Timberwolf news: Important

• 06-04-2008 8:33 AM

  chewbecca Joined on 07-14-2006 near Chicago, IL, USA. Posts 4,038 Points 0

  Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact Not sure if this is where I should post this, if not, sorry. A member on another board sent me a message informing me of this info because I had made a post there about Ella NOT eating her Ocean Blue kibble.  She just wouldn't eat it.  I was feeding her that food because she had done so well on it and everytime I started switching her food, her skin would freak out (and we'd end up at the vets with a skin infection and last time it was a mast cell tumor and an infected sore on her elbow), or she would have digestive issues. Anyway, she wouldn't eat this current bag of food and, stupid me, didn't even link it directly to the food for like, 5 days!  I thought she was just turning picky because  she would eat it if I added sardines or canned food. FINALLY it occurred to me that it might be the ingredient change...this was the first bag she had eaten with the new ingredient change.  How do I know this?  Well, even though I still feed Ella Timberwolf, I'm not completely ignorant to the fact that they've had issues.  I don't trust the company.  So...I keep previous bags.  And ingredients didn't match up from the bag she wouldn't eat, to the bag she just had previously.  Strangest part though?  Her previous bag's ingredients didn't even match up to the listed OLD ingredients.  How the hell do you like THAT? So, I switched her to Core Ocean yesterday and I'm PRAYING this food works for her.   UGH, so to my original point with this post: This is from Timberwolf's site: http://timberwolforganics.com/News-and-Events News & Events Dakota Bison/Ocean Blue Reported Issues Timberwolf Organics Customer, Due to recent reports from some customers, we have ordered that two formulas from three specific dates be pulled from the shelves. These are: Dakota Bison with 'best by date' of 12 Feb 2009 Ocean Blue with 'best by date' of 20 Feb 2009 Ocean Blue with best by date' of 8 March 2009 The reported symptoms include dogs refusing to eat, diarrhea or vomiting. While the problem is inconsistent (not every dog eating food from those dates/bag show the symptoms and not every bag), to err on the side of caution have decided to pull the formulas produced with the above dates. Initial testing has come back negative for problems and further testing is pending results. As soon as the cause of this reported problem is determined procedures will be put into place to ensure that an event like this cannot happen again. Please be assured that no other formulas and Ocean Blue and Dakota Bison with dates other than ones listed above are not affected. We apologize for any inconvenience or problems that this may have resulted in. If you do have a bag with those dates please contact the retailer you purchased it from for an exchange or credit. If you purchased it directly from us please give us a call or email us at customer.support@timberwolforganics.com. Thank you for choosing Timberwolf Organics. Sincerely, Timberwolf Organics Team    Yes, the bag Ella wouldn't eat is the best by date of 8 March 09.  I'm glad the other board member sent me this info because Timberwolf didn't email me about it (and I'm on their mailing list, and order salmon oil from them all the time). OH! But I'm wondering if their "new return policy" is going to be applied to returning any bunk bags of food, because if so, I'm not going to bother. When I went to the store yesterday to get Ella food, I had called the owner ahead of time and she explained to me that in order to return anything made by Timberwolf, I would have to fill out their customer complaint form and she would, too. When I went in, she showed me the paperwork that both she and I would have to fill out. FOUR PAGES OF PAPERWORK TO RETURN FOOD MY DOG WOULD NOT EAT. WTF? She said if it had been ANY other food in her store, by ANY other company, she would have just been able to give me my money back right there on the spot.

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• 06-04-2008 8:53 AM

  In reply to chewbecca

  shamrockmommy Joined on 09-10-2007 Innerspace Posts 658 Points 0	Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact Does not surprise me. I do not trust this 'company' either.  Shamrockmommy Furmom to Gobie the minpin terror, Lexi and Darby the bichon girls
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• 06-04-2008 8:54 AM

  In reply to chewbecca

  kpwlee Joined on 06-16-2006 North Carolina Posts 4,327 Points 380

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact well I am so glad that Ella chose not to eat it!  I think you will like the Core Ocean - you will need to feed more though. next I am glad that we aren't using it any longer because those are the two flavors we used lastly it is all so disappointing - Bugsy originally did so well on the Ocean Blue then they added the chicken fat which explained why the last bag we used didn't agreed with him.  His coat has never looked better than on the initial OB and Bison.  We use barking at the moon now and it is fine but his coat isn't nearly as good as it has been, but otherwise he does well on it. why do these companies not just leave well enough alone  "I think Karen should get a BC next time because she deserves a more mellow laid back dog! Or a Maremma because she needs a more clingy, biddable, easily trained dog." Brookcove 2008

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• 06-04-2008 8:59 AM

  In reply to kpwlee

  chewbecca Joined on 07-14-2006 near Chicago, IL, USA. Posts 4,038 Points 0

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact kpwlee: well I am so glad that Ella chose not to eat it!  I think you will like the Core Ocean - you will need to feed more though. next I am glad that we aren't using it any longer because those are the two flavors we used lastly it is all so disappointing - Bugsy originally did so well on the Ocean Blue then they added the chicken fat which explained why the last bag we used didn't agreed with him.  His coat has never looked better than on the initial OB and Bison.  We use barking at the moon now and it is fine but his coat isn't nearly as good as it has been, but otherwise he does well on it. why do these companies not just leave well enough alone        I'm glad you found a food that works better for Bugsy.  I'm sorry you are not getting the coat results you originally had on the original OB formula, though.  I'm afraid this will happen to Ella, too. SOME companies choose not to leave well enough alone because, well, why should they when they can get away with lying about their ingredients while cheapening or "changing" the ingredients, and charge more for lesser quality? It's quite disgusting, imo.

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• 06-04-2008 9:10 AM

  In reply to chewbecca

  stanton Joined on 09-10-2007 Posts 267 Points 0

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact 4 pages of paperwork?? I just returned 2 small bags of their Lamb/Apples formula that I bought to try one for myself and my sisters dog....neither dog would *willingly* eat it, and my big guy will eat anything. Within a few hours of him having eaten 1/4 cup of the food (his lunch meal) he threw up and was not acting himself all day. I took the food back that same afternoon and switched him to Orijen, no problems since. But I didn't have any paperwork grief, they swapped me straight across except the $2 difference in price. Main reason I took it back is cause the dogs snubbed it, AND, when I looked directly onto their website, the ingredients on the bag versus what was on their website did not match. So if you research foods on Waggintails, their ingredients look excellent, until you look on Timberwolf's website, then it gets freaky! Personally, I'm VERY tired of playing the food game and being paranoid all the time about whether a company is going to become of lessor quality. For now, I have my little guys on mostly homecooked, Grandma Lucy, and Primal raw; my big guy is too expensive to feed on Grandma Lucy and doesn't seem to tolerate raw well, so he's getting Orijen, which he's doing really good on so far. My opinion trust Naturapet, Wellness, and, so far, Orijen...after that, all other companies are getting shaky.....look what they're doing to Canidae for pete's sake, after all these years of good quality ingredients. Currently owned by: Kuaui (chihuahua/Dat); Missy & Dakota (pomeranians); Rivers (NSDTR/Golden mix)

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• 06-04-2008 9:10 AM

  In reply to chewbecca

  kpwlee Joined on 06-16-2006 North Carolina Posts 4,327 Points 380

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact I am hopeful that the Core Ocean will work for you but as I said it is much lower in kcal.  I bought a bag to try it and the bag didn't last long enough to see if it would've improved his coat, he eats sooooooooo much.  His skin is fine though so that is most important and he is still shinier than most "I think Karen should get a BC next time because she deserves a more mellow laid back dog! Or a Maremma because she needs a more clingy, biddable, easily trained dog." Brookcove 2008

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• 06-04-2008 9:22 AM

  In reply to stanton

  chewbecca Joined on 07-14-2006 near Chicago, IL, USA. Posts 4,038 Points 0

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact  Stanton, I don't know if there is an actual difference in the store type or what, but she showed me the paperwork. And in order for the food to be returned, we had to fill out his paperwork.  She was more than willing to go over it with me, and I'm SURE this will all change as soon as I call her today and tell her about the news on their website.   Yeah, she LOVES the Core Ocean, I just really, really, really hope that it works for her!

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• 06-04-2008 9:40 AM

  In reply to chewbecca

  jessies_mom Joined on 09-10-2007 Indiana Posts 4,327 Points 40

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact      I really hope Ella won't be affected by what she ate, and that she does well on the CORE. Jessie has sensitive skin because of her environmental allergies, and she did great on Royal Canin's Sensible Choice Lamb before she developed an allergy to brewer's yeast; http://www.sensiblechoice.com/SCHDLRA.HTM  It does have DL-methionine though.     I know you've researched foods a lot. Last summer my vet gave me a copy of an article from the JAVMA about dietary fats and the skin and coat of dogs, and I learned that foods with a higher amount of zinc and linoleic acid (omega 6) were important for dogs with skin problems. Besides the Sensible Choice, I've used Nutro Nat. Choice Lamb with great results (no more dandruff), and right now she's on Skin Support 21 for the summer and doing fabulous; http://www.royalcanin.us/adx/aspx/adxGetMedia.aspx?DocID=134,12,1,Documents&MediaID=1951&Filename=CanineSkinSupport.pdf   I also use some of the Nature's Variety Prairie foods. She used to do well on Eagle but started having dry coat problems; their foods have about 160mg/kg of zinc compared to 240mg/kg for the Nutro. Since all of the foods she gets are lower in protein than I like, she gets a mixture of fresh foods daily for a total protein intake between 34 and 42%, depending on what type of meat or fish she gets. I hope this information will help if Ella doesn't do well on the CORE.    I tried the Ocean Blue before learning Jessie is allergic to salmon, but tossed the bag when the QC issues first surfaced a few years ago. Their return policy is outrageous; this company just keeps getting stranger. GOOD LUCK ON THE CORE!!!!!!!!!!        Life isn't about waiting through the storm; it's about learning to dance in the rain. Janice

