We hunted down fellow dog owner John James Jacoby in hopes that he would remain an objective reporter at this particular event. Following a few free flights, hotel stays, steaks and bowling pins later, that went all out the window. Here’s the first part of a three-part series about our inside scoop behind the mega companies that feed your dog.

Very rarely does the opportunity present itself to get a guided tour through any facility, let alone one as highly guarded as the Iams and Eukanuba Research Lab in Dayton, OH. Avenue K9 and representatives for eight other really cool websites were fortunate enough to experience not only the guided tour, but to meet many of the amazing individuals that work “behind the paw!”

At “Behind the Paw!” we were awarded a very rare three-day look into the operations of Iams, Eukanuba, and Proctor and Gamble, and also some of the individuals that are responsible for creating, testing, packaging, branding, and marketing what eventually ends up in the bowls of our furry little friends in the form of yum-yums and din-dins everyday.

Coming down from this awesome adventure, it’s hard not to openly and wholeheartedly endorse everything that I&E do not just for our pets, but for the well being of all animals everywhere. Below you’ll find a list of what we feel are the most important pieces of information we walked away with from looking “beyond the paw:”

1. “Animal Testing” does not mean helpless animals being plugged into the matrix. Of the hundreds of cats and dogs we saw, everyone of them was free to roam their controlled environments (which are much larger than our apartments) and were happy, healthy, shiny, well groomed, and well mannered.
2. I&E take Animal Science seriously. They currently produce as much food for their on site animals as they originally did for their entire business.
3. Corn isn’t filler if used correctly. Each ingredient in their products is hand selected as the most scientifically verifiable, healthiest option to provide our pets with all of the essential vitamins and minerals they require. We can say this because we walked through the lab, saw the product, saw where it came from, and saw how it’s all assembled.
4. I&E employees love their jobs and believe in what they do. We got to visit a local animal shelter and see first hand the contributions I&E make to help promote animal wellness in a real world setting.
5. I&E has joined forces with Mike Arms and are supporting Home 4 the Holidays, a super awesome way to flip the stigma about adopting pets during the gift giving season.
6. I&E scientists helped discover and uncover what ultimately caused the recent pet food recall. Their discovery and quick response saved all of our animals from potential illness not only from the Iams and Eukanuba brands, but from all brands that also used that particular product from that vendor.
7. Our friends in Eukanuba Marketing aren’t that good at bowling. Not that we are either, but, we’re still better than they are…

All in all, the trip was an amazing and eye opening adventure filled with lots of laughs and learning. On behalf of Avenue K9, I sincerely thank everyone for allowing us to tag along, and genuinely hope to stay connected with everyone in the future!