up, including diseased animals--and animals that shelters euthanize! 
My dogs were cannibals, and I made them eat that because I thought I was giving them good low-priced dog food! 
Today I went and got some more expensive food but with no animal digest. Not much filler and mostly good stuff in it. I feel better! 
Read your labels!
My dogs were cannibals, and I made them eat that because I thought I was giving them good low-priced dog food!
Today I went and got some more expensive food but with no animal digest. Not much filler and mostly good stuff in it. I feel better!
Read your labels!2 people like this
6 responses
@uath13 (8192)
• United States
9 Aug 09
While it's gross it's what dogs/wolves in their natural environment would be eating. Most of those expensive dog foods actually contain more products that aren't natural to dogs & not good for their digestive systems. Dogs are designed as hunter/scavengers they'll eat most any form of meat they can get.
2 people like this
@dragon54u (31634)
• United States
9 Aug 09
You are right, of course. We don't really like to think about what our pets would be like if they were wild. Eating their own kind is disgusting to me--I know I'm projecting my own prejudices on them. But even diseased animals are included in the animal digest and I don't want to take a chance with their health. Thanks for inserting some realism.
@shortstop (18)
• United States
9 Aug 09
Scarey what is in pet food and human food alike! We have 3 older cats that we changed to a much better diet after reading about this stuff. One of our cats wouldn't let anyone touch her for a couple of years. Now that we've had her on mostly an all meat diet for 6 months, she's happy and lets anyone pick her up. Apparently, she was in pain from the garbage we were feeding her, and we didn't even know it!! One of them was pretty chunky and has slimmed down and acts like a kitten again! We read the labels on everything now!
1 person likes this
@dragon54u (31634)
• United States
9 Aug 09
Isn't it remarkable what the food we eat--and our pets eat--affects our behavior? I found, to my surprise, that Pet's Pride dog food (Kroger's brand) has no animal digest in it so I don't have to pay $10 for a 4lb bag of premium food. Good thing, too, because my two dogs just love it! Also, they don't even like Meaty Bone dog biscuits but they LOVE Pet's Pride biscuits.
Welcome to myLot! Hope you read the rules, a lot of newbies don't and get a lot of their discussions deleted and others' discussions deleted because they publish referral links. If you need any help here, just ask me or anyone else. We have some wonderful people here--I joined to make a few bucks but I stay because the people here make it so much fun!
@eaforeman6 (8979)
• United States
24 Jul 09
Thats really nasty and most people do not know what is in it. I will be even more careful reading . Some of them have way too much red dye. I had bought one brand that turned the dogs poop so red and it stayed that way untill I bought a different food. Things then returned to normal. I do not want to feed other dogs to my dog. Maybe this is why they want to euthanise so much more these days! .@dragon54u (31634)
• United States
24 Jul 09
I never thought of it that way, but if they can sell the bodies to dog food companies they would be faster to kill them. It's so sad! And to think I didn't know this and my dogs were eating their own kind. 
@mrakobesie (1246)
• United States
26 Jul 09
ever since i got my cats they were eating only good quality organic food, and now they are eatig only raw food, because this way i know exactly what is in it and i've read that raw food is the healthiest for cats... I do buy them kibbles, they can't live without it it seems... but i usually buy wysong brand, very good quality. you can really tell the difference in the way they look and act when you give your cats good quality food. i'm sure it's the same way for dogs... when i see someone mention that you can feed your cat very cheap food and it's perfectly healthy for the cat, i just want to smack them... btw, the way i feed my cats now is not only healthy, it's also very cheap. i spend about $2 per day on the food for 3 cats, usually even less then that, all the food they eat is organic too.
1 person likes this
@dragon54u (31634)
• United States
26 Jul 09
I thought I was feeding my dogs good food until my cousin's remarks made me look at the ingredients. I was horrified! I was also horrified at the price of the dog food that didn't contain "animal digest". But I'd rather cut somewhere else and give my dogs good food. When Gus first tasted the new food he was like a vacuum cleaner! Cookie, picky princess that she is, still wasn't enthusiastic but a little chicken broth quickly solved that.
They do the same thing to cattle and other domestic animals. I think it's a crime. I'm glad you're taking good care of your cats! 
@3SnuggleBunnies (16374)
• United States
24 Jul 09
That's gross! But I am not surprised, after the other year when all that animal food was recalled it doesn't matter who makes it.
1 person likes this
@dragon54u (31634)
• United States
24 Jul 09
I bought some dog food for $.15 a can and was thrilled--but Gus got very sick with bloody stools. Vet never found out what was wrong but when I quit feeding him the food, he got better. Cookie ate it, it didn't bother her--as far as I could see. But it just goes to show that we have to be careful when feeding those we love, whether it's our children or our pets. What a sad comment on the world, huh?
@mcat19 (1357)
• United States
24 Jul 09
I feed my cats all natural canned cat food made from human grade ingredients with no filler. They are doing very well on it. I vary between Wellness, Natural Balance, Merrick and Castor & Pollux. There is also no grain in these foods. I have found that feeding a quality food is less expensive in the long run as it decreases visits to the vet for various illnesses. Vet visits are more expensive than quality food.
1 person likes this
@dragon54u (31634)
• United States
24 Jul 09
You are right, it does save on illnesses. And that "animal digest" can be sick and contaminated animals, not just healthy shelter animals.
I was looking at some premium foods today, thinking they would have the best ingredients and one of them had that stuff in it. I will read the labels on my dogs' food as well as I read my own from now on!
