Mom doesn't make tuna too often, but when she does she always drains the can into a dish for me and my BKF Cleo to share. Now that I'm learning all this stuff about toxic chemicals, I wondered if we should be worried about mercury coming from our little tuna treats. After all, the pet tests we took part in showed that cats have high levels of mercury in their systems.

Dr. Barchus to the rescue! In a recent post on the Dogster Vet Blog, he says that tuna is safe for cats as an occasional treat. Tuna does contain mercury, which is bad for pets and people, but most fish-based cat food will contain mercury anyway. The important thing is not to feed any one kind of food every single day -- and that's especially true for tuna, which isn't a balanced kitty diet.

So, tuna: a good occasional treat, but not an everyday meal. How's that sound to you, Cleo?

Photo: Mine, by Ab8wn.

So, now you know all about the non-stick chemicals and phthalates that scientists found in pets. There's one more type of chemical that really stood out: flame retardants. Read full post.

Okay, I already told you about the non-stick chemicals scientists found at high levels in pets. That's not the only thing that stood out, though.

The scientists at the lab also found high levels of a kind of chemical called phthalates (which they tell me is pronounced THAL-ates, like PAL-ates, although how you get that from a word that starts with ph is beyond me). Read full post.

Ever since I found out about the chemicals the scientists found in me, I've been doing my homework. I want to know where those chemicals come from, what they are, and how I can avoid them. I've always loved digging – the only difference is now it's for information instead of buried bones.

Anyway, since I know all this useful stuff now, I thought I'd pass it on to you! Let’s take it one chemical family at a time, starting with. . .

Non-stick chemicals (PFCs)

These chemicals are used to make things nonstick (like Teflon pans), stain-proof (like carpets), and grease-proof (like the inner lining of dry pet food bags). Read full post.