Pet Deaths Prompt Recall of Pet Food
By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON – A major manufacturer of dog and cat food sold under Wal-Mart, Safeway, Kroger and other store brands recalled 60 million containers of wet pet food Friday after reports of kidney failure and deaths.
An unknown number of cats and dogs suffered kidney failure and about 10 died after eating the affected pet food, Menu Foods said in announcing the North American recall. Product testing has not revealed a link explaining the reported cases of illness and death, the company said.
“At this juncture, we’re not 100 percent sure what’s happened,” said Paul Henderson, the company’s president and chief executive officer. However, the recalled products were made using wheat gluten purchased from a new supplier, since dropped for another source, spokeswoman Sarah Tuite said. Wheat gluten is a source of protein.
The recall covers the company’s “cuts and gravy” style food, which consists of chunks of meat in gravy, sold in cans and small foil pouches between Dec. 3 and March 6 throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
The pet food was sold by stores operated by the Kroger Company, Safeway Inc., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and PetSmart Inc., among others, Henderson said.
Menu Foods did not immediately provide a full list of brand names and lot numbers covered by the recall, saying they would be posted on its Web site — http://www.menufoods.com/recall — early Saturday. Consumers with questions can call (866) 463-6738.
The company said it manufacturers for 17 of the top 20 North American retailers. It is also a contract manufacturer for the top branded pet food companies, including Procter & Gamble Co.
P&G announced Friday the recall of specific 3 oz., 5.5 oz., 6 oz. and 13.2 oz. canned and 3 oz. and 5.3 oz. foil pouch cat and dog wet food products made by Menu Foods but sold under the Iams and Eukanuba brands. The recalled products bear the code dates of 6339 through 7073 followed by the plant code 4197, P&G said.
Menu Foods’ three U.S. and one Canadian factory produce more than 1 billion containers of wet pet food a year. The recall covers pet food made at company plants in Emporia, Kan., and Pennsauken, N.J., Henderson said.
Henderson said the company received an undisclosed number of owner complaints of vomiting and kidney failure in dogs and cats after they had been fed its products. It has tested its products but not found a cause for the sickness.
“To date, the tests have not indicated any problems with the product,” Henderson said.
The company alerted the Food and Drug Administration, which already has inspectors in one of the two plants, Henderson said. The FDA was working to nail down brand names covered by the recall, agency spokesman Mike Herndon said.
Menu Foods is majority owned by the Menu Foods Income Fund, based in Ontario, Canada.
Henderson said the recall would cost the company the Canadian equivalent of $26 million to $34 million.
Source: Yahoo News
Additional Source: AOL News on Netscape
This is an extremely difficult time and our hearts go out to the families of those dogs and cats that have died. As you know, our pets are our family and the loss of a dog or cat is just as painful as the loss of a family member.
That is why I want to assure you that your pet is not in any danger eating any of our Life’s Abundance foods. Of equal importance is our quality control program, which is designed to keep our pet foods safe.
As you know, we have a very worthy mission at Life’s Abundance. Our mission is to provide healthy, wholesome and safe products for pets so they can live the happiest, healthiest and longest life possible. That’s why we believe this is a good time to spread our mission to as many pet owners as possible.
That’s so wonderful for you, that you are taking this as an opportunity for your own personal gain. I’m sure you are really only concerned about the health and welfare of our companion animals, though.
Total lack of concern and phony sympathy from Menu Foods
and their tone-deaf, CEO, Paul “Puke” Hendersen.
Another sterling culprit: WalMart.
When you go to the WalMart website and search for “Pet food recall.” You are directed to their on-line specials so you can buy their pet food sale items.
Not a peep from WMT (NYSE)about the pet poison they are peddling.
These two companies elevate “Chutzpah” to unheard of stratospheric levels.
What is next for Walmart? Last month it was their salmonella peanut butter.
And remember the real name of the comapany that is killing our pets: Menu Foods INCOME fund. Lovely!
I just recently got 2 kittens; Oliver and Lucille. They were 11 weeks old when we got them. After a week of having them at home they warmed up to us and we began to really enjoy their company. When all of a sudden Oliver stopped eating and was very Lathergic. We went to the vet several times and they were unable to diagnose him. After 3 visits with no answers and his continual uncomfort we had him put to sleep. He was 12 weeks and 3 days old. After returning home I open up my computer and came across the article of the recall. Sure enough Oliver at the 3oz pouched wet food from Iams that was packaged at the kansas plant. Poor little guy. iams you #%&#%&#. Rest in Peace Oli. Keep your fingers crossed for Lucille who also ate the food.
Ryan…I am extremely sad to read your news, and I will send extra prayers for baby Lucille!
Terry, thank you so much for posting your comment! I appreciate your bringing all of this to the attention of our readers.
Steve, I personally find your comment a bit sad that you not take the time to get to know me personally, and know my own history with my Boxers. If it wasn’t for the passing of Sammi, one of my Boxer girls, back in 1999, I would not have learned about the horrors of commercial pet foods, nor would I consider it an honor today to share my knowledge with other pet owners. Who knows how many pet lives I have saved since 1999. Your comment gives me the feeling that represent Menu Foods or some other brand of commercial pet food that has the Quality Control standards quite backwards! Sounds to me like you posted your comment for your own personal gain! hummmm
First, I do not represent anyone but myself. However,I have audited Menu, just as the FDA, AIB, and USDA. Any one of you can get a copy of any US audit. I challenge you to find anything, in any report that would imply that this recall was through the fault of, or the negligence of Menu or any of it’s private label customers.
My guess is that when this thing ends, possibly with Menu bankrupt, and 500 good Americans out of work, you will learn that a vender of ingredients lied and covered up its horrible mistake. The next time you hear from me, I’ll be speaking in front of a Senate committee. I’m looking forward to it!
In an effort to cut cost you have pobably cost hundreds of animals their lives. Dont lay this on any ones head but yours, and your money hungery employers. You use things that would twist a maggots gut and rename it so it doesn’t sound so bad. My husband worked in a plant that made some of the stuff and he wont let me bring canned food into the house. We use the barf diet.
This is exactly the kind of thing that made me home make my ” kids ” food for the past 10 years.
For us pet owners this is a major concern. You would think that since your in the business of providing nutritional care for our pets you’d make it easier to find the information we need to protect the pets we love. Why don’t you post the information in its complete form all in one place and in a timely manner. Dont you know whos doing what in your corperation? The list of companies you supply products for should be readily available and your customers shouldnt have to wait for important answers. I think you need to evaluate your stance, have a clue as to whats going on and ensure the quality of your product as you claim you do. Seems like more than one person is twisting the facts and sleeping on the job. Time to hire someone that cares about what they do and why they are there.
Awwwwwww…..I feel soooooo sorry for big corporate yahoo’s whose vendor might have lied to them. WHERE the HELL is their Quality Assurance department? Where is the check and balance system? Do they not regularly test their ingredients? My dog is dying and frankly I do not care if their vendor lied. They should have a Quality Assurance department – especially when lives depend on their product. You bet the large corporation that I work for has one.
In my situation, my dog ate Mighty Dog – contracted out
by Purina to MenuFoods. It hasn’t even come out yet that dogs that ate Mighty Dog are sick, but mine is in End Stage Kidney Failure.
SO WHAT if a vendor misled MenuFoods who inturn sold product that was contracted to them by Purina.
Who is responsible? Purina. Why?
