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Post by shmeep on Oct 26, 2006 7:59:21 GMT -5
I mentioned this a few months back... I know I've mentioned this elsewhere, but I have a good memoir to recommend. "Slackjaw" by Jim Knipfel is a really funny and irreverent look at the author's experiences while losing his vision. Oh, and he's also a little crazy, but that just makes him all the more lovable. It's the only book I ever read that opened with a suicide attempt...that made me laugh. It's just plain wrong, but I couldn't put it down. What I liked most about this book was the way in which Jim handled losing his sight. He found it completely fascinating, even though it sucked sometimes. Also, his sight wasn't what messed him up, that was just who he was already. I didn't approve of much of what he did and he was highly frustrating at times, but I came away feeling like I knew him--or wishing that I did. I read somewhere that when he had someone go over his book to make sure no one could sue him over the content, he was told that he should consider suing himself. After reading it, I understood why. Well, I have an update on this author. He had been a columnist for the New York Press for several years and I found, during a recent google search, that he has been fired from that job and now his column will appear online at a random website that seems to have nothing to do with work of his kind. Very odd. I checked out this website and there was contact info there for him so I actually sent the guy an email! I assumed he wouldn't get it or he wouldn't respond, but he responded almost immediately so I sent a little follow-up email asking him a few questions about the new column and he also responded to that right away. I'm stunned. I don't know why it's such a big deal to me, but it was quite exciting to be in direct contact with an author I admire (even if I do believe he's nutty). That is a first for me! Modified to add:How silly of me. I do have a lot of direct contact with one very admired author. Please forgive the omission. |
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Post by bump on Nov 9, 2006 21:50:52 GMT -5
This one's for the cat owners in the group (and for anybody who knows a cat owner)... A friend recommended "The New Natural Cat" by Anitra Frazier. It's a reference book that advocates natural methods for taking care of your cat. Given that I have 3 feral cats that are somewhat-domesticated but still have a lot of their natural instincts, there are things suggested in the book that I'll never try (since I prefer to keep my fingers intact  ). There are also some things that are just a bit out there for me, but others might be willing to try. There are other things in the book that I've found useful and educational. For example, the oldest of my cats is diabetic. She goes into feline diabetes, explaining what other conditions are common in cats with the disease, recommending a diet that is supposed to help the pancreas, etc. In another section she goes into detail of what is put into the low-quality canned cat food. I was horrified. I knew it was bad, but I didn't realize it was that bad. I mean, cancerous and decomposing animals?!   We'll be ditching the Fancy Feast. All in all, an interesting read and a good reference. |
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Post by bjobsessed on Nov 9, 2006 22:00:38 GMT -5
In another section she goes into detail of what is put into the low-quality canned cat food. I was horrified. I knew it was bad, but I didn't realize it was that bad. I mean, cancerous and decomposing animals?! We'll be ditching the Fancy Feast. We feed Fancy Feast to our cat all the time. She loves it! Is that really what's in it? |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 9, 2006 23:56:34 GMT -5
My cat does perfectly fine on Fancy Feast; I bring her to one of the very best vets in the Tri-State area (he interned at The Animal Medical Center in NYC) and he has no problem with her diet, is very pleased with her progress.
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Post by bump on Nov 10, 2006 8:57:46 GMT -5
All of my cats love Fancy Feast. (Side note: Another part of the book says that a lot of canned cat foods have tuna as an ingredient because it has a strong addictive property).
The diabetic cat can't have Fancy Feast because he's on a special diet. Our vet recommended against giving it to him because it's higher in sugars and fat.
Now that I know what's in these foods, I just can't bring myself to keep feeding it to them if I can find something else that's healthier for them and that they'll enjoy.
Below is the part of the citation about the foods. It's about 2 pages long and I don't want to type it all up. I have a strong stomach and it turned me off. I would recommend not reading it while eating.
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If you pick up any canned cat food in your supermarket and read the tiny print under the heading “Ingredient,” you will undoubtedly see the words meat by-products or beef by-products. Dr. P.F. McGargle, a veterinarian who has also been a federal meat inspector, says by-products “can include moldy, rancid or spoiled processed meats as well as tissue too severely riddled with cancer to be eaten by people.” Dr. Alfred Plechneer gives a more comprehensive list: “Diseased tissue, pus, hair, assorted slaughterhouse rejects, and carcasses in varying stages of decomposition are sterilized with chemicals, heat and pressure procedures.”
Many by-products come from so-called “4-D” animals – dead, dying, diseased, and disabled – which the federal government actually allows in pet food. The theory is that all harmful bacteria and viruses are destroyed by heat processing at high temperatures, which “sterilizes” the meat by-products. How would you feel if you knew that the food you ate every day was composed of diseased meat? Even if the government is right and all the bacteria and viruses have been killed by the processing, would you consider the resulting “food” to be good for you?
