Pet Deaths Prompt Recall of Pet Food

[thumper]

http://articles.news.aol.com/business/_a/pet-deaths-prompt-recall-of-pet-food/20070316185209990005 :smiley_pirate thumper

[Bell & Noah]

I was just looking for this web site to put on the board. When I saw it I thought of TexanSquirrel and the problems he has had with his dog.

[thumper]

looks like its all WET pet food (canned or pouches) there are many brands so PLEASE CHECK OUT THIS LIST!!!! :smiley_pirate thumper recalled cat food (by name)http://www.menufoods.com/recall/product_cat.html recalled dog food (by name)http://www.menufoods.com/recall/product_dog.html recall info www.menufoods.com/recall.

[island rehabber]

:thankyou for posting those, thumper -- I'm forwarding them to my non-Squirrel Board friends right now....

[Mrs. Jack]

Ooh boy.. this sort of sucks. My sister-in-law just recently had to have her beloved cat Kali put to sleep.. she'd gotten sick months ago, vomiting, and despite care, the vet said she just wasn't getting better. I really hate to ask her now what kind of food she was feeding her.. but I guess I better.

[susanw]

Checked out the web site this morning and found out the pouch dog food I have been feeding my dog is on the list, ran to WalMart and returned what I still had. They had already pulled the dog food off the shelf. What really makes me mad is that they knew about the complaints since December!:shakehead

[Pam]

I own a pet shop and strongely recommend Hill's Science Diet. This dog food and cat food is developed by veterinarians. If you can't get Science Diet, Purina is a good food. It can be purchased at grocery stores and Wal-mart. Iams is another good choice.

[Mrs. Jack]

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.



:dono

[Victor]

I was just looking for this web site to put on the board. When I saw it I thought of TexanSquirrel and the problems he has had with his dog.

I thought the same thing. I hope Rolly is continuing to get better.:shakehead

[TexanSquirrel]

Rolly is still getting better. None of my dogs are on any of those kinds of food, thank goodness! Good posting and thank you!

[thumper]

:thankyou for posting those, thumper -- I'm forwarding them to my non-Squirrel Board friends right now....
just lucky timing on my part,,,(I do news for another site) I have no doubt someone would have posted this moments after I did...I too have a friend who lost a cat recently and is looking into it....good luck and SPREAD THE WORD..................:smiley_pirate ...... chris

[Victor]

Here is a link for up-dated information that I found on my Pigeon Talk forum:

http://menufoods.com/recall/

Thanks for the up-date on Rolle Texan Squirrel.

[rehabmom]

i feed my 2 yr hanydcap cat special kitty tuna can'd not pouch before i had to put her down. it is scarry i will wonder if that was part of her problems from now on.i have a bunch left i don'd know if i will feed it to the other ones now.:dono

rehabmom

[Victor]

Hi rehabmom, just check the cat area on the link to be sure, but if in doubt, get rid of it preferably down the toilet so that dumpster animals can't get it.

[iggysmom]

:goodpost :goodpost

[susanw]

I own a pet shop and strongely recommend Hill's Science Diet. This dog food and cat food is developed by veterinarians. If you can't get Science Diet, Purina is a good food. It can be purchased at grocery stores and Wal-mart. Iams is another good choice.


I hope you pulled the Iams off the shelf since it is on the list. I think I am going to stick to pedigree from now on, I raised my last dog on it and she lived to be 16.

[thumper]

Eukanuba, Iams and store brands tied to kidney failure, deaths Meanwhile, two other companies — Nestle Purina PetCare Co. and Hