Kohl Harrington's documentary takes a harsh look at the questionable ingredients and frequently shabby quality control in today's pet food industry. The film argues that too many dog and cat owners are distracted by user-friendly marketing to notice that many of the canned and packaged foods being served to their pets are nutritionally dubious and fail to meet basic dietary needs despite generous promises of being healthy. Even worse, the lack of care in processing these foods has resulted in the poisoning deaths of pets and the grief of owners who felt guilty about feeding their beloved creatures contaminated food. But it appears that no one is keeping an eye out: regulating pet food is not a federal priority, and this film argues that the industry itself is not particularly good at self-policing. It also doesn't help that a handful of conglomerates dominate the pet food industry, selling their products under a multitude of different brands. Pet Fooled makes the argument that raw foods are the best solution for dogs and cats, and several veterinarians here concur, although any potential related concerns are not strongly raised. A provocative documentary that may catch many pet owners by surprise—and perhaps spur them to take a second look at the ingredients list on their pets' food cans—this is recommended. Aud: P. (P. Hall)
Pet Fooled
(2016) 70 min. DVD: $29.95. Kino Lorber (avail. from most distributors). Closed captioned. Volume 32, Issue 2
Pet Fooled
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