NUTRO DOG FOOD KILLS AGAIN!!! - Page 4

Thanks for the warning! This is inexcusable, that dog owners cannot trust the food they feed. I think that this trend started about ten years ago. This is when I started to see serious compromise in the quality of dog foods I had come to trust. I was seeing a sharp reduction in condition of my dogs, mainly from lack of fats in the kibble. I compensated somewhat by adding corn oil, which is excellent for skin, coat, eyes.

More recently, additives are coming from China in the guise of "protein supplements", and these supplements boost the protein assay of the food they are added to. They test high in protein when burned and the gases are analyzed. In fact, the test looks for nitrogen, and where the results can indicate high nitrogen content, it is misleading for us.. instead of nitrogen from protein, it is actually nitrogen from the waste of coal and plastics industry (melamine), some of it from computer recycling.

I am not making this up! I did a lot of personal research into the problem a couple of years ago, when so many dogs were dying of kidney failure from tainted pet food. I discovered that there is a huge demand in China for melamine, and that much of this is being filled by recycled plastics from the computer waste shipped from consumer countries like the USA. Usually, it is harmless filler, but our dogs are not receiving the nutrition they need, and occasionally, the normally-insoluble melamine does get into the bloodstream, where it is filtered by the kidneys. If it crystalizes in the kidneys, scarring results and loss of kidney function. When the kidneys are damaged in this manner, they cannot be restored. The damage may not be evident for years.  When the kidneys have lost approximately 2/3 of their integrity, only then will blood tests indicate the tell-tale elevated creatinine and blood urea nitrates which indicate impending kidney failure.

However, there is hope. I believe that we must stop buying these foods. The problem is with both canned and dry foods. I started to recycle a lot of my household surplus and leftover foods by cooking it down in a large crock pot, and the results have been extremely promising! I put in all the food groups, in all combinations, and the dogs love it all. I just have to make sure that there is some meat in each meal, because they do like and need that. I put in lettuce, too old to make salad with (Romaine is excellent), carrots, garlic, some beans (not too much), corn, peas, green beans, pasta, rice, old bread, corn tortillas, tomatoes, potatoes, some onions (not too much(, and so on. I have not yet found anything they don't like, in any combination, and they are REALLY eager for dinner time, now! I never waste chicken anymore! All of the skin, giblets, and even the bones.. all go in the pot. Even if the meat is a little bit old, it is OK. Just add a cup of vinegar, and it does a lot to sanitize the food, and it will actually make the bones soft enough to break up in your hands. I do check to make sure the bones have reached this point before I feed them... only chicken bones.. no beef or pork.

If you don't have quite enough to go around, you can thin it out to a soupier consistency and put it over bread or rice. Never feed sour rice or let the food stand. It must be kept either too hot, or too cold for bacterial growth. It is a problem getting it to cool enough to feed or refrigerate when it is convenient for you... Until then, you can just keep the crock pot on low. When you are ready to prepare it for use or storage, you can take a large steamer pan or lasagna pan and pour the contents into that. The increased surface area will help it cool off fairly quickly.

People.. We have only had commercial dog food in recent times.. the last fifty years. Before that, dogs ate from our table and were healthy. They are basically omnivorous, now. They do need meat, but they can use vegetables, roots and grain products, too.

I would like to mention, also, that I heard that a Canadian company was bringing in these Chinese protein supplements and  that they are formulating much of the food going into the US. These sorts of problems are affecting ALL BRANDS, now! I saw someone mention Diamond food. I remember when that was an AWESOME food! No more!

Feeding commercial dog food is a huge waste and dangerous to our dogs. Further, most households could feed two GSDs quite well without it. The key is the crockpot and wise use of surplus, overbought, and leftover food! If you don't have quite enough, ask your neighbors to give you their food waste, and tell them they are helping the environment!

Back on August 30 2008 we had purchased a new bag of Nutro Lamb and rice, which we have been feeding our American Pitbull Terrier for 8 yrs.   The night of Sept 1, 2008 is when it all starting happening.  Stomach all upset that you can hear it, throwing up, diarea the whole nine yards!!  The next day the dog would not move.  Took him to the vet and said he had a fever of 105.8, they would not touch him had to take him to the Vet hospital.  That is when it all begain, $6500 later and now it is Sept. 28 and we still don't have any answers.  I can write the whole thing step by step but I really just don't have the time.  Put it this way I had a 55 lb. dog and now he is down to 47 lb dog.  The animal hospital we took him to did every test under the sun but  nevere a fecal.  We are now kicking outselves in the butt!!  I have contacted Nutro and hey wanted a sample of the food and said that there is nothing wrong with their product.  I have been online searching and keep coming up with sites on peoples dogs being sick from Nutro.  I agree, if you are feeding your dog Nutro take them off now!! 

I just had some people contact me last week looking for a puppy, they told me their dog died and they were looking for another shepherd. When I asked what happened they told me the dog had become ill from Nutro Max and died.