Food Pets Die For: Shocking Facts About Pet Food

I've known that pretty much most commercial dog food was bad, but I really didn't know HOW bad it was. After the 2007 recall mess, I thought that all of my research leading me to a "premium" dog food meant we were in good hands. After the addition of our newest adopted Greyhound, we were faced with some boo boo tummy issues. I found myself online again looking for another "premium" food, but it wasn't until our vet had me put our young man on Royal Canin (the other foods weren't working) that I finally decided that I need to be cooking for my dogs. The first three ingredients of that food sent me running back to get online and start searching. There are a lot of good books out there, but Ann has been at this for awhile, and many of her facts confirmed what I hoped wasn't true. So much of it all makes sense now when I think back. Also, I grew up the daughter of a butcher, so when Ann talks about the slaughter houses and rendering plants, I have no doubts in what she is saying. I've actually been vegetarian for eight years now (with vegan training wheels) because of what I know what goes on in those places convinced me that I needed to change my eating habits. Why not for my dogs, too? This is an excellent book to start with as it gives great info on why you need to start cooking for your own. You probably already know that you need to do this because you're searching reading material out. This is definitely a book to have in your pet food library!

Every dog owner needs to read this

I cannot recommend the first part of this book enough. Even if you do not take everything the author writes at face value (which I do not knowing that there are always 2 sides of every story), there are still wonderful pieces of very useful information provided when trying to interpret ingredients and food labels. The first half of this book will make you more aware of what you are feeding your pets, which I think is the ultimate goal regardless of which diet you eventually decide on.The 2nd half of the book was an utter and total disappointment (why I did not rate it 5 stars). The author discusses home-cooked diets, supplements and provides an entire chapter on receipes. This is all very fine but does not belong in a book entitled FOOD PETS DIE FOR: SHOCKING FACTS ABOUT PET FOOD. This is not why I bought the book, and indeed, I felt quite alienated by the author's attempt to push me towards this type of diet.I greatly respect the author's viewpoint on the pet food industry because she had spent 7 years investigating the subject--she should have stuck to this topic for the whole of her book instead of dedicating such a large part of the book to opinions better left to pet nutritionalists who have an expertise on the subject of specific diets that I do not think the author does. For this purpose, the author should have written a different book, not include it in this one.Although I absolutely HATED the 2nd part of the book, it does not negate the merits of the 1st part. However, in my opinion, the book would have been better as a whole if she had not included all that stuff about home-cooked diets (which I am NOT opposed to but just feel it inappropriate for this book).

The last year and a half has been a real journey for me as my childhood cat companion has grown old and sick... He now has restrictive dietary needs. That coupled with my growing need and desire to prolong and improve the quality of his life, I started last year to look for the best cat foods available.Unfortunately, even with a good general biology and nutrition background, wading through the marketing [...] that accompanies most pet foods in the stores was really difficult for me. On the one hand, XYZ pet food company markets a line of products as scientifically formulated for performance, etc. etc., yet the food in the can/bag turns out to be made in nearly the identical way as its general supermarket (well-known and marketed as 'cheap') line. This despite the higher cost, fancy packaging and limited availability (in pet food stores) of the 'performance' or 'premium' product.It seems as though last year there was very little information available online and I never found out about this book. I wish I had. I ended up purchasing a mix of good and not so good foods, which my cats have enjoyed (or so they think) over the last year. I was determined to look further and recently found that there is more information out there than before. About.com's article on cat nutrition led me to this book, which I am now reading. Although there are many other details about ingredients that I wish were covered in this book, I am very happy with the author's research and conclusions. I really feel that her efforts have created a small wave, slowly getting people aware of the issues and helping them to identify and make informed choices about the food they feed to their pets.Although my cats are slightly addicted to the less than desirable ingredients in some of their foods and tend to turn their nose up to whole, natural, healthier ingredients, they will come to appreciate them with patience and time... As a result, I am sure my older cats' health will benefit in the remaining years and any future cats (which I am sure to own) will never have to eat unsafe and even deadly foods.Please read this book and tell other people you know out there who really love their pets but are ignorant (not willfully) about the ills of the pet food industry and about the foundation of what good nutrition for companion animals really is. Don't believe the marketing! I hope one day that consumers will be making informed choices that will affect the market and, in turn, force these companies to reconsider their current practices.And perhaps the improved nutrition will mean that veterinary care is less often needed. The great thing is, is that even though we as humans might lack the disicpline to take care of ourselves and eat healthfully, our pets don't have the control. We can choose good nutrition for them and we'll all be better off for it.[...]It is an excellent discussion of the choices available, what to look for and WHY.

As a researcher, I've read a lot of books in my life, but few have affected me the way Food Pets Die For has!Although I'm not one to require government involvement at any level of anyone's life (except for what they're constitutional meant to be involved), Martin's book should be required reading before anyone could acquire a pet.And, where's Peta (People for the ethical treatment of animals) on this subject? There should be a firestorm of condemnation coming from that group, concerning the groundbreaking information in this book!Also, to most of Martin's critics, either you haven't read this book, or your lack of comprehension bespeaks where you spend most of your informational time. So if you'd turn off your two-dimensional/non-interactive gods, and take a break from those Harlequin romances long enough to input something worthwhile into that gray matter, maybe you'd have discovered that a qualified veterinarian wrote her introduction! And many other vets have quoted from Martin in their own books.For all those new, and current, pet owners that want the truth about what's been going on in commercial pet food industry, I implore you to read and get the word out about this phenomenal book.

