>> But the point I was making is whether you should be buying it with foodstamps. I may be out of line, but if you're buying on someone else's dime, you should make that dime stretch as far as you can.Why do you automatically assume that food stamp recipients are buying food on someone else's dime? You don't know why they are receiving FS and you don't know for how long. For all you know, the FTR could be employed but still eligible for FS. They could be members of the the Armed Forces Services. Heck, they could have just been laid off from a long term job/employer. They could be seniors/or not on Social Security.. or SC Disability. All of those examples paid taxes, too. So, where do you get the idea that you should feel ripped off, somehow? And maybe it's none of those things. I don't think it is your business what they buy to eat. I find this attitude to be stingy, mean spirited and very very judgmental. Do you have kids? I don't, and yet, my taxes go towards lots of GS only kids use. >> I would think you could buy a lot more chicken than lobster for the same amount of money. Lobster might be healthy, but it ain't cheap! Even here in Boston! ;)They probably could, that's true. But it's still their choice, not yours. And FWIW, lobster can be had cheaply in the summer time here. Last summer we were able to buy chix at 2.99 per pound. Once or twice we managed to get it at 1.99 pound. And our local north shore restaurants had triples for 15 bucks as a special run twice a week. That's 5 bucks per lobster...not expensive at all. I don't know if you've lived here all of your life. I have. I do think that you have most likely never had to suffer the humiliation of food stamps. Or endured the looks and stares of disapproval, as strangers feel entitled to survey the contents of your grocery cart. Often they will even have the gall to make comments, quite frequently those comments are said in front of small children. Lastly, you would be amazed to see the most vocal anti welfare folks in this neighborhood rant and rave how "those" people get everything for nothing. All the while these folks who have very good paying municipal jobs (with fine benefits) that they got solely based on some sort of connection.. and that connection doesn't just give them one good job. Nope, I know families who have firefighters, cops, EMT'S and crossing guards... not to mention uncles or aunts working at city hall and have been told that any one of their kids that have served in Iraq or Afghanistan, they need only place a call letting the PTB know that they are now in need of a job. And despite of this.. these favored and connected families not only justify but brag about their kids getting free lunch.. and LOUDLY scream about "those welfare cheats" at the same time.As far as I can see, there are many more cheats with city jobs. Theft is theft... stealing is stealing. Those with connections just get a pass. It's legalized theft and it is so ingrained that the connected have a total disconnect..they don't see what they do as thievery. Hey, this wasn't anywhere near as bad as a post I saw on another forum that basically said, birthday cake and even cupcakes for little kids BD'S paid for with FS put her over the edge... turned her into a republican from a life long democrat. Really, if a cupcake for a little kid put her into such a tizzy.. well, I say she was just livin' in the closet of denial. Me? I say you all spend way too much time feeling entitled to scrutinize "CERTAIN TYPE" folks grocery carts. Admit it... you know you do. I find all of this sad, very sad. Silly ~~~although, nothing silly about any of this

I used Iams for over 17 years - then the dogs didn't seem to do so well on it any more. So 1.5 years ago I switched to Nutro dry kibble. In the month or so before the wet food recall, I noticed my dog's coats weren't as nice, they vomited on/off yellow frothy stuff, and they avoided eating it until the last moment before we went to bed. Sometimes I had to encourage them with people food on it. These are dogs that are 12, have always willingly ate dry kibble, live indoors with us, and never over eat. The vet and I attributed it to hunting dogs doing what they like to do on our long daily walks (we live in the middle of nowhere, where there are many tasty temptations on the trails). Then around the first part of March, one of mine had violent seizures for the first time in her life at age 12. There is a family history; her brother has mild seizures 2-3 times year. so mild we don't medicate for them; and I know they can spring up at any age, so truly that is the most likely answer. However, that day I stopped feeding the Nutro, and began home cooking cold turkey. That strange vomiting with both dogs ended that day (despite the fact I thought switching to such a rich home cooked diet would cause some upset). Coats sleeked back up in short order. Please knock on wood for us, but no seizures yet (I still am reluctant to connect that to the food, because of the dog family history, but need to put it out there because I do think there is something less than fatal in this food that was at the least causing the vomiting/tummy upsets. My girl had a cluster of 6 in less than 24 hours, and it took days before she was "normal", ie pacing for hours, some vision issues, couldn't sleep, wobbly legs, etc.) It was a nightmare. Then I heard about the wet food recall. I thought I was a food snob. I did ask questions, but 1) how can I know if I am not told truthful answers re QC and ingredient issues, and 2) frankly, accidents like a bad batch of X can happen - to both pet and human grade food. I don't know what to think now, except that if commercial wet food has issues with rat poison, plastics poison, god-knows-what-else is still in it that is causing problems less than death in it, too much Vitamin D (the Royal Canin lawsuit, which btw, I had tried the cat food years ago and it was simply awesome at the time, but still, they screwed up)... well, I can guarantee that as a home cooker, I can be more careful than that. I am just lucky that I can make the time to home cook - what a burden that would be in other circumstances for a lot of people. The cat would be harder to do a good home job with; so I am trying Felidae dry kibble. P.S. The store and Nutro were very stand up about taking our returned sacks of dry kibble for full credit.