She goes on to talk about how there are chemical sprays and pesticides in some of the foods:
In addition, many veterinarians I know routinely endorse a brand of food that is made mostly of beef by-products or chicken by-products and contains ethoxyquin, a fat preservative that was originally invented and used as a successful pesticide.
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Post by maggiethecat on Nov 10, 2006 9:31:00 GMT -5
Does the article specifically mention Fancy Feast? I don't think of that as a "low quality canned food" -- to me, that means Friskies and Purina and the grocery store's house brand. Magge the (real) cat was raised on Iams, which costs about the same as Fancy Feast and is available at most grocery stores now; it's up there with Science Diet and Nutra Cat in reputation. I have to tell you, it smells fine -- like people food -- when you open the can. It's supposed to be like kitty health food, and my vet says it's great stuff. I would be extremely surprised if Iams was using the methods mentioned in the article. Here's a semi-related tip: I never give a cat canned food with fish in it, for two reasons: proteins and grains are natural to a cat's diet and fish is not and -- here's the most important reason -- not having fish in a cat's diet makes for (um, how do I say this?) less odiferous waste in the litter pan. This is true! Then again, before all this fancy cat food was around, my childhood cats were raised on Purina Cat Chow and Purina canned can food (which looks really awful), and they were fine.  * * * Now, for those of you who like a well-written and engaging mystery novel on a cold winter night, I recommend the Clare Fergusson/Russ Van Aldyne mysteries by Julia Spenser-Fleming. There are four -- the first one, In the Bleak Midwinter -- won about every award you could throw at a mystery. The books are set in a small town in upstate New York. Clare Fregusson is a wonderful character, an Army chopper pilot turned Episcopal priest (!), and Russ Van Aldyne is the local chief of police. The books are very well plotted but essentially character-driven, and work as novels of small town life and mores. I just finished the fifth in the series, which is brand new, last night . . . and now I'll be nibbling my fingernails for two years waiting for the next one. |
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Post by maggiethecat on Nov 10, 2006 9:33:47 GMT -5
Modified to add:How silly of me. I do have a lot of direct contact with one very admired author. Please forgive the omission. How did I miss this, you little devil? Thank you and karma!  |
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Post by shmeep on Nov 10, 2006 9:46:45 GMT -5
We'll be ditching the Fancy Feast. Thanks for the book reference, rmiro! I'll have to check that out. I've never given my cats canned cat food. I used to feed them whatever was the cheapest dry food, but two of my cats--brother and sister--used to always have horribly smelly and soft--ahem-- you know. My vet said they had sensitive digestive systems and would react poorly to anything but quality cat food and he suggested Iams. After that, I only used Iams and their problem disappeared completely. A couple of times I went back to cheap cat food and their problem always returned immediately so I learned my lesson. Both of those cats are dead now, but I still feed my cats dry Iams cat food and they are quite healthy. I really didn't know about all that stuff in canned cat food. Blech! Does the same go for the dry food as well? |
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Post by shmeep on Nov 10, 2006 9:48:24 GMT -5
Modified to add:How silly of me. I do have a lot of direct contact with one very admired author. Please forgive the omission. How did I miss this, you little devil? Thank you and karma! I was wondering when you were going to notice that. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 10, 2006 9:58:43 GMT -5
Does the article specifically mention Fancy Feast? , that's my question. Now, back to recommended reading. Running with Scissors, by Augusten Burroughs is a tremendous read about how this man survived the most insane childhood I'd ever heard of. I think the movie is out already. I've already started Dry by him as well, and I'll keep you posted. |
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Post by shmeep on Nov 10, 2006 10:31:46 GMT -5
Since so many of us are cat owners, I have copied the relevant posts about this book into a Cat Food Discussion Thread in the Misc. section of the board. If you wish to respond to anything you see posted here about cat food, please do so in that other thread. Thank you, rmiro, for starting such a interesting discussion. |
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Post by inuvik on Apr 4, 2007 11:34:05 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2007 11:42:42 GMT -5
I say go for "The Other Boleyn Girl" by Philippa Gregory - it's great!
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Post by inuvik on Apr 4, 2007 11:47:02 GMT -5
I say go for "The Other Boleyn Girl" by Philippa Gregory - it's great! Uh oh, reading war.... |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2007 15:25:16 GMT -5
I say go for "The Other Boleyn Girl" by Philippa Gregory - it's great! Uh oh, reading war.... Never my dear....but karma! ;D |
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). There are also some things that are just a bit out there for me, but others might be willing to try.
We'll be ditching the Fancy Feast.