Breach of Faith.
my daughter has spent over $2000 on our samoyed of 11 years –she is our baby –she had jaw cancer and SURVIVED after surgery but due to our thinking IAMS would be good food -she now is in kidney failure –she tried to NOT eat that chicken chunks and gravy–SHE KNEW –but we begged her to eat –how sick we feel –almost as sick as our dog who is in pain and cant hold her pee –I hear of a recall but no brands –I tried to catch the phone number or some type of food –it seemed so long before the WHOLE LIST came out –I know I scooped all the IAMS food we THOUGHT WE NEEDED OFF THE SHELF —stocked up for my daughter -NOW I HAVE TO LIVE WITH THAT ON TOP OF THE ADDED EXPENSE TO TRY TO SAVE THE DOG AND OUR GUILT THAT EATS US EVERY DAY –THOSE COMPANYS HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH WE TRUST THEM TO NOT LET THIS HAPPEN –we dont control their day to day business and yet we think we are buying a good brand of food that should be SAFE —-what is wrong in this country when our FDA AND WHOMEVER watches our PETS AND OUR CHILDREN AND FAMILY –protects the COMPANYS AND THE DRS MORE THAN THE USERS OF THE PRODCUCTS —WE HAVE A REAL SAD STATE OF AFFAIRS –OUR CHILDREN AND OUR FAMILYS AND OUR BEST FRIENDS AND COMPANIOUNS ARE AT THE MERCY OF THOSE WHO DONT REALLY “PROTECT” —-cant this be FIXED –who should we ALL blame ??? it sure feels liek we are ON OUR OWN AND AT RISK —-maybe we need a LOBBY GROUP —-pray for our pet of 11 years and the two new kittens who ate the GRAVY off the KILLER FOOD –we may lose them also -and we just RESCUED THEM —-SO SO SAD —
I am leaving notes on every blog I can find to tell people to take your animals to the vet if they have been eating any of these foods–even if they are showing no symptoms. Many times once you can tell they are sick, the kidney damage is too extensive to save them. We had our cat put to sleep a week ago due to sudden kidney failure. She was a healthy indoor cat, 8 years old, until then.
What a mistake for such a large company to make= They deserve to go broke = Don’t try to put it on some one else=
I have no sympathy for them in any fashion= They will most likely sit on their buts and let aonther half million pets die before they can come up with another excuse to blame some one else for their mistake= We need stricker laws and penalties governing this industry and it’s about time they do it now! I do hope you have made your last mistake guys !
Below are lists of specific brands recalled by Menu Foods, in addition to Proctor & Gamble’s recall of certain Iams and Eukanuba products.
Menu Brands lists the brands on its Web site:
http://www.menufoods.com
Consumers are advised to call 1-866-895-2708 for more information.
Recalled cat foods:
1. Americas Choice, Preferred Pets
2. Authority
3. Best Choice
4. Companion
5. Compliments
6. Demoulas Market Basket
7. Eukanuba
8. Fine Feline Cat
9. Food Lion
10. Foodtown
11. Giant Companion
12. Hannaford
13. Hill Country Fare
14. Hy-Vee
15. Iams
16. Laura Lynn
17. Li’l Red
18. Loving Meals
19. Meijer’s Main Choice
20. Nutriplan
21. Nutro Max Gourmet Classics
22. Nutro Natural Choice
23. Paws
24. Pet Pride
25. Presidents Choice
26. Price Chopper
27. Priority
28. Save-A-Lot
29. Schnucks
30. Science Diet Feline Savory Cuts Cans
31. Sophistacat
32. Special Kitty Canada
33. Special Kitty US
34. Springfield Prize
35. Sprout
36. Total Pet
37. Wegmans
38. Western Family
39. White Rose
40. Winn Dixie
Recalled dog foods:
1. Americas Choice, Preferred Pets
2. Authority
3. Award
4. Best Choice
5. Big Bet
6. Big Red
7. Bloom
8. Bruiser
9. Cadillac
10. Companion
11. Demoulas Market Basket
12. Eukanuba
13. Food Lion
14. Giant Companion
15. Great Choice
16. Hannaford
17. Hill Country Fare
18. Hy-Vee
19. Iams
20. Laura Lynn
21. Loving Meals
22. Meijers Main Choice
23. Mighty Dog Pouch
24. Mixables
25. Nutriplan
26. Nutro Max
27. Nutro Natural Choice
28. Nutro Ultra
29. Nutro
30. Ol’Roy Canada
31. Ol’Roy US
32. Paws
33. Pet Essentials
34. Pet Pride – Good n Meaty
35. Presidents Choice
36. Price Chopper
37. Priority
38. Publix
39. Roche Bros
40. Save-A-Lot
41. Schnucks
42. Shep Dog
43. Springsfield Prize
44. Sprout
45. Stater Bros
46. Total Pet
47. Western Family
48. White Rose
49. Winn Dixie
50. Your Pet
This is total devastation…I am at a loss for words!
God Bless…
Our 9yr old mixed breed “Jimmie”, the best pound dog and member of our famnily for 8 years died on Feb 16 07,he was never sick. After what seemed to be an unknown cause he became ill in the middle of Jan 07 he ate Iams mini chuncks dry food for many years . He began to vomit and refuse food. The Vet thought he ate something bad. After $1700 and and few stressful weeks later he seemed to be on the up swing and then I gave him Americas Choice Chunks and Gravey can food and Purina One Sensitive Systems dry food after he was refusing the Hills Prescription a/d and i/d can food from the vet. I thought I could encourage him to eat more with a change of food. Shortly after the new food he slipped worse then the previous weeks and I knew we were losing him. What haunts me the most is that I force fed the can vet and store food to him through a liquid medcine tube feeling in my heart that I was helping him to recover from this bizzare situation because he hadn’t really ate much in weeks. Now I believe he knew the food was not good but be trusted me and was such a good dog to the end. I tried so hard to save him and at the end didn’t want him to suffer so we put him down after he didn’t move for over 24 hours he could not eat, drink and his breathing became very labored. We miss him so and are still in shock that this happened.NOW I’M ANGRY
I recently brought my 4 year cat home from the vet. He was experiencing kidney failure with no known cause. After a pricey vet bill and plenty of IV’s and fluids later, he is now back home with us. The vet said it was acute kidney failure and did not know the reasoning behind the symptoms. Then I read about the pet food recall and noticed that my cat had been fed many of the recalled pouches of food. I am thankful he is alive, I encourage all of you to take your pet to the vet if he refuses to eat or starts acting funny. This possibly saved my cats life.
THE ONLY WAY TO FEED YOUR ANIMALS IS WITH ALL NATURAL DOG OR CAT FOOD, THAT USE HUMAN GRADE INGREDIENTS AS THE PRIMARY PROTEIN SOURCE. NATURAL INGREDIENTS, HOLISTIC AND / OR ORGANIC. NO CORN, WHEAT, SOY, GRAIN GLUTENS, ARTIFICAL FLAVOR OR COLOR OR OTHER CHEAP FILLERS. THIS IS IF YOU DON’T COOK FOR THEM YOURSELF. THERE ARE MANY GOOD FOODS OUT THERE GOTO: ***http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/default.aspx***
I HAVE 5 DOGS AND 8 CATS & 2 HORSES AND AM SICKENED BY YOUR LOSSES AND THE REASON BEHIND THEM. DO NOT TRUST WHAT YOU DON’T KNOW OR UNDERSTAND FOR YOUR SELF. PLEASE READ ABOUT THE NATURAL DIETS AND LEARN THE COMPANIES YOU CAN TRUST… MERRICK, NATURAL BALANCE,VAN PATTONS,INNOVA, WELLNESS,LIFE’S ABUNDANCE BY HEALTHY PET NET,EAGLE,BLUE,KARMA, CALIFORNIA NATURAL..THERE ARE OTHERS. SWITCHING TO MERRICK OR A SINGLE PROTEIN AND CARB SOURCE FOOD OR ONE WITH A HIGH MOISTURE CONTENT, NATURAL, HOLISTIC OR ORGANIC MAY HELP SAVE YOUR ALREADY AFFLICTED ANIMALS!!!
My dog is actually a rat terrier and he is 4 years old. He has been eating Mighty Dog (wet food in the pouch) ever since he was a puppy. About two weeks ago, he started having accidents in the house which is extremely unlike Bailey. He NEVER has accidents. Even on walks, he was so lethargic that he would literally stop and lie down in my neighbor’s yards. He had diarrhea and not a “normal” bowel movement for several days. His mood completely changed….. very lethargic and depressed. He wouldn’t drink water so I knew that I need to seek help. I took him to our local veterinarian where they said immediately that he was dehydrated. They kept him that day to run tests. They mentioned urinary tract infection but that still did not explain the diarrhea. He was given fluids via IV and they also took an X-ray to be sure everything was okay with his liver and kidneys and also to rule out any obstruction. Thank God he is okay now after being on two antibiotics. The vet visit cost almost $500. I have insurance for him through VPI but still, that is a high price to pay for something that, I believe, could have been avoided. I feel really bad for the people who have lost their dogs due to the negligence of the company that manufactures this dog food. The damage is so widespread that I don’t think anyone has any idea yet how much damage has been done.
