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Open Letter to AARP

I don’t stay this stunning by eating junk food.
Dear AARP,

TW was reading your 99 Great Ways to Save in the June 2015 issue of AARP Bulletin cos who doesn’t need to save in this economy. However, we both gasped when we reached reason 56. As a pet blogger who thinks she knows a bit about pet nutrition, I couldn’t disagree with you more. From the online comments the article has received, I’m not the only one who feels this way.

Reasons 54 and 55 are sound because keeping your pet’s teeth clean and their weight down undoubtedly saves on future vet bills. But you’re dead wrong on 56 which reads: "Don’t overspend on premium pet food. No need to pay $5 to $15 per pound. Buy grocery brands Purina, Iams or Pedigree for a fraction of the cost.” Reasoning like that makes your expert veterinarian Dr. Becker sound like he got his degree from Dr. Oz, whose show he appears on regularly.

You can bet I’m not eating “grocery brand” food.
Feeding your pet low cost “grocery brand" food is like a human eating McDonald’s at every meal. It tastes good but it’s not healthy. In the long run all the money you save on the food will be spent on vet bills when your pet comes down with FULD, diabetes, heart disease, thyroid disease, etc. I’ve seen it firsthand. It’s happened to some of The Cats Who Came Before Me.

If the grocery brands you’re talking about is kibble, that’s even worse for your pet, especially your cat. Kibble leads to all sorts of diseases not to mention weight gain so they’ll be susceptible to all those diseases also. Cha-ching! Your vet will love you!

Have you looked at some of the ingredients in grocery cat food? Meat meal. Fish meal. Chicken by-products. carrageenan Would you eat foods containing these additives? The rule is never feed your cat anything with ingredients you wouldn’t eat. Carrageenan is a carcinogen as well as an inflammatory for both humans and animals. Meat meal and fish meal can come from diseased and deceased animal carcasses. Ew!

Still think it’s a good idea to cut corners on pet food?

Sincerely,
Cathy Keisha

Would you like to comment?

  1. We totally agree with your. Mom says good food is super important.

    The Florida Furkids

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  2. Holy cat, glad you brought this up, CK! We are disappointed that Dr. Becker would say this. He's dome such good work promoting fear-free veterinary visits, but this is not good nutritional advice. We hear this from our vet, too. It's like some bets give up on trying to get good nutrition into their clients, and the situation leaves so many uneducated but well intended pet guardians.

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  3. That's true, CK, but there are some peoples who can't afford the premium brands and have to feed these cheaper brands. And while it may not be the best, it's okay.

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    1. That still doesn’t make it a viable way to save money because you’ll be spending anything you saved on vet bills.

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    2. CK, we don't disagree with you that proper nutrition is important and eating a high quality food is better than these cheaper brands. But we're just keeping it real...there are people who cannot afford the premium brands no matter what. But we agree that if you can afford the good stuff, you should buy it and this is one area that you shouldn't cut corners.

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  4. I'm stunned! Did they tell people to eat crap food, too, to cut down on spending? Talk about shooting your credibility in the foot!

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  5. You do look exceptionally stunning in that first photo, CK!

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  6. Somebody needs to tell AARP what wrong-headed advice that was! You are right - better nutrition leads to smaller vet bills in the long run.

    The humans here don't do AARP, even though my human's boyfriend is 57. They think it is for old people, like their parents.

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  8. Agree with you 100%! I guess the only exception would be for someone who really couldn't afford good food and it was either that or their animals weren't able to eat. But yeah, better food lower vet bills down the line.

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  9. You have a good point CK. I do sometimes buy grocery store brand dog food - Purina One. I'm not super impressed with most of the cat options that they have there. I needed to pick something up for Callie after we first got her and had a hard time choosing. Now, I just buy her some canned Fancy Feast at the store. I just ordered her some of that ONP food online. $24 for 10 lbs...

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  10. Preach it, CK!!! You tell 'em XOXOXO And, oh, btw, you look STUNNING.

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  11. What makes AARP think they're experts on animals anyway? Next they'll be saying leave your cats outside all the time so they can live on mice and rain water! I don't think so!!

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  12. Hi CK! The points you make here are good ones.

