Thursday, August 5, 2010

Too Close For Comfort

The oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico disgusts me on so many levels. To call it a spill makes it sound like a little accident where a bit of oil dripped out. This is a disaster that affects us all.


This shouldn't have happened!! The greed of the corporations and the politicians combined to produce this disaster.


Those of us who don't live in the Gulf States watch with horror, but at the same time feel somewhat safe from the mess. Think again!!!


This is Morgan. She has several physical conditions that require her to eat a diet high in Omega 3 and Omega 6. She eats a food that has fish as the first ingredient.


Several of my dogs eat a fish based diet. As we all know the pet food industry has not always been very careful about where they buy their ingredients. Remember the enormous pet food recall a couple years ago?


My instincts tell me that some pet food manufacturers will buy the contaminated fish from the gulf because they can get it cheaply and turn a big profit. We will unknowingly feed the oil soaked fish to our dogs and cats. Then what will happen?

Will we start seeing more cases of canine cancer, more skin or respiratory issues with our pets? We need to be proactive. Now is the time to contact the manufacturers of whatever food and treats we feed our animals and ask where they purchase their ingredients.


Tsar eats Wilderness by Blue Buffalo. It's first ingredient is salmon which does not come from the gulf region, but there are other fish sources included.


Tsar likes this food and he eats better than he ever has on any other brand.

Samba, as you all know, has been very sick. We've been careful about her diet, trying to give her the specific nutrients she needs to help her body heal. She eats Blue Buffalo fish and sweet potato formula and has done well on it.

On Tuesday I contacted Blue Buffalo and asked where they get their fish for their dog and cat foods. I told them how concerned I am and how I want to make a change now if there's a chance of oil contaminated fish being used.


Last night I received a reply. It follows:

Hello Sue,
Thank you for contacting BLUE. The fish BLUE uses in our formula come either from the North Pacific or the Atlantic. We do not source fish from the Gulf. I hope this helps you with your concerns.

Please contact us should you have any further questions.
Regards,
Linda
Blue Buffalo Co.


Now is the time. Read the labels on your pet food and treats. Contact the manufacturers and ask where they get the ingredients. Express your concerns about the use of Gulf fish in pet foods. Get in front of this matter. Let's not find ourselves dealing with another recall and more sick animals in the future.

20 comments:

Two French Bulldogs said...

Mom uses bad words when she hears about the "oil spill." Anyway, we will stick to our Natural Balance Duck and sweet potato. You brought up a good point. Thanks
Benny & Lily

Sam said...

Fish is tough in a diet, isn't it? There's the issue of preservatives (they say some fish preservaties are carcinogens), then the issue of not being specific enough about what ingredients are actually used (what kind of fish is used in "fish meal"?), and then the fact that they can be more expensive than other kinds of foods.

It sounds like you've found a good brand that works for you and your dogs.

Lapdog Creations said...

I had not even thought about the fish ingredients in dog food and treats..... but you are right and thank you for pointing this out and putting it on top of my mind!

Marjie said...

It's really nice that Blue Buffalo took the time to answer you. That's reassuring for your beloved pets!

Rocky Creek Scotties and Rocky Creek Ramblings said...

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. I generally feed my dogs the same salmon, sardines, etc as I eat. We all need to be careful.

♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥ said...

Very good post. Right now we are eating a turkey/chicken mix but even our humans need to know where their fish is coming from. Glad to hear that Blue Buffalo was so responsive.

Woos ~ Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara

gMarie said...

Thanks for a thought provoking post and for doing my homework. I feed Blue and now know it's safe. :) g

Dawn said...

Wow its cool that company got back to you! Great post!

Granite State Pet Sitting said...

Thank You for sharing the info. We sometimes buy fish based food and that is great information to know. Glad to see that Blue Buffalo got back to you so quickly.
Your Friends at
http://www.lifewith5dogs.com/

Vivian said...

You are so right about knowing the sources and ingredients of our food. The labels can be so deceptive. We are fortunate that Bucky has been living on home made meals. It's a lot more work, but at least we know exactly what goes in his bowl.

Bella Roxy & Macdui said...

Thanks, sometimes we forget that we can be affected even though we're a huge distance away. And some companies will do anything to have a good looking bottom line.

We only eat fish that is for humans and then, not too much. It's good you've found different foods for each of your dogs that agrees with them.

I've been itchy since we changed from a raw food diet to dry food, even though it is a highly regarded brand. It seems to be the only difference in my environment. The other two have no problem. I'm hoping to go back to raw food.

XXXOOO Daisy, Kendra & Bella

Stella said...

Very important blog, Sue, something we all need to think about. Its not hard for me to imagine certain dog food makers that would be dishonest about what they use though, so maybe we have to check and re-check the ingredient list!

Cheers,
Jo and Stella

Dexter said...

Thanks so much for reminding us about that. Those buffalo people sure are nice to write back to you.

There are just so many bad things happening because of that bad oil that nobody tells us about.

Slobbers,
Mango

Molly the Airedale said...

That poor pelican. Mom gets ill when she sees the animals suffering because of this stoopid hooman error!
What a great post! We can never be too careful!

Love ya lots
Maggie and Mitch

Molly the Airedale said...

Guess what, guess what? We met Carlie this morning - our neighbor's new PWD. She's 13 weeks old and cute as can be! She wasn't one bit scared of us! She looks just like you, Fudge! She's the brown color with a white blaze on her chest. Of course mom didn't have the camera with her! grrrrrrr

Love ya lots
Maggie and Mitch

SissySees said...

Great post. I think Wellness also uses fish from the NW, but you know I'll be emailing to confirm.

Lola and also Franklin, too said...

That's a very good point and not one we'd thought of. Franklin and I don't eat much fish, but the kitties do. Most kitties do. I think we'll have to look into this for them.

lotsa licks, Lola

the many Bs said...

that's a really good point about the fish used in dog food. we also eat a fish diet. our first fish ingredient is salmon, but we will check on the other two fish that are included. our food comes from Canada, but we don't know where they get their fishes! we will definitely make our human check on that for us.

woofs.

Moxie Paws said...

Oil spill in Michigan recently as well....environmental toll still unknown. Many thanks for bringing up need to check pet foods. My Princess, Miss Mia loves her fish...

♥I am Holly♥ said...

That is a very good post. Mom uses very bad words about the "oil spill". They are saying on the news here that it is now safe to eat all of the fish in the gulf. Sure it is. Lots of love, Holly and mom