I know that there are truths that are supposed to be obvious. The title of my first blog is one of them. Yet, how often do we disregard this one? Take margarine for instance. I stopped using it years ago after I noticed that when I left it out over night on the table, my cats completely ignored it! Now had it been butter there would be those telltale cat tongue prints all over it! I remember thinking, what do they know that I don't?
Years later, I thought that I would try one of those popular diet plans where they mail you the food. You know the one with the celebrity pitch person who may have been on "Dancing With The Stars"? So I gave it a try. I stuck to it for a month and I did loose a few pounds......but honestly.....the food was terrible. It tasted very processed and seasoned and mushy and/or dry. I was able to convince myself that it wasn't so bad for about 3 weeks.....until I couldn't take it any longer. So I asked my kids to try some of the "snack" foods. They couldn't even swallow most of them. Then they tried to feed some to our omnivorous dog. The dog REFUSED to eat any of it. Then we moved on to our pet pot bellied pig and our chickens. Guess what? NONE OF THE ANIMALS WOULD EAT ANY OF IT!! Apparently it was so processed that my animals could not recognize any of it as FOOD!
This lesson was driven home again last night. My daughter went to a local bakery. They have some great pies and she bought he favorite, banana cream. Later after dinner, I thought that I would try a little piece. The filling was good with lots of bananas, and the crust was good too. The "whipped cream" on top however had a funny aftertaste. It felt greasy and I couldn't eat it. I put some on my finger and offered it to my dog, who sniffed it and walked away. Then I tried the cat and she did the same! Once again I thought, should I be eating something that my pets refuse? I think not. I'm not saying that I am going to employ a panel of animal food testers to be my royal tasters, but I resolve to refuse to partake of food that my pets won't eat!
So there.....my first solid resolution for 2011. Don't eat it if it doesn't look good, smell good, taste good and if my dog won't eat it either!
Great advice, Leslie!
ReplyDeleteEmploying pets as food tasters may not be a bad idea, Leslie Jeanne! For so many years, many of us have just consumed food without any thought to what we were putting into our bodies. I'm much more aware now, read labels, avoid GM-modified foods like soy and beet sugar, and make more concious choices focused on nutritional value. I've found that I prefer and feel healthiest when I eat raw foods like salads and well-washed fruits.
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