Nature Safe® feather meal (13-0-0) is derived from poultry processing. And it’s pretty big. PRECAUTIONS FOR SAFE HANDLING AND USE. It took us a while to find what works for my dog with allergies but it was worth it not falling for a prescription diet that will only cause further problems. The feather meal, blood meal, meat meal and bone meal found in Nature Safe are the same ingredients used in animal nutrition and pet foods, which means they represent one of the highest concentrations … The question is…would feather meal ingredients (or worm meal) benefit the pet that consumes them? Especially since it tastes so lousy (or doesn’t “taste” at all) that manufacturers have to add “palatants” to get the dogs to eat it. It contains high quality, organic marijuana nutrients like alfalfa meal, poultry meal, feather meal, kelp meal, crustacean meal, fish meal and ascophyllum nodosum. It’s really not fair you are making me out to be some uneducated and impressionable consumer when I am not! Feathers were never meant to be food. I would much rather see a lower middle class family feeding their dog Ol’ Roy than see that dog in the shelter. An all-natural source of slow-release nitrogen, it is perfect for corn, tomatoes and fall harvested vegetables. I do not need to educate myself on what is in her food, because I know what it is. Another thought. Her product definitely represents the “answers” to a lot of pet’s nutritional issues, and she can respond to any question you might have about how her products could help your dog as well. were fed organic feeds without chemical additives or GMO grains. We just know that they won’t be using feathers from organic chicken farms. That’s why it took so long to develop this particular food. Did you know that all pet food ingredients have a separate definition than the same ingredient in human food? A 2012 study found that the use of feather meal may contribute to arsenic exposure in humans. No one has said thy are smarter than you, no one questions the ingredient as a last resort. You can buy a 50# sack of feather meal for $50.00 at the garden supply store. Pingback: Newest scary ingredient for pet food- Feather Meal |. The product is not very … Bickering between pet food consumers does nothing but hurt us. … That’s not an optimal diet in any way, but it eliminates so many other dietary variables, that it allows the pet to come back to status quo. What goes around comes around. As I said, we even had her on a vegetarian food (poor thing), that cleared her skin up but she had nothing but constant loose stool and gas! ), Royal Canin told Forbes magazine they have been developing a “Anallergenic formula” dog food for ten years using chicken feathers as the main source of protein. Oh, by the way, how many of the chicken feathers come from China, in addition to American chicken factory farms. What waste product next? I’m just saying that this article is putting RC on blast for using hydrolyzed protein, when there are dogs like mine out there that benefit from that formula. Nitrogen deficiency in soil or plant . !” How do you miss that? Click Here. More frequently they want to roll in them, but eating the occasional squirmy wormy has it’s appeal. If we are just using another animal (like the lion meat in favor these days or the horse meat) that was never intended to be a feed animal – then there are no restrictions as to what these worms are being fed. other than making Down Comforter’s and Pillows, shipping them to USA and other Sucker’s. Respiratory protection: If dusting occurs use approved respirator to eliminate exposure. My other dogs eat super quality, well monitored diets tailored to them. Egads!!! Once I took her off the steroid prednisone her hair started growing back. Also, on another note, not every family that feeds a “substandard” food does so because of the pretty bags and “pitches”. Not much. Click Here, Cooking for pets made easy, Dinner PAWsible, Find Healthy Pet Foods in Your Area Click Here. I think this is another one of those “scare tactics”. Essentially, it is the consumer who performs “lifetime” testing of food ingredients and additives, with their pets as the test subjects. To get to your “Other” folder, click “Messages” on the left side of the homepage, then click “Other” in the top left. Feathers are broken down to an amino acid level and don’t have much of a taste. Do you know what the differences are between Feed Grade and Human Grade pet food? No feathers for mine, thank you very much! Don’t feel too badly, many have. Click Here. That may not be true, but at least they don’t have to pay for disposal in landfills, etc. By the way I have a lab with extremely severe allergies and guess what her real problem was? Association for Truth in Pet Food A pet food made solely out of bird feathers would be extremely