"Question: What do M&M’s and your local veterinarian have in common?
Answer: Both are owned by Mars Inc., the global candy monopolist" (Otherwords.org)
MARS Inc., the same company that manufactures M&M's, Twix, Skittles, 3 Musketeers, Orbit Gum, Dove chocolate, Juicy fruit, Lifesavers, Snickers and Starbursts, to name a few, is the same company that has a monopoly on the vet industry and probably owns your local vet because they pretty much own the entire industry.
Some big-name veterinary hospitals, clinics and diagnostics they own in the United States include Anicure, Amtech Diagnostics / Sound, Banfield, BluePear, Mount Pleasant Veterinary Group and the VCA Animal Hospitals. Most recently, they acquired Heska, a veterinary diagnostic group for $1.3 billion. You can read the press release here.
So let's get this straight: The company that manufactures candy, also manufactures most of the popular kibble brands (like Iams, Eukanuba, Royal Canin and many, many more), owns most of the popular animal hospitals and local vets), sponsors many vet schools like Colorado State University and University of Florida and owns diagnostic testing too.
This is unethical, but anything goes in the vet biz. This is because businesses are about profit, and not keeping animals alive or well. Monopolies like MARs Inc. are the dog food guys that fund vet schools and work with the vaccine guys to make laws on what is legal and approved. The dog food guy is also besties with the vet board guy because that guy is also funded by the vaccine guy. This is the equivalent to fast-food owning the nutritional information your doctor gets. Oh wait, this happens too!
So who cares? What is the big deal?
The big deal is that our animals are getting sicker and fatter. It is estimated that 65% of the dogs in the UK and USA are overweight or obese. Obesity and disease rates are skyrocketing and is accepted as normal, when it is anything but. Dog genetics haven't changed, but their environments have. The food they eat, the vaccines they get and the medical care that they receive are the culprits.
And companies like the constantly expanding MARs Inc., the keeper of all things animal care, actually do not care about your animal, despite genius marketing. The more businesses they acquire within the animal sector is a loss for the rest of us trying to keep our animals alive and thriving, not fat and sick.
If you want to get your dog off of the merry-go-round of sickness and disease start by feeding a high quality diet made of protein, veggies and fruit that most closely resembles what they would eat in the wild. Please click here to learn more about what to feed your dog. If your dog is sick and you need some guidance on helping them feel better, please visit Bobzilla's Happy, Healthy Life Made Simple.