Also see the 5/25/07 post under "New Recalls" re Itchmo's breaking news that cyanuric acid and melamine has been found in corn gluten intercepted in Canada.  Iams Large Breed contains corn meal and is made by Menu Foods; Menu Foods in is Canada. 

The corn gluten also tested positive for melamine. 

http://www.itchmo.com/read/corn-gluten-sent-to-canada-test-positive-for-two-toxins_20070525

Hannah_sMom,

A list of "who makes what" is at: www.thepetfoodlist.com/manufacturers.htm .  It looks like "M.I. Industries" makes Nature's Variety pet foods, but don't know if that is true for all NV versions or just a few.

I agree with Geff re not buying Royal Canin, but for different reasons.

My 10 y/o neutered kitty was dx'd with UTI, bladder stones & kidney stones in mid-Feb before the recalls started.  In an effort to avoid surgery, he was put on RC Urinary SO 30, both dry & canned.  With both products he would projectile vomit within 10 minutes of eating *any* of it (was mixing small amts with his normal food in order to do a gradual transition).  I stopped feeding him any of the RC and tossed the bag of dry.  But I do still have a couple of the cans ... "just in case".     The Urinary SO has not been recalled yet, but I will not be surprised if/when it does get recalled.

FWIW, below are the ingreds for both the dry & canned versions.  The dry contains rice & corn gluten; the canned is preserved with BHA/BHT. 

Ingredients:
ROYAL CANIN Veterinary Diet™ feline URINARY SO 30™ Dry
Chicken meal, rice, corn gluten meal, ground corn, chicken fat, natural flavors, cellulose powder, sodium chloride, dried brewers yeast, dried egg powder, potassium chloride, calcium sulfate, monosodium phosphate, choline chloride, calcium carbonate, taurine, DL-methionine, vitamins [DL-alpha-tocopherol (source of vitamin E), niacin, biotin, riboflavin (vitamin B2), D-calcium pantothenate, pyridoxine hydrochloride (vitamin B6), thiamine mononitrate (vitamin B1), vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin A acetate, vitamin D3 supplement, folic acid], trace minerals [zinc oxide, ferrous sulfate, copper sulfate, manganous oxide, sodium selenite, calcium iodate], preserved with natural mixed tocopherols, rosemary extract, and citric acid.

ROYAL CANIN Veterinary Diet™ feline URINARY SO™IN GEL Can
Water, meat by-products, chicken by-products, animal fat (preserved with BHA/BHT), natural flavors, trace minerals (sodium tripolyphosphate, calcium sulfate, potassium chloride, calcium carbonate, magnesium sulfate, manganese sulfate, zinc sulfate) guar gum, carrageenan, carob gum, taurine, vitamins (choline chloride, DL-alpha tocopherol acetate [source of vitamin E], vitamin D3 supplement, thiamine mononitrate [vitamin B1], pyridoxine hydrochloride [vitamin B6], folic acid), DL-methionine.

S&T -
Is Symba gate trained?  By that I mean, does he stay behind & not jump over a baby gate?  If not, train him to do so, then just put a baby gate in the doorway to where the kitty box is.  Trooper can get in to use the box, Symba stays out, and humans can easily step over the gate.   I've always had big dogs & kitties, and I've always gate-trained the dogs.  It's a great convenience that also has the side benefit of being able to confine a dog to one area without crating.

Hey Willy -

If this "political action" starts to get legs, are there Canadian legislators (are they called Parliamentarians???) who could be contacted?  Know anyone who could/would do that?

I forgot to mention that both senators list "animal issues" as areas of great interest, each recently received awards for their work in animal welfare, and both are on Senate committees that may be helpful. Sen. Ensign is on the Budget Committee and the Commerce Science & Transportation Committee (which includes interstate commerce).  Sen. Allard lists an additional interest of Ag issues, is also on the Budget Committee, and is on the Appropriations Committee.

Raising awareness and consciousness at the local level is great because that gets media attention.  (Ummm, I vaguely recall that from war protests during my salad days.  )  And lots of media attention could get the attention of Congress. 

Soooo, who in Congress might be receptive?  Senators Ensign (NV) and Allard (CO) are both veterinarians.  Good place to start, methinks.  Because constituents have greater impact on elected officials than non-constituents, are there any NV or CO voters here willing to contact those Senators?   

IVD is now part of Royal Canin, as is Waltham.   For info on this & other veterinary diets, see: www.thepetcenter.com/imtop/td.html .  There are other, non-Rx, brands with potato or oatmeal - Eagle Pack comes to mind.

The Royal Canin Urinary SO rx'd for one of my cats (had bladder & kidney stones) was preserved with BHA/BHT. Certainly not my idea of safe, or healthy.  My kitty would immediately vomit both the wet & dry, so I tossed the food.   