unnatural and unhealthy…no way around it. He is probably the best dog anyone who meets him has ever known. I highly doubt it will be “coming to a pet food near you”, and well, if it does, I guess I can quit paying 80$ a bag for Punky’s prescription food. Now I can’t bring myself to make him sick again and take him off the potentially hazardous and disgusting food. I’m sure it’s from CHINA ! Feather meal Animal byproduct obtained by hydrolysing, drying and grinding poultry feathers. As I said, Royal Canin HP uses it, as does Hill’s Z/D formula. That’s horrible. Feather mael has been widely used in the farm animal feed business for quite a while. How to add real food to your pet’s diet. She kept cutting the dog’s food back and she wouldn’t lose weight. I work at a vet clinic, and the only time we even prescribe these formulas are when a pet hasn’t responded to any other protein source, i.e. Once feather meal is added to your soil, the microorganisms within your soil – bacteria, nematodes, fungi – all have roles in breaking down into forms of nitrogen that are bioavailable for your … Yellow grease was not available per cwt. And how are the worms processed? A cow or pig would NEVER eat feathers on their own. He’s had a $1500 pancreatitis bout, that will reoccur if fed fat. And with all that processing how then will it be cost effective? Our feather meal is 13% Nitrogen. So I guess I should have just continued to feed my dog raw even though she was still scratching her skin off? Royal Canin admitting it uses FM is new, but this ingredient has been a buzz word in the pet food industry since early 2000. … Add to the global push of feather meal, then I find an new article in Forbes magazine pitching the wonders of this new pet food ingredient. I’ve caught my dogs eating worms. How is mixing with water supposed to change the crude protein into digestible protein? Using feathers that have been chemically treated to make them digestible sure doesn’t appeal to me for my pet’s diet. Required fields are marked *. Feather Meal 13-0-0. . And I mean it was lodge it there. Request a Certification Letter. I’m completely torn. Contamination can occur during production of these meals, … Thanks for the heads up Susan. If you threw a bucket of feathers on the ground would your dogs eat it? The nitrogen in Feather Meal comes from the protein keratin, … Large ingestions of the meal-containing … $46.55 each Feather Meal 50 Pound Bag $38.29 each Corn Gluten Meal $346.50 each Solu-Stimulant $10.12 each Sulfate of Potash 0-0-51 (OMRI Listed) 5 Pound Bag $8.70 each Pelletized Calcium Lime … Hi Brittany – It’s a year later and I have a 14-year-old chihuahua who has been fairly miserable the last few years from digestive issues. The hydrolyzing (to ME), would tend to indicate high temperature processing, which *could* significantly reduce the quality of the protein itself. During the journey the average PetSumer goes through absolute and utter disbelief, disgust, doubt, denial, defensiveness, anger … and if they make it that far … sometimes even guilt. You are not smarter than me, I am informed on what my babies eat, and I am also informed on what hydrolyzed protein is, and what it is used for. It doesn’t matter what animal (dog, cat, eagle, coyote, rodent, I could go on) eats a chicken, they DO NOT eat the feathers. Nature Safe® Feather … Enter anallergenic with its feathers and worms. I think it’s disgusting. As usual humans see what they want to see and deny any possibility of adverse effects of unintended consequences. No taking it out. I highly doubt there are many people out there that would have sunk the time and money into a “stray” like we did. I’m now feeding a raw no carb diet and she’s doing better than ever. Feather meal also … Feather Meal 13-0-0. Steam pressure cookers with temperatures over 140 °C are used to "cook" and sterilize the feathers. Feather Meal was 25.00 higher from 470.00-485.00 per ton. Safety in puppies, pregnant animals, lactating animals, old and sick animals. Although total nitrogen levels are fairly high (up to 12%), the bioavailability of this nitrogen may be low. Blood Meal,Feather Meal,Meat,Bone Meal: 6743/764: 2002: Nature Safe 15-2-8 with Meth-Ex 40 : Hydrolyzed Poultry Feather Meal,Meat,Bone Meal,Blood Meal: 3700/764: 2000: Nature Safe Starter Fertilizer 5-6-6 : Fish Meal,Meat,Bone Meal,Poultry Meal: 3694/764: 2000: Nature Safe Professional Turf 10-2-8 : Blood Meal,Feather Meal,Meat,Bone Meal He was also plagued with skin tags, some which nearly required removal. Thus, hydrolyzed poultry feathers have been treated to make them more digestible to the animal consuming them. Skagit County … As if completely changing nature and using chemistry and technology to create yet another Frankenfood is guaranteed limited to the wishful thinking of the