Photo: eyeliam

True, it can cost a lot to give candy to all the neighbourhood kids on Halloween night. But if money’s tight, and you simply haven’t got the budget to buy off the pranksters (some of whom really will splatter your home with rotten eggs — or worse — if you don’t “shell out” ), there are a couple of things you can do to save money.

First, here’s what not to do:

1. You could be really careful with the candy hand-out — giving each child one single lollipop, say. Stretch the budget by being kind of, well, stingy.

But don’t you recall what it’s like to be a little kid on Halloween? — the excitement (even before the sugar high kicks in) of staying up and going out after dark, running around the neighbourhood with your friends, actually taking candy from strangers!! Don’t go raining on that parade. It’s not easy being a little kid, you know. Give ‘em the candy.

2. You could turn off all the lights and pretend you’re not home.

This is totally NOT recommended, however, especially in some of the tougher neighbourhoods — and believe me, this is the voice of experience you hear! In fact, if you live in a really really really tough part of town (as I did for quite some time), you want to make sure you’ve got really really really good treats. And lots of them. You’ll also be wise to turn a blind eye if some of the kids turn their jackets inside out and come back a second time, pretending to be someone else, so they can get a second helping. These kids don’t get much sweetness in their lives… Shelling out on candy is much cheaper for you, in the long run, than shelling out to buy new glass for your windows.

3. You could stock up on off-brand mystery candy.

In fact, as I was ranting in the first part of this series, there’s a lot of wacky advice out there that tells you to “Save money on treats to hand out at the door by picking up cheap gum and chips at the dollar store.” Again, this is not such a good plan.

Think about this:

How come that Bargain Candy is so cheap?

The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) issued consumer advisory, earlier this month, warning the public “not to consume, distribute, or sell the Sherwood Brands Pirate’s Gold Milk Chocolate Coins described below. This product is being recalled due to positive test results for melamine conducted by the CFIA.”

The affected product, Sherwood Brands Pirate’s Gold Milk Chocolate Coins, is sold in 840g containers containing 240 pieces per container bearing UPC 0 36077 11240 7 and lot code 1928S1… sold nationally through Costco stores and may also have been sold in bulk packages or as individual pieces at various dollar and bulk stores across Canada.

Just one example. (And those gold-foil-covered chocolate coins were my favourite thing, too!) Fact is, if the candy is cheap, the manufacturers have been cutting costs somewhere along the line, and that generally means moving production to countries with less strict health and labour codes, or buying their ingredients there at least.

So, is it worth saving a bit of money, to give children the kind of candy that you wouldn’t feel good about giving to your own child? Of course not.

Stay away from the discount candy and look for brand-name products made in a country whose environmental and health standards are a known quantity, I’d suggest. You may end up paying a bit more — but there are reasonable ways to cut your costs.

• Chewing gum, Chiclets, lollipops and suckers, or those tiny bags of potato chips are often the least-expensive treats on offer — but take along a calculator to the store (if you’re as bad at basic math as I am) and do the figuring-out, to be sure: Divide the price of a bag of treats by the number of kids you can serve with it, to get the cost per kid — see what treat choices will give the best bang for your buck.
• Check the flyers for specials, and buy larger-sized packages if it gets you a better deal — you can always tuck any leftovers into lunch bags, in the weeks after Halloween.
• Buy candy in bulk, if that’s the best bargain — but do buy from a reputable store and do choose only those candies that come already individually wrapped, preferably in sealed wrappers. No, it’s not great for the environment, all that extra waste packaging, but no sensible parent wants their child to be given a fistful of unwrapped candy from an unknown source.

And don’t put it off a moment longer, if you haven’t bought your Halloween treats yet! Last minute shopping, when the shelves are getting empty in the stores, is the surest way to end up spending more than you want to spend or you have in your budget.

Oh, and don’t eat all the candies yourself before the kids show up at the door. But that part goes without saying, right?

Here’s a dog-treat maker that I sure wish I’d found at the beginning of the summer, to give “my furry boys” a frozen ice treat on those scorching-hot days!

A fun way to keep your dog cool, properly hydrated, and happily occupied in hot weather, the reusable Cool Dogs Ice Treat Maker suspends your dog’s favorite treats in a block of ice that’s firmly held in place with an extendable, heavy-duty stainless-steel base.