I am currently doing research to find out if there are any class action lawsuits forming over this.
SCIENCE DIET FROM YOUR VET IS NOT THE ANSWER!!! AND IT IS ON THE LIST
Our deepest condolences to all who have lost a beloved companion animal. Thank you Bree, for collecting all the information we need to raise healthy pets. Our two current Beagles, now 1 1/2 yrs old, have never tasted anything but home cooking, Flint River Ranch and Life’s Abundance. Hopefully we will not suffer through the agony of losing an animal again at just 7 years old due to end stage renal failure.
This web site is an obvious labor of love. We thank you for all you do.
I too had a cocker spanial very sick, vomiting, lose bloody stool and won’t eat. At 10:00pm on a Saturday night she vomited blood. I freaked out and took her to a all night hospital and they saved her. $649.00 lator and they wanted to keep her I said no she or we have never been apart. I too am sick and she watches over me. I gave her the meds and cook boiled rice and hamburger for five days and she is back to normal. God is watching over us now and we are fine. Shame on that company for not watching the vendor. What would be the state of affairs if this was humans. Shame on you Menu Foods. Lois
About 3-weeks ago my Collie stopped eating overnight. After several vet visits he has still gone undiagnosed. He has all of the same symptoms of pets with renal failure due to the tainted pet food, except he is not in renal failure. My beautiful collie has lost 16-pounds and looks likes a different dog. He vomits, won’t eat, is listless, and has diaherra. The vet has not ruled out the pet food since Menu Foods has refused to provide any information in regard to what is actually wrong with the pet food, that in itself is a crime. I wanted to post this message in case there are others out there with sick animals, but who are not in renal failure where a diagnosis is not available. I’d also like to know what states are reporting illnesses to see if this is widespread or contained to a few areas. I am from Michigan and the dogfood my dog consumed was Meijers Main Choice. Not his usual brand, but it was on sale so I picked up a couple of cans in addition to the usual Alpo and Pedigree. Imagine my guilt, he’s literally hanging on by a thread!
Do you know if wellness dog food was on that recall
My mother has a small lap dog who has been in the family for 15+ years. He was about 4 yrs old when we rescued him. Here recently, he had all of the symptoms mentioned. She took him to the vet and have spent well over $1,200 over the past three weeks of HELL. She has to give him floods daily (he hates it). Unfortunately, we rec’d the bad news that the damage was not reversable. She is terribly torn up over this because he’s is her baby! She can’t eat and cries everytime Buddy makes a gesture for her to pick him up and put him in her lap. Her other dog was fed the same food, but did not sustain any damage, so the vet tested her and confirmed. Buddy isn’t a piece of property like most people would define an animal to be. He is part of our family and we love him to death. The vet says it won’t be long. Mom is making everyday count for the little buzzard:) GET YOUR PET TESTED AT THE VET, EVEN IF THEY DON’T SHOW SIGNS!!!!
I have listened to people for years say that table scraps are bad for dogs. My grandma’s dog lived to be 21 in people years and never had a bag or can of dog food. Now this? My heart goes out to all thoes who have a lost a little friend. Nothing i can say. Just glad I chose to keep on loving mine with biscuits and gravy. Keep loving them cause you know they love you.
I’m crying as I write this comment. We are hoping our 15 year old cat makes it but we’re not sure. She went into full blown renal failure 3 weeks ago, and after a week of being on an IV (where she had to have her little legs shaved to insert the needles), she is back home, fairly lifeless and way underweight. I agree with previous comments, where was the company’s quality control? Those jerks can fry in hell with the knowledge that their lack of concern hurt so many helpless pets. And how about the testing after the problem was discovered where even more animals died during the test. Maybe the company executives should do the tasting themselves.
I am an attorney in Knoxville, Tennessee. My firm filed a federal class action lawsuit yesterday against Menu Foods over their contaminated pet food. I am interested in speaking with witnesses and other people whose pets have been injured by this pet food. Contact me at rkurtz@lock-net.com
Does anyone really know how long this problem has existed? I also had to rush a beloved pet to the vet. The dog was not eating and had all the symptoms. $600.00 dollars later, the vet could not say what was causing the dog to be so sick. I put the dog on rice and burg which most likely saved the dogs life. I would love to forward my vet bill to the responsible parties but that does not seem to be enough. The whole experience was just emotionally draining and no amount of money can remove the memories. I am not looking for money. I just want to know that what I feed my dog is safe. What is being done to prevent this from happening again?
My dog ate Iams dry dog food and has recently passed away from kidney failure. Who do I contact with this information? Please e-mail or call 423-569-1419. My whole family loved this pet and we are very distressed.
I am sick to my stomach knowing that I bought poison and fed it to my babies. On Friday March 9, my Persian cat “Baby” sat in front of me and started siezing. I panicked and picked her up and held her. She was almost 18 years old. We got her after The hurricane Hugo,left her homeless at 4 weks of age. we nursed her and loved her to health. Any way after the seizure Baby slept all night. No food or water. I called our vet at home and he met me at the office in 15 minutes. we knew on the way there that the only relief was going to be the needle that would end her suffering. We had a very nice funeral.This was a week before the news broke. My heart was broken and I doted on our Siamese Max. I was on line when I got the news about the pet food. I was a panick stricken Mommy. Sure enough there it was “Special Kitty” from Wal-mart. I purchase 48-60 pouches a week for my babies. I called my vet at home again and he had not heard the news yet. We took Max in for Blood work,even though he seemed fine. We wanted to make sure. Max is now in the hospital on IV’s and a catheter. I am past hurt and upset. I am Angry and want to chock those animals who killed my Baby and causing my Max suffering. What are we going to do? How are we going to pay these bills. My dogs are fine. They eat dry food but I still can find no comfort in any of this. They won’t even answer the phones. Just busy signals. I hate this. We seniors have dogs and cats after the empty nest. They become our babies. Is there no one at these companies or businesses who cares? I am sorry for being so long,I am really upset.
Hello,
I have adopted a kitten four years ago from an animal shelter, and her name was QQ. On Dec 30th, 2005, QQ passed away at the age of 3.5 years old.
A week before QQ passed aways, she stopped eating and drank very little water. All the time she would just facing the water fountain and having trouble to breathe. Four days later, I took her to a local animal emergency clinic, and the doctor has informed me that QQ’s kidney was very weak and was not functioning. On the same night, her body gave up.
I was 27 years old, and I couldn’t stop crying that night at the clinic holding QQ’s body in my arm.
Afterward, QQ’s body was sent to OSU Animal test lab for autopsy, and they couldn’t pin down what was the root cause for the failure kidney.
Recently I have heard the news of pet foods are being recalled for kidney failure, it got my attention. QQ was fed with Iams brand foods since she was born until 2 years old. Then I switched from Iams to Nutro. I fed her wet foods (in pouch package) about 3 times a week. She liked the wet food a lot, and I enjoyed watching her to eat.
I am not sure what is my purpose of writing this message here, but at least two things I would like to achieve are:
1. Share my story to other pet owners. Treasure the time when you are with your pet(s).
2. What was the root cause that caused QQ’s kidney failure? If indeed it was the pet foods, what immediate and future counter-measures are the pet foods manufacturers going to implement?
Thank you for reading this message.
Lately my cats have not had appetite for canned food lately. They have also developed horrible fur dingy and shedding. The big cat was hiding a lot. I was fearful they had not really been cured of a fungus or mite skin problem from last summer. My little Himalyan has lost weight, her fur was scraggly strands. I started to think, maybe she is going to die of old age? It was so depressing watching her shrink. Who thinks their pet is eating poison? Recently I came home and the cats had thrown up on a quilt. Not hairballs and but the quilt was soaked, almost end to end of a 3 foot table topper like someone poured a glass of water on it. That night I found out about the recall. The IAMS serial numbers matched. We threw out the canned food and fed them tuna. Two days with different food and they are somewhat better.The big cat acted friendly for the first time in weeks. But they aren’t right and I am worried sick.
