Re: Re: Animal By-Products in Feed

["Susan Garlinghouse" <suendavid@worldnet.att.net>]

Although I've had a fair amount of human physiology and nutrition classes
along with the animal nutrition classes, I wouldn't presume to tell people
what foods are right or wrong for them in their diet.

However, I think that there's alot of mileage that gets bludgeoned out of
taking what are some pretty innocuous livestock feed manufacturing practices
and turning them into vile, evil and corrupt conspiracies meant to poison
the entire human and animal population.  Believe me, there would be alot
more seriously sick people and humans around if preservatives were *not*
included in commercial feed.  You wanna grow your own organic veggies, and
never buy a container of pre-prepared food?  Fine, more power to anyone who
does that.  Most people are more concerned about convenience in their lives
and want someone else to do the majority of their food prep, and that goes
for horse feeds as well.  If you make that choice, then yes, preservatives
have to be somewhere in the equation---if it wasn't, there'd be no way to
adequately control spoilage and ther'd be ALOT of horses colicking from
moldy feed.  Take your pick.


> The consumption of BHA, BHT, or ethoxyquin affects cellular mechanisms,
> causing gene instability and a higher mutation rate. As a result, these
> substances have been linked to a higher incidence of cancer in both humans

Any references to independent studies to support this contention?  Any data
produced in species other than lab mice (where they've also been able to
produce neoplasias as a result of diets high in purified, distilled
water...)



> and animals. Of the three sysnthetics preservatives, ethoxyquin is the
most
> toxic as evidenced by the crackdown on dog food manufacturers as evidence.

"Crackdown"?  By whom?  Few of the feed manufacturers are still using
ethoxyquin, but it's been more of a voluntary decision, not an enforcement,
to my knowledge.

>
> Feed additives are common
> Purina Complete Advantage, Purina Athlete, as well as all of the other
> Purina feed that contain Athlete (the complete Omolene line, Equine
Senior,
> Equine Junior, and Equine adult) all contain ethoxyquin.

As a matter of fact, it doesn't.  Purina went to using tocopherols (vitamin
e) as preservatives some time back.  More because it was easier to change
preservatives rather than re-educate consumers that were buying into
terrorist nutrition articles.  Controversy and yellow journalism sells,
reality rarely does.

> Purina Complete Advantage, Purina Horseman's Edge, as well as Omelene and
> Equine feeds contain propionic acid.

Ooooooooohhhhhhhh nnnnnooooooooo, not propionic acid.  Folks, proprionic
acid is naturally produced in the hindgut of herbivores, including horses,
as the result of microbial fermentation, along with acetic, butyric, lactic
and a few others.  Been that way for millions of years, long before Purina
showed up.  As a matter of fact, dairy cattle would die within hours of
hypoglycemia if they *didn't* produce proprionate, and probably
horses---especially endurance horses---as well.



> Manna Pro Super Horse Elite 10, an extruded, high fat feed contains animal
> fat and ethoxyquin.

Couldn't tell you for sure if Manna Pro still uses ethoxyquin, obviously we
can't depend on this article as a source of accurate information based on
their other (clearly wrong) statements.  Probably does contain animal
fat----so what?

I always enjoy statements from people declaring that they would never feed
animal fat to their horses because it isn't "natural".  Apparently riding in
a leather saddle, with biothane/synthetic tack, feeding grain (which is not
natural to horses in the wild state), nailing pieces of steel to their feet
and riding them 50-100 miles in a day IS?  Gimme a break.

>
> The article goes on and on . . .

This type of yellow journalism usually does.

Susan G