Doggy popsicles!

The kit includes the base, a freezer bucket with a lid, an extension rod for mounting to the ground, and a recipe book for making your own dog treats.

Definitely a clever trick to keep in mind for next year…

What can a pet owner trust?

Every time you turn around, another brand or type of pet food is added to the FDA’s recall list of products that are linked to kidney failure in dogs and cats, and the FDA is not as quick as we’d like it to be with updating its official pet food recall list.

When all this first started, two weeks ago, only wet foods (in cans and pouches) made by Menu Foods were involved. These were sold under various well-known brand names including Iams, Eukanuba, Science Diet, Nutro, and Mighty Dog… and this week, Alpo canned food was added to the list.

Up to that point, it was just wet food — and those of us who feed dry food to our pets were feeling fairly secure that we were not poisoning our beloved companion animals…

Then, on Friday, Hill’s Pet Nutrition voluntarily recalled one of its dry cat foods, Prescription Diet m/d Feline Dry Food. Now that one was a shocker, because it’s a food sold by veterinarians — the very people to whom pet owners were turning in hopes of finding a safe food for their furry companions.

Yesterday, Del Monte recalled “select product codes of its pet treat products sold under the Jerky Treats®, Gravy Train® Beef Sticks and Pounce Meaty Morsels® brands as well as select dog snack and wet dog food products sold under private label brands.”

The Company took this voluntary recall action immediately after learning this morning from the FDA that wheat gluten supplied to Del Monte Pet Products from a specific manufacturing facility in China contained melamine. Melamine is a substance not approved for use in food. The FDA made this finding as part of its ongoing investigation into the recent pet food recall.

The full list of recalled products is given in a Del Monte press release.

These days, my feed reader is tuned to PetConnection.com, a great source of information on the tainted pet food issue, and Pet Food Tracker for the most up-to-date information on current pet food recalls.

If you have one of these products, do not feed it to your pet. Save the product, along with receipts and veterinary records. The companies involved have pledged to take responsibility for the recall, although what that means financially cannot be determined at this time.

The common thread — the tainted ingredient in these cases — seems to be wheat gluten from China, where environmental and safety standards are not what they are in North America and Europe.

Older dogs and dogs with delicate digestive systems (like many ex-racer greyhounds) don’t always tolerate grain products well anyway. Wheat, corn, soy, and so forth tend to be included in dog foods as filler, not a source of nutrition that the dog’s body can use, so I have always tended to stay away from food with those ingredients anyway.

In recent years, I’ve been feeding my dogs either Canidae or Canine Plus Wholesome Blend dog food. Both made with “human grade” ingredients… no wheat, from China or anywhere else… so I’m as confident at this point as it’s possible to be… I guess… but still checking that recall list (obsessively!) every morning, right before I feed the pets.

Every time I go in the pet store to pick up a bag of chewy treats for the “fur kids” — some new customer is bound to wander in.

And it always seems to be a male who stops stock-still at the bin of Jumbo Bullysticks, seeing them for the first time. You can see the storeowner start to grin, knowing that she’s going to get the chance to answer the nervous question that every guy has to ask — “what are these things made of, anyway?”

Such a chuckle, to watch as the guys learn exactly what the resident dogs are chewing away on with such enjoyment… Okay, maybe it’s all a bit, er, disturbing… but the dogs love these things, all-natural and low-fat, and helps to keep their teeth clean too.

Report of Private Parts Used as Dog Treats
Is All Bull

Unusual snacks
an alternative to pig ears and rawhide chews.

Centerville, TN (PRWEB) June 20, 2006—In what could eventually become material for the late night comedy circuit, a company in Tennessee is offering dog owners an alternative for pets that typically enjoy chewing rawhides and pig ears. Penile snacks derived from bulls have been increasing in popularity and there is no indication demand will be slowing anytime soon.

“It’s difficult to keep them on the shelves,” contends Wayne Bosak, owner and operator of Bullysticks.com, a distributor of the taurine treats.

“As word of mouth spreads and more dogs give them a try, people realize how enjoyable they are for their pets,” he added.

