Did you guys know that during September there were two, separate pet food recalls? And that they both involved Mars dry foods -- yes, dry foods -- that might be tainted with salmonella? And that one of the affected brands was Pedigree?

Go to the http://www.pedigree.com/ and check the bar codes and product numbers. I did, and was quite amazed to learn that I'd just bought a bag of kibble that could have killed Bao. When I took it back to the supermarket, the lady who gave me the refund was genuinely upset. Not because she had to give me my money back, but because this was the first she'd heard of a recall, and she feeds Pedigree Small Breed Mini Crunchy Bites to her own little dog.

This is the problem with a free press. They can print what they please. They can also not print what they please, presumably because they think nobody's interested. Apparently, people would rather read about toxic politics than toxic pet food. Luckily I live in Tucson, where there isn't much news. So there was a paragraph about the first warning, tucked in with what they call other news. But not the second. That came in an ASPCA newsletter.

Go to your cupboard, right now. Make sure you haven't got any of this stuff. And if you do, take it back to the supermarket or throw it out.