As usual, the first announcement of a recall is usually not the last. The Nature’s Variety raw dog and cat food recall I announced earlier has been expanded to all bags of raw chicken and organic chicken with Best By dates of 2/5/11 or earlier. My dog has just finished an entire bag of the chicken diet–his first time eating the raw food–and has showed no adverse reactions.

Unopened bags and empty opened bags may be returned for a full refund or replacement. Members of the Nature’s Variety e-mail list also received coupons for $3 off any bag of raw diet, $3 off any kibble, and $1 off any two cans.

In positive news regarding this recall, Nature’s Variety is, as of late 2009, using a High Pressure Pasteurization on all raw frozen diets. This unique process kills pathogenic bacteria through high-pressure, water based technology. Recalling the foods that were made prior to this process went into effect will ensure that all Nature’s Variety products on the shelves will have been manufactured with this safe, new process.

Visit Nature Variety’s web site to read the entire press release, posted today.

I am very saddened to report that my favorite pet food company, Nature’s Variety, has initiated a voluntary recall.

This recall only involves their raw medallions, patties, and chubs, and is due to possible contamination of salmonella.

The only products affected are limited to Chicken flavored food with a “Best If Used By” date of 11/10/10. This includes:

* 3 lb chicken medallions (UPC# 7 69949 60130 2) with a “Best If Used By” date of 11/10/10
* 6 lb chicken patties (UPC# 7 69949 60120 3) with a “Best If Used By” date of 11/10/10
* 2 lb chicken chubs (UPC# 7 69949 60121 0) with a “Best If Used By” date of 11/10/10

My cat Charlie just finished a bag of Nature’s Variety Raw Chicken Medallions two days ago. I do not know if the “Best If Used By” date matched, but Charlie showed no negative symptoms while eating the food. He is currently eating the Rabbit and Venison flavors and will continue to eat them for the time being. I believe in this company.

Read the official press release here.

One of the reasons my newest pet is a kitten rather than an older cat is because I wanted to be able to wean her directly onto raw food, hopefully whole prey. It’s going pretty well.

I started first by purchasing a small feeder pinky mouse from the freezer at the pet store. Although it was barely the size of a quarter, I was still amazed to see Aura, my then 9 week old Ragdoll, take it down lightening fast. When she became an extremely picky eater, those pinky mice remained the one food she would not turn down. She would turn down premium canned food like Nature’s Variety and EVO, cheap “kitty crack” canned food like Fancy Feast, and even cooked chicken…but she would always eat those pinky mice.

But I wasn’t going to pay $1 – $2 per pinky mouse when I can get them for as little as $.16 cents each at RodentPro.com. While that price can jump up to around $.50 cents each when you add shipping, I am lucky enough to be abe to pre-order at web site prices and pick up my order at a local reptile show. This weekend I got 50 weanling mice and 50 chicks for $23.

Rodenpro’s feeder prey is so clean and healthy looking! My kitten just loves them – especially the chicks, which I just scored for $.12 cents each! The chicks usually offer her a great workout, too…she loves to play with them for 5-10 minutes before feasting. She likes the small quail too, but I haven’t been able to get her to eat any older, meatier quail yet. She’s not interested. She was also not interested in the Gourmet Rodent mice I bought for her at Petco when I ran out of my RodentPro mice. And I don’t blame her! Those mice were wet and smelly.

I love all animals, and never thought I’d be able to feed frozen whole prey.  But it’s been much easier than I thought; way easier than feeding frankenprey, and much cheaper than canned. I usually pet these cute little guys for a second before throwing them to her, thanking them for supplying my kitten with all the nutrients she needs. Gnawning on their little bones cleans her teeth. They are full of protein, and their organs are full of the vitamins and taurine she needs. Aura highly recommends RodentPro!

I was feeding Aura some frankenprey for a while (chunks of cut up raw meat and organs), but now she isn’t interested in it. She is currently eating the whole prey during the day and some canned at night…the past two days she has started to steal my toothless cat’s pre-made Nature’s Variety raw, as well. She won’t eat it if I offer her her own though, she only wants to steal Charlie’s

My friendly local Nature’s Variety sales rep turned me on to this great coupon for Nature’s Variety Raw food for dogs and cats! “Nature’s Variety Raw Frozen Diets are formulated like the ancestral diet with 95% meat, organs, and raw ground bone, and with wholesome fruits and vegetables.”

Click here to register at their web site to receive a coupon in your email for buy one get one free of their 3 pound bag. This is a great deal!

There is also a coupon to try Nature’s Variety’s all new Sweet Spots, natural frozen ice cream treats for dogs. Get a free carton when you buy any holistic diet from Nature’s Variety.

Enjoy!

Ever since a rise in pet food recalls and problems with contaminated pet food, pet owners are getting more educated regarding the pet food industry. Many are doing their research and finding out that dogs and cats were designed by nature to digest natural, unprocessed food that consists primarily of protein.

Dry kibble, no matter how “premium,” is not healthy for any dog or cat, especially one with health issues of any kind. Kibble is high in carbohydrates, and the brands that boast they are low-carbohydrates are not compensated with extra protein–making it even lower in quality and nutrition. Kibble often derives its proteins from plants rather than meats, meaning it does not supply your pet with his basic nutritional needs. This includes Science Diet and other dry kibble prescribed by your veterinarian.