creators. Click Here to find your State representatives. Please note we have not certified this feather meal ourselves, but we can provide the necessary information from Tyson rendering plant in Harmony, NC (where the feather meal … It upsets me more that anything that everyone here thinks BARF diets and homemade food is going to solve the problem. We have had her allergy tested, not to mention trying every food on the face of the planet. I am just another PF consumer. It is then dried, cooled and ground into a powder for use as a nitrogen source for animal feed (mostly ruminants) or as an organic soil amendment. Fish meal, blood meal, feather meal, and meat and bone meal are common types of animal byproduct protein meal used in the US and worldwide. Is your dog or cat eating risk ingredients? An ideal source of nitrogen for all crops requiring a steady long lasting supply of that element. It is a pelletized, semi-slow release organic nitrogen source that supplies nitrogen for up to three months. Other than the occasionally gotta stick everything in my mouth dog. It is a semi-slow release organic fertilizer providing plants with nitrogen over an extended period of time. I’d love to communicate with someone for whom this food is a success, as I’ve had no success with so many other diets and am at my wits’ end. It’s sad, I know the ingredients are substandard, but what is a pet parent to do after all other options have been exhausted??? That is about the only thing that I can think that would work for her. A few days later I heard from Dr. Tanabe in Japan sharing the very same story – feather meal is being pitched as the new best thing in pet food. It is partially hydrolyzed under high heat and pressure, and then ground up. http://www.drbasko.com/site/freshfoodbook/, Newest scary ingredient for pet food- Feather Meal |, Crazy or Common? Feathers? Our feather meal has been approved by many certifiers and is used on several of the certified organic farms in this area. I hope not. I feed my dogs raw WHOLE chickens, feathers, feet, beaks, everything. Albright’s Raw Dog Food Recalls Chicken Recipe For Dogs Because of Possible Salmonella Health Risk, Sunshine Mills, Inc. Note: it is recommended to check the regulatory status of this product before using it for livestock feeding. Again, we force an animal to deal with a substance that is entirely unnatural. It is sad because no one should believe that feathers are a source of nutrition for anyone. Some pets actually need this hydrolyzed protein to not have digestive upset, skin irritation, and ear infections. Call Answers Pet Food at (below) and inquire about how their products can help. Sale price. Trying to make it sound like it’s a good thing. Feather Meal has other issues besides projectile poop. The pitch to consumers and veterinarians has begun. I’m a consumer and in the trade. And worm meal?! Feather Meal fertilizer. We’re looking for lots of different sources of protein for our foods: hydrolyzed soy; for some of our foods in China we use worm meal. It can be used to replace a significant portion of other protein sources in livestock and aquaculture diets. Feather meal is also an excellent source of escape protein. In this case, we have to be very careful not to provoke an allergic reaction. What the post was about, was the chatter in the industry that this ingredient – feather meal – is probably going to be seen in more foods (not allergy foods). So, I might be able to accept worm meal if it is declared properly and I can choose to buy that food or not. Get off your high horse. So if you have a hydroponic setup, you may want to consider these hydroponic safe … Although total … Your email address will not be published. . I was filling my dog’s bowl up about 10 minutes ago and found what I’m assuming is a dried up feather. Every expert was going to show up all of the ignorant attempts before them, but to no avail. Finally, she discovered her dog was eating earthworms at night in the damp, dew covered soil in her area. Raw feathers are relatively insoluble and have a very low digestibility of 5% due to the high keratin content and the strong disulphide b… Brace yourself, feather meal might be coming to a pet food near you very soon. The PetFoodIndustry.com trade publication said “The quantity of protein required by pets depends on their lifestyle and life stage.”  But what about protein quality? Many long years ago I used to buy 50# sacks of blood, bone and feather meal for my “organic” vetetable garden. My dogs have gained a welcomed 1-lb this past year, they’re full of energy, and very satisfied during the day. There is a new pet food ingredient heading our way…feather meal. Feather meal; Fish meal; These organic “meals” are widely utilized as soil amendment products, fertilizer components, or as deer, rabbit and wildlife repellants. Really? Is this acceptable to you? A worm is no more yuck than beef brain, chicken gizzards or lamb liver. Containing up to 12% nitrogen, it is a source of slow-release, organic, high-nitrogen fertilizer for organic gardens. Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible, What’s in Your Pet’s Food? Hydrolyzed feather meal is a good source of natural protein for most animal diets. Now I’m not saying Feather Meal would ever be my first choice in proteins (yes, I’d go for worms and termites before feathers), but i would not utterly discount it without knowing more of the details. Many commercial feeds for livestock are loaded with things that can cause their meat to affect sensitive individuals. Feathers are a source of fiber for dogs. Pet Food Recall History (2007 to present) Your email address will not be published. Feather Meal, like Blood Meal, is one of the highest sources of non-synthetic nitrogen available. While I do not agree with the idea that they must be ultra processed to be used in pet food as processing ruins everything valauble about them, if I had to decide between a kibble with corn glutens and other crap with one made with feathers, I would choose the feathers. As long as the official view is: it is safe until proven unsafe I suspect it will end up in pet food with a name we wont recognize as ground up waste. Just to clarify, Feather Meal is NOT a ‘new ingredient’. Needless to say I will probably be switching. These companies don’t care about your dog. It doesn’t work for everyone! It can be used to: When adding it to a garden as a nitrogen source, it must be blended into the soil to start the decomposition to make the nitrogenous compounds available to the plants. I don’t mind the worms so much. The whole point is not to argue or take offense – it is to learn – all of us learn, myself included. You’ve fallen for the pitch. Feathers represent 3-7% weight of the … This kit is not intended for purely hydroponic setups. How do you miss that there’s a feather? Feathers are already found in pet kibbles. Brittany – you have your opinion of this ingredient based on a very particular need for your pet. The feed grade ingredients we produce for pet food, aqua feed and feed industry are manufactured in accordance with the highest quality standards. Petsumer Report tells the ‘rest of the story’ on over 2500 cat foods, dog foods,  and pet treats. Ventilation: Exhaust fan recommended in controlling any dusting. Feathers were not made to be edible. Eventually you can add a pet supplement (Udo’s Pet Essentials is based on organic whole food compounds) so you know your dog won’t be missing anything in the diet. They get plucked or torn out and left. Click Here for more information on reporting to FDA. Susan’s List of trusted pet foods. Perhaps AAFCO will help the suppliers come up with a fake name that can hide the fact that it is feathers (a waste product), much like the created term “Brewers Rice” for the junkiest parts of junk broken rice, so that it sounds like something better than it really is. Feathers are a byproduct of broiler, turkey and and other poultry processing operations. Best titled post ever! I do know what I’m talking about, I haven’t fallen for some “pitch”. Drugs can be easily found in human hair long after the body has cleared them. Feather Meal Pellets- 13% Nitrogen Organically acceptable source of slow-release nitrogen 13-0-0 Hydrolyzed feather meal, meat meal, and blood meal in pelleted form . In 2009, GoldMehl introduced a new method of FM processing to the market place, that they promised would increase “feces scoring” (ie; reduce the incidences of projectile diarrhea seen when control dogs were fed traditionally processed FM). THK’s Preference is also very easy! Keith Levy of Royal Canin told Forbes “It’s not only nutritious but can also be made very palatable to dogs. Ground feathers as a protein source for dog and cat food is being pitched to veterinarians and consumers all over the world. Should I be concerned about antibiotic material found in feather meal sold for "organic" gardening? Alfalfa Meal was steady to 15.00 lower from 305.00-310.00 per ton; Sun-Cured 15 percent was steady … Thanks! Feather meal is a byproduct of processing poultry; it is made from poultry feathers by partially grinding them under elevated heat and pressure, and then grinding and drying. Worm meal raises the question: what were the worms fed? Consistent, Quality Feed Grade Protein Meals in Every Batch Valley Proteins, Inc. is a leading global supplier of safe, nutritious and sustainable quality poultry by-products meal, meat meal, hydrolyzed … It bothers me that you called this article a scare tactic. Commercial PF contains so many elements, including the synthetic vitamins, minerals, colorings, flavorings, etc. I