Dear pet owners, please ensure the proper storage of dog and cat food in pet supplies stores and poultry shops.
How?
1. Do not buy from pet supplies stores who display OPEN sacks of dog or cat food.
2. Suggest to owners that the pet food be stored properly.
Food is essential to our pet’s health. It should be clean and stored properly to prevent illnesses.
Proper storage also means the food maintains its ideal nutritional value to keep our pets healthy.
I cringe whenever I see open sacks of dog food or cat food on display in pet supplies stores and poultry shops. I cringe all the more when I see a cockroach or a rat inside the store or pass by a poultry shop with the door left open.
I wonder why poultry shops are allowed in dirty areas, beside streets with mud and dirt.
It is so saddening that despite a law on animal welfare, most Filipinos do not know that animals should be given access to clean, good food, clean water, medical care and shelter, must not be hurt, and must not be made to suffer. The law punishes neglect, abandonment, killing of domesticated animals, among others.
Hundreds of thousands of animals suffer in the hands of humans everyday: tied to a fence rain or shine 24/, caged and not exercised or allowed human and dog interaction, fed dirty food in a dirty bowl, thrown inside pounds which are dirty with most pounds unable to provide food and water and even treatment for wounds that the animal got while being caught…
The list of acts of cruelty against animals goes on and on.
The violations of the Animal Welfare Act are committed everywhere. This includes, to me, the improper storage of pet food by sellers. The pets are put in harm’s way.
Improper storage of dog food should not be tolerated by owners. You are not getting your money’s worth because the food is not fresh anymore.
Your pet might also get sick.
Worse, when the dog gets sick of leptospirosis, the owner will incur more expense, this time for medical treatment.
Why can’t the simple act of storing pet food properly be done by those who earn a lot from selling pet food?
This is where owners can make a difference. As the ones who buy pet food, owners can boycott a store or not buy food from pet supplies stores and poultry shops who do not properly store pet food.
Be afraid for yourself and your pets.
Those dog or cat food in open sacks could have been contaminated with rat urine that infects dogs and humans with leptospirosis.
Let us also properly store food at home.
“How you handle [cat/dog] food once you have it at home can make a big difference in how long it remains fresh and maintains its ideal nutritional profile,” says Dr. Jennifer Coates in PetMD’s 5 Cat/Dog Food Storage Mistakes You DON’T Want to Make.
How to store pet food properly : a guide for pet owners and those who own pet supplies stores:
1. Keep the food in the original packaging.
You need to know the expiration date.
“High-quality cat/dog food bags have been designed to keep out the elements and maintain its freshness for as long as possible. Keeping the cat food bag also has the added benefit of retaining the cat food’s barcode, expiration date, and batch code—all of which are important information to have, especially in the event of a cat food recall, “ PetMD said.
2. Never expose pet food to air.
“Sealing the cat/dog food bag after every feeding helps prevent unnecessary exposure to air and humidity—both of which speed up the rate at which pet foods degrade and increase the risk of bacterial contamination like Salmonella, “ stressed PetMD.
3. Keep pet food away from sunlight.
“Exposing the cat/dog food bag to sunlight can elevate temperatures and humidity inside. This will also speed up food degradation and increase the risk of Salmonella contamination as well as other bacteria,” PetMD said.
4. Do not keep or give pet food beyond the expiration date.
“Cat/dog food expiration dates (sometimes known as “best by” or “use by” dates) are established to ensure the safety of your cat. Don’t take the risk by feeding your pet expired cat/dog food, “ PetMD said.
5. Do not mix the new pet food with the old one.
“You may be tempted to transfer that last bit of cat/dog food from the old bag to a new bag. Don’t! You may be unknowingly tainting your brand new bag of dry cat/dog food,” PetMD said.
