July/August 2010 - Dogs Naturally Magazine

y: Lynne Parker
Monetary interests are working to stack the deck against raw feeding
and they are building quite a pile. One glaring example of this is the
recent proclamation by the Delta Society, a non-profit organization
in Bellevue, Washington. According to their website,
“We help people throughout the world become healthier and happier
by incorporating therapy, service and companion animals into
their lives.” Therapy dogs are welcome—unless those animals are
raw fed.
Delta’s board of directors recently voted to preclude animals eating
raw protein foods from participating in their Pet Partners program.
They claim that scientific evidence backs up their concerns over raw
fed pets shedding significant amounts of pathogenic bacteria. According
to the board members, “The use of raw animal proteins to
promote animal health has not been based on proven or known
scientific facts, only anecdotal incidents.” Dr. Tom Lonsdale would
be surprised to hear this. Dr. Tom Lonsdale’s book Raw Meaty Bones:
Promote Health—first published in 2001—includes a 20 page bibliography
citing studies that back up his assertion that raw feeding promotes
health.
Questioning the validity of health claims from raw feeding is merely
a side issue. The main show is the increasing response to raw feeding
by those who are heavily invested in maintaining the status quo.
The Delta Society’s website carries this entry:
What was the role of pet food manufacturers in the adoption of the Raw
Protein Diet Policy?
No pet food manufacturer representatives contacted, encouraged, lobbied, or
influenced the Delta Society Medical Advisory Group in recommending to
the board that they approve a Raw Protein Diet Policy.
They didn’t have to—they have a pet food representative on their
board of directors! Delta Society Secretary Brenda Bax is the Marketing
Director for Purina. On Delta Society’s home page is the
note “Thank you to our incredible partner, the passionate pet lovers
at Purina” atop the Purina logo. It would certainly not be in the
Purina corporation’s interests to support raw feeding, would it?
Bax is not the only board member with a conflict of interest pertaining
to this issue. Board member Rebecca Johnson is the Director
of the Research Center for Human Animal Interaction at the
Missouri University College of Veterinary Medicine. The center’s
last conference was sponsored by Mars, Purina, Hill’s, and Bayer
Healthcare.
Board member Laird Goodman is the owner and Director of the
Murrayhill Veterinary Hospital. Goodman is a guest speaker/
educator for the Pfizer corporation. He has served on the Veterinary
Advisory Board for The Heska Corporation since 2001. The
Heska Corporation is heavily invested in products such as vaccines
and heartworm preventatives. Goodman has also served since 2003
on the Veterinary Advisory Board for The Intervet Corporation.
The Intervet Corporation: Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health
is a global, research-driven company that develops, manufactures
and markets a broad range of veterinary medicines and services.
Raw feeding threatens not only the pet food manufacturers but also
the pharmaceutical industry as well. Healthy dogs require far fewer
“medicines” for the illnesses caused by kibble fed diets. Those pet
owners who choose to raw feed frequently eschew pest control
chemicals as well. Conventionally trained vets continue to push the
kibble and chemicals, however, despite mounting evidence that
both are harmful to pets.
In their book Whole Health for Happy Dogs: A Natural Health Handbook
for Dogs and Their Owners, authors Jill Elliot and Kim Bloomer
write, “While a raw diet has long been a common practice in
Europe and other countries, it is still not readily accepted in the
United States. European veterinarians commonly recommend a raw
diet for dogs, while American veterinarians commonly recommend
feeding kibble. The fear of feeding raw meat in the United States is
usually due to concern over salmonella, e. coli, and parasites. As we
stated earlier, dogs are bacteria machines, and their digestive systems
are designed to handle raw meat. They are much more likely to
get parasites or bacteria from sources such as another dog’s feces or
dirt rather than the human-grade meat you’ll provide for them.”
One motivation for the Delta Society’s decision may be based on
fear. On their Raw Protein Diet Policy page they include this sentence:
“Also, your veterinarian is not assuming legal responsibility
for you and your pet, Delta Society is.” Board member Chuck
Granoski is an attorney and owner of The Law Offices of Betzendorfer
& Granoski. One of the areas of practice listed on their website
is Animal Injuries. The fear of a lawsuit is probably uppermost
in his mind.
One can only speculate on the pressures that donors may place on
the board as well but it is hard to know for certain. According to the
Charity Navigator (www.charitynavigator.org) Delta Society has a
written donor privacy policy.
The Delta Society is not responding directly to questions about their
decision. I sent an email to them on June 2, asking, “What studies
back up your claim that raw fed dogs are any more dangerous than
kibble fed dogs?” and received the following form letter email:
“Thank you for your question, comment or concern regarding the
Raw Protein diet policy, all will be reviewed and addressed through
global FAQ and the Delta Society's website.—Medical Advisory
Group” Their initial statement of policy was apparently not researched
enough to answer a simple question.
Dogs...Naturally! July/August 2010