The author warns that commercial pet foods are made with ingredients that most pet owners probably would not knowingly choose to feed to their pets. The U.S. FDA is supposed to regulate the pet food industry, but compliance with the minimal regulations is voluntary and the industry is, essentially, self-regulated. Using the cheapest ingredients enables the industry to achieve economies of scale not otherwise attainable. The list of ingredients permitted in pet food includes rendered road kill, euthanized pets from animal shelters and vet clinics, and other animal waste; processed poultry and ruminant excreta collected from large agri-business operations; mercury-contaminated seafood which has been judged unfit for human consumption. This book offers some fascinating information about the suspected link between rendered animal products and BSE: As of 2002, about 90 cats had died of BSE in Britain; as a result, certain animal products are now banned for use in pet food there. Most veterinary students acquire their nutrition education in elective classes taught by instructors who are paid by pet food companies. The author's suggested home-prepared pet meals are nutritionally superior to the food most parents feed their children. She emphasizes that there are apparently no government agencies that regulate the ingredients which go into commercial pet foods, so consumer beware!This book's theme is reminiscent of the 1973 science-fiction movie, "Soylent Green", which depicts an overpopulated future world where, by necessity, anthropophagy (the human form of cannibalism) has become incorporated into the system. Humanity has decimated most of the earth's food-producing resources, so, when people die, the state secretly renders the corpses into colorful crackers (kibble) which are distributed as low-cost food for the teeming masses. An invisible government rules, and the people are completely unaware of what is really happening and what their food is made of.

Although I had heard/read/seen snippets of the info contained in this book before, the author does such a good job of citing all her sources that I was up until almost 3AM reading this book as soon as I received it!It's very easy to read and she uses phrases carefully not to make blanket statements that could be untrue.She also gives some recipes in the back of the book (which is why I bought it in the first place). I have not tried them yet but they seem pretty straight forward. I wish more recipes for dogs were included.Overall, I would say it's a $10 well spent on your pets health, if you follow the advice.Not sure if she has a website (couldn't find one via google) but I think it would be helpful if she could add updates such as food brands recommended on her site, since it's a while before new versions of the book are published.

When I got my first dogs (3) I got this thinking it was a cookbook (the back part is). I read and believed it and now my dogs are 16 and 17 (one died from an injury) and in good health while all my neighbors dog's (6 of them) have not live past 10 years and all have died of cancer or some kind of tumor. They just do not understand it when I say I do not feed my dogs dog food. They just believe cancer in young dogs is normal, very sad what industry does to us and our dogs.This book will save you $1,000s in vet bills and your dog will live a lot longer. Just wished this was required reading for dog owners, there would be a lot less animal suffering in the world. sniff sniffPlease save a dog - read this and believe it. Real food makes real dogs.I thank god that I read this book. I love my dogs very much so I am glad I read this and follow her directions.

Having now lost 2 Goldies to cancer, I started to think about the food I had feed both of my girls over the years of having them. My first Goldie had been feed on tinned Chappie and biscuits, the other, 10 years latter, a mixture of tinned, dried, and fresh food over her life span. This was due to her having tummy problems, and me trying to find a food that didn't upset her digestive system. After reading Food Pets Die For, it really opened my eyes as to what indeed goes into the food our beloved pets eat. The book although American based, was easy to understand, very informative, and extremely thought prevoking. Thanks to the authors research over many years, never again will I feed my dog processed food, it will be natural and fresh only for my next girl.

We all love our pets beyond words can say..but do you really know what you are feeding them? I recommend you read all three of Ann's Books on what you are feeding your pets!Its horrible to learn the real truth after spending top dollar on dog food which I thought was the best! The PET FOOD INDUSTRY is concerned about ONE THING..and that is how they can deceive the paying customer into thinking THEIR FOOD IS THE BEST! They are after THE MONEY NOT THE HEALTH OF OUR PETS! Do your research people before its too late!!!

my eyes have been opened and i now feed my cat a human grade pet food due to finding out that euthenased pets are ending up in the pet food chain - a largely unregulated industry. fsome of the most leading brands have only 4%meat, what is the rest made up of?! many humans have gluten intollerance, so do pets!Giving pets a poor quality diet shortens thier lives and gives them disease.btw, Arden Grange and Lillie's Kitchen and Applaws came out tops in my research for high qualiity and ethical pet food in the UK.If you love your pet, you should but this today.

After having my dog die of cancer and another gravely ill, I looked into all causes that it might have been. Bought this book and was shocked to find out some of the things that go into our dog food. I asked our Vet and he concurred that it is correct and somethings that weren't in the book that would shock you. I changed my pets diet and gave the book to my son who has never fed his dog commercial dog food and his dog is now 15 yrs old, and is only now starting to show his age. He is a large breed dog and his Vet is astonished at how well the dog is doing. If I ever again get another dog, I will never again feed it commercial dog food. Everyone who loves their pet will buy this book.

This book took forever to arrive but was definitely worth the wait.