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• 06-04-2008 4:26 PM

  In reply to chewbecca

  stanton Joined on 09-10-2007 Posts 267 Points 0

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact chewbecca:  Stanton, I don't know if there is an actual difference in the store type or what, but she showed me the paperwork. And in order for the food to be returned, we had to fill out his paperwork.  She was more than willing to go over it with me, and I'm SURE this will all change as soon as I call her today and tell her about the news on their website.   Yeah, she LOVES the Core Ocean, I just really, really, really hope that it works for her!  Oh Chewbecca, I wasn't doubting you, I believe it. I'm just glad and surprised I didn't have to fill it out....that's ridiculous. Currently owned by: Kuaui (chihuahua/Dat); Missy & Dakota (pomeranians); Rivers (NSDTR/Golden mix)

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• 06-04-2008 11:44 PM

  In reply to stanton

  brookcove Joined on 09-10-2007 Semora, North Carolina, USA Posts 4,658 Points 335

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact  I don't trust those people at all. I love Core Ocean.  It's Ben's "emergency food."  He's super sensitive to any funny business at all in manufacturing, so if it gets Ben's seal of approval, you can use it on your sensitive dog in confidence!  LOL, we could start a little side business offering the BSA - Ben Seal of Approval. Anyway, with any commercial food I always am waiting for the other shoe to drop.  Ben's on all raw and I've got two other of my dogs on it too.  And Lynn's waiting on her consult to go on all homecooked as well.  I'm just tired of being a pawn in these company's games to milk those of us with limited options, for any money they can.  "Oooh, let's see how close we can cut corners before we start making dogs sick!"  Arrgh.  Becca Shouse: Irena Farm, Semora, NC Cord, Ted, Gus, Zhi, Maggie, Lynn, Lu, Min and Tully Waiting: Bubo & Ben "We didn't have a phone, and we couldn't call you!" Helen, AIDS orphan. Don't let them die of ignorance - WorldHelp.net "I-Dog Biggest Loser" Official Cheerleader/Mascot Start 09/15/08: 186.4 lbs Current 175.6 lbs

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• 06-05-2008 9:13 PM

  In reply to brookcove

  FussyPoodles Joined on 12-13-2007 Posts 71 Points 0

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact  I also wish you good luck with the CORE Ocean. I feed all 3 Core formulas here, and they're all well liked and well tolerated.  I never had any success whatsoever with TWO foods; tried 3 formulas (inc. the Ocean Blue) and my guys either refused the kibble point blank, or eating more than a tiny amount made them queasy. It was easy to make the decision not to persist with Timberwolf in any shape or form once I became aware of QC issues and the famous "We didn't realize our label info was soooooo out of date!" twist in the tail. Britta and the fussy toy poodles

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• 06-06-2008 10:23 AM

  In reply to chewbecca

  fish n dog Joined on 11-09-2007 Posts 180 Points 0

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact It would seem they don't purchase quality ingredients for their formulas.. If anyone goes to the market and looks at fish prices today it's not hard to imagine the quality of Pet food with fish.  And with Diamond making a Bison product in TOW as well as Solid Gold's formula it's hard to imaging what is left for Timberwolf to purchase.  All these companies making Pet food need contracts with suppliers and are in competion for the best quality. Some can leverage with big orders and the smaller ones like a Timberwolf is not going to get the best. Can't wait to see what toxin will be found .. I bet they know ...just delaying the release of it. As the WDJ pointed out this year... You are not just buying the food... You are buying into the ability of the company to produce a quality product. Always trust your dog.. never try to force feed a bag of food they are reluctant to eat.. Their nose is better than ours and can pick up on Bad Food.Or food gone bad.

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• 06-08-2008 4:54 PM

  In reply to chewbecca

  sillysally Joined on 09-10-2007 Indiana Posts 3,505 Points 0

  Re: Timberwolf news: Important Reply Contact chewbecca: So, I switched her to Core Ocean yesterday and I'm PRAYING this food works for her.     We just switch Sally to this because she was itchier than I would like on her last food.  We got a smaller bag, and so far her itching has improved *greatly* and she's happy to eat it.  "Some men aren't looking for anything logical. They can't be bought, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men just want to watch the world burn."

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