The product is considered an innovative delicacy by many in the pet care industry. For others, however, the thought of feeding bull privates to their beloved animals is a tough idea to swallow.

“It’s a psychological barrier that some occasionally have,” says Bosak. “But our sticks are 100% natural, healthy and easily digestible. They’re low in fat and even help reduce tartar build-up.”

The Bully Sticks, which come from South America, go through a fairly simplified manufacturing process. They are sterilized, dried and then smoked for flavor. The company offers the product in various shapes and sizes, one of which includes the “Jumbo Bully Stick.”

The items are a unique addition to an already thriving U.S. pet food market, which is estimated to be at $10 billion. BullySticks.com has shipped approximately five million inches to date and based on recent feedback from customers, brisk sales are expected to continue.

“Dog owners always want the best for their pets and we offer a nice alternative to the other chew products currently on the market,” stated Bosak.

Bullysticks.com, a subsidiary of Knine Kountry Distributing, also offers a wide range of other natural pet food products including chicken treats, cow ears and rawhides. The company has recently moved into a new 10,000 square foot warehouse facility to accommodate recent growth.

Our friend Kath just sent this recipe for dog cookies, and we couldn’t wait to try it out — thinking of homemade Christmas gifts for other friends with dogs! Kath says that these are the only dog treats her picky-eater Bichon Frise won’t turn his little nose up at, so the ever-greedy pups in our own family are sure to approve!

Homemade Whole WheatDog Treats

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup powdered milk
1 tsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp wheat germ
1 tsp beef bouillon granules or 1 beef Oxo cube
7 Tbsp bacon grease or meat drippings
1 egg
1/2 cup (approx.) cold water — as cold as you can get it!

Preheat oven to 350 °F. Combine all dry ingredients and cut in the
drippings as if you were making biscuits or pastry. Mix in egg. Add just enough of the cold water to allow the mixture to be formed into a ball. Pat it out to 1/2″ thickness and cut into shapes. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, then cool on a wire rack.

We’ve always had good luck with our tried-and-true Peanut Butter Dog Cookies recipe, but so many people are allergic to peanut butter, it’s great to have another recipe to use sometimes.

For dog treats to give as Christmas gifts, I’ve finally rounded up some special dog-themed cookie cutters! One is shaped like a bone, of course — and the other cutter is in the shape of a fire hydrant! Won’t that be cute?

Now, if I could only come up with a few good homemade gift ideas for the human beings on my list!

Note: This article was written and published in 2005. For up-to-date information, see Greenies Dog Treat NOT Dangerous Now.  The product has been reformulated and is as safe for dogs as any other “dental chew” or chewable treat.

Dog forums, pet blogs and and pet-related list-serves continue to be a-buzz with stories of dogs who have required serious and expensive surgery after being given a Greenie dog treat. There seem to be two main issues, as I noted in yesterday‘s post on this topic:

1. Do Greenies pose a choking hazard to dogs who gulp or fail to chew properly, or who have been given a Greenie that is too small for the size of the dog?
2. Can dogs digest Greenies properly, or is there is a significant risk of undigested material from some ingredient that may cause an intestinal blockage?

My growing sense, the more I read, is that the two issues may very well be related.

Can Dogs Choke on Greenies?

Dogs can choke on anything they chew, the same way that a person can choke on chewing gum or a hastily-gobbled breakfast bagel. Eat too fast and a piece can get caught in the throat, blocking the passage of air. The choking hazard for dogs is not restricted to Greenies but extends to any “chewy” that can break into small pieces. Supervision is important. It wouldn’t hurt to brush up on doggie first aid techniques, too.

Can Greenies be Digested Properly by Dogs?

Here’s what S&M NuTec (manufacturers of Greenies®) says about Greenies on its product information page:

Some chew products contain other inert materials which are not digestible. All ingredients in Greenies® the original green smart-treat® are highly digestible, are human food grade prior to being processed in pet food plants.

Here’s a link to actual photographs of the green material removed from a dog’s blocked intestine during emergency surgery, as well as the section of bowel removed. (These are real photographs, so be forewarned if you are squeamish about medical things.)

And in case anyone goes getting unduly alarmed, because these are quite alarming pictures, do please remember that anything that is ingested by a dog can cause the occasional problem. That includes socks, stuffed toys, real bones, dead mice, tuna casserole… anything can “go down the wrong way”.

