{Post By Sara!} Buying the Best Food for Your Pet

I subscribe to a Flame Point Siamese cat group on Facebook since I own a 9 month old. Today, one poster said she was at the vet all day and just found out that her cat Elliot’s kidneys were failing. He was only 5 years old. She came to the conclusion that her mistake was feeding him Blue Buffalo brand food, which she found out later has been known for causing diarrhea, vomiting, and the worst: kidney failure like what happened with Elliot.

There’s nothing more heart wrenching than indirectly being the reason why your pet got sick. I can’t imagine how she must feel. You want to rewind time and pick up a different bag of food, but unfortunately there’s nothing that can be changed except how act in the future. All pet owners must research brands before they buy and try their hardest to get the best food within their budget. It could save an animal’s life. There are some steps you can take in order to stop unknowingly giving companies that poison pets your money and start giving it to companies that care.

Here are three tips to ensure you are well-aware of what you’re feeding your pet:

1.) Know what your pet is eating. Ingredients in pet food are listed according to the greatest amount to the least amount – the same with how human food is labeled. Chicken, lamb, and turkey listed as the first few ingredients is a good sign. Brown rice, grain, corn, and soy products placed before the meat is never good.

Here are lists of good and bad ingredients for cats: Happy Cats Haven, Betty Vine

For dogs: The Dog Food Project.

2.) Pay attention to food recalls. Sometimes newspapers run stories on recalls but companies often have ties to other companies that run the journalism world (it’s the sad truth). Your best bet is to do a monthly Google search on the brands you buy. Simply search “Cat food recalls 2013” or “Alpo recall 2013” to come up with more than enough results to satisfy your worries.

3.)  Join an online pet group. Whether it’s a message board, chatroom, Facebook group, or Meetup.com event, it feels go to have a group of animal lovers to go to if you have an issue or question. You could be concerned about your pet because she hasn’t eaten in two days but don’t have enough money for a vet visit or life gets in the way. Proposing questions to a social group by no means should be a replacement for a veterinarian consultation, but it can ease your worries or tell you that it could be an emergency.

What furry friends do you have at home? What brands do you feed them? Let me know in the comments!

~Sara

Introduction from Our New Co-Blogger, Sara!

Hello everyone! I figured I’d introduce myself before I started writing about my daily life as well as sweeping and reviewing. My name is Sara and I’m the younger sister of Tia.  She’s basically my third parent being that she helped raise me and also named me! In return, I gave her the nickname “Tia” which started out as “Ca-Tia” since I couldn’t pronounce Christina as a toddler. Funny enough, Tia means aunt in Spanish. So maybe she isn’t a third parent; she’s a hybrid sister-aunt.

Not sure if the older sister is mimicking the younger or if the other way around…

I have a journalism and public relations background but my true passion lies in fiction writing. I have a million and one projects lined up but my main focus at the moment is my sci-fi/fantasy novel set in an alternate desert world. I would love to travel around for inspiration before I have to settle down, but unfortunately money plays a big role in everything (or lack thereof). Until I’m the next J.K. Rowling, I’ll have to click around on Google Earth or the Universe Sandbox until I can satisfy my wanderlust.

 I lived in Scotland for half of 2012, so I can’t complain too much. 

Photograph featured is me at Glencoe in the Scottish Highlands

In my spare time, I’m a writer, artist, a gamer, reader, and cheapo. The latter meaning I’m disappointed if I don’t have enough food at a restaurant to bring back home a doggy bag so I can have it the next day for lunch. I currently write for Girl Gamer Vogue and Tomodom, both gaming websites. I’m also a proud mom to a Flame Point Siamese kitten named Grenwauld aka “Grenny.” I started running a store called Delicabella which you’ll definitely see a lot more of on here.

From kitten to full-grown menace

For five minutes a day, I enter sweepstakes. I win an average of three things a month and I think that’s a good pay off considering how little I invest into it. Off the top of my head, I’ve won: a snowboard, Dyson Bladeless Fan, concert tickets, a year’s supply of Perrier seltzer, gift cards, shopping sprees, an espresso machine – you name it. I consider myself really lucky. My Italian last name “Ventura” comes from Bonaventura which translates to good fortune or luck. I give my namesake credit whenever I win. Luck is in my blood.

What I want from blogging on Sweeps Go 'Round is to give everyone a different perspective. My sister and I share a lot of the same ideals, but since there’s an age gap, I’ll always be in a different chapter in life than her – maybe even a different book all together. Right now I’m on the cusp of a three-year-relationship turning long distance while my boyfriend starts his first year of law school four hours away from me. I also graduated college last December and then recently left my job for personal reasons, so I’m in a huge transitional phase. What’s next?

I look forward to starting my new chapter with an audience.

Sara