"pet food" news and stories

I think I asked this before, but should pet food stories be on Slashfood? I've decided yes, because after all, pets are people too. Besides, a recent AOL poll showed that 36% of Slashfood readers are dogs.

Diamond Pet Foods has agreed to pay $3.1 million to pet owners whose dogs died or got sick from eating tained dog food last year. The fund will be set up to "reimburse pet owners for the loss of their dog, veterinarian bills, and the cost of any unreturned contaminated food."

The company says it did nothing illiegal, but does say that employees at their Gaston, SC plant didn't follow proper testing procedures for the dog food.

Here's the latest battle in the "U.S. said/China said" food wars.

China has impounded shipments of apricots and orange pulp because of "excessive bacteria and mold." According to this article, some believe that this is in retaliation for the various problems the U.S. says it has been having with food and other products imported from China in the past several months. China warns that rules and guidelines about food from the U.S. could be tightened.

It's not only food that the U.S. has complained about. It is also faulty tires, unsafe fake toothpaste, lead paint in toys, and that whole nasty business with pet food.

With all of the recent pet food scares, a lot of dog and cat owners have been gun shy about going back to their favorite (or, should I say, their pet's favorite!) brand. But have you ever thought about actually cooking for your dog?

By sheer coincidence, I was watching a Will & Grace episode last night where they got a dog and Will was actually cooking fancy dog food for the puppy. But a lot of people do it in the real world too, because pets are like a member of the family. There's even a beer for dogs!

You have to make sure you're using ingredients that are safe for dogs and that it actually fits into their diet. Here's a link to several recipes, including one for the Rrrruvery Rrrrisotto recipe mentioned in the article. It's probably good to check with your vet too.

• Need something to feed your pet? How about a French Grilled Sandwich?
• Rachael is looking for your the biggest goofs you've made in the kitchen.
• The Burger of the Month is the Sloppy Joaquin, which sounds slightly, um, dirty to me.
• Musician Moby is a vegetarian.
• Where can you find a good hot dog in Detroit?
• This month's recipes: lots of stuff made with eggs, including Poached Eggs with Mushroom Home Fries, Egg, Goat Cheese and Tomato Toasts, and an Alsace and Lorraine Omelet. More recipes: Great Grandma's Baked Chicken, Chilled Raspberry Cream Pie, Pomegranate Coolers, and an easy recipe for a Zucchini-Gruyere Tart.

Meaty Chunks with added marrow bone anyone? You pet food could be healthier than a lot of fast food according to  NWQ ATUDY. Tins of cat and dog food are not only good for their health but yours as well, as they contain less fat, salt and sugar levels than fast food.

Experts compared 30 different human meals with 15 readily available pet foods and declared that Gourmet Gold cat food, with 2.9 grams of fat per 100 grams, was eight times less fatty than pieces of Kentucky Fried Chicken with 23.2 grams of fat per 100 grams. Fat levels were also lower when compared to a McDonald’s Big Mac and a Pizza Hut meal.

It is a UK study that concluded that pet food was healthier under the Food Standards Agency’s new “traffic light” labelling scheme, than most of the food people eat. Except me - as I don't eat KFC/McDonalds/Pizza Hut meals - being a food snob and all.

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