It may be useful to check the Greenies.com FAQ, newly expanded, which has answers to about any question imaginable.

And here’s a letter posted on Boxer Rescue, dated 9 November 2005, from Jody Hanson “on behalf of the manufacturers of Greenies®“:

Millions of Greenies® are sold each month. On rare occurrences, we are troubled by an incident where a pet owner has said that his/her dog has had a problem with Greenies®. When we do hear of these reports, we always conduct a thorough investigation. Typically, the results of our investigations have revealed that the pet has been given the wrong size Greenies® by its owner or the pet has swallowed an abnormally large piece of Greenies® without chewing it. As such, we strongly recommend purchasing the correct size Greenies® according to the size and weight of your pet. Additionally, we recommend all pet owners supervise their pet’s eating and chewing habits. And not just with Greenies®, but when given dog bones, treats, rawhides, and even while eating meals.The digestibility testing that we have with Greenies® show them to be about 85% digestible when adequately chewed. If a dog swallows a large piece or a whole treat the digestion process will probably take longer because of the decrease of treat surface area to digestive liquids and stomach action. This would be similar if a dog swallowed a large piece of meat, vegetable, or fruit. The length of time it would take to digest would depend on the size of treat compared to the size of dog. The primary ingredient in Greenies® is wheat gluten, which is very digestible.

For what it’s worth, the bottom line conclusion that I reached yesterday — to return to what we did before they invented Greenies — has not changed as a result of what I have learned here today.

UPDATE: Canine GREENIES® dental chews for dogs have been reformulated to be more safe and easily digestible, in 2006, in response to customer concerns about their safety for dogs.  As the company’s FAQ for veterinarians explains:

“Reformulated GREENIES® dental chews are 96 percent digestible, which is more digestible than the average dry dog food. Since the product was reformulated in 2006, there have been no reports of blockages or obstructions.”

So, no worries — it’s all good now!

For archival purposes only, and for the information of pet owners who may wonder what the story is/was, here’s my original article about the Greenies® safety issue, posted 17 Nov 2005:

Greenies Dog Treat may be Dangerous

Our dogs love Greenies® treats and would eat them every day if they had a chance, but serious questions are being raised about the safety of the product.

Those green “dental chews” certainly freshen the dogs’ breath, as advertised — but we’re beginning to think that these treats may be dangerous to the dog. A lot of reports have been coming to light recently about hazards related to Greenies ®, such as KIRO-tv’s investigative report (“Dog Treat May Carry Danger,” 15 November 2005), as well as numerous disturbing personal stories about dogs who have become very ill or even died from eating Greenies®.

Most of the reported health problems seem to be related to the Greenie creating a blockage in the dog’s intestine because it is not properly digested. That means great discomfort for the ill dog, at the very least, a trip to the veterinarian, and quite often some serious surgery — it can even mean death.

Bereaved dog owners and their veterinarians have described finding a solid mass of foam-rubber-like green substance in the dog’s digestive tract.

Yet, when I look at the list of Greenies® Ingredients, no red flags are leaping out to suggest a potential problem:

Processed wheat gluten (wheat protein), glycerin, natural flavor, powdered cellulose fiber, monosodium phosphate, monoglycerides of edible fatty acid, magnesium stearate and chlorophyll.

So what’s going on here?

The Greenies® website does say “Caution: As with any edible product, monitor your dog to ensure the treat is adequately chewed. Gulping any item can be harmful or even fatal to a dog.” (It does not, however, explain how to teach a dog to chew thoroughly before swallowing its treat.)

The importance of following the company’s “feeding instructions” is reflected in a response from the manufacturer, posted in the Global Paws forum’s Greenie Bone Warning discussion:

Question:
————————
There has been quite a bit of talk going around the internet about Greenies causing intestinal blockage. I have always tried to quell internet myths and rumors when I can. I have directed concerned dog owners to the Greenie website for info about feeding and discussed the numerous things we give our dogs that can cause blockages. I see that you have revised some of your feeding guidelines due to some new info. Can you give me an estimate of the percentage of intestinal blockages related to Greenies compared to other things? My guess is that it is relatively low.Answer:
————————
Millions of Greenies® are sold each week. On rare occurrences, we are troubled by an incident where a pet owner has said that his/her dog has had a problem with Greenies®. When we do hear of these reports, we always conduct a thorough investigation. Typically, the results of our investigations have revealed that the pet has been given the wrong size Greenies® by its owner or the pet has swallowed an abnormally large piece of Greenies® without chewing it. As such, we strongly recommend purchasing the correct size Greenies® according to the size and weight of your pet. Additionally, we recommend all pet owners supervise their pet’s eating and chewing habits. And not just with Greenies®, but when given dog bones, treats, rawhides, and even while eating meals.