    Pet nutrition is definitely not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing. Growing up, I had a kitty named Kitty who ate Purina Cat Chow until she was 18. She developed kidney disease, but I don't think that was from the food - kidney disease is so common in older cats.

    Both Carmine and Milita ate a high-quality food, but Carmine still got sick with FLUTD. I think some cats are predisposed to certain conditions, and sometimes, despite our best efforts, they develop them no matter what we feed.

    All that being said, I do think it's important to feed a high-quality diet to your kitty. :)

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  13. It's a great article, CK. I find many vets who are good in general are not very knowledgeable when it comes to diet. So it's always good to do your own research, and posts like yours help!

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  14. As a kitty whose mom only feeds homemade raw food, I certainly agree with you. It is not a good way to save money. The only thing I would add about this, though, is that if you feed your kitty kibble, switch to wet, no matter how cheap. The cheapest wet food is better than the most expensive dry food!

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  15. Here here!! skimping on nutrition is NOT a cost cutting measure except in the direst of circumstances..


    not to mention the cat has to eat more of poor quality food to get the nutrients it needs, so you feed more of it, and you use more litter because of all the waste..

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  16. That really is shocking, especially coming from such a prominent vet.

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  17. Appawse!!!! That was fantastic CK!!!

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  18. Shocking. You are what you eat.
    Thanks for your kind condolences for Radish. Memorial post tomorrow.

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  19. AARP needs to get familiar with pet bloggers! It is pretty hard to put on over like that when so many people are so schooled on what is best for the furry ones.

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  20. BFGF you are spot on!! I tweeted your post to AARP Hope they read it!

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  21. ck...we haz been a Purina familee....for YEERZ....troo lee ....N knockin on wood.....& de food gurlz head...oh wait...that iz wood.....we haz never had trubulls....pupz or kittehz.....honest ta codz trooth ~~~ ♥♥♥

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  22. Way to go CK. Gweat posty and gweat letter. Weez hope yous submitted it to AARP. Weez used to luv Dr. Becker but as of late sum of da statements hims makin' is makin' us wunner 'bout hims qualifications. Or at least wunner ifin hims sold out fur munny. Maybe hims opinion can be bought. Have a gweat day.

    Luv ya'

    Dezi and Lexi

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  23. You. Are so right cjk. Good post.

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  24. WELL SAID!!! Ah, why people are just so naive or simply do not care....it's beyond me, I don't get it!
    ღ husky hugz ღ frum our pack at Love is being owned by a husky!

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  25. I thought Dr. Marty Becker was smarter than that, that is awful advice. Thanks for bringing this to our attention, I am going to share this post on Twitter and Facebook.

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  26. You tell them CK kittygurl!!!
    Mee agrees!! mee iss not doin so well because o crummy food butt because mee iss on high quality kibbull an meat!!! Thiss AARP are out to lunch, mew mew mew..
    **paw patss** Siddhartha Henry xxx

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  27. Sometimes I am shocked at how out of touch some people/brands are with issues like pet food and puppy mills. I guess it does prove that us pet bloggers really are experts - at least on current trends and news.

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  28. I definitely agree good nutrition is important! We know people who feed their dog really low-quality food then complain about how much she sheds and how much she has to go to the bathroom!

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  29. Thanks for speaking out on this topic, CK and TW. Obviously the people at AARP don't know much about the positive long-term effects of good nutrition; otherwise, they wouldn't be dolling out such poor advice. Thanks for setting them straight!

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  30. Scary stuff. We guess if you are a senior on a very strict budget, you may not have an alternative to feeding these items, and Mom and Dad have had kitties who have lived to 19 years eating Purina Cat Chow. She's learned lots about pet nutrition since she started blogging and does a better job now with our noms. XOCK, Lily Olivia, Mauricio, Misty May, Giulietta, Fiona, Astrid, Lisbeth and Calista Jo

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  31. More people need to speak up! We lost our beloved dog in the prime of her life who died after eating some of the poisoned pet food from China. It was a horrifying awakening that I would not wish on anyone! KNOW WHAT YOU ARE FEEDING YOUR FUR FAMILY MEMBERS!

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