posted 12-30-2003 09:46 AM         

They use cow bi-products, scraps, pretty much the junk meat that they
cannot get away with selling in supermarkets in dog foods. Now, since
they use crappy meat anyhow, can they use the meat off of these
diseased cows for dog food, and who would really know the difference
if they did? Can our dogs get sick from this? It is really bothering
me- I am about to turn my dogs into vegetarians..lol. Kidding, but
seriously, due to not knowing, I am putting them on Lamb and Rice or
something else until I find out. I have posted this to many message
boards in hopes for someones help.

Angie

posted 12-30-2003 11:04 AM         

Information on BSE and Nature's Variety

To our customers,

We do not think there should be any concern about feeding Nature's Variety Beef Diets or Treats as a result of the recent discovery of a BSE-infected cow slaughtered in Washington State. If you listen closely to the news and information about BSE, the disease exists only in the brain, central nervous system and a portion of the small intestine of naturally infected animals. Nature's Variety uses only muscle meat, organ meat, fat and bone in its beef diets and treat products.

We do not source any beef products from the Pacific Northwest or from small custom pack houses such as that which processed the affected animal. We obtain our beef products from larger Midwestern and Southern producers only.

We are closely monitoring the current BSE situation and will use all precautions communicated to us by the USDA Veterinarians that assist us. It is important to note that the recall of the beef products which might have come into contact with the affected animal in Washington State is a voluntary Class II recall, which means that it is a situation where there is only a remote probability of adverse human health consequences from the use of the product. You may access the latest information from the USDA.

Nature’s Variety
December 24, 2003

posted 12-30-2003 12:08 PM         

Mad- Cow is a virus, it's not alive therefore it can not be killed. Not burning, buring or vaccinating will take care of it.

There hasn't been any cases I've heard of, that dogs have gotten it. I wouldn't be too worried about it, but keep your eyes and ears open. Most all meat processors stamp a code # on their packages of meat, all that were suspected of being contaminated were quickly rounded up before they ever reached the shelves of the supermarkets.

Don't let the media scare you. Remember they are in it for the $$ and poblicity and will make a mountain out of a mole hill.

Not to say you shouldn't be a bit concerned, but if everyone freeks out, banns meat; what do you think is going to happen to the economy?? Bad, very bad.
I think we all need to be cautious, but also try to remain as normal as possible.

posted 12-30-2003 03:11 PM         

Diseased Cow's Birth Herd Being Tracked
Investigators looking into the dairy cow infected with mad cow disease are now tracking over 70 cattle that may have come from the diseased cow's birth herd in Alberta, Canada. Federal authorities found one other cow infected with BSE, or mad cow disease, in Alberta last May. Canadian officials believe the infected cow from Washington was born in April 1997, before Canada banned the use of rendered cattle parts in feed. The animal was sold to the U.S. around August 2001. Authorities are now attempting to track over 70 other dairy cows imported through Eastport, Idaho, about the same time. They have also quarantined two herds in Washington after tracing the infected cow's offspring. One calf was not tagged when sent to a farm in Sunnyside. Now authorities are considering destroying all calves under 30 days old at the farm to ensure there is no spread of the disease. Over 10,000 pounds of possibly tainted meat has been recalled in eight states and Guam. Oregon is included in the eight-state beef recall.

and another report....

U.S. Announces New Beef Safety Restrictions

WASHINGTON (Dec. 30) - Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman on Tuesday announced a list of new restrictions to further enhance the safety of the American beef supply, including a meatpacking ban on the use of sick ''downer'' cattle like the one discovered last week with mad cow disease.

AP
So far, more than 30 countries have banned American beef products in the past week.

She also announced bans against the use of small intestines and head and spinal tissue from older cattle in the U.S. food chain, as well as changes in slaughterhouse techniques with the aim of preventing accidental contamination of meat with cow nerve tissue. Mad cow disease is spread through such brain and spinal cord tissue.

''Sound science continues to be our guide,'' Veneman said.

Under the new regulations, the sick cow slaughtered in Washington state on Dec. 9 would not have been allowed to enter the U.S. food chain.

The meat from that cow was allowed to be sold for human consumption after its brain and spinal column were removed and a federal inspector saw no indication of neurological disease. From now on no downed cow can be used for meat. The Agriculture Department estimates that 130,000 down cattle are sent to meatpacking plants each year.

The Hunt for Infected Beef


USDA ordered a recall of more than 10,000 pounds of meat from 20 cows slaughtered on the same day at the same Washington state company. The recalled meat was distributed to eight states and Guam, although officials said 80 percent of it went to Oregon and Washington.

USDA officials have said they ordered the recall as a precaution, insisting there was no threat to the safety of the U.S. food supply. ''The risk of BSE spreading in the U.S. is extremely low and any possible spread would have been reversed by the controls we have already put in place,'' she said.

Veneman said the announced changes have been planned for a while. But they come just as U.S. agriculture officials in Tokyo are trying to persuade the Japanese to lift that country's ban on American beef. The U.S. officials went to South Korea after their stop in Japan.

''These actions are not being taken in response just to our trading partners,'' Veneman said. ''We should take these actions that are appropriate and consistent with actions that many other countries have taken.''

The agriculture secretary called the regulatory changes ''very aggressive actions.'' She said they should not impose any hardship on the cattle and meatpacking industries, nor consumers.


''I don't expect an increase in the price to consumers,'' she said. ''The number of cattle that enter the food supply currently as downer animals is very small.''

Gene Bauston, president of the New York-based animal rights group Farm Sanctuary, which has been suing the government for years to try to stop the use of downed animals for food, said the changes were huge.

''This is a good thing for animals and a good thing for people,'' said Bauston. ''These animals are made to suffer horribly, humans are put at risk, and there has never been an excuse for this practice.''

Yesterday at the market, my husband and I read a letter posted in our meat section. The letter stated that the store had pulled ground beef at the recommendation of the company that supplied it, it listed the stores in which they pulled ground beef. They still had ground beef from the same company available for purchase, they only took meat from certain batches. They said it was a precaution. I think most people around here are not getting hysterical, just watching and trying to be aware.

posted 01-04-2004 12:48 PM         

quote:

---

I am putting them on Lamb and Rice or
something else until I find out

---

Sorry to scare you but sheep get a similar disease called scrapie. There are some people who think that Mad Cow was actually introduced to cattle by them eating sheep infected with scrapie.

Here is some information that I posted on the cat message board:

Mad Cow is not caused by a virus or bacteria, it is caused by something called a prion. A prion is a type of protein. The prions that cause mad cow are like proteins found in people and animals, but they are mis-shaped. They enter the body and go around finding all the good proteins and turning them into mis-shaped proteins. That is what creates the holes giving the brain a spongy (sp?) look. The reason they can not be killed is that they are proteins. It is extremely hard to denature a protein and you can do it with denaturing all of the good proteins which would kill a person or animal.

These prions are normally found in the brain and nervous system. When they create bone meal they throw the brain and spinal cord in which is why it is usually spread through meal.

There is a lot that is not known about Mad Cow and the other diseases related to it. We don't know if chickens or other animals can get a similar disease. The ones we know about are:
Cows- Mad Cow or Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE)
Humans- Naturally occuring form is Creuztfeld Jakob Disease (CJD), form from eating contaminated beef is new variant Creuztfeld Jakob Disease (vCJD)
Sheep- Scrapie
Cervids (deer & elk)- Chronic Wasting Disease

Other animals may get a similar disease, but we haven't discovered them yet. So chicken meal would be safe if chicken don't get a similar disease. If they do, then it might not be.