Last night I decided to pitch the MaxCat kibbles just in case although the kibbles weren’t recalled. We bought Meow Mix because I read it was owned by Del Monte and I read on the net that Del Monte did not use Menu, the recall company. I also bought a new kibbles made by Mars called The Goodlife Recipe. This morning I realized I had better research the Mars pet food. Now I find that Mars bought Doane Pet Care company last year from Doane’s parent company which is owned by a Canadian teachers pension fund. Doanes Pet Care makes O Roy, the recalled Walmart dog food! Great! Mars owns Pedigree, and Whiskas! Although Menu foods was the recall manufacturer for certain O Roy products, somehow Doanes owned by Mars also does manufacture of O Roy. Whether they are the same, or diffent items I don’t know. It is a maze of confusion.
Many pet food brands are being made in the same factories just with different labels. I go out of my way to buy ‘made in USA’ to avoid mad cow from Canada, which can infect cats and all the time the manufacturer, Menu, was Canadian. The factory was in the US but where did the meat come from? Who knows? My trust is gone.
I believe thousnads and thousands of pets are really affected. My brother’s healthy dog died of sudden kidney failure last year. He ate only O Roy. They are not reporting the numbers of victims. Half the local news sites on the net have a story of a dead pet.
This is criminal. Having a middleman do the manufacturing for the big labels makes these mess-ups more possible. The liability gets passed on the the factory and no one knows anything. I pray for all the pets who have suffered and are sick today
I lost my sweet baby after 14 years. I also had been feeding her poison without knowing it. After spending several hundred dollars to save her we still lost her. I am devestated! I was buying her what I thought was the best food! I want someone to be accountable for the pain I have.
This is an email I received this morning with info. about a class action lawsuit. Feel free to contact the attorney, Michael Myers via email at mmyers@myers-company.com
See below…
—–Original Message—–
From: christine@animalattorney.com [mailto:christine@animalattorney.com]
Sent: Tuesday, March 20, 2007 6:04 PM
To: John Rocco; mmyers@myers-company.com;
Cc: Elise Warner;
Subject: 4 Food Recall Prospective Clients
Dear Attorneys and Prospective Clients:
I am told that Michael Myers is going to be heading the National Class
Action Suit brought against these companies regarding the Food Recall. So I
am giving you his contact information
(mmyers@myers-company.com).
Michael, I am sending you 4 people who will fit your class of injured
parties:
New Jersey dog, Iams 3oz cans [survived sickness]
Georgia dog, Mighty Dog (wet food in the pouch) [survived sickness]
Conneticut 1.5 yo Kitten, IAMS wet pouch [deceased]
Georgia 9 mo. old Kitten, Special Kitty Select from Walmart – Turkey
Gibblets and Gravey 3 oz. package [deceased]
Attorneys, let me know if I can help you with the lawsuit because I am interested in the multiple violations against animals (inc. animal testing).
Best Regards,
Christine
____________________________________________
THE ANIMAL LAW OFFICE
3824 18th Street, Suite 201
San Francisco, CA 94114
Tele. 415-297-3109
Fax. 415-358-9937
http://www.animalattorney.com
My 3 year old dog Daffney became ill the begining of Feb. 07. I gave her on occasion a mix of wet dog food with her dry food. She became lethargic, frequent urination, vomiting and drinking excessive amounts of water. I brought her to the vet who gave her a blood test and said she had elevated liver enzymes. I brought her home and gave her meds for possible viral infection. She was not eating so I tried cooking for her which she didn’t eat. She was becoming so thin I tried several diff can dog foods which were in the recall. Four weeks after the onset of mysterious illness she became so deathly ill I had to put her to sleep. Five days after her death I heard about this recall. I was horrified. The brand of food I gave her was on the recall list.
Since my dog was already cremated and I threw away the food. There is no way to confirm anything. I know something poisoned her. I think this is more wide spread than anyone knows or they want to admit. Simply because many cases are not being reported.
I loved my dog with all my heart and I miss her badly.
I lost my 3 year old cat Oliver on January 19th to a mysterious illness where his organs just shut down and he went into shock and died. This was after the emergency animal hospital did every test they could think of to discover the cause. No trauma, no infection, no obvious poisons – just a dying cat. Yes, I fed him Special Kitty cuts and gravy food! Of course, he died in January, and I could not afford the $1500 necropsy to find out exactly what killed him – but I am quite certain now that it was the food. Of course, I have no proof – no months-old food packages to prove it, but young healthy indoor cats don’t just go into organ failure for no reason.
They say that the problem started being reported in February, but I am reading blog after blog of people saying that this started last year sometime, maybe as early as September. I am also reading that although they are only recalling wet foods, there are many reports of animals dying of sudden kidney failure that ate only dry food – mostly those same brands whose wet foods are being recalled. I think this has been a known problem a lot longer than anyone is telling us, and that soon dry foods are going to be recalled as well as the wet ones – maybe the dry food processing has just made the toxin or whatever a little less virulent so it is not showing up as quickly. I am personally going to start feeding my pets only food I have bought and prepared just to be safe, because I still have three cats and dog and I can’t go through the trauma of losing another one! Personally, I think the appropriate punishment for those responsible is to lock them in a warehouse and give them nothing to eat but cans of contaminated cat and dog food!
I too have lost my pet. Sidney was a ten year old male. I have pictures of him that were taken about one year ago, Easter, showing that he was a healthy, slighty overweight, sociable cat. A few months ago, he stopped eating began to lose weight. Thinking I was giving him the best, I was feeding him IAMs canned, pouches, and dry but he just became more and more sick. He had constant diarrhea, vomiting, lethargic and his habits were just not the same cat. I finally had to put him to sleep…it was the same day the press release came out. One of the last times I took him to the vet, it was notated on his release paperwork “suspect kidney disease”. At the end, he was just “skin and bones”.
I used to purchase IAMS canned food by the case, pouches by the convenience box size; also purchased miscellaneous cans for purpose of variety. At least three of the miscellaneous were on the recall list. Ironic…he was poisoned in a “variety” of ways. I really, really miss my cat –he was the best ever.
I don’t have any food left; no way to prove anything. But I feel in my heart this is the reason he became so sick.
Working in a local pet/farm store (not a national chain) we know all our customers on a very personal level. This recall has outraged, devastated, and instilled so much fear into our pet loving customers, it’s quite upsetting. We get call after call of our frantic customers trying to find out if their animal is going to live. It breaks my heart. It breaks my heart to think I use to feed my puppy NUtro Ultra Puppy cans…he could be dead right now.
We read the recall in the newspaper…just like all of you. No sales rep called us to tell us what to pull off the shelf…even today we’re still getting updated lists!! They have NO clue what’s wrong. Supposedly it’s only can food…I’ve heard of many peoples dogs sick from dry food (no deaths) but how as a pet owner can you be so sure? Menu foods may be to blame completely, but Nutro, Eukanuba…PREMIUM pet foods being manufactured with the crap that WalMart sells!! I’m discontinuing my puppy on Nutro ULtra Puppy & switching to Wellness. Please if you feed Iams, Euk, Nutro..boycott…switch to the really good stuff! They shouldn’t have been going cheap & selling it for that much-jerks.
Some people don’t like raw diets, and others can’t afford holistic foods like Wellness. To the confused consumer, worried for the life of their pet, I give them 2 words of advice: (1) Get the animals blood tested…shell out the clams for a blood test, before you have to shell out more for operations and (2) Which is better at this point…dealing with possible kidney failure or switching your animal’s diet & having diareha for a couple days?? Just switch the food if you want to fell better! The holistic foods that I’m giving the green light for: Wellness, Canidae, CHicken Soup & Merrick. They’re pricey but in the end, you could just be paying a pricey vet bill.
To all who have lost a pet or are losing a pet, my deepest sympathies go out to you & your family. Losing a pet is devastating (my dog of 12 years was just put down yesterday after having breast cancer). Good luck to you all!!
My dog died on March 16 after eating the IAMs pet food brand that was recalled. After one can of the dogfood, she got sick, but at the time I hadn’t connected it with the dog food because she liked the taste so much. One week later my dog improved some after not eating the IAMs. Then I handfed her more of the gravy and chunks, within the week she was gone.
