USA-made Pet Product Article
USA-made and Sourced Pet Products
Lately I have noticed quite a few pet products being promoted on Facebook. Many, I have found, are made and sourced in foreign countries and not a few come out of China. Why, because manufacturers enjoy less cost in materials and ingredients and overall manufacturing costs. In the USA we have much stricter quality and safety standards and regulations imposed on manufacturers to safeguard ourselves and our animals.
There are quite a few reasons to use our USA-made and sourced products:
Reasons to Use our USA-made
–As mentioned, our quality and safety standards and regulations for not only materials used but also ingredients in our pet food, i.e., numerous FDA food recalls of those containing melamine starting in 2007 labelled improperly from China.
–Materials in our products may harm us and our animals i—f not regulated, ie, asbestos problems, lead in paint, etc.
– -Good support for our local farmers and our local workers employed by our USA product manufacturers.
– -USA products tend to last longer because of our quality controls and safety standards so in the long run costing us less.
–Here our manufacturers are required to disclose the contents of their products unlike foreign countries so we are better informed.
— Keeping more dollars circulating in the USA is good for us all.
— One pet bird product manufacturer states that using USA made and sourced products makes it easier to hold suppliers accountable.
Pet Age has a great article about USA made products from 2018. https://www.petage.com/the-usa-way-brands-highlight-products-sourced-and-manufactured-in-the-u-s/. In this report a Nielsen study is mentioned from 2015 showing 61% of Americans prefer USA made and sourced products as important.
There are a few sites who do reviews on products but it appears very few who single out USA made and sourced products. One that has USA made dog bed reviews is https://www.K9ofmine.com.
The other review sites I have found do not usually specify origin of the products.
USA-made Pet Beds
I want to stress how much like we humans our pets need a great night’s sleep. So I have checked on pet beds through five review sites and these are my findings with emphasis on USA-made and sourced beds or bedding for our pets.
Of the five sites (Best Reviews, K9ofMine, The Spruce Pets, Top Dog Tips, and Wirecutter):
For Cat Beds –
⦁ K&H Pets Products of Colorado provide a thermo cat mat, a kitty window perch, and a covered cat bed all in the top 10 by 2 of 3 cat bed reviewers.
⦁ Smiling Paws Pets of Wyoming makes cat beds of organic cotton and is noted by 1 of 3 cat bed reviews in top 10.
For Dog Beds –
⦁ Big Barker is handmade in PA with thick foam padding with a 10 year warranty, an orthopedic bed for large breed dogs and 4 of 5 reviewers list it in the top 10 dog beds.
⦁ eLuxury of Indiana is owned and operated by veterans . 1 of 5 review sites list their orthopedic gel memory form mattress in the top 10.
⦁ Jax and Bones of Los Angeles, CA is listed in the top 10 by 1 of 5 reviewers for their velour napper dog bed, said to be good for dogs up to 100 lbs.
⦁ K&H Pet Products of Colorado, again mentioned, for their tough elevated and heated beds for chewers in the top 10 by 1 review site.
⦁ Kuranda of Maryland is mentioned by 1 reviewer in the top 10 for their orthopedic elevated bed for chewers with a 1 year warranty.
⦁ Midwest Homes of Indiana since 1921 is noted by 3 of 5 reviewers for their dog crate pads in the top 10.
For our Feathered Friends
Looking at 3 review sites for cage covers necessary to keep out light and distractions for good sleep (My Pet Needs That.com, Best Reviews.com, Best Selected Products.com), I found the following for USA made products:
⦁ Cozzzy Cover from Phoenix, AZ comes in 2nd by 1 reviewer for their dome top parrot cage covers which are black and loose fitting.
⦁ Honorable mention of My Safe Bird Store of New Jersey who offers small bird covered condos that you can fit inside or outside your cage called ‘hide n seek bird condos’ – they are washable (pictured above).
⦁ Midwest Homes of Indiana (1921) comes in as #2 by 1 reviewer for their large black cover for parrot size cages (polyester and washable).
⦁ Prevue Pet Products (Hendryx) of Chicago, IL for 150 years – their large (parrot/cockatoo) black cover, non-toxic, breathable, lightweight cover is mentioned as number 1 in 2 reviews and in the top 8 in 3rd review with their medium size cover for smaller birds coming in as #1 by 1 reviewer.
⦁ Sheer Guard cage cover in small, med, or large is mentioned as #1 by 1 reviewer. They are a subsidiary of Kansas Creations here since 1984.
For our Aquarium Guys –
According to reviews by The Spruce Pets glass is said to be the best for having a tight fit to prevent aquarium evaporation and for durability.
Hoods come in second usually with led lights but give a looser fit than glass.
Screens, like those made by Zilla (an Aqueon subsidiary) in the USA, don’t prevent as much evaporation but still keep the fish from jumping out.
A couple of other reviewers (My Pet Needs That.com and Guppyexperts.com) report as follows:
⦁ Marineland LED Light Hood by Spectrum Brands Pet, LLC, of Virginia and made in Wisconsin, comes in the top 5 by both reviewers.
⦁ Aqueon Aqua Versa top comes in the top 5 also by the reviewers.
⦁ Aqueon Flourescent Hood comes in the top 5 by one.
⦁ Tetra Perfecto Hood and LED Hood (a Marineland subsidiary) are noted in the top 6 by both reviewers.
My own take for my aquarium cover is for my Dwarf African frogs who need plenty of daylight. The only cover I choose for them is a homemade dark colored cloth that fits entirely around the sides of their tank and is closed with velcro to keep out light and drafts at night.
I hope this has given you some helpful information on selecting your good USA-made sleep products for your pets’ good restful nights.