Sherman’s News and Editorials

This article is especially important to me because of the recent pet food recall including both dog and cat food. Please visit your vet immediately if you see any signs that may appear “abnormal” behavior. It may have nothing to do with what they ate but it is better to be safe than sorry. As I write this article on March 25, 2007, the recall has widened to include all wet food as a safety precaution regardless of the date code, reports the Globe & Mail. Retailers have been asked to remove all of these foods. The “recall” list can be found by visiting www.menufoods.com/recall/. As you may or may not have heard there has been a huge pet food recall on numerous brands of dog and cat food that may contain aminopterin, rat poison. Yes, rat poison. At this time there is no news as to how it got into the food. It has been reported this has been the cause of at least 16 deaths as well as more that are very ill and receiving treatment. What can separate the premium food from mainstream? Sadly, current pet food regulations permit producer’s to use ingredients that you would never knowingly give to your dog or cat. In fact, you may be shocked to learn what some brands of pet food really contain. For example: the use of by-products (feet, bones and intestines, etc.), chemical preservatives (BHA and BHT) and grains that are often difficult to digest (corn, wheat, gluten and soy), which are often used as a protein source instead of meat. Be Aware of Unfavorable Ingredients By-products – basically this is what is left over when the good cuts of meat are taken for humans. Bones, intestines, heads, feet, tendons, ligaments and other body parts are known as by-products. Grains such as soy, corn, corn gluten and wheat gluten are often used as protein sources; however, they are often either inferior and difficult to digest. Chemical Preservatives including BHA, BHT and ethoxoquin can be very harmful to pets. Freshness - Big corporate manufacturers produce both dog and cat foods in massive batches which may last for a long period of time, so you might be feeding your animal food which is 6 months or even a year old. These are only some things to stay away from. Look to see if your dog or cat food contains vitamins, minerals, anti-oxidants and bacteria cultures to name a few. Remember, what your vet recommends as premium dog food might be the farthest thing from healthy. Lori Matthews studies health, nutrition and wellness. She enjoys writing articles on health for both people and pets. Please visit her site containing information on quality, premium dog food by Life’s Abundance This is an all natural, holistic dog food formulated by Dr. Jane Bicks. In light of the recent dog food recalls which have affected thousands of consumers and tainted over 50 brands, you can only imagine how important it is to feed our pets the proper food. It is obviously important to feed premium, quality foods for their wellness and in some cases even their mental well being.

If you are a pet owner, It is now more important than ever to be certain that you are feeding your animal a premium dog food or a holistic, premium cat food. When I first heard about the horrors of the rendering plants, I thought it was an exaggeration. But upon hearing the recent news of the dog and cat food recalls I see that what I heard may have been just the tip of the iceberg. At the time of this writing, there are some 53 dog products which have been recalled and another 42 cat products. And this list is likely to grow. If your dog or cat has eaten any of the food listed on the rather extensive recall list and they are showing signs of illness, be sure to contact your vet right away because with treatment it may not be too late. The FDA states that contaminated dog food that was sold in twenty-three states has already killed nearly two dozen dogs in the country and sickened some eighteen 18 others. The final tally will almost certainly be higher, unfortunately. CBS News has reported on it’s website that some of the dog food may contained aflatoxin. This is basically a chemical which comes from a fungus occasionaly found on corn & other crops, and may cause severe liver damage in some instances. What are the symptoms to look for in your pet? Look for general sluggishness or lethargy, diminished appetite and in extreme instances heavy vomiting, fever and jaundice. According to an article by on USA today’s website by journalist Liz Szabo entitled Pet food recall affects 90 brands’, Laurie Miller, who is a veterinarian at the Hope Center for Advanced Veterinary Medicine in Vienna, Virginia., states that she has received many of calls regarding the recall and that she now is treating a two year-old German shepherd who developed diarrhea and vomiting after eating a particular type of Iams dog food which is included in the recall. Most of the products listed are are marketed around the country by retailers like Wal-Mart, Kroger, Safeway and PetSmart, to name a few. In fact, consumers kept a phone line (866-895-2708) set up by Menu Foods busy all weekend. A big part of the problem seems to be that many of these mainstream type brands are owned by the same parent conglamorate corporation. The pet food in question has not only been widely distributed in the United States but also in Canada and Mexico, according to Mathew Verrinder, an Associated Press journalist, as reported in Yahoo news. How can you make sure that your dog or cat is eating Healthy, safe food? I would choose a true premium dog food or cat food. Not just the “natural” version of the mainstream brand found in your local grocery store. According to my research Premium Dog food from Life’s Abundance may very well be the best choice in this regard. This food is formulated by renowned holistic veternarian Dr. Jane Bicks. This Premium Dog Food does NOT contain corn, wheat, dairy, by-products, artificial colors or flavors found in most mainstream brands. If fed a diet that it is optimally balanced, your dog can live to his or her maximum potential lifespan. For cats, take a look at Holistic,Premium Cat food from Life’s Abundance Hopefully this will get you started in the right direction. 

There really are a lot of health products available today that were not prominent in years past, at least in the United States and Canada. A number of superfoods or supplements have emerged ar at least greatly increased in potency, such as fish oil and bee pollen, for example. One relative newcomer is Goji Juice from the Himilayas, made from the famous Goji Berry (or Wolfberry, depending on who you ask)….This one has always made sense to me because if any berry was hardy enouph to withstand the extremes of 20,000 feet they had to be made of something special. I saw some information about Goji Juice at http://www.goji-planet.com/ and I found it to be pretty interesting.

I had long heard it said that It is said that the Himalayan region was the home of the first all-natural healers, and that they shared their specific wisdom with the ancient herbalists of China, Tibet, Nepal and India. One of their secrets, apparently, is the seemingly modest  fruit of the native goji vine which  has grown in that area since the beginning of recorded history.

But why does this stuff actually work? Well evidentally Goji Juice features some 4 specif, one of a kind polysaccharides, (aka phytonutrient compounds) which work in the body as directors of the various instructions which cells use to communicate with one another. These polysaccharides are considered to be “Master Molecules” and command and control many of the body’s most important defense systems. Hmmm, interesting, isn’t it?

Have any of you ever suffered from Blogging burnout? If you run several weblogs, as I do, you likely have experienced this occurance at one time or another, It is very disconcerting when this happens, and at least with me, it is normally triggered when some error happens with Wordpress or if I somehow manage to accidentally lose all of my work, It really sucks when that happens, it is demoralizing as hell. This phenomenom happened to me recently when I tried to achive a very ambitious self imposed deadline for writing fresh cont3ent for all of my blogs….but I went to the gym and got out of the house for a while and now I feel a lot better. In fact I am fairly fresh now…..so it is back to work for me, writing, writing and more writing!