think everyone is missing the point. It’s a high protein form of keratin, composed of cross linked cystine – the amino acid that dogs afflicted with cystinuria are unable to process. Please let me know how this goes, if you have the time, and remember at a later date to post again, or to reply to my comment. The only formulas that contain this “feather meal” are the hydrolyzed protein and hypoallergenic formulas. But perhaps you can educate yourself more about what goes into these so called prescription “foods”. Comments for California Pet Food Laws – Empty Promises? View Label. All the stupid drugs the vet prescribed!! You must think so highly of yourself to try and act like I am some idiot while you are trying to educate me. However, there is one major difference. Expands Recall of Pet Food Products Due to Potentially Elevated Levels of Aflatoxin, Real Pet Food Company Voluntarily Recalls One Lot of Billy+Margot Wild Kangaroo and Superfoods Recipe Dog Food, Sunshine Mills, Inc. Issues Voluntary Recall of Certain Dog Food Products Due to Potentially Elevated Levels of Aflatoxin. It can go back farther than just the type of meat, it can be the diet given that meat source causing the problems! Plants like corn, leaf vegetables and others requiring a consistent … I have a 6 year old pitbull with horrible skin allergies, and this food (Royal Canin HP) has worked for her after trying everything from grain-free, raw, alternative protein sources, even up to a vegetarian diet that her digestive system could not tolerate. [1], Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Waste not, want not? I just met a very knowledgeable representative from “Answers Pet Food” who is versed in theraputic remedies for dogs who are challenged with digestive issues and upsets. Happy I’m a vegetarian. Then they have to ADD flavorings to make it palletable for the pet? I try to minimize chemically treated foods in general. Punky is a white pitbull who is also deaf in one ear and blind in one eye. Down To Earth’s Feather Meal 12-0-0 is derived from hydrolyzed, dried and ground poultry feathers. Pick a protein (in my case beef stew meat works great because I can control the fat level) and minimally bake it (15 minutes) so it’s safe to handle. $39.99 Sale. Thank you. The best way to get rid of industrial waste is to stick it in the food, non-food, and water supplies, and tell people it’s good for them. Feather meal is used in formulated animal feed and in organic fertilizer. As an organic garden fertilizer, it is not synthetic or petroleum-based. Susan Thixton These foods are used as a LAST RESORT when all other feasible options have been exhausted. I encourage you to follow up through their website and to call their helpline number. soil amendments, bone meal, blood meal, feather meal, plant food, potash Toxicity to pets Most fertilizers contain varying amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium (potash) as indicated by … So our approach goes way beyond feathers.”  (I hope worm meal isn’t next…yuck.). Feather meal is used as a source of protein for farm animals and as a fertilizer. Also VERY high in protein, and eaten in MANY parts of South America, are termites – they boil them and mix them with rice. Use common sense and think. As usual: there is no thought and NO testing to determine long term safety. She has been formally trained in agricultural sciences, and specialized in the dairy cow industry, although she is now only involved with raw goat milk and raw food products. Good luck; the people who follow TAPF only want to be helpful. You may have to take these steps one at a time, building to the eventual full recipe. Ships from Northern CA. It is a pelletized, semi-slow release organic nitrogen source that supplies nitrogen for up to three months. I actually picked up a bag of ‘hog grower’ pellets just to see what was in it and the 1st ingredient was pork fat. We question its use in more foods – as a cheap alternative to high quality protein sources. I feed raw too and have noticed that my dogs won’t eat all the feathers. … With our product range, manufacturers can provide … Nitrogen will slow release over 8 to 10 weeks, which provides your crops with … All I’m saying is I don’t see this ingredient becoming a staple in pet foods. Pingback: The Next HOT Ingredient for Dog Food. Some Vets choose to use the prescribed diets only because they know exactly what the composition is made up of, and they can therefore, center their testing and tracking around those diets (to eliminate other variables). They can utilize raw or hydrolyzed feather meal maximally without affecting the digestibility of the protein content. You’d have to wonder though, what’s in the soil the worms are eating? I promise you, that if you try a home made diet, your dog will improve. I’d