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But the real reason its still being sold is consumers don;t care and continue to buy despite common sense that tells you to be careful.
It's not that we/they don't CARE, and to even suggest I don't care about my dog is ludicrous and insulting. We just know what works for OUR pets, and also trust the shops would immediately pull anything dangerous. If my dog has been eating these treats since puppyhood, often 1-2/day, and has never really been sick in almost 6 years - why would I be concerned? Common sense.
And it's not just about saving money, either, as these actually aren't cheap... it's around $10 for a medium-sized bag, when I can get a GIANT box of Milk-bones for under $5. They might not be the most expensive, but they're certainly not bargain-basement crap. I also feed high-quality foods as his primary diet, usually brands like Blue Buffalo and Wellness, so again it's not like he's living on Puppy Chow.
My parents buy the crap from China, and they give their dog several jerkys a day. They refuse to switch to a USA brand.
If it works for them & their dog, and the dog is healthy, why does it matter to you? Consumers have the right to buy whatever they want, and it's not your business to be passing judgment... after all, how many humans buy junk food every day? These chicken strips aren't even junk, in fact I've seen plenty of USA brands with worse ingredients. As I said above, if these treats were toxic they'd have been pulled by now.
Maybe you should read that vet tech's comments:
"I am a licensed veterinary technician. I also have fed my corgi the Waggin-Train Chicken Jerky treats and she has had no issues whatsoever. I am very sorry for all of your losses; however, it is imperative that you are all aware that introducing new treats to your pet can most times cause a stomach upset and possible pancreatitis. Acute pancreatitis can cause acute death in some cases, so it is important to watch your pet closely after introducing new treats or food for signs of pancreatitis, such as vomiting and diarrhea. Blood may also be present in stool or vomit due to irritation of the gastrointestinal tract. If you see these signs, take your pet to your local veterinarian right away, where your veterinarian should run bloodwork to test kidney and liver function, as well as pancreatic levels. Your pet, if vomiting and having diarrhea or loose stool should also recieve IV or SQ fluids to adequatley replace fluids lost, as dehydration can also cause acute death if severe enough.
The Waggin Train Chicken Jerkys have not been recalled, so it is important for all pet owners to realize that any treat can cause gastric upset and that it is difficult to pinpoint the exact reason for the gastric upset in many cases. Pet owners should pay close attention to whether or not their pet chews on objects that they are not supposed to, as this can cause foreign bodies in the gastrointestinal tract, which can have the same symptoms of gastrointestinal sensitivity, but can be life threatening. Therefore, your veterinarian may also want to perform radiographs or a barium series to rule out possible obstruction."
Hmmm...interesting. I gave my dog chicken jerky several times last year and he loved them, had no ill side effects. Maybe he just has an iron stomach, but he likes almost any treat we give him. Although...he does hate Milkbones. But yeah, he was fine, and he was just at the vet last Friday and is very healthy. The normal treats we give him are softer ones, like training treats and moist goodies, he likes those better than crunchy ones. Among the "chewy" that he likes, he does like the jerkies. I feel bad for the doggies that got sick though.
The link in my original post had to be deleted, I didn't realize it was a competitive site.
There were pages of posts after posts, starting in 2007 and continuing through Oct 2011, of people whose dogs were sick or dead, with these jerky treats being suspected of the cause.
I left a post for the "vet tech", months ago, asking her to engage with me and discuss this further, no reply.
It's not that we/they don't CARE, and to even suggest I don't care about my dog is ludicrous and insulting. We just know what works for OUR pets, and also trust the shops would immediately pull anything dangerous. If my dog has been eating these treats since puppyhood, often 1-2/day, and has never really been sick in almost 6 years - why would I be concerned? Common sense.
And it's not just about saving money, either, as these actually aren't cheap... it's around $10 for a medium-sized bag, when I can get a GIANT box of Milk-bones for under $5. They might not be the most expensive, but they're certainly not bargain-basement crap. I also feed high-quality foods as his primary diet, usually brands like Blue Buffalo and Wellness, so again it's not like he's living on Puppy Chow.
Did I say YOU in my response?
the fact is that many consumers don;t care. they don;t take the time to reserach their pet products. They are exactly what manufactures want, consumers that are easily manipulated by marketing.
Look at the Wellness issue, with all the talk of outrage and such, they only lost 1% of sales and have since made it back up. and their is rumors that the lost of sales had little to do with people not wanting it and more to do with people not being able to find it. (and you do know who owns Wellpet LLc rights and what else they make? and you know that the US Food and drug administartion has ordered recalls of Blue Buffalo foods?))
There are several food manufacturing plants that are suspect in contamination under whatever name they created for that distribution. And consumers probably can contact the manufactures and obtain information on which plant produces their food. But most follow the simplest route to decide if food is good or bad. If their pet gets sick, its bad, if their pet doen;t show obvious signs of problems, the food is good.
There are a number of "primium" pet foods sold by companies with great reputation, but they are really just flavored variations of food many would not feed their pets. Because the marketing is so slick, consumers stop at the packaging and never look further.
There were pages of posts after posts, starting in 2007 and continuing through Oct 2011, of people whose dogs were sick or dead, with these jerky treats being suspected of the cause.
SUSPECTED being the key word, and again, if they had any proof these treats would have been pulled a long time ago. I read through some of those posts (from the original link), and there were many reasons these dogs could have gotten sick... one said their 11.5 year-old "sheppard" (Shepherd - why on earth can nobody spell that?) suffered from kidney failure, and if I'm not mistaken, that's a common cause of death for a large dog that old. Another said their vet mentioned it was likely an obstruction, or ingestion of something foreign, but of course the owner "didn't THINK their dog had eaten anything but those treats."
My dog has been to the hospital for an emergency once, when he started acting really drunk for no reason... the vet suspected grapes at first, then discovered it was a toxic plant he'd eaten. I had no idea where he would have gotten into a plant, since there were literally none at my place, but later realized it was probably when we visited my mother's house that evening. So yeah, I'd bet most of those dogs got into something else, or simply suffered from age-related illness. Sad, but no reason for mass paranoia.
That being said, I will probably stop getting those treats now, just to be on the safe side... still not buying that they're toxic, but I don't like to take chances with my doggie! Plus they are kinda overpriced, and he's perfectly happy with the cheaper treats. I don't care about "Made in USA" or any of that BS, though, since the US makes plenty of horrible foods too - for both dogs/cats and humans. Pup-e-roni treats are made right here in the Bay Area, and I've heard more than one person lecture about feeding THOSE to dogs. So I guess I can't win, unless I'm willing to spend $30/bag or make my own.
Of course not, but you were addressing owners who buy these treats... and I am one of those owners, so indirectly you WERE addressing me.
Quote:
the fact is that many consumers don;t care. they don;t take the time to reserach their pet products. They are exactly what manufactures want, consumers that are easily manipulated by marketing.
Look at the Wellness issue, with all the talk of outrage and such, they only lost 1% of sales and have since made it back up. and their is rumors that the lost of sales had little to do with people not wanting it and more to do with people not being able to find it. (and you do know who owns Wellpet LLc rights and what else they make? and you know that the US Food and drug administartion has ordered recalls of Blue Buffalo foods?))
See... I can't win!!! Okay, since you're all so knowledgeable about what's right or wrong for our dogs, why don't you tell us what's good? Should I change my dog's diet completely, even though he's perfectly healthy?
Btw, I have a good friend who's a vet tech, and she recommends those foods without hesitation. Around here the shops are very good about immediately pulling recalls, and I do pay attention. Last I heard, those two brands (Wellness and Blue Buffalo) were among the best commercial foods. But apparently I'm "blinded by packaging," even though I've never considered packaging when buying his food... I only follow my vet's advice, and read the recall lists from time to time.
Quote:
There are several food manufacturing plants that are suspect in contamination under whatever name they created for that distribution. And consumers probably can contact the manufactures and obtain information on which plant produces their food. But most follow the simplest route to decide if food is good or bad. If their pet gets sick, its bad, if their pet doen;t show obvious signs of problems, the food is good.
Well, that does seem logical - LOL. I follow the same rules with myself, so why would I do any differently for my pets? Red meat used to make me sick, so I cut that out of my diet... fast food doesn't sit well either, so I try to avoid it except when I don't have another choice. Makes sense to me, and it also makes sense that if my dog is healthy, his diet is fine. My vet has no problem with what I feed Rudy, therefore I'm going to trust him over random people on an Internet forum. Sorry.
P.S. Sorry if that last post came off as antagonistic, but I'm just getting a bit frustrated... seems no matter what I choose to feed my pets, there's always somebody telling me "that's bad!!" So I'm beginning to wonder, what the heck CAN I feed them? I need something that can be purchased at a pet store (of which there are TONS of levels/sizes/etc to choose from around here), but care enough about my critters to choose the highest quality I can comfortably afford. Any suggestions?
P.S. Sorry if that last post came off as antagonistic, but I'm just getting a bit frustrated... seems no matter what I choose to feed my pets, there's always somebody telling me "that's bad!!" So I'm beginning to wonder, what the heck CAN I feed them? I need something that can be purchased at a pet store (of which there are TONS of levels/sizes/etc to choose from around here), but care enough about my critters to choose the highest quality I can comfortably afford. Any suggestions?
there will always be people critical of what we feed our pets.... as long as rudy (and bailey and dave and roxie and charlie) are happy and healthy, i pay little to no attention to the criticisms....
although i DID bow to the no corn, no wheat plan when i brought dave home... turns out that stuff makes him VERY gassy.... and since i have discovered costco, the dogs' kibble is their grain-free variety.....
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Maybe he just has an iron stomach, but he likes almost any treat we give him. Although...he does hate Milkbones. But yeah, he was fine, and he was just at the vet last Friday and is very healthy. The normal treats we give him are softer ones, like training treats and moist goodies, he likes those better than crunchy ones. Among the "chewy" that he likes, he does like the jerkies. I feel bad for the doggies that got sick though.
I need something that can be purchased at a pet store (of which there are TONS of levels/sizes/etc to choose from around here), but care enough about my critters to choose the highest quality I can comfortably afford. Any suggestions?
