Advocating For
All Earth Animals
Earth Animal co-founder Susan Goldstein.We believe that all animals deserve to live a good life, and therefore we have a fundamental responsibility to protect and advocate for the animals in our families and those that are born, raised, and slaughtered for our pet foods and other pet products.”
Animal Welfare Framework
As the advocate voice for all Earth Animals and based on our commitment to reduce our reliance on animal proteins, we created the pet industry’s first Animal Welfare Framework to govern our use of animals in our food, chews, and treats. Our framework is modeled after the universally recognized Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare and insists that animals deserve a good life and that a good life requires good nutrition, good environment, good health, good behavior, and good mental state. We encourage other companies in the pet industry and beyond to use this model as well.
All Animals Deserve a Good Life
Animal welfare science tells us that the emotional wellbeing of an animal is a key indicator of their welfare. We know that an animal will encounter a mix of negative and positive emotional experiences over the course of its life. Where that balance is strongly positive, and the animal has been cared for according to best practice, we would say that the animal has had a ‘good life.’ This is Earth Animal’s definition of Humanely Sourced, and we are committed to only source humanely sourced proteins for our animal-based products.
That’s why Dr. Bob Goldstein’s Wisdom® Dog Food recipes are made with Global Animal Partnership (GAP) Certified poultry and Ocean Wise Certified, wild-caught catfish, and Marine Stewardship Counsel Certified (MSC) clams, and sardines. It’s why all of our eggs are cage-free and why we have signed onto the Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) to ensure best practices in all our chicken sourcing. And in 2021, along with several other US based companies, we joined the US Working Group for Broiler Welfare to provide an opportunity for industry leaders to collaboratively approach how to improve broiler chicken welfare through the lens of the BCC. Facilitated by Compassion in World Farming and Blue House Sustainability Consulting, this Working Group is committed to shifting the industry forward to align with higher welfare standards.
Better Chicken Commitment Update:
At Earth Animal, our mission to change things for the better is at the core of all that we do. Sometimes it feels like moving mountains, but it’s worth it when we see the results.
For the chickens born, raised, and slaughtered for our pet foods, treats, and chews, we started this process by listening to our farmers and suppliers – we know they care about the welfare of chickens, and we have much to learn from them. Providing a good life requires good care, and we will not be successful without the support and wisdom of our partners.
With the support and partnership of our suppliers, as of December 31st, 2022, 100% of the chicken sourced for our Wisdom™ Chicken Recipe dog food uses Global Animal Partnership (G.A.P.) Step 3 Certified chicken, meeting the Better Chicken Commitment (BCC) criteria for litter, lighting, enrichments, stocking density, and third-party auditing. Additionally, 100% of the chicken sourced for our Wisdom™ Chicken Recipe dog food is processed using Controlled Atmosphere Stunning, a modern technique implementing a more humane method of processing. Our Wisdom™ Chicken Recipe dog food represents 7.6% of all our products using chicken in 2022. Earth Animal remains committed to sourcing chicken compliant with the BCC for all our products and we continue to work towards implementing all elements of BCC.
By the end of 2024, 100% of our chicken will be produced using G.A.P. standards and meeting BCC criteria for stocking density, lighting, litter, and environmental enrichments.
We are working with suppliers to ensure that by the end of 2026, all chickens are processed using atmospheric stunning and by the end of 2027, we are sourcing approved higher welfare breeds.
To demonstrate our commitment, we request each one of our partners across the supply chain to sign our Partner Code of Conduct which includes our Sustainable Sourcing Guidelines. And we are committed to implementing third party auditing across our supply chain and will provide updates on our progress annually.
Learn more about our BCC Transition Timeline here.
Plant-Based Chews and Treats
We’ve embarked on a journey to reduce our reliance on animal proteins with the development of Plant-Based Better Biscuits and No-Meat No-Hide® Chews. Working with our friends at the Better Meat Co., we’ve created delicious treats for dogs that taste like meat without the meat!