This may be tough to do accurately, and is probably a HUGE project, but would it be possible to have a separate board/section entitled "Manufacturers", along with sub-headings for Menu Foods, American Nutrition, Tejas (Merrick), and the other actual manufacturers that have been uncovered, and then have the brands each one makes listed in sub-headings?  For it to be useful, it would need to be limited to "just the facts" - no commentary; think outline format.  A lot of the info is at PetFoodList , but that is organized by brand name.  And more info is scattered throughout the forums and at Itchmo.  With so many people not trusting *anything* from Menu and ANI, especially in light of tonight's news about cross-contamination, a board organized by manufacturer could be very useful. 

I'm considering it too, for my dogs and cats.  Any & all opinions from past or current users would be greatly appreciated. 

I had a bad experience with Canidae Platinum in 2003. 

After a 3-4 week transition period from ProPlan Sensitive Skin & Stomach to Canidae Platinum, my Dobe bloated on the 4th day of being 100% on Canidae.  Coincidence?  Don't know.  Will I ever trust Canidae again?  Nope.

Two reasons for adding my $0.02 to this thread:

1st)  PLEASE try to keep the thread on topic, which is supposed to be about Kumpi pet foods.  When the thread sidetracks into politics, the PFI [industry OR Institute], and/or something else, those of us who are concerned and apprehensive about what to feed and come here to research alternative brands, are not helped at all.  IMHO, please take the politics to a proper forum, and the personality conflicts/slamming should be taken private - better yet, should not be done at all. 

2nd)  Re pet food mftrs' ability to post on these forums:  I think such posts are desirable and mftrs ought to be encouraged to post more often.  "Insider info", if you will, provides us mere peon consumers another avenue for obtaining crucial information about the quality (or lack thereof) of various pet foods.  Information from varied sources allows intelligent humans to make well-reasoned and educated decisions.  Is this not why we are all here in the first place?  Personally, I would LOVE to read posts from mftrs who state with specificity exactly what goes into their products, where all the ingredients are grown/created and processed, who does that growing & processing, and all the rest of the details.  In other words, total, complete, honest  transparency.  Yep, I know .... that will happen just as soon as gas goes down to $0.25/gal . 

FWIW, I have never used any Kumpi product nor have I ever communicated with anyone at Kumpi.  I don't trust any pet food mftr at this point; I don't even trust human food mftrs now.  Nonetheless, it does strike me as positive that one or more members of the Kumpi company have been willing to publically post here and elsewhere, in what appears to be an honest effort to educate and help pet parents help their beloved critters, despite being subjected to continued criticism for doing so.   To me, that says a lot about their corporate integrity - Your mileage may vary.

Davis,
I'm much more familiar with dogs than cats, BUT .... The seizure-like symptoms mentioned could indeed be heart disease.  I have seen those symptoms in dogs dx'd with dilated cardiomyopathy, most recently in my 12.5 y/o Dobe.  Cardiomyopathy often does not manifest as a "heart attack" that we would recognize; it's much more subtle.   Another thought ---> walking in circles, head tilt, etc, may be indicative of vestibular disease or possibly cervical vertebrae instability (especially if he also drags his feet).  All of these conditions are serious and should be checked by a qualified & knowledgeable vet.

If the "bad things about vaccines" you refer to are vaccine-site carcinomas, those occur as a result of frequent (i.e., annual) vaccinations in the same location.  You probably don't need to worry about that at this point as he hasn't been vaccinated.  Also, IF he had his kitten series and a booster or two, he may very well be protected.  Recent studies have shown immunities last for a  lot longer than a year or two, and the AVMA is now recommending longer vaccination protocols. 

You mention living in a small, remote area.  Many times such areas have mobile vets who come to your house, especially if you're in an Ag area.  Even if there are no mobile vets, locate a good clinic & schedule an appt ASAP.  Some ideas for finding a good vet are: Ask at the local Feed & Supply, ask neighbors, ask dog/cat clubs, ask *reputable* dog/cat breeders (NOT backyard breeders), ask dog/cat rescue group(s); if your local law enforcement agency has K9s, ask them which vet(s) they use.  If you don't know of any local breeders or rescue groups, go to the websites of either Cat Fanciers or the AKC, locate their links for rescue & breeders.  Those sites have a list of contacts throughout the US & Canada.  Once you identify potential clinics, go talk with the clinic, ask questions, tour the facility, get a feel for it - follow your instincts.  As for cost, many clinics accept payment plans, and there is a group called IMOM (www.imom.org) that helps people help their pets.

Yikes!  I didn't mean to write a book, but I hate it when a critter may be at risk just because his mom/dad doesn't know where to turn.   

Just as an FYI - canned Royal Canin in the US may not contain wheat gluten, but it IS preserved with the suspected carcinogens BHA/BHT.  So much for Royal Canin being "premium" food. 

In late Feb '07, one of my kitties was Dx'ed  with several bladder stones.  The Vet initially put him on Royal Canin SO canned & dry.  He vomited and had diahrrea each time he ate any of the canned SO, and soon started vomiting even with the dry.  Needless to say, I stopped feeding all Royal Canin.  I checked the labels, no wheat gluten, BUT the canned version is preserved with BHA/BHT.   I will not be surprised to later hear that the Royal Canin in the US is also affected by the contamination.  Even if it's not, I will never again feed any version of Royal Canin any of my kitties, or my dogs, or the dogs that come into my rescue.