“It’s important to note that veterinarians have no formal education in nutrition, vitamins, minerals, or supplementation unless they seek it out themselves outside of their training,” said Dr. Carol Osborne, DVM, a holistic veterinarian who practices in Chagrin Falls, Ohio.

Of prescription food like Hill’s, Dr. Carol said, “these diets are commercial, not organic, and filled with chemicals and by-products. The more we get such ingredients our of our bodies the better; for pets and humans alike.”

Enter home-cooking and raw food.  Read the rest of this article…

I have been on a quest, ever since the major pet food recall two years ago, to find great food for my dog. Sometimes I get lazy and feed him the same food for too long, when I know that variety is healthier.

After a recent visit to the vet, we were told to start replacing 1/3 of Mr. Blue’s food with veggies. The results were great. He had had two lumps on his back end that turned out to be “fat pockets.” After a few weeks of adding veggies into his food, the lumps are at least 50% smaller. That was a great inspiration in finding other options for him.

Today I was at the pet store and noticed Evanger’s 100% meat canned food, which is meant to supplement your dog’s usual meal or add as a topper. I almost purchased some, but then I thought I might as well just give him fresh meat from the store rather than canned. Then I went home to research Evanger’s and found Dr. Marty Goldstein, a holistic vet who has appeared on Oprah and has a radio show, “Ask Martha’s Vet,” on Sirius’ Martha Stewart Living Radio.

I was very impressed by Dr. Marty’s feeding advice and wanted to repost it here. I am currently feeding my cats raw food–both pre-made and actual raw–but haven’t done that yet for my 70 pound dog for cost’s sake (he gets Nature’s Variety Instinct grain-free dry and canned). This advice, however, is the perfect encouragement to get me on a better path for him, step by step. Here is Dr. Marty’s chart, which flows from most to least healthy:

The chart below outlines how our feeding choices for our pets (companion carnivores) can affect their health. The closer to the upper level choices, the better the chance for optimal health. You will likely be in the middle ranges most of the time. That is fine, as long as you always press toward the ideal.

Ideal – Healthiest

1. Hunted, raw prey (not realistic in modern society)

2. Fresh raw meats, bones, organ meats with very small amounts of fresh vegetables. Include a well-rounded vitamin/mineral mix and omega 3 essential fatty acids (salmon oil). You can prepare your own raw diet using meat/bone pieces and parts, or you can use pre-prepared ground products such as Bravo! and Nature’s Variety.

3. Fresh cooked meats, calcium, organ meat, with very small amounts of fresh vegetables. Include a vitamin/mineral mix, and omega 3 essential fatty acids (salmon oil). There are several books on the market that help you create your own home-cooked diet. It’s best to follow the recipes in these books.

4. Ultra Premium commercial canned foods and augmented with some fresh, raw foods. Canned foods, which are lower in carbohydrates, are much better for your pet than dry kibble. Some of the brands I like are Nature’s Variety, Merrick, and Evanger’s. These products are mostly meat, are usually grain-free, and very low in carbohydrates. The meat they use is human quality and they do not use by-products or chemical preservatives.

5. As in #4 above, but adding fresh cooked foods

6. Ultra Premium canned commercial foods WITHOUT fresh raw or cooked foods added

7. Super Premium canned foods are very much like the brands above, but they use more grains. They still use good quality meats and don’t contain by-products. Brand examples: Solid Gold, Innova, Pet Promise.

8. Super Premium grain-free dry food (kibble) like Instinct by Nature’s Variety

9. Premium canned foods. These brands use substantially less meat. Water is often the number 1 ingredient (in the Ultra Premium brands meat is the number one ingredient), they use meat by-products (poor quality waste parts) and they usually contain significant amounts of grains and chemical preservatives. Often, if all the grains are added together, they would equal or exceed the meat. The meat quality is OK, but just barely.

10. Super Premium kibble like Innova, Prairie, Canidae, and Timberwolf

11. Grocery store brands – canned or dry. These contain very little meat, are made with substantial amounts of meat by-products, and primarily consist of grain and grain by-products. The rendered meat used in these products came from condemned animals, ie – animals that were deemed unfit for human consumption. These products normally contain artificial colors, flavors and chemical preservatives.

Worst – Unhealthy

Thank you for visiting Go Fetch Gifts. We’re getting ready to launch GoFetchGifts.com, a shop filled with safe, quality gifts and supplies for pets and the people who love them. It’s a site with a mission.

It all started with a mysterious illness. My cat, who is of an unknown age because I rescued him from an alley in winter, had always been fed what I thought was a premium food. Yet, his health seemed to be declining and the vets could not explain it.

I did plenty of research online, and decided to try a company that sold raw food for pets. The very first day I fed my cat that food, his life changed and his health began improving. (I will go into more detail in a later post – in fact I will probably talk about it a lot.) It is now one year later and that cat is healthier at age 14 than he has been in years. He grew a full coat back that I thought was gone for good five years ago, when he first got sick.

After I saw these amazing results, I began telling everyone I could about my find hoping that at least one of them would try it. I finally decided to revisit an idea I had had years back – opening an online store where I would only sell and recommend products that I truly beleived in for the safety and health of these innocent pets who depend on us for so much.

The store will launch in the new year, 2009. Thank you for visiting and see you soon!