Pet Food, People Food...What’s the Difference

I’ve been listening to all the angst, outrage and worry about the bad dog and cat food that is currently dominating the talk at the water coolers throughout corporate America. My question is, “what’s the problem?” I’m truly sorry for those who have lost a pet to bad food, but folks, food is food. Any vet will tell you that animals will not starve themselves to death. Meaning they won’t refuse to eat. So feed them.

I’ve been a pet owner all my life and my pets have always been pretty good at handling people food if there was no dog food around. Hell, they prefer people food, if truth be told. With the way prices of dog and cat food are today, feeding your animals people food is probably a lot cheaper than buying the latest gourmet pet treats, anyway. Go ahead, spend a dollar for a pound of ground hamburger....cook it up...see if your pet refuses to eat it.

I can remember one thanksgiving dinner party that I hosted. Spent hours in the kitchen, served appetizers, drinks, cooked up a big ass turkey. Made my guests feel like they were special and dining at the Taj Mahal. We sat down to this marvelous meal and wonderful conversation just flew around the table. All of a sudden, during a lull in the conversation, when we were all busy simultaneously stuffing our faces, we heard this tiny, rapid fire smack, smack, smack of lips. I turned to the stove and there was my baby cat, “Miz Schizophrenic” joyously stuffing herself with roasted turkey breast. The turkey was bigger than she was, and she had to literally hang on by her claws, in order to dine on her chosen white meat. I did the only thing I could, pulled her off the stove and off the turkey, and served up a portion to her big brother Strider, who knew better than to attack while I was in the same room or within hearing distance.

Trust me, your pets will not be mad at you if you feed them people food for awhile.

Today’s pets are more of an accessory then a pet anyway. Everyone wants the latest designer breed...the cutest...the smallest...the most expensive. And of course, you have to feed the little twit the best food, sometimes vegetarian food, because it is healthy. I’m okay with vegetarian kids, but a vegetarian dog or cat? C’mon now. These animals are carnivores. They eat meat. Feed them.

I like alley dogs. Dogs, that are rough and ready, will eat anything that smells good, hate being groomed, love the water, chase birds and squirrels, kill snakes, and go after anyone I don’t welcome onto my property. I have three of them, one medium, one big and one really, really big. All of them love me to death and while this pet food thing is going on, they are eating the same stuff that I eat.

T.M.I. Food Labels

Word comes today that food producers are going to start using words like ‘animal compassionate,” “free farmed,” or “certified humane,” on their products in the hope of luring the health conscious, recyclers, environmentalists and animal welfare sympathizers into buying more meat and eggs.

Whole Foods Market and similar stores are getting ready to roll out food with a label certifying that the animal was raised humanely before it was slaughtered.

It is apparently an effort to capture the compassionate carnivore, I would guess. Compassionate carnivore is like compassionate conservative....an oxymoron. How the devil can you eat meat if you have strong feelings about how the animal was raised in the first place?

I understand PETA people. They are vegetarians against the inhumane practice, they say, of eating meat or of mistreating animals. They don’t want us to touch anything with a face. I understand that.

But compassionate carnivore......that’s like being a little pregnant....you either are, or you’re not...you either eat meat...or you don’t....it’s either a pet or it’s food....can’t have it both ways.

And as always with new products comes a new price...prices for compassionate meat is going to be triple the cost of buying the less hypocritical kind of meat.

The new labels are apparently being pushed by animal rights groups including the National Humane Society.

Several grocers and restaurants are already touting the newly labeled meat and eggs and claim that it is a great selling point. Business is brisk, they say.

I’m sorry, if it bothers you that much, how can you stand by and allow the cow or pig or chicken to be slaughtered in the first place?

I don’t care how you raise it, the point is that it is food, period. Doesn’t taste or look any different. In fact, the only difference is probably the label, and of course, the price.

This is just T.M.I. on labels.

I won’t ask....you don’t have to tell.