Consumers are being abused when a product is secretly removed from the shelves prior to the recall and no notice posted at the stores of the facts of the food being suspect. The phone lines at the FDA and the pet food company are all busy non-stop, so my guess is that the real amount of impact is being grossly under-reported.
After I hand-fed her, despite washing my hands, I got sick too. Since this was a voluntary recall, it seems the government is in a hands-off mode and we don’t have the full story here. What is the problem with the food? We need to find out, and know soon!
As a owner of 3 dogs myself I just want to send my deepest sympathy to all who have had such dreadful losses!
Sherry
My 16 year old beloved cat, my best friend, died on Boxing Day….I miss her dearly and cry still, more so now that I know I fed her the poison that killed her, remembering that she would have been purring and happy as I placed her plate in front of her
FYI – contact info for Michael David Meyers – he is the attorney who filed or is filing the national class action lawsuit.
His number is:
206-398-1188 ext. 101
email is mmyers@myers-company.com
My five year old Sharpei died on 2/29/07. Became ill on 2/4/07. Taken to Our Vet. Told he had a stomach but. Blood work returned. Everyone shocked he was in acute kidney failure. Hospitalized for four days. IV fluids meds. Could not recover Euthanized on 2.29. He ate mighty dog cuts in gravy in the 5.5oz. can. He was a healthy dog. We felt he was poisioned. Called Purina one stated only the pouch involved . Notified FDA. Looking for any info on other animals who became ill eating the mighty dog canned food. I know the food killed my dog.
I lost one cat and two dogs last year who ate mostly dry Special Kitty and Ol Roy dog food. All three showed the same symptoms as the recent pet deaths. My vet bills still aren’t paid off and the memories will never end. This is the worst trauma a pet lover can go through. I have loved my dogs for over 11 years and the cat we found abandoned and injured and got him to the vet who saved his life only to have us poison him with bad food. I am 100% sure the pet food is poisoned even if its dry. It probably just kills them a little slower. When we first noticed the terrible symptoms, it all happened really fast. I feel so bad for thinking my animals were being bad for peeing in the house and then seeing them suffer until the kidney failure became so painful that we had to stop their suffering and have them put to sleep. We have cremated our two dogs and our cat was buried. I have never cried so many tears as I have this last year. Ol Roy and Special Kitty are poison whether dry or wet. So very sad.
FDA: Plastics Chemical In Recalled Pet Food
PETA Calls For Expanded Recall
UPDATED: 10:26 am EDT March 30, 2007
RICHMOND, Va. — Government testing of recalled pet food linked to dog and cat deaths has found a chemical used to make plastics.
The Food and Drug Administration said it found melamine in samples of the Menu Foods pet food, as well as in wheat gluten used as an ingredient.
Cornell University scientists also have found the chemical, also used as a fertilizer, in the urine and kidney of a sick cat.
Earlier results from a lab in New York had blamed a rodent poison for the deaths.
PETA Wants Bigger Recall
Meanwhile, some animal rights advocates say a pet-food recall does not go far enough.
The group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals called on the government and pet food makers to expand the recall to include dry varieties, too.
Nearly 100 brands of pet food were recalled after animals suffered kidney failure. The recall involved “cuts and gravy” style dog and cat food. Some major brands, including Iams, Nutro and Eukanuba, were involved.
The Food and Drug Administration said it has no plans to suggest a wider recall and veterinarians said they’ve seen no trend of dogs and cats getting sick from eating dry food.
I just lost my best friend because of FOOD I WAS FEEDING him and had been for some time. The way that poor kitty died is horrible. He went through my illnesses and helped me heal and I could do nothing for him. The vomitting, lethargy, accidents that he has NEVER had, would not drink water or eat food, the IV Lines that I had going to keep him hydrated, the quick weight loss, the vets stumped as to the diagnosis and no way to treat him because he could not talk, just cry because he was so sick. Possibly rat poison I was told, No that could not be, we have no rat poison anywhere. So I called a few extension agents to ask some questions, and was told that if a cat ate a poisoned mouse it would not affect them. I asked if they were sure and they assured me that they were. Who do we blame? Menu Foods, a distributor or manufacturer? I look back at the whole situation and have to wonder where the Feds were with all of the inspections that are SUPPOSED to be done on products imported into this country. All Iknow is that I have lost my best friend and am now left with bills totaling over 1200.00, lets not talk about the cremation fees, medications, paying someone to adminster IV Fluids during the day, carpet cleaning because the poor boy could not help it. But above all of this is the sadness and sorrow that I live with, the tears still. Knowing that I feed him Special Kitty Pouched and canned foods ever sense he was born. He even had dry food from Special Kitty. Thinking that I gave him something that ultimately killed my best friend. I am on the list for someone to call me from Menu Foods but I have not heard of anyone who has been contacted, have any of you?
my dog too is in the hospital for kidney failure, he ate o’roy dry dog food, he was sick, throwing up, did not pee is the three days that he was throwing up , we took he to the vet and they ran all the test and said the he had kidney failure and the the test showed his system was posioned from something then asked me what i was feeding him and i told them o’roy dry dog food, and that all we have ever feed him, they still don’t know if he will live or die, we have to sit around and wait. that dog is our life and the last connection to my deceased mother, and she loved that dog, as we do.
brenda harvey
My dog spike became ill after eatting ol’Roy dog food. At first I didnt know what was wrong. He just wasnt himself then he started losing weight fast. He was 90lbs by the time we went to the vet he was 55lbs. The vet did blood work and found that he had kidney failure. I kept thinking to myself if I had only gotten him to the vet sooner but I didnt know. The vet had him on IV fluids for three days his blood work didnt inprove. So I made the choose to put spike to sleep, Spike was only 2 years old and that choose was hard. I loved my dog so I choose to not let him suffer and put him to sleep. I just keep thinking of what I should have done different with spike. I miss him and I have cried everyday since I put him to sleep.
Most people do not realize that foreign companies that import products into this country do not have to comply with our countries regulations. This is not just an isolated thing, we allow many countries to bring in items that are painted with lead paint (which to my knowledge, it is not allowed to be used in this country)and many other things that we have learned are not healthy for the american public. I know of a manufacturing plant that tested parts imported from china and found they were painted with lead paint. Why do we not regulate everything that is brought in and consumed by the american public? This pet food recall is probably not the first time that poisons and other harmfull chemicals were brought into this country and canada and used in pet food. Imagine what WE consume that is hurting people and we have no idea why. Maybe instead of using other countries that are basically third world countries with no standards we should start using our own resources and taking care of ourselves. With all of the “outsourcing” that is now standard and acceptable we will have more problems such as this. Plus alot of people who are out of jobs. I too have pets. I have been told by my vet several years ago that I can cook for my pets. I have a dog with tons of allergies. I was told to cook ground turkey and rice to feed my dog. I found that lamb and rice canned dog food was ok and did not give him any problems. Now I think I might go back to cooking for him. Just remember animals can have the same health problems we do. If you cook for your pet, make sure it is healthy and not just full of fat or sugar. Also, get them out to exercise. I work in fast food. I have seen pets who eat fast food with their owners get fat and have health problems along with their owners. It makes me sad to have a regular customer that I see in drive through every day tell me that their pet is in the hospital or had to be put down because they fed them fastfood everyday.
My dog Tessie, 7 year old Beagle, started acting strange on March 13. She seems to be in altered state and started experiencing back hind weakness. Her body was jerking like she had the hiccups but she didn’t. She could barely stand. We rushed her to the emergency vet and he asked us if she had eaten something toxic – at that time we were not aware of anything. They kept her overnight and she seemed better when we picked her up. The vet could not confirm what the problem was and suggested it was either something she ate or a pinched nerve because both could produce similar symptoms. I didn’t think it was a pinched nerve because she did not cry in pain when she was examined by means of manipulating her legs. They prescribed some ‘all around’ meds. For the next few days, she seemed to get worse although the hind leg weakness had dimished. Four days later, she was very lethagaric, would barely eat and would not go on her walk.
Thinking the meds were making her stomach upset, I took off her dog food (Natural Choice). Then we read about the recall – Natural Choice was on the list but NOT the variety she was eating. After a few days on my homemade dog food (beef and rice) she started to improve slowly. It was a full two weeks before she would venture any further than the driveway – keep in mind this is a dog who loves her 3x walk daily.
