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Yikes, just watching the news this a.m., & many near-deaths & DEATHS from the ones from CHINA!!! I never give my dogs (or myself or anyone!) treats or anything from China! Check your jerky treats if you have them, & get the word out to all your doggie friends!

What caused the deaths?

The Humane Society handed out a flyer warning about jerky treats (or any treats from China) when I adopted Thistle a year ago. So it's been a problem for awhile.

As Liz mentioned this is the problem that reared its ugly head several years ago. What the news flashes are saying now is that they haven't identified a particular cause/s. (Which was not the case in the Melamine contaminants....) So, I take it as a reminder not to go back using any questionable treats thinking that everything has been cleared up.

Yes, this has been going on for a while. What gets me is that some of the packages say distributed by such & such company but don't say where they are made. I don't buy those either. When I worked for the commercial fishing company Purina and Nabisco were very particular about the fish meal they bought. I was told their pet food was fit for human consumption, not that you would want to eat it. lol

My DH was giving Hank pig ears from Tractor Supply which I didn't think was a good idea either. The cajun mentality is that if a little is good a whole lot would be better. He got him so constipated that we had to start giving him canned food for a while to get him moving again.

A couple of months ago there was a recall on Iams cat food and I was having trouble finding what I feed the house cats. There was some on the shelf at Walmart but they had entered the recall in their computers so they wouldn't sell it. I hate to change their food because I would have 6 cats hacking up presents all over.

Martha

I feed Missy Halo & Natural Balance mixed together. Halo states on the product 'Made in the USA' but Natural Balance does not, so I called them. Was told that yes, it is produced here in the USA. However, many of the treats I have, do not say 'Made in China' (which I do not buy any of those anyway), but they do say distributed by Del Monte.... so what does that mean? I am really disturbed about this & like many, want to know how I can tell what treats I can safely buy. Anyone have any suggestions ?

Cookie gets Dentisticks distributed by Mars Co. (Pedigree) in Tenn. She also gets Pupparoni Mix sticks distributed by Del Monte out of San Francisco. Milk Bones also distributed by Del Monte, and Breath Buster bones distributed by Mars Co (Pedigree). I cook her Chicken Breast or strips and feed her 1/2 cooked chicken and 1/2 chopped chicken and rice wet food by Pedigree.
Just as a rule of thumb, I wouldn't feed her anything that is sold in a discount store like a dollar store.

I have a problem with the Del Monte pet foods (human foods, too) as I can find NO WHERE where they are made. They don't say on the products or on the website, simply distributed by. I remember the one year coming back from AK, if it didn't say MADE in USA on dog food, treats, it was confiscated at the Canada/US border. They told me in most cases if that's not somewhere on the label you can pretty much figure not all of the product was made in the US. I believe that because we all are looking for that now.

I read labels for me, do also for Peaches

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I so strongly agree with Beth - if I can't find on the package where it's made, it's not going in my cart.

I believe Pedigree was the company I emailed questioning where a certain treat was made (it wasn't on the package).
I never received an answer. That sure did the trick for me.

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I also am suspicious of the 'distributed by' notation instead of it saying made in the USA and never buy them. I do notice more food manufactures, both human and dogs are starting to put the made in USA information on their packaging.

I think this is a good web site to decide on a dog food. They also list all recalls and you can sign up for them to send you an alert immediately of any recalls. They don't send you any other mail which is great.

http://www.dogfoodadvisor.com/

when I look for treats/ as well as dog food look for the made in USA but the pet store here said that
some are buying stuff from China and then making it here so they can put Made in USA label on it...sure makes
one wonder perhaps one would be wise making the treats but then one person says this and another person says this
and you don't know what is good for the pet...
have a recipe book for pet treats some sound really good
sheila

The jerky treats warning has been around for awhile and it's really sad that even places like petco and petsmart still have that garbage in their stores. I used to think milk bones were safe til I discovered one of the ingredients used is also used to embalm human bodies and busy bones has pesticides! Have a baby with cancer and you will start looking at everything. Peanut butter, purée pumpkin, oatmeal and brown rice flour makes great treats and it's safer.

Back in the late 80s early 90s Montsano Co. was making a dog food preservative to increase shelf life. Purina was one of the companies using it. Turns out it was something used in making rubber, if I remember right, and the people handling it had to wear protective wear. Dogs were having miscarriages, internal bleeding, vomiting; just plain sick and some died. Those of us in my Kuvasz Assoc. and other dog owners started calling Purina and other dog food manufacturers and declared we would not buy their product that contained this element. I don't remember what it was called but it was soon eliminated from the foods.

I bought some Sweet Potato snacks from Drs Foster and Smith for my Casey. Then read on the label that it is manufactured in China for the above Drs. I would never feed Casey anything made in China. I've written to Drs Foster and Smith and have received NO reply. We will see what happens when I return it to them. I see they are still selling it through their catalog. lyn