I signed! Over 2,000 signatures already. Food safety is the silliest reason ever for this policy. Seriously- we wash our lettuce and carrots- even the tomatoes from our own naked garden. It's a given. Handle all food with care. So, so dumb!

As Tracy pointed out, where is the warning not to touch kibble for fear of salmonella contamination? Where is the advice not to allow toddlers near the kibble bowl? Where is the "concern for the safety of the public" over the massive kibble recalls just weeks ago?

Exactly right Connie and Tracy! For the AVMA to not mention these issues in kibble, is to me, blatantly one sided and seems purposefully ignored.
It's no wonder we acquire cynicism.

I hope to see the numbers grow with this petition.

Even if the AVMA has become a puppet of the big kibble manufacturers,
and if this ends up in changed legislation, it will only serve to deepen the divide between conventional veterinarians and those informed consumers.
Ultimately, I would think it could effect their practices.

As for myself, this only makes me more strongly committed to seeking out like minded and holistic vets.
With all the information available on the benefits of species appropriate diets out there, it's shameful to me that vets could and would still support such a substandard food,such as Hills SD.
I really want nothing to do with that mindset.
JMO.

I remember the Hills folks at vet school. They seemed sincere 35 + yrs ago. It seemed they were trying to produce a quality product for things like feline bladder problems, heart disease, kidney failure.ID,CD,SD,HD. Young vets got the feeling that Hills was part of the cure, no kidding they would make money, but it seemed cool, their research places looked legit, their speakers seemed to believe in what they were making. We didn't think we were selling stuff for them, we thought they were helping us manage disease.

 Quote: Betty Landercasp

I remember the Hills folks at vet school. They seemed sincere 35 + yrs ago. It seemed they were trying to produce a quality product for things like feline bladder problems, heart disease, kidney failure.ID,CD,SD,HD. Young vets got the feeling that Hills was part of the cure, no kidding they would make money, but it seemed cool, their research places looked legit, their speakers seemed to believe in what they were making. We didn't think we were selling stuff for them, we thought they were helping us manage disease.

Yes, I absolutely believe this.

And I absolutely believe in the corrupting power of huge money and the huge power that comes with giant corporations.

Colgate-Palmolive bought Hill's in the late '70s.

Nestle's bought Purina. MasterFoods owns Mars, which bought up Royal Canin (Pedigree, Waltham’s, Goodlife Recipe, Cesar, Sheba, Temptations, Sensible Choice, and Excel).

And Procter and Gamble acquired Iams in the late 90s.

Just to play devils advocate for a minute, I think back in the day they did have a good thing going. They took a scientific approach to a developing market to create a nutritionally complete product (Total for dogs instead of just throwing together scraps like many feed companies were doing) They did the research (which you'd want to see if you were in a scientific field, ie veterinary medicine) and many of the foods work to help manage certain disease. I know a person whose cat has done very, very well on a Hills prescription diet. I know another dog that was on a Hills prescription diet for 2/3 of their life and lived happy and healthy until the age of 15 or 16.

BUT the pet food market is highly profitable and competitive and the focus has changed from a creating/filling their niche (scientifically proven prescription pet foods) to a market domination/bully approach. From a here is why you should feed our food to you shouldn't feed any other foods because they're dangerous. Hmmm, dangerous like the foods almost everybody (Including Hills!) had to recall due to melamine from China? But since Hills was the leader in forming relationships with the veterinary community they still hold a great deal of clout that is often blindly followed.

I am sure that back 35+ years ago it did seem good Dr. Betty.
I can see how each unique formula seemed like it was geared to help diseases or illness.

However today, there is a lot of information, along with compelling evidence from numerous websites, LB included that provide us with the tools for learning about and feeding a species appropriate diet.
The information is out there, yet many vets choose not to learn more about it, and I don't understand why? Especially looking at the ingredient listing on the bag of SD, what about that food says species appropriate? Many ingredients listed don't come close.

So I place this judgement for vets in practice today.
I would no sooner feed SD than eat Captain crunch cereal and
call it a balanced or even healthy.

I'm a raw feeder who thinks kibble is a perfectly valid choice for lots of pets and their owners.

All I want is the same mutual respect for my choice.

 Quote: Tracy Collins

I'm a raw feeder who thinks kibble is a perfectly valid choice for lots of pets and their owners.

All I want is the same mutual respect for my choice.

Very well said!

 Quote: Tracy Collins

I'm a raw feeder who thinks kibble is a perfectly valid choice for lots of pets and their owners.

All I want is the same mutual respect for my choice.

Same here, Tracy.