The dog food recall kept coming back to mind but Tessie symptoms weren’t of the ‘kidney’ variety’ although she wasn’t eating as much as usual. She was drinking more and unrinating but the vet said these were side effects of the meds.
A friend came to visit and commented on Tessie’s lack of energy. I explained about the unknown illness and we discussed the pet food recall. She suggested that maybe it was cross contamination and Tessie had in fact digested some of the tainted dog food. Like a peanut products, ingredients can remain on surface and in production machinery. It kinda made sense, she was getting better and improving once I started feeding her my homemade stuff. I phoned the vet to make sure that they had tested kidneys and liver which they had. I asked if tainted dog food could have caused any neurological symptoms and she said she did not know because that wasn’t the info they were given upon the recall.
A few days later, I saw a news report and the woman being interviewed has lost her dog due to the tainted dog food. The scary part was that her dog had the same symptoms as Tessie – not of acute kidney failure.
My question now is how many other dogs or cats experienced symptoms like Tessie but dismissed it as something else because they were not the ‘norm’ or their pet hadn’t eaten the exact ‘variety’ of the recalled dog food but a different variety from the manufacturer.
Tessie seems to have recovered, she is eating well – not over drinking and has resumed her walks. We are keeping our fingers crossed that she continues to regain her health.
Anyone comments are welcome.
I’ve been following this case because my sister’s Labrador suffered from kidney failure from Menu Foods’ pet food. Apparently, pet owners may not get much out of suing the company because of how pets are only seen as personal property.
here are a few articles I found interesting:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/04/01/AR2007040100409.html
http://www.class-action-finder.com/consumer-products/49/
After all this mess is straightened out, if it ever is, I will never buy any of the pet food from the list of companies on the recall list. I hope they all go bankrupt!!
im ever so sorry for all your loses. i too have had two cats to die, my cats were eating friskies tender cuts, carved in gravy .. all varities. the fillets in gravy , the turkey and cheese , lamb with rice in gravey. they also ate the brand in the foil packets . even though friskies isnt on the list. i think it should be, one cat was an outside cat, i thought maybe someone had poisioned him, then i had one that stayed in the house , she had never been outside. she got sick and a few days later she was dead too, then we heard about the recall. they had eaten some special kitty back in jan 2007 my babies was acting funny and had all the signs of kidney faliure.. i threw out all the food ,but i still have some of the empty cans , i have contacted friskies, not getting much help from them,i just think before this is all over we”ll hear its all of the foods.. please be cautious about the friskies food , im sure that is what killed my babies, i have a dog he ate o’roy canned gravey and chunks . he isn’t showing any signs so far,, i stopped feeding it to him after the recall. .. ita a shame they knew about this for months and kept it hid.
I lost my cat Meeka, after she had ate special kitty from wal-mart. She died from kiddney failure. She is gone and missed every day. Today I read in the newspaper that the recall dates was put back to nov 8 2006, she died nov 16 2006. She was only 9 years old, way to young to died. After I read it in the paper, it bought back all the saddness and hurt again. I had two other cats died one in May and the other in June, it just makes me wonder???!!!! They also ate canned cat food from wal-mart!!!! I am sorry, but the are not just pets, they are a part of my family!!! I would like to Thank Menu Foods, for waiting so long, it would have saved alot of animals lives, if they would have said something sooner!!!
I am very sorry for everyone who has lost a pet. My allergy dog is an inheritence (sort-of) from my Grandmother who died almost two years ago. I would go crazy if I lost my Buddy. My sympathy is with all of you.
I lost my precious little boy yesterday April 13, 2007. He was a 3 LB Maltese who ate Beef Jerky Treats manufactured by DelMonte exclusively and had for many years. He died from kidney failure. He was only 12 yr old and the love of our life.
The treats contain wheat gluten and were only recalled in the last few days,after he had stopped eating. We did not even know until we went looking for answers on the web with serious suspicions that his food was the cause of his sudden spiral.
Not all vets are aware of the extent of the recall nor tell you to autopsy and save your pets kidneys after their death. If you suspect the food to be the reason for your pets illness or death be sure cover all the bases and don’t let your pet have died in vein.
This cannot happen again, not to our pets or to us. We need to use products made and inspected in this country not import from other places. We have the best agriculture in the world why are we shipping our good products out and importing tainted inferior products? It needs to stop!
Mary O’Brien (jmobrien@wideopenwest.com)
Did everyone hear that now they think the wheat and rice gluten was contaminated on purpose?
Does anyone know approximately how many pet’s have been lost to date because of this?
Hi,
I’m an American living in the Netherlands and I came across this site trying to figure out what has been going on with our 3 year old Labrador, Taz.
He’s been sick for about a month now. The first vet visit was when we noticed increased drinking and urination. He had urine (thrist tests) and blood tests taken. Both of those tests came back normal. 2 weeks ago, he stopped eating. (Royal Canin Giant Adult Size Health Nutrition)*not on the list*
Back to the vet we went and was told maybe there was a problem with his belly. He was given a shot to increase his appetite and pills that coated his stomach that we gave to him 15 mins before he ate. I made him small homemade meals that he ate with little to no problem. He still wouldn’t touch his normal dog food. We bought dry Pedigree puppy food for him to eat with lots of nutrients(also, not on the list) and he’s been eating that very well.
Friday evening, he woke up from a nap and couldn’t use his hind legs. We immediately thought the worst.(maybe a brain tumor, spine injury) He couldn’t stand or walk. We stayed up with him all of Friday into Saturday morning. We noticed that he was also having some trouble urinating. It was like he thought he had to go, but nothing happened. Saturday and Sunday, it was if nothing had happened. He was walking normally, playing just like his normal self, eating and drinking. I woke up early Monday morning, took him out for our walk and he was his normal self again…running around, playing with a bottle in his mouth as if nothing was wrong. He layed down for a little while then got up and couldn’t use his hind legs again. This time, it was worse. There was only a little bit of walking around the house with some wobbles and he immediately wanted to lay back down again. He’s been very weak the whole day and has slept through most of it. He’s not even able to stand while going to the bathroom. It’s as if his legs are just too weak to hold him up a few minutes.
We went back again to the vet AGAIN this evening. She gave him an examination and a shot for pain. We are scheduled to go back on Wednesday for x-rays. (hip, belly and spine)
Now, there hasn’t been any recalls of pet food here, but something struck me this evening to research this a bit further. We were told in the very beginning that this might be a beginning sign of Cushing’s Disease, but the vet this evening ruled that out saying that his symptoms NOW are not accurate for Cushing’s.
Needless to say, I am completely at a loss. We are thinking the worst at this moment. Call it a gut instinct, but the dog that is fast asleep on my couch at the moment is not the same dog he normally is.
All the symptoms of these poor animals that have pasted on, fits my dogs illness. The vets here I believe are oblivious to this recall. I have feeling it’s going to get worse before it gets better. I wanted pet owners from Europe to be aware of this problem. I’ve only heard of this happening in the states at the moment.
This is so frustrating and I’m at my wits end.
Please, if there is someone with information regarding the pet food recall here in Europe, please email me at:
jwarrick70@yahoo.com
Thank you so much. Good luck and health to all the pet owners and pets going through this horrible ordeal.
^^ In response to my own post above:
We have just found out today that Taz has been diagnosed with “Addison’s disease”.
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/health/s_500724.html
FYI:
The FDA import notice said all wheat gluten from China and the Netherlands is to be inspected. The Netherlands is included in the order because Chinese wheat gluten is shipped through that country, it said.
