Safe Dog Products? (Part Recall Rant)

I agree with you. For dog toys, I insist on made in usa products unless it's absolutely unavoidable and frankly a toy is a toy. Its not necessary. For tennis balls, I use real tennis balls, not balls made for dogs. For stuffies, they get children stuffies not stuffies for dogs. Stuff for kids is regulated on the amount of heavy metals they can contain. Stuff for dogs is not. In general, I avoid anything made in china for my pets. Period. We have enough history to tell us that it is not safe.

For dog food, again, I go for kibble that is usa made but it's often hard to tell. So, I go with products that have not had a history with recalls or illnesses. I'm disgusted with the quality and quantity of stuff coming from china and really wish we had better regulations with more frequent inspections.

are_wild

This issue has been rolling around in my head lately though, and I'd really love to get some perspective from other dog people. I know a few people who have dogs in real life, but unfortunately no true "dog people," so here I am. Sorry about the lack of brevity. I feed prey model raw, sticking to pastured local meats as much as possible. Over the years, whenever a bunch of food recalls occurs I've always been relieved to not have to worry about that. Now it's treats being potentially recalled, and I'm worried. Chicken jerky doesn't even have ingredients other than chicken. The FDA doesn't know how or with what it's contaminated, except that it was made in china (big surprise). I'm starting to feel like maybe all things manufactured for dogs are just plain poorly regulated and not safe. Does anyone else feel the same? I don't go through many treats and could probably replace them with something homemade, although the much shorter shelf-life will be an inconvenience. I do like to give bully sticks and trachea when I need them occupied for a while. I always assumed since they were just dried (no ingredients or anything) that they're safe. Maybe not though. There are some vendors online that claim to sell bully sticks "made in the USA," but does that mean the cattle was raised here and processed here? Is there some proof of that I can ask for? On a similar note, my mother just adopted a dog and has asked me to recommend a dogfood. I'm not sure what to tell her. There are some good quality foods available here, but if I pick one for her and it ends up on a recall list I'll feel terrible. Am I over thinking the whole thing? What foods/treats/chews do y'all feed and are you concerned about recalls? Are there any brands that can be called safe?

Recalls are worrisome. We decide what goes into our dogs day in day out for their whole life and that is a big responsibility.

As far as chicken jerky is concerned, you can make your own and freeze it which would add to its shelf-life. About the sourcing of the animals the bullysticks, tracheas, and other chewies are made from, some vendors not only state that they were made in the US but also from animals raised in the US (sometimes even from pasture fed cattle). How far to trust any of them ? That is the 64 million dollar question. Perhaps calling the ones you feel (from their website, reviews, and/or independent review sources) are the more thrustworthy and seeing if they can give you additional details (while making sense and not contradicting themselves) would be a possibility.

The Whole Dog Journal publishes a list of recommended dog foods every year. They do apply sensible criterion to their selection and I feed something from that list. You cannot access the list if you do not subscribe to the WDJ but if you have a food in mind, and are interested, I can tell you whether it is there or not (latest edition is February 2011 for dry food, November 2011 for wet food).

 

 

I know how you feel about treats and dog food.  It's so difficult to discover whether some products"made in the usa" are actually 100% produced here and if so, how much regulation and quality control goes into each and every ingredient?  I do research when buying things and look for recall history of companies. I don't buy anything made in China but that's no guarantee that I'm buying products that are completely safe and healthy.  The fact is, that's true of many human foods and products too.   I try and make smart choices without getting completely paranoid about the whole thing. 

For dog food information, a source I like is this one: http://www.dogfoodproject.com/

Just now getting a chance to get back to this. I forgot I have to manually insert the code for paragraph breaks in Chrome. I fixed the first post to be more easily read.

Jewlieee- I know most of the tennis balls manufactured for dogs are contaminated, but I thought that those made for actual tennis tested high for metals as well? Something about it not being regulated since they're not toys or food. I believe it was a Whole Dog Journal article on toxins in toys that I read that in, but now I can't find that issue.

Buying stuffies made for kids is a great idea, and I've been doing that anyway for a different reason. Maya destroys most stuffies pretty quickly and it pains me to spend much on something that lasts just a few minutes. Most thrift stores have children's stuffed animals for super cheap. I look for the ones that have embroidered features instead of plastic eyes/noses and stock up whenever I can. When I'm feeling crafty I'll buy a pack of squeakers and sew them into a few. For non-stuffie toys I try to stick to trustworthy brands (if such a thing exists). Planet Dog, for example, manufactured in the US and only uses natural rubber for their balls. No off-gassing, heavy metals or endocrine disruptors.

Thalie- I've thought about making my own treats, and I guess I should just give it a try. My freezer space is pretty much taken, but maybe they'd last long enough in the fridge if I start with a small batch. With some trial and error I'm sure I can get a few treat recipes down. I can't make my own bully sticks though. Even if I could get the raw material I couldn't stand the smell! I've found one company that sources all their meat and processes in the US, and I guess that's the best I can do. I actually already subscribe to the Whole Dog Journal. It's one of my favorite resources and I love that they don't allow advertising. Thanks for reminding me about their food recommendations! I'd forgotten about it, but it was very helpful in coming up with some food suggestions for my mom's dog.

JackieG- I'm glad I'm not alone in worrying about some about this. I definitely strive for "Made in the USA" on virtually everything, but sometimes I still wonder. I'll check out that website, and then maybe try not to think about it. I know there should be a point where I step back and accept that I can't guard against everything. It just seems like each new recall or warning reminds me that something like that can always happen no matter how careful you are.

are_wild

...Jewlieee- I know most of the tennis balls manufactured for dogs are contaminated, but I thought that those made for actual tennis tested high for metals as well? Something about it not being regulated since they're not toys or food. I believe it was a Whole Dog Journal article on toxins in toys that I read that in, but now I can't find that issue...

My understanding is the ones made for dogs is actually safer then "real" tennis balls.  I read someplace that the dye used in real tennis balls is a carcinogin (sp?) when ingested.