Noodle can help find the best search engines for your needs in the food info search, too: http://www.noodletools.com/debbie/literacies/information/5locate/ adviceengine.html Sadly, I was not in the least impressed with the uppermost results the Answers.com search engine brought up for 'obligate carnivore' but in too many commercial search engines what comes up in the earliest results depend on how much is spent to have uppermost listings, a problem that is only going to increase if the Senate votes like the House did against Net Neutrality, so this is a common problem that is only going to get worse for those of us in the U.S. or who use U.S. based search engines or resources. (Yes, it is not just that reputable sites will be lost because it will become too expensive to continue maintaining them.) Too few people realize how badly this will impact them, but if you have ever searched for health info for a loved one or relied on others to help you with such info, no matter how many feet the individual has and no matter the species, then know that losing Net Neutrality stands a very good chance of hurting you, and let your senator know that you want to continue having Net Neutrality. I can tell you straight off that the help I'll be able to provide people after it goes away if pretty much guaranteed to reduce in quality and quantity simply from painful damage to access and affordability. Here is how to contact your senator to encourage maintaining Net Neutrality: http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm BTW, when you find yourself quoting veterinary nutrition expert, Dr. Tom Willard, if the person who is selling vegan food or others point out that Dr Tom Willard makes money from selling pet food (Surprise, surprise, he actually works in the very same field that he studied so very, very hard to master.) then you can point out that the vegan food seller also makes money from selling pet food but in his case does NOT have an appropriate degree in veterinary nutrition. I think the best approach, though, will be to avoid the person selling that, and instead teach in regional clubs what "obligate carnivore" entails. Remember, though, to point out that meat itself is NOT a balanced diet which is why carnivores also eat things like organs and skin, etc. Heck, if anyone here gives taurine supplements -- if my memory serves for which amino acid -- that is usually manufactured from feathers because they are so very high in the one amino acid, according to a food expert at PrettyPets in a pers. com. several years ago. Remember, too, that even high protein animal food sources like whole mice are no higher than 52% protein, and that some medical conditions require lower protein levels than that, esp. some kidney conditions. For example, in some individuals, including multiple types of members of Carnivora too much protein can translate to the development of cystine urinary stones (We have two individuals ourselves who do that.) but a more common problem in ferrets is the development of struvite urinary stones which are caused by too much vegetable matter in the diet. No matter which stone it is the result is painful and can be fatal without correction. For males ferrets, especially, it can be very touch-and-go for a while no matter what type of stone is involved. Cystine stones also involved urine that is too acidic, while struvite stones involve urine that is too alkaline. There are approaches for each, but they are opposites, so it is essential to know which type of stone and the urine pH to know how to approach the difficulty. It does not surprise me that in her excellent post on vegan diet in carnivores (a MUST-READ), Selina found that urinary problems were mentioned often in posts by those who tried such diets on their four-footed family members. > http://www.vegepets.info/pages/vegetarian_feline_diets.htm ... > http://www.veganrepresent.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6748 etc. Claire makes excellent points, including: >You may not believe in the validity of some of these fields, but they >are valid degrees, and holders can call themselves "doctor". ... >"Dr." In academia, a PhD is the "real" doctorate, since an MD is >not as advanced as a PhD. Many MDs go on to get a PhD. ... >This is not to say that Dr. Weisman is necessarily reputable or right >in his views. The fact that he had his license suspended raises >serious questions, and I really don't like the tone of his letter. ... >once nutrients are broken down to the state they must be in to be >absorbed by the intestine, it doesn't matter whether the nutrients were >originally animal, plant, or even just synthesized in a lab. BUT the >probem is that food doesn't come broken down, normally. Ferrets don't >have the enzymes, and don't have a long enough gut for intestinal >bacteria to do the job for them. So they can't in practice digest >vegetable matter. If this fellow really has a process for predigesting >the food -- yet preventing spoilage -- then it's possible the food is >fine. So, in part I guess it breaks down to, "Are people willing to trust someone who doesn't let people know that his doctorate area of study has squat to do with his product, and that his license to practice was revoked?" Randy wrote: >I used only free range-organic meat and changed my own diet to the same >(I was a meat eater at the time). Okay, it has been a bit of time since i read the info on the OFFICIAL definition of "free-range" in the U.S. but not long ago it meant *availability* to a fenced in grassy area (and many who had never been outdoors did not try it) during the last week of life. I do not know if that has changed. "Organic" was (is?) a harder thing to claim so "free-range" + "organic" is probably the way to search for labeling in this country. I don't know about Canadian official definitions. Let's see what I can find in very limited time: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/pr/2004/040920.htm http://www.eco-labels.org/label.cfm?LabelID=111 I do NOT know how reputable the following resource is: http://www.cok.net/lit/freerange.php [Posted in FML issue 5348]