Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #87823 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-21
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 214 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Food Pets Die for: Shocking Facts About Pet Food by Ann N. Martin was the first expos‚ of the shocking practices within the pet food manufacturing industry. Since the book's publication in 1997, she has been calling attention to the dubious ingredients and methods employed by many firms. And in this updated guide, Martin continues to put pressure on the big companies to find alternatives. She suggests that if acceptable commercially prepared food is not available, food can be made at home using safe and human-quality ingredients, and she provides recipes and suggestions for supplements.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Customer Reviews

interesting, but author manipulates information
I found the author's information on commercial pet foods very interesting; she seems to have done her homework. However, she's very one-sided in supporting her homemade diet and contradicts herself in doing so. For instance, she spends some time in the book describing how ignorant of animal nutrition most vets are, and how sponsorship by pet food manufacturers guides their recommendations. Then when she is describing why raw diets are bad, she states that (these same) vets agree with her. hrm..

Good read, but I wouldn't read it again.

If you love your pet -- read this book!
Extremely informative and shocking look into the pet food industry. You should know what your pet eats and that there is no guidelines on the quality and what goes into the food.

After taking the time to read this slowly and absorb it all, I have switched the brand of food I feed my furry babies. It takes some research but the book does give you enough info and some recommendations to check out for yourself.

A MUST TO READ if you truly care for your pet!

Do you love your pets like they were kids? READ THIS BOOK
I love my dog, he's my buddy and I love him dearly. As a loving dog owner I want my buddy to eat good food, like I do. I would love to give him the food I eat, but I've always heard that it can be bad for them so I always purchase the "Premium" dog food for him because the bag says it's healthier for him than the cheaper brands. Like I said, I want my buddy to eat good food.

I AM SO GLAD I SAW THIS BOOK.

It said, "Shocking facts about pet food" Why would there be a book about that? I now know why, and thank you Ann Martin.

All the B.S. on the "big brand" bags of pet "food" can mean pretty much anything at all.

"Yeah right! How can they put something on the bag that's not true? That's false advertising!"

Yep, that's what I thought too, and that is true for human food. If there is any indication that human food has been contaminated or poisoned somehow, there is an immediate recall for safety purposes. BUT, the pet "food" industry is pretty much UNregulated by the government. Basically, the pet "food" industry is in charge of itself! That's as bad as how the government representatives are in charge of whether or not they get a raise for the next year (HELLO! What would you vote?!). The pet "food" industry has such a high profit margin because the "food" they use to make they're products are the leftovers from the human food industry, and animals that weren't fit to be processed for human food which are called 4-D. Dead, Dying, Disabled, Diseased. The most horrendous thing that was discovered is how euthanized animals from kill shelters are disposed of to the rendering plants where they make pet "food", and do so without even removing collars, flea collars, tags, or even the plastic bag they are in before they are thrown in the grinder.

That is just the sickest thing I have ever heard, and the worse part of that, the drug that is used as poison to KILL animals is recycled back into the pet "food". I WILL NOT FEED MY DOG POISON. Also, in the book it shows the requirements for the different nutritional values for protein, fat & fiber are so UNregulated that they could be qualified as "leather, crandshaft oil & sawdust". This goes for both dry and canned "food". Ann also says that alot of the "fiber" in the "food" isn't only from sawdust, but ground peanut shells too. This is completely unacceptable.

I'm not going to feed my buddy what I wouldn't eat. I wouldn't even feed him chicken nuggets from fast food places after what I found out about how they are made, I won't touch one again. Not the ones that you can actually see the meat fibers, but the ones that are just a pressed meat product.
Ann also lists a few different companies that actually make pet FOOD starting with human grade materials, or food that is regulated and healthy for US to eat. The day after I finished the book, I went out and got some of this good FOOD and threw out the "food" I was giving my buddy for years. I'm so glad I saw this book.

So actually, I could have been feeding my buddy my food, and it would have been a whole lot better for him that that "waste" I was feeding him before. She also has many recipes for homecooking for your animals, which is good, but my wife says that some of these recipes can cause weight gain, and I agree because there are too many "bad carbs" included in them. We know this info from Dr. Atkins! I would say just stay away from giving them all that rice and pasta and stuff, and they should be fine.

Ann also brings up how pet "food" companies are owned by the most unlikely corporations. A well known candy bar maker owns 4 of them, a well known chocolate company owns at least 3, and a well known kechup company owns at least 5 others.

If you love your animals like they were your kids, then I don't know how you could feed them waste. PLEASE read this book, you will not be sorry you did. Besides, I would rather support a small operation pet food company that makes quality food, than some big corporation that's just out for your $$.