Monday, February 25, 2008

Cat lovers unite!

I know this blog has been all over the place, and I figure I might as well take it in one other random direction. I would like folks to consider writing a letter or email to the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) in support of proposal by the American College of Veterinary Nutrition (ACVN) to that would amend the bill that regards how pet foods are labeled.

Feline obesity opens the door to a slew of problems such as diabetes, certain liver diseases, and dingleberries. Seriously, if you want to try to prevent certain illnesses, keeping your pets at a healthy weight helps tremendously. Part of the problem with doing this is that most pet food companies are not very forthcoming about how many calories are in the food you are feeding. Rather than listing it on their product, many times the consumer is forced to contact the company for the information. Change the brand or flavor, and then you have to call again...

At this time, the AAFCO's bill does not require caloric information to be provided. What the amendment would do is make it so that all pet food labels would have to list the data on the product in relation to practical measurements (ideally it would say how many calories per cup or can as opposed to per bag or case). The amendment has been languishing in committee for 2 years now, but if enough consumers express their support, maybe we can get the proposal to move forward. Send a friendly email to Sharon@aafco.org and let them know that we want easier access to caloric information.

5 Comments:

At 8:35 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I sent my email today, and will encourage all my friends to do the same.

Shana K. Griffin

 
At 8:30 PM, Blogger Gibby II said...

Please see that caloric content is required by law to be included on cat food bags and cans.I do not mean by the bag or whole can,I mean by the avarage serving. GibbyII

 
At 8:40 PM, Blogger Gibby II said...

I finally got my email to the right site(I am just learning to use a computer)One of my babies.needed to go on a diet and it sure would have been easier.GibbyII

 
At 8:41 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

I finally got my email to the right site(I am just learning to use a computer)One of my babies.needed to go on a diet and it sure would have been easier.GibbyII

 
At 4:45 PM, Anonymous Robyn Broyles said...

This would be great information to have. It's probably especially good for people who are trying to put their cats on a weight-reducing diet.

I have never had trouble keeping my spayed/neutered, indoor cats from becoming obese. Who controls their food? I control their food. I don't feed them free-choice. This may be the single biggest thing an owner can do to keep a cat at a good weight. No table scraps for their meals, either—though they sometimes get to taste human goodies; I'm not totally mean. =)

I know this might not work for everyone. Especially in a multi-cat household when different cats need different foods. (What do you do when your big dominant adult cat likes the kitten's high-calorie food better than her own?) If they don't eat all their food at one sitting, it's hard to control amounts. And some cats are EXPERTS at stealing human foods (I've got one of those). I'm not pointing fingers at anybody with hefty cats. But... it's much easier to manage weight and diet if you manage food availability.

 

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