Heck yeah, Ace is awesome. It’s actually the closest store to me and my preferred go-to. Home Depot and Lowes aren’t that much farther, and they’re virtually next to each other, so if I have to go to one then Lowes seems to be the less-bad option.
That’s exactly the sort of defeatist attitude that these companies count on. We have some ability to impact their practices through voting, but even the Democrats are reluctant to clamp down much these days. The only other levers we really have to pull are our wallets and word of mouth. Yes Nestle is huge, but avoiding the products you know are theirs, even if you miss some, is still worthwhile. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of the good and such.
Sticking to your lane may maximize leverage, but acting on behalf of employees (even if you’re not an employee), wholesalers (even if you’re not a wholesaler), or other customers (even if you’re not a customer) still helps more than not acting.
Companies, especially big companies, are very good at knowing who their customers are, including their political leanings. We don’t have to send them certified letters via USPS for them to know that urban liberal types are not patronizing them as much as the rural and suburban MAGA constituency. They count on enough people “not caring” so they can continue acting shitty.
I won’t fault anyone for not doing their due diligence, that takes time and effort that not everyone can afford. However if a company’s particularly bad practices are made known to you, such as through the aforementioned word of mouth, and you continue to patronize them, then you should be prepared to get called out on it. That’s especially so if you profess to be an ally of the people/environment/laws the company is exploiting or marginalizing.
The thing is, with dog food brands like Purina, your choice is pay a LOT more, buy non-WSAVA compliant food, or buy Purina. That’s the problem. My dog eats Purina Dog Chow, and I’m not paying twice or more as much for dog food that meets the same standards just to “stick it to Nestle”. I just don’t give enough of a socially responsible crap to do that. And they couldn’t care less if I do either.
The answer is to notify your legislators, not do performative but ineffective nonsense like personal boycotts.
I avoid many nestle products, because nestle really is pretty bad, even for a large corporation. But i buy Purina-branded kitty litter, because it’s the best of the clay-based clumping litters i can find. And that makes a big difference to me.
(I also buy a corn based clumping litter, but i need to have both.)
Eyeballing the table, Costco’s Kirkland brand seems cheaper and nutritionally adequate, though Reddit tells me it doesn’t meet WSAVA guidelines. They do apparently meet AAFCO nutritional guidelines. Rachel Ray’s is comparable. Kibbles 'n Bits Original can be cheaper. There are other possible brands.
The gift article doesn’t let us see the chart. But the set-up and criteria were an interesting read. I hadn’t ever considered copper when reading labels, and I’ve raised a lot of dogs.
Yesterday I gave in and bought plastic storage boxes from Walmart. I tried to find them somewhere else but it just wasn’t happening. Gotta have them quick because my dog has entered Raptor Phase and is chewing through everything I own. So frustrating!
I hope not. She has torn into cardboard boxes and that’s just great fun now, so this is the next level. What she mostly does is play parkour along the tables and shelves when I’m not around. Then all the objects I’ve placed there out of her reach are on the floor and therefore “hers” to be explored by mouth or dragged around in play.
She’s coming along very well, not a bad dog, just been terribly neglected and abused in her last home. She’s learning to be a citizen of the house, but it doesn’t help when she’s surrounded by all my interesting stuff. Gotta get it tucked away out of sight until she learns to sniff without chewing.
I have an Alibris account, and had a Biblio account for some years, until those sales dwindled to zero. I’ve had an account on a lesser-known seller called Bonanza that actually specializes in women’s clothing, but I’m planning to shut it down at the end of the month, because product views suddenly took a 99% nosedive (literally) and when I contacted them to ask why, I got an AI bot in response.
I’m biting the bullet and opening an Abebooks account, even though they are a Canadian-owned subsidiary of Amazon. Wish me well, I guess. I signed up last night and am awaiting the approval e-mail.
But the set-up and criteria were an interesting read. I hadn’t ever considered copper when reading labels, and I’ve raised a lot of dogs.