Several people have notified us of the report about this Maltese that is circulating the internet. I can tell you that we did get the opportunity to investigate this case. We were so sad to hear about this dog. After doing an investigation, we found that this dog received the incorrect size of Greenies recommended for his weight. Our size recommendations are as follows:

Lil’ Bits:

Dogs under 5 pounds, dogs less than 6 months old, dogs of any size or age who tend to gulp

Teenies:

Dogs between 5 and 15 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Petite:

Dogs between 15 and 25 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Regular:

Dogs between 25 and 50 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Large:

Dogs between 50 and 100 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers

Jumbo:

Dogs over 100 pounds, over 6 months old and good chewers.

Hopefully this information makes you feel better about our product. Any additional questions can be sent to Dr. Bradley Quest, our technical services veterinarian, at info@greenies.com. Please feel free to pass this response on.

Of course, any chewed object or food can cause a dog to choke. Greenies® are quite expensive, so a lot of people do try to save money by getting a slightly smaller size than is recommended.

From what I am reading about this story, however, it seems that the issue is not about choking on a hastily-gobbled treat but actually that the treat cannot be fully digested by the dog.

This email from Elaine Hopper of Starlaine Dobermans & Whippets tells story of her own recent personal experience:

Dog treat dangerI have a warning to pass on…

On the way back from the Dobe National this year, I was walking one of the dogs at the airport waiting for the owner to return our rental car when the dog decided to throw up…..

I was shocked to see a mass of green rubber-like material and immediately called the owner. The mass looked like something you would see in the pad under a carpet. I was assured the dog did not shred anything…and that the only thing the dog had been given to eat recently was a “Greenie”…one of those formed green dog treats that look like a toothbrush…..

I couldn’t believe one of those pressed dog treats would reconstitute into what looked like a mass of foam rubber pieces!

Well, after getting home my friend did an experiment….cut up one of those things and soaked it in water overnight….low and behold a mass of foam rubber crap! Certainly NOT digestible!

We both made a note to never feed those things again…and then last night in the Seattle area the newscast did a piece on…you guessed it GREENIES! A whole story about how dogs are DYING from blockages after eating those stupid things!

Here is a link to the article….turns out they are NOT 100% digestible….

My bottom line is this:
No more Greenies® for our dogs — not until I find out for sure what the rubbery-looking green material is that blocks the intestines of the dogs who are making the news.

So it’s back to our old regimen of (sterilized) real shank bones for the dogs’ (supervised) chewing amusement; chicken-flavoured toohpaste and a baby-sized toothbrush to clean their teeth and breath; and my own homemade dog cookies to please their greedy little doggie appetites between meals.

This dog cookies recipe was given to me by my elderly neighbour — our dogs have managed to convince her that we don’t feed them anything tasty (not true!) and love to beg her for these home-made dog treats!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup plus 1 Tbsp water
• 1 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1 egg
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1-1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup cornmeal

Whisk together the first four ingredients. Stir in flour and cornmeal until well mixed. Knead until the dough holds together, then transfer to a lightly floured surface.

Roll out dough to a thickness of about 1/8 inch. Poke holes all over the dough with a fork and cut into pieces of the desired size — use a bone-shaped cookie cutter, if you have one!

Place on a baking sheet about 1/2 inch apart and bake at 350°F for 18 – 20 minutes, until firm. Put the pan on a rack and let the dog cookies cool completely. Reduce the oven heat to 300°F and bake for 20 minutes longer, until hard. Cool, then store in a tightly sealed container.

I’m told that they will keep for about 30 days, but our dogs seem to gobble up their special treats much more quickly than that!