Thank you
I literally have tears in my eyes reading all of the devastating stories, one after another after another, of how these companies lied and killed so many dogs and cats. Our Chesapeake Bay Retriever has been with us since she was 6 weeks old and suddenly developed severe diarrhea. By the time she was 5 months old she had already been on 4 different foods to no avail, including Eukanuba, Science Diet, and Prescrition Diet i/d. We decided out of sheer frustration to start feeding raw around the same time the recall first came out (March) and she’s, thankfully, been fine ever since. I can only imagine what would have happened to this poor, helpless little puppy had we not switched. She’s now 7 months old and doing fine and we have no plans on feeding dry ever again. My heart is breaking for all the people and pets who have suffered needlessly from the deceit of these compnaies who, for either laziness or greediness, did not look into the ingredients they put into those containers. How dare they not live up to their claims of “quality” and “premium” ingredients because look who’s paying…pet owners all around the world. I have read several posts from people whose pets REFUSED to eat and who were FORCED to eat by their owners out of love and concern for their poor, ailing dogs and cats. My heart goes out to all of you who have been affected and I pray that we will come up with an answer so that all of these pets will not have died in vain.
For those of you who think Menu Foods was an innocent victim of their suppliers … think again. Turns out the product that was really tainted was wheat flour that was MISMARKED as wheat gluten. To date – according to the transcript of the last FDA press conference – they cannot prove any wheat gluten was tainted, but they can prove wheat flour was. So on other words, Meny Foods is so lame, they don’t even know what ingredients they are using!!! I do hope they loose their butts! Sadly, that can never bring back the pets who died or take away what they suffered or the crippling pain of their pet parents who loved them. And you can really see the true colors in the way Menu Foods is handling this. They are not being responsive to the affected owners. It’s so heart breaking many of them can’t afford these high bills and can’t get any help from Menu Foods as their animals’ lives hang in the balance. Folks, you may want to avoid wheat flour as well until this has all been unraveled and we know the truth. I don’t know about anyone else, but I am writing off the commercial pet food industry. They will no longer be making a profit off my pups and my pups will be eating healthy from now on – not that garbage they are peddling!
Now ChemNutra is doing damage control now! They’re trying to salvage their “image”
They want a Pet Food Safety Summit, setting industry standards! (They are such a great example! — NOT!)
They are STILL peddling the same China imports and,
Mrs. ChemNutra – Sally Q. Miller is still a food source expert in China, with an ISO 9000 Chief Auditor status.
Status quo… rather than jail-time, it looks like they’ll MAYBE get a slap on the hands… and life goes on. At least for them.
Anyone elses pets having these type of symptoms???
Please take a minute.
(Chris who posted on April 1 please read also)…
Our dog CeeCee is a 4 yr old F Chihuahua who we had since a pup. We have fed her only one brand of pet food her entite life Nutropro and Max to include the wet packs listed in the recall. Last cpl months we noticed CeeCee becoming week at times with no explanation It seemd after a few days she would come out of it. However this last month was terrible.
It just doesnt match the kidney part of illnesses alot mentioned as well as the medical areas discussed. Is anyone else experiencing the following with their pets: Cee Cee became very week and was having difficluty walking. She would take a few steps and then flop over on her side. It was terrible to see this. She also lost interest in anything although she did try to eat. We even saw that she was becoming dizzy and of course was rushed to the vet. At first they thought she might have hit her head or became injured. Well you know how we are with little pets. Thats a no way. Blood tests revealed not kidney failure but problems with the LIVER. And they dont know why. They did mention she may have been poisoned by injesting something. (Prior to all this she has been totally healthy) She also was experienceing a low blood count. Almost like hepatitis… She was treated with antibiotics an IV cortosone shot as well as two additional pills to assist her liver. Also put on Hill prescription diet for liver. Like I mentioned CeeCee consumed all the wet packs that were recalled by nutro. Right down to the matching serial numbers. We are so upset but noticed the symptoms arent exactly what you folks are or have experienced.. if anyone has also noticed these symptoms please let us know so we can approach our vet. Cee Cee is on her second round of meds before they proceed with a biopsy. She had started to recover but then went back down hill again prompting a second round of treatment. We have hit a thousand in vet bills which will continue to go up.. Ill pay as long as I can and as long as CeeCee can hang on 🙁
I have never felt agony like whats goin on right now..
Good luck to all of you and please pray for CeeCee… She does not deserve this…
i am so grateful that my cat panda is ok. I fed him at least a months worth of contaminated food. i have 5 packages of it left. i figured with my bad luck they would tell me i have no way to prove that i fed him the tainted food if i took it back. i talked to the operator at menu pet foods every month since the recall and was told that someone would contact me. now I was just told from them that the government has told them that they cant talk to anyone anymore about this. i asked how i was supposed to resolve my problem and they said they dont know. even if i get a lawyer they cant talk to them either. i took my cat to the vet when i discovered i had been feeding him tainted food, and i am so grateful that he wasnt sick but i really could use my money back. i spent all of my emergency funds on making sure he was ok. does anyone out there have any suggestions on what i should do next? i would appreciate any suggestions.
Gerri,
I had better luck contacting the company on your food packs. In my case it was “Nutro”.. Even though the big wig is menue foods. Nutro has insurance and has insurance call you within 3 weeks after getting your info and opening a case.
Give it a try and see how it goes.
My dog Ce ce seems to be doing better. Its been a rough road and HUGE vet bill. She has liver damage.
Im so happy to hear your cat panda made it through. Keep the
old packets you still have as evidence just in case. Also if your a frequent shopper at the place you buy your pet food and have a card or enter your phone number they can send you a print out or email of all your past food purchases.. Take care and good luck..
Geri,
Made a slip in my post. I dont know which brand you used but contact them.. Take care
RIP Oola (female torti cat)
We lost Oola 2 days ago. She was 11 yrs old. She died of kidney failure. She was playful and seemed normal on Tuesday. She played with her stuffed monkey. She vomited all day Wednesday. We took her to the vet that day. She was in kidney failure. The vets suspected poisoning from lilies, anti-freeze, or pet food recall. She died Thursday night. She was an indoor cat with no access to lillies or antifreeze. She ate Purina One for 10 yrs.
I will let you come to your own conclusions. I believe with or without melamine or aminopterine present, most commercial pet foods are poisoning our animals. How natural is it for our pets to be eating COOKED food with corn? I believe now that raw food diets are really the best and most natural food for them. Read the labels. If the raw food diets seem more expensive just think of how much more expensive it is for the vet bills you will aquire from feeding your animals junk food their whole life.
I’m so glad my babys only eat alpo and deli cat..I just don’t know what I’d do without them …I hope all the moms and dads out there take all the makers of the poisoned pet food to court and bankrupt them all …They just don’t understand that they are our family ..shame on you healthy pet !!! trying to use a persons pain for your gain !!
“pet-co” told us that nutro treats would be good for him, but they almost killed our pupppy! we fed our puupy nutro- and he got sick, vomitting- bloody stools, and listless.
i noticed that since we fed him the treats he behaved as though he were sick or tired, so i stopped giving them to him fast! and our vet said that he “got into something” and gave him metronidazole and some stomach coaters. it has been a week and he is back to normal stool, however this morning it was soft again, not liquid, but not normal. now he jerks his body, like he is hiccuping- and it worries us. our vet doesn’t have anything to say about that behavior though.
Christal You can contact Nutro and file a claim with them for your vet bills. Check their website and call.Cant say if their insurance co will honor your claim but do try if the bills are mounting.. Good luck to you and your puppy.
We lost both of our 13 yr old kitties back in April using Natural Balance Green Pea and Venison. This was supposed to be organic and no rice. Yeah, right! Rice gluten was the culprit. Do you know that companies can change the ingredients and don’t have to change their labels for 6 months! Fortunately, we had changed our Frenchies food from the venison and potato to duck and potato the year before, or we could’ve lost them too. If anyone has French Bulldogs that have skin problems on this natural food, please get with me so I’ll know if my Frenchies can use this. We thought their allergies were from chicken and beef since they’ve broken out in staff when eating table scraps from our own plates. Thank you!
I was contacted by Nutro’s Insurance co in regards to all of our vet bills. I will post the outcome soon as we learn.
My sweet kitten Finney almost died from eating Spa Select Kitten Food (Blue Buffalo Company). I treated him holistically with Nux Vomica when our traditional vet told us his renal failure was basically untreatable.
I kept a small blog on Catster (although it’s since been filled with fluff entries) of Finney’s success with the holistic treatment. Today he is symptom free, his blood work is wonderful… the conventional vet is stunned. The holistic vet we ended up taking Finney too isn’t surprised at all.