love to hear how Punky is doing and if you’re still feeding her this food. No, but when i have some person telling me I am just falling for a “pitch” and I should “further educate myself” when I made it perfectly clear that my pet had no other options, that is uncalled for. Please. End of story. You can add cooked liver crumbles. I wish my other dog could eat these “acceptable” foods, but she can’t due to having an allergic reaction to EVERY meat out there. Pigs eating pigs. Yet his stools are firm when fed a much less expensive brand, but the brand worried me. They contain protein. The dog that can’t eat meat of most normal sources might be able to eat those same meats if the chicken, beef, etc. No it’s not. I wonder, do you literally give the whole chicken to the dog and the dog eats it in entirety? Certainly not. The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) holds the responsibility of defining all animal food ingredients. The companies aren’t telling people so someone has to! Chickens on factory farms are routinely fed chicken feed that contains arsenic. My other dog eats raw and my cat eats nothing but Merrick’s canned food. Brittany you might want to check out the book Fresh Food & Ancient Wisdom by Dr. Ihor Basko – http://www.drbasko.com/site/freshfoodbook/ – might give you some options. What would you do for this angel of a dog who is finally comfortable? Just like you have to wonder what’s in the feed given the chicken or beef in your dog’s diet. Chicken feathers are just a (currently) fairly useless byproduct of the chicken industry. “Feather meal is perfectly legal, safe, and sustainable, it's just not currently used in the EU due to customer preference,” he said. My new vet recommended Royal Canin Hypoallergenic canned and so I’m doing some research. I recommend this approach NOT to be critical or to be condesending. Feather meal is a good source of protein for cattle, goat, and sheep. The company found digestibility for feather meal was “comparable to regular poultry meal”. If you would like to communicate privately, I actually sent you a message on Facebook but it goes into your “Other messages” box, which no one ever looks at. Dogs are much easier to feed than cats. And my poor baby needs some relief. This is not a common ingredient in Royal Canin’s food, or any food for that matter. (Note:  this feeding trial was for seven days only. Brace yourself, feather meal might be coming to a pet food near you very soon. The feathers are cooked and sterilized under intense heat using steam pressure cookers before being dried … While fertilizers are typically fairly safe for pets, those that contain blood meal, bone meal, feather meal and iron may be especially tasty – and dangerous to dogs. We got her as a mange infested, flea ridden, heartworm positive, PREGANANT needing a c-section dog. I am sooo happy my furred companions eat a whole prey, raw meaty bones diet and no longer eat ANY kind of kibble! To hydrolyze is to break down (the feathers in this case) by chemical reaction with water. Then we add palatizers for taste. Pet Food Companies Using Feather Meal in Food. It is not water-soluble and does not make a good liquid fertilizer. My dog is not on steroids, and we have tried a raw no carb diet. It is not the protein SOURCE that concerns me, as much as the PROCESSING and resulting protein QUALITY. I do consider the “WOW a feather, real chicken.” aspect of it but I also think of “What the heck is wrong with these people? Keratin, a protein that occurs in hair, hoofs, horns and feathers, is relatively … I doubt many consumers would welcome this as an ingredient in their pet’s diet. How about recycling old leather shoes and handbags. Tongue in cheek here. Nature Safe’s 13-0-0 All Natural Fertilizer is a high nitrogen product derived from feather meal, meat meal, and blood meal. So either “Grateful” can’t read, or has no regard for my pet and my experiences, other than to tell me I need to educate myself. It took about 24 hours and he has been perfect ever since. Pick a carb (cooked Oatmeal is the easiest) but Sweet Potato also works well. Scampers Pet Food in the UK alerted me of Big Pet Food veterinarians talking up the benefits of feather meal. Handsome, smart and well trained . I’m gonna take a picture of it and send an email to the company. I doubt Punky will even make it to 10 If there is any link that anyone can give me to some kind of vegetarian homemade diet??? Thousands of dollars spent on specialists, naturalists and on every slight chance of hope I could find, just to improve his situation. The most important poultry by-product at a rendering plant is FM. This partially hydrolyzes the proteins, which denatures them. I’ll be making my dog her food for now on. But will pet parents? Click Here. He lacks an enzyme to digest it.