Working as a part-time sampler for the Iams company here in Calgary, I would
like to say something about the comment made by Aims ("Scotties, Wires, and
Weasels") about  being excited NOT to see chicken by-product meal in the 8 in
1 Ultra Blend food.
 
Depending on the honesty of a pet food manufacturer, you have to specifically
ASK them (all reputable premium quality foods should have a 1-800 number on
the bag) what they put in their "by-product" meals.  By-product meals are not
regulated by AAFCO (American Association of Feed Control Organization).  The
AAFCO regulations DO NOT allow pet food manufacturers to indicate exactly what
constitutes the ingredients of their by-product meal on the package.  This
unfortunately protects the folks who throw EVERYTHING into the mix, and harms
the folks like Iams who do everything to make sure that the same quality of
meat and "by-products" that you or I would be eating is included in their food
for your pet.
 
Personally, I can tell you EXACTLY what constitutes their "by-product" meal -
heart, liver, lungs and kidney.  This is how Iams increases the digestibility
and protein content in their food - no other food company that I know of is so
diligent about researching the actual use of their nutrients by the animal.
No bones, beaks, feet, feathers or any other unsavoury and inedible stuffs are
a part of their meal.  I DO know that I took a look at my mother-in-Law's
cat's bowl of canned WHISKAS and found actual BONE fragments - not tuna or
salmon bones - but CHICKEN!  Can you imagine what damage that does to a
feline's digestive tract let alone a ferrets, which is less than 1/4 the size?
 That's why it's important to know what's in the food - the label doesn't say
- *entire* chicken - that would be a dead give-away.  Unfortunately, Freddie
loves all the flavourings and colourings and I can't get his mom to resist his
howling and switch him to a better soft food.
 
I don't mean to rant, but unfortunately, the AAFCO regulations spawn gossip
which is applied, unsubstantiated, to other pet foods with more harm done than
could be imagined.  *Please* call the 1-800 number on the package of your pet
food and find out exactly what they term "by-product" meal.  (They could be
calling some of the nasty stuff by some other term, but if they are a
reputable food, you shouldn't have to worry)
 
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[log in to unmask]
 
Mom (booked the vet appt.)
The Terrible Two (*we* don't have ear mites mom, see?  Clean as a whistle!)
The Kitty Krew (Keep them *AWAY*)
[Posted in FML issue 1150]