Anyway, we had contacted Blue Buffalo about their contaminated food and they told us they’d take care of his (considerable) vet bills. Yeah. Right.
Finney’s bills have totalled over $1000.00, they sent us a check for $260.00. They aren’t true to their word.
Has anyone else had any contact with Blue Buffalo? And can anyone shed any light on how we are supposed to go further with this… or should we just take the $260.00 and figure we’re lucky enough to have gotten anything.
The most important thing to me is the fact Finney’s still here with us, he’s priceless and I feel every day I have with him is a blessing.
Sorry this is so wordy…
… I’m really happy to have found this blog.
we all need to wake up in this world… we cant trust any one or anything… looks like there would be somebody out there that could put a stop to all this …why are they letting the pet food makers, sellers putting this stuff still on the shelves … why dont they ban them from it untill they can prove its safe… now our food supply is getting contamined..whats next?
Hi everyone, just stumbled upon this page. I lost my beautiful cat to this tainted food this past March. He suffered for almost a week , wouldn’t eat, drink, and became very sick vomiting, etc then finally passed away, in such a violent death, I still have nightmares. I immediately contacted the company,reported it to the FDA and got a hold of a couple attorneys but so far nothing has come from it. One attorney said not to fill out the paperwork from Menu Foods, so I’m confused as to what to do now. I think this food issue for humans too, has clearly been swept under the rugs. How do we know the food is safe now? If anyone out there has a similar case going , then I would be interested in hearing from you. Thanks & all the best.
Live in Ohio and heard over local news that Walmart removed from their shelves Chicken Jerky Tenders. They did this with not announcement in July. Does anyone know anything about this? This has been my dogs favorite treat and he has put a lot of these away over past few years. The brand I give him is Waggin Train. No brand was mentioned on news but Walmart and Sams carry this brand.
I have again read all of the posts here and am still so very sad about my cat AMOS. TO date, no one from Menu Foods has contacted me, no attorney from the class action suits that have been filed and it seems that it is definately being swept under the rug by everyone concerned. The sad part of this whole thing is, that most of us spent every dime we could with Vets that wanted all the money up front to treat our babies and we still lost them. Menu Foods could care less adn that is obvious. I refuse to purchase any foods for my animals from MENU FOODS and when I go to Walmart and am in the Pet Food isle and see someone buying that CRAP, I tell them the story and thus far, I have been able to convince 18 people NOT to use the products and change to something else. Vendictive NO, vigilant DEFINATELY. I think of AMOS everyday and STILL am sick to death that he is not waiting a the door for me. SO MENU FOODS, I will continue to work to get every single person I can to NOT purchase anything you make, no I won;t cause you to go broke, but I will do what I can to keep people away from the products and I figure this way, you wouldn’t contact me, you care nothing for the animals you murdered, and even less for the people who cared for them and watched them die in their homes, so until you spend some time CALLING pet owners, I will continue to tell people in Walmart and anywhere else I can what happened in my house as a result of YOUR PETFOOD!!! By the way, I have been waiting since March for your REPRESENTATIVE to contact me.
If anyone knows of any attorneys in Virginia or the surrounding states that have class action suits, please post their names here and any contact information you may have. I assure you it will be appreciated.
I would also like to say that we as Pet Owners have the responsibility to tell others who we see making the mistakes in Walmart and other stores of the problems that we hae had concerning not only the food but the company replys.
Raven I am so sorry about what you have gone through.
Thank you for sharing your story with us and your vigilence.
I was contacted by The Hartford Insur co for the food manuf. and they denied my claim for our dog’s illnesses.
What a horrible thing to happen to these innocent animals as well as owners…
Take care and to all of you who have suffered from this nightmare..
I’M TRYING TO FIGURE OUT IF MY GOLDEN RETRIEVER, LOLA, WAS AFFECTED BY BAD DOG FOOD…SHE DIED IN JUNE OF 2007…BUT HER AILMENTS BEGAN BACK AROUND DECEMBER OF 2006. AND I PARTICULARLY REMEMBER SHE HAD DIAHREA SHORTLY AFTER I FED HER SOME CANNED DOG FOOD (WHICH SHE NORMALLY DIDN’T EAT).
FROM THAT POINT ON HER HEALTH DETERIORATED…WITH MAJOR BOWEL MOVEMENT ABNORMALITIES FOR A WHILE…
AND THEN BREATHING DIFFICULTIES…EVENTUALLY BLEEDING FROM HER NOSE (ALBEIT THE STOOL PROBLEMS HAD CEASED)…
AND AROUND MAY OF 2007 AFTER A MAJOR NOSEBLEED EPISODE SHE WENT BLIND. AROUND THAT TIME I ALSO NOTICED A LARGE LUMP OVER HER EYE AND IT SEEMED CERTAIN SHE HAD A BRAIN TUMOR.
ALL THE WHILE I HAD HER IN AND OUT OF THE VET, AND THEY DIDN’T GIVE A FIRM DIAGNOSIS…ONLY POSSIBILITIES, ALONG WITH EXPERIMENTAL MEDICATION…
OF COURSE MY GOLDEN RETRIEVER, LOLA, WAS FOURTEEN YEARS OLD BY THIS TIME, AND I FIGURED IT WAS MOST LIKELY DUE TO OLD AGE (THEY SAY 14 IS A LONG LIFE FOR A GOLDEN), BUT I STILL ASKED A FEW PEOPLE BACK THEN IF THEY THOUGHT THE PET FOOD PROBLEM MIGHT BE A CAUSE…
ONE VET SAID THE DIAHREA CAUSED BY THE CANNED FOOD WAS PROBABLY JUST DUE TO THE TEMPORARY SWITCH FROM DRY TO WET FOOD…SHE DIDN’T SEEM TOO INTERESTED IN ASSUMING ANYTHING BAD ABOUT THE FOOD.
AND I NEVER REALLY HEARD ANYTHING FOR SURE WHETHER SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA DOG FOOD WAS INCLUDED ON ANY OF THE RECALL LISTS.
ANYWAYS, I TRIED TO KEEP LOLA GOING EVEN AFTER SHE WENT BLIND, BUT THEN SHE STARTED HAVING SEIZURES, AND FINALLY STOPPED EATING AND WAS BARELY MOVING AROUND, SO I KNEW IT WAS TIME. LOLA WENT TO HEAVEN ON JUNE 6, 2007.
DOES ANYTHING I MENTION SEEM TO FIT THE CATEGORY OF BEING RELATED TO THE BAD DOG FOOD ?
AND LET ME TELL YOU THAT LOLA WAS WITH ME FOR FOURTEEN YEARS AND NEVER HAD A MAJOR SICK DAY IN HER LIFE, UP UNTIL THE LAST SEVEN MONTHS.
JOHN
JPK@TMAIL.COM
–jpk
Hi, I have a persian cat that is going on 2 yrs old. A few weeks ago she had diaherra and vomiting for a few days. I thought it could have been her food so I stopped giving it to her for a few days and she got better. In the last few days she’s had diaherra again. I once again stopped her wet food and she got better. She doesn’y have diaherra or the vomiting now but she is always laying down, doesn;t want to play which is not her. You can tell she’s not feeling well. She’s been eating Fancy Feast Elegant Medleys since she was 9 weeks old. This is the first time these things has happened…Could anyone shed some light as to what maybe wrong with her…Like I said she is eating the same food as before. Could it be her food?
I want to know when will they pay for my dog Butch who died.
Enough is dam enough.
I need to put all this shit behined me.
I still fill my dogs pain dam it
The person who had QQ and let them go for four days without taking them to the vet, well, you were part of the problem. If my dogs exhibits behavior like that, he’s on his way to the vet whether it is the emergency vet or his regular vet. I don’t wait. You wouldn’t do that to your child (I hope not) so do that to your dog. I am on disability and find the money for emergency vet care so there are no excuses.
Harly died of pet pride dog food beef and gravey pouch when the melamine was in the wheetglutten from wein in china he got sick in october went to the vet something he eat new food was ok november had surgery to remove his ingrowned tail happens to english bulldogs feburary i had open heart and on the day of the recall Harley died no signs this time the day or to before i not noingly fed him the secoud of three pouches i didnt feed him the first i rember telling him this smells so good you might have to fight me for this