Right now I am trying to find a place for posting of the letters denying the vet bills that are coming in, very handy to have the proof of the lying pet food companies online.

Show people the vet bills and they pay attention, show them the pet food companies blowing off paying the vet bills and they get mad, show them the crap the pet food companies sold them labeled as premium pet food and you have created an…informed consumer shall we say?

And everyone LOVES yelling “lying bastids” to the TV ads!

I suspect there have been MANY more of these kind of poisonings than we’ll ever know. I doubt Menu would have announced this one if not pressed by P&G.

Stephani,

I believe there’s an excellent chance of winning. My case isn’t related to the class actions, so it can’t be joined to them. There are about half a dozen rules that bar it from being removed to the Federal District Courts. The State Courts have original jurisdiction, which means the ball stays on my playing field. Not to mention that as a Superior court case, with less potential for delays, it’ll go to trial years before the class action guys get done playing games. Even in the middle of a media blackout it’s going to get attention as the first case to go to trial if the other side lets it go that far.

If they’re dumb enough to go to trial, the next new flavor of pet food you’ll see is sliced CEO in melamine gravy. This is the case these guys have been absolutely terrified will come to light since at least last November.

If you’re looking for an underdog to root for, it ain’t me. I don’t believe I can lose.

When news of the poisonings surfaced, I realized that our vet might have been wrong about how our pet contracted this condition. His food was not on the recall list, but I had a gut feeling we weren’t getting the whole truth from the pet food people. Seven weeks later his brand popped up in one of the “cross-contamination” recalls. To say I went ballistic is a gross understatement… I believe I popped a few eardrums over at Sunshine Mills, owner of Triumph Pet Food, manufactured by Menu.

Will there be justice for our little guy? No. He’s not in the right time frame, but I suspect that food was adulterated long before the mass poisoning that killed so many pets. There’s no way that I can prove that Sunshine, Triumph and Menu are responsible for his suffering, though my gut tells me that they are.

I write my letters and make my phone calls, knowing that it will come to nothing, but if I can make those responsible for all of these pet deaths and illnesses uncomfortable for even a nanosecond, it’s time well spent.

If you can get justice for Chuckles and yourself, in an indirect way that’s justice for our little man. Win or lose, you have the proof; you can confront them. Real heroes are always just regular folks that will not tolerate injustice.

You are a hero to me, fight the good fight.

As the Etheridge song goes, “I am my intentions trapped here in this flesh and bone.” You are what you do. You are taking a stand. This makes you heroic, and those responsible and those who defend them and make specious arguments as to why people should not be held responsible for killing our pets are just scum.

http://www.consumeraffairs.com.....lls61.html

For those who like writing letters, I’d have to agree with those who feel the media is failing to pay attention to the fact there is much about the recall that is still news and deserves to be treated as such. In the absence of media coverage, I also agree with those who see the Internet as an alternate means of getting news and information into the public arena.

Speaking of the media, something kind of funny came up recently. In talking to a reporter, more or less in jest, I said something to the effect of, “I’ll bet you five dollars your editors won’t let you run the story. “. When the story did run, mainly in the spirit of good cheer, I put five bucks in the mail.

Apparently there is a policy they are not allowed to accept any amount of money for news coverage and the five dollars had to be returned. That pretty well ruined the joke, but it did spark the part of my mind reserved for twisted thinking. I can’t help but wonder what would happen if a hundred people sent a dollar to,… umm, say, the New York Times and said, “Here’s a dollar to cover this story.”, then kept putting a dollar that had to be sent back in the mail once a week until it went to press. If nothing else, it’d have to be annoying. Not that I’d ever suggest such a thing. I’m just killing a little time here and thinking out loud….

Help! We need a lawyer’s input, please.

First, I’d like to thank everyone for the kind comments and vote of confidence.

I tend to balk at the term “hero”. I’m just an average person, who happens to have an inate hatred for injustice, especially when I’m on the receiving end of it. In my book that means you fight. I’m at a loss sometimes to understand why folks are intimidated because the other side appears BIG. The human animal is the only predator on the face of the planet that will intentionally stalk and attack predators larger than himself. Millions of years of evolution has made us so successful at this that it is equally mystifying to me that other predators among our species so easily ignore this aspect of human nature.

I didn’t pick this fight, and given my druthers, its one I would have chosen to avoid. The pet food companies brought this fight to my doorstep by killing one of my own.

I don’t see that there is anything especially heroic about choosing to fight when there really is no other choice. As far as I’m concerned, the pet food companies can end this fight any time they like by making full restitution for harm done, on my terms, which under the circumstances I believe to be more than fair. If the pet food companies want to pick from a jury pool made up of the above 35 posts, then so be it.

At the end of the day, all I’ve done in the way of public service is to say it’s possible to take the fight back to their doorstep.

It IS possible to fight the big guys, and I believe it’s possible to win. I don’t believe there’s anything I’m doing that anyone else couldn’t do equally well if they decided to try. There is little, if anything, that I’m doing that will make a speck of difference to anyone not making a similar effort at some level or another. It isn’t possible for me or anyone else to do the heroing for you.

Maybe one person can make a little bit of difference, but one person at a time, a lot of people can make a lot of difference. If a hero is required to get the job done, then it’s your turn to become one. My hat’s off to anyone willing to try, and you have my very best wishes in making the attempt.

My prayers to you and your family and your lawyer.

My prayers are with you–Chuckles’ story is heartbreaking. Both your website and now this lawsuit you have filed are of benefit to all pet owners: you are an articulate voice for us all and have supplied pet owners with facts about the recall that don’t appear in the mainstream media. It seems these pet companies understand nothing unless it has a dollar sign in front of it, so the only way to get through to them is through the wallet. All the best to you.