I completely agree that growing kittens, like Muffin, need to be fed an appropriate amount of high quality food to insure proper growth. If Muffin is pregnant, her nutritional needs are even more critical and must be properly met. I do not, however, equate that with necessarily offering food free choice. It is quite easy to provide proper and adequate nutrition without leaving food out 24/7. Dustin most certainly does not need constant access to food, esp. if he has a tendency to overeat and hold too much weight. Some cats can maintain proper condition on free-feeding, and some can't. Those who can't certainly aren't being done any favors by being allowed to get fat. Lest there be any misconceptions about switching free-feeders to scheduled, portioned meals, let me assure you that my cats do NOT follow me around begging for food all day. They know when they get fed, and they eat enthusiastically at those times. I have no doubt that they'd eat anytime I put food out for them, but that is not in their best interest. I have already most likely permanently damaged the pancreases of a number of my cats by allowing them to spend years of their lives overweight. They are and always will be at increased risk of developing diabetes and other weight-related maladies, regardless of the fact that most of them are now at healthy weights. "Eating all they want" is NOT a recipe for good health in cats with a tendency to overeat. Of course if a feline caretaker is suffering from anorexia and is incapable of accurately assessing proper weight in their cats, then there might be a problem with withholding adequate nutrition from the animals and starving them, but I'm certain that is NOT what we're dealing with here. Sweetchastity's vet would no doubt be saying something if her cats arrived at the vet's office in emaciated condition, so I think we can put that issue to rest. As far as feeding homecooked meals is concerned, I'm unfamiliar with that practice so cannot speak to its potential risks or benefits. The only thing I know about cooking meat is that it tends to cook out some of the essential nutrients that then must be supplemented back into the food after cooking. That's why I have chosen the Raw Prey Model diet as the basis for my cats' evening meal. The guidelines of this diet call for raw, uncooked meat and bones at an approximate proportion of 80% muscle meat, 10% bone (never, EVER feed cooked bones to any animal - raw only), 5% liver, and 5% other secreting organ. These percentages are based on the approximate proportions of these elements in the bodies of prey animals. These proportions are not exact and allow for considerable adjustment based on the cat's (or dog's) individual responses. Also, the proportions do not have to be met at every meal, but rather should be achieved over the course of a week or longer. In other words, if more bone is fed one day, then more muscle meat should be fed the next to level things out. The only supplement I add to this diet is fish oil for omega 3 fatty acids. I do, however, utilize as many different types of meat and organs as possible (chicken, turkey, pork, beef, venison, mutton, etc.) to fill in any nutritional deficits that a particular meat may present. Also, cats can be infuriatingly finicky. They can refuse one type of meat and hope for something more to their liking at the next meal. If you spend time researching raw and cooked meals for pets, you will find endless information on an endless variety of diets. Some are cooked, some are raw, some are just meat and bones, some include vegetables and/or grains, some are based on a single meat type, some advocate variety. It can be overwhelming trying to decide what you believe is best for your own animals. That's the challenge, and good luck! As far as feeding commercial food is concerned, I firmly believe that low-carb, high protein is the way to go for healthy cats, eliminating as many grains from the foods as possible. I suspect that if you read the labels of Iams foods, they will be packed with useless grain fillers that do absolutely NOTHING nutritionally for cats. Also, canned food is much better for them than dry. I see no value or need to purchase canned and dry from the same brand, unless it's the best food available. If you want to feed commercial foods, you might want to consider Innova Evo and Wellnes Core. Be forewarned, though, that both Evo and Core (dry) are VERY calorie-dense and must be strictly portioned or your cats can become obese very quickly. Remember that my cats get only 1/8 c. of Evo dry in the morning in addition to their raw meat and bones meal at night. Laurie

rhome, that sure is true. We all have our desire to share and help others get the most out of their new kitchens . It doesn't matter at all what the skill level, we can all learn and grow and enjoy. I see tons of talent everywhere I look and I keep looking even though I know I can't begin to make or don't want to make what others are able to do. I still love to look. I hope that everyone realizes that it is out of a sense of community spirit that we all post here long after our kitchens are "done", also I am not sure we are EVER done :) Here is part of what we did this afternoon. DH's fingers were still sore but he wanted cookies ! He has perfected his Italian Seed Cookies and wanted to make them. So here are some of the steps and the finished product. shaping the dough: place in water/toasted sesame seeds /parchment finished : These are almost exactly like the cookies from Brocato's bakery in NOLA. We just had 4 bags of them from SIL's visit and it sure was hard to tell the difference. The Brocato cookies are a tad sweeter but I like DH's best :) It has taken him years to get them perfect. He purchased ammonium carbonate as the rising agent and also twice bakes them. It makes all the difference. I wanted to show you Alto and Sax ! They are my starters. They are now about 2 yrs old. WOW do they love me LOL. Here are pics of them before and after feeding and then of the 2 breads I am in the process of making. It is a couple day thing to make bread with wild yeast starter so stay tuned to tomorrow . before feeding - fresh from fridge: after just 3 hrs: San Joaquin Sourdough auto lyse ( I let it set about 30 min) Polish Country Bread ( a light rye) auto lyse - Polish Dough is beaten in the KA mixer for 4 min on speed 2 and then let to rest 40 min. Then you do 2 stretch and folds. Rest 40 min and again. Then rise 2 hrs or so and bake. in KA: First way to do stretch and fold - pat flat : fold like a letter: Here is another way to do S and F. In the bowl with a spatula. Do 30 turns with the spatula around and around quickly bringing the dough up and over a little each turn. Do this every 30 min X 3 times. You will be amazed at the strength the dough acquires with a small amount of work. Here are pics DH took :) Tomorrow I will show the finishing touches and the final product. Hope everyone has a lovely Summer Friday night. c