[Merika]

I just got off the phone with Canidae. They changed their formulas in July, with no notice on the packaging. I only noticed by accident that the new bag I bought was full of barley and other new stuff.

I spoke with customer service. The woman both claimed that the new version was gluten free because "barley has almost no gluten in it" and that the product has always contained gluten because "rice is full of gluten". OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I told her she was giving out completely bad information. I explained that this is not the kind of gluten people are interested in when they call customer service. She explained they don't make their product, nor label it, nor give out accurate information for people with "rare diseases". I told her to expect a lot more calls since their product switched and people may have questions.

I hope she does not confuse a bunch of newly diagnosed people (sigh).

The Canidae phone number is 800-398-1600. You may want to check the ingredients on the bag you recently purchased. I know I will be shopping for a new dog food.

Btw, she did say they are coming out with a grain-free dog food in 2 months. I will look for it. I will also read the ingredients well because who knows what might qualify as a "grain" in this woman's opinion. lol

Merika

[psawyer]

Part of the problem here lies with the very word, "gluten."

The dictionary definition is not the same as what we mean when we say "gluten."

The above link leads to:

gluten (uncountable)
1. The major protein in cereal grains, especially wheat; responsible for the elasticity in dough and the structure in baked bread.

This is how the representative at Canidae is interpreting the word.

We, on the other hand, along with the human food labeling laws, use it to refer to the protein of wheat, rye, barley (and sometimes oats).

Pet food is considered animal feed, and is governed by completely different rules from human food. Gluten of the type we care about can be identified in pet foods by careful reading of the ingredients. The name of the source grain will appear.

I hope this clears up some of the confusion.

[Merika]

Hi psawyer,

I totally get what you're saying. From a scientific point of view, there is truth to all grains having gluten. I can't think of the technical term for the kind of gluten we can't have, but yk, when the average consumer calls to ask about gluten being in a product - whether for human or animal consumption - I think most of them mean wheat/barley/rye/oats-derived. The customer service rep didn't seem to understand, but I think you know what I mean.

Merika