awhile back i read on woodlums a threath about dogfood. Including the use as dogfood as emergency ration, since you won't eat it up like other food "rations" in verhichels. Mine question is is it really eatable ? This is just one of those things you really wanna check agian and again and again....

Yes you can eat dog food. It's pretty tasty too when nothing else is available. Yes I ate it. I also tried milky bones and they taste like unsweetened cookies. I think that the chunky food is much better than the "paste" like grinded one. If you still can't force yourself to eat it just add a bit of Tobasco. I think there was a time in the late 80s where dog food was acctually healtier than average hamburger at McDonalds. Just make sure your dog doesn't see you eating it. I never tried dry dog food. But I tired Alley Cat Mix dry food and it was decent but required a lot of water. Kind of like soft tastless pretzels with occasional sweet nauseating after taste.

Matt

Dog food is perfectly edible. Some of it even tastes better than DintyMoore. I prefer Beanee-Weinies or Spaghetti-Os though. I don't go along with the idea of packing a ration that you knowingly won't eat. If you don't have the self control to budget you supplies wisely then your survival seems questionable anyway. That goes for rations, water(much more important than food), matches or anything else. If you're not planning on eating until hunger makes dog food look appetizing then I think the weight & space would be better used for an extra canteen.

My $0.02

Ed

I wouldn't feed most dog food to a dog, let alone myself. I hope Peanut will read this and reply. Many dog foods are nothing but corn ( agricultural grade) , ash and meat industry byproducts. There is even a ground up meal made of ground up former pets. This is the same logic that introduced Bovine Spongiforum ( mad cow disease) into the human population. Yes, thats right, many euthanized animals have been recycled into an animal feed. There was an extensive article on this in EARTH ISLAND INSTITUTES magazine some time ago. Bottom line, if you want to rely on canned foods buy the best.

My dog only eats good stuff. Since you mention the article. Beef and chicken are still being fed the by products and leftover, including manure which is a number one case for e coli outbreaks.

Now the fact is that in late 80s and early 90s dog food manufacturers such as Pedigree realized that Mad Cow disease can transfer over different species. USDA didn't worry about it and study was buried for couple of years. While we were being fed meat that was dangerous and possibly infected, Pedigree was making food that was free of the by products that came from animals that were possibly unsanitary or fed with food made by the same breed. And its still like that until today. It's easier to sue and win when your pet dies than if you son or daughter died of food poisoning. My dog won't touch corn and ash food but he will eat premium dog food. As per my conversation with Pedigree they still until today refuse to use by products that came from animals that were fed by animal feed. As a matter of fact they make sure that any type of meat by products was not fed by feed that contained any type of meat. If you buy premium stuff I think you be alright. Now the question may be posed if the excessive use of dog food over the period of time would cause any health problems. Well I don’t know that but I know that I rather have PEDIGREE LITTLE CHAMPIONS® CHOICE CUTS® in Sauce With Lamb Canned Food than starve.

All of my daughters used large dog bones to teeth on, as they did not fall apart like regular teething biscuits and therefore posed almost no chocking hazard. There is little to no danger from any bacteria as they are baked at a high temperatures. Most, if not all animal diets are screened for heavy metals and pesticides.

I don't think that a LITTLE dry dog food would hurt you, but I wouldn't make it a habit. Have you had the urge to chase cars or hike your leg in the bathroom? Have your friends taken offense to the way you say "hello"? <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

I know you were asking about eating dogfood in a survival situation, but I would be very careful about eating canned or packaged dog food unless you absolutely have to. The meat often comes from cattle that for one reason or another are not considered fit for human consumption. They often get the designation DDD (dead, diseased, or dying). That should tell you something.

You might be better off either carrying an extra canteen or two, and/or carrying some real food or emergency rations such as Mainstay or Datrex. You might also want to have (or be able to make) some means to catch or kill your own food.

Good posts all <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Now I am just trying to envision the following scenario: The big one hits the greater Los Angeles megalopolis and your's truly is pinned under debri. I am able to deploy my seep straw to gain water from the leaking pipes and several cans of gourmet catfood have rolled out within grasp. Then I realize my loyal cat Piewacket has taken off with my P38 canopener again <img src="images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

*I am able to deploy my seep straw to gain water from the leaking pipes *

Chris, while you are getting back to your canine roots, make sure the water line you drink from is going to the sewar, that way you can drink from the potty! <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> I'm sorry! <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Anyway, I live on the outskirts of a town were the main (and only!) industry is a dog food and cat food plant. Let me tell you guys that the stuff that goes in and the smells that come out (our school is directly downwind and we dont know if the dog food or cafeteria food is worse!) are definatley Ma's cooking. Plus have you ever seen what dogs eat in the wild, and/or roll in? In the most desperate of times I would eat it though. But cat food is alot better, used to eat it when I was a toddler, then I used it as a dressing for my salad at Thanksgiving and my mom made me stop. Darn. <img src="images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

i thought catfood was a bit diffrent from dog and human food. Catfood isn't suitable for consumption for humans if i remember correctly, because of something...

Beware eating pet foods, for it is not only the food that needs to be considered. The container is also an issue.

Because of the high poverty rate in the US, (1 in 4 children below our very low poverty line), some pet food manufacturers have upgraded the containers to the human food standard. This is a costly change. But many have not upgraded and continue to use containers that may contaminate the food below the human standards. Still OK for pets though.

The problem is finding out which do and which do not. The industry remains mute on the subject. However a person skilled in industrial canning methods can easily tell the difference. Something about the grade of metal and coatings used.

If you stick with a name brand, you should be okay. Just avoid store brands. Those are made by the lowest bidder and the contracts are let every three or four months. If they screw it up (and they have) what do they care? If (let's pick a target) wally world lost all their store brand pet food business, what have they lost, a half percent of one day's profits? On the other hand, if Purina, Hill's science Diet, Eukanuba, Iams, etc. suffer quality problems and lose business, a lot of guys wearing suits will have to explain a new job search to an angry wife.

"Never appeal to a man's better nature. He may not have one. Invoking his self interest gives you much more leverage." - Lazarus Long

I personally tasted Hill's I/D perscription food while touring their Kansas City plant a decade ago. Bland (it's supposed to be), but eminently edible.

That said, in a survival situation, I'd rather eat any pet food than worms and bugs.

Peanut