You are currently browsing the The Gourmet Dog Bakery Blog weblog archives for May, 2008.
Archive for May, 2008
The Canadian government confirmed in a story posted today, that they have been working with China to establish new food safety standards and develop training manuals for meat inspectors. When these standards are implemented, it will have little effect on the millions of small Chinese exporters that will still operate with little supervision or inspections from the Chinese government. It is nice that the Chinese government is finally working towards higher standards for their food exports but it doesn’t sound like it will work unless they overhaul their entire system.If America didn’t learn from the last two major pet food recalls, then wait for the next one to come. Due to last year’s recall, some have chosen raw diets, some cook human-grade ingredients and others continue to purchase pet food from the 6 or so major companies supplying commercial pet food.This week I placed a visit to a local pet supply shop because of a commercial I had seen about their 30 lb. organic kibble. They stated that it had no artifical flavoring, no chemicals, no hormones, etc. So, of course, I was interested to see this kibble. As I was reading the label, I soon noticed that it had bacon flavoring, food dye, and garlic. After reaching the food dye and garlic, I stopped and left the store. I have not found but one dog food (and I don’t know its origin but the Whole Foods brand dog kibble) that I would feed our bassets but it contained garlic and we don’t include that in their diet. One of them has a very sensitive stomach and will vomit with even the minut amount of garlic or even a trace of onion. With this interesting article today, I believe that every pet owner/parent needs to make those decisions responsibly and for their individual pet.
I have been reading this week about warnings to gradually change your dog to homemade food and not all at once. I agree to a point. We changed our bassets over from commercial Merrick dog food last fall because they had loose stools at least once per day. They would throw up about once per week with no warning and then seemed to be fine. We decided that after the dog food recall, we wanted food that was organic and optimized their health. We were looking for no preservatives, no artificial flavors, no garlic and only ingredients that we could pronounce. Originally we mixed wet food with dry food at every meal. We changed them over to homemade food by stopping the wet food and mixing homemade food into the dry kibble. About 1 week later, we stopped the dry food and within days, we saw a huge difference for the good. They seemed to have more energy, solid stools and no more vomiting. My opinion is that our bassets are thriving on homemade dog food. We have one diabetic basset and her last checkup was unbelievable! We have been able to lower her insulin by 50% and she still receives diabetic friendly dog treats during the day.To close, we believe that every dog owner needs to use common sense and make decisions based on their own situation. You know your dog better than even your vet and should make life changing decisions on their behalf for the best health possible. Making that decision as to when to switch over from commercial food to homemade is a personal one.
**Keep in mind that oatmeal, oatmeal flour, peas, and green beans should be a large part of a diabetic dog’s diet.
Dogs and cats love a variety of flavors in their food or treats, just like their owners do. Instead of using garlic in your dog food or treat recipes, try using a herb. You can use dry or fresh herbs but there are so many available now days from purchasing them at the grocery store to growing them in your backyard.Using small amounts of basil, rosemary, thyme, tarragon, oregano, cinnamon or parsley will give your home-cooked food or treats with different flavors. There are many other herbs that can be used in flavoring their food/treats, so limit adding salt or sugar when cooking. Recent studies have shown that cinnamon is good for diabetic dogs, so get creative and use cinnamon in your recipes.
The Gourmet Dog Bakery is developing dog treats with cinnamon, in order to help diabetic dogs benefit from better regulation of their blood sugar levels.
My Mom and Dad took Lola, Geoffrey and I to the McAllister Dog Park this past Sunday afternoon. I understand from a friend at the park that the temperature was about 98 degrees and boy, was that walking path HOWLING HOT. Please remember that we don’t have shoes on and there is no protection for our pads. I had to walk on the grass but some of the young pups didn’t make their owners pick up their “gifts” on the grass. That would be a nice thing to do, since us old dogs can’t see so well anymore.
We had fun visiting our friends but it was HOT! Please remember to take plenty of water and let us rest under the trees on the really hot days. Diabetic or dogs with stressed immune systems will need time to rest and cool down on hot days.
Fun and interesting site that lets you map your dog on the world map. Pet Brags allow you to post your city, state and dog’s name with a photo for free. It is fun to see what other dogs are around the world. We saw photos from Italy, England, Ireland and the USA. Have fun!
http://www.petbrags.com/profiles/blog/show?id=1002763%3ABlogPost%3A73802
Yesterday started out an ordinary Saturday but sometime after mid-day, it turned to a very smelly affair. I kept trying to tell Mom that there was something wrong. I was speaking and walking from room to room but she didn’t think there was anything to worry about. Everywhere I went, it smelled…..I tried to go from room to room, but the smell was still there. Finally, I had had enough! Where was the smell coming from, I asked myself.
I came across an article about dog friendly hotels and places to visit in Athens, GA. What a terrific sounding place to vacation with your fuzzy children & family in tow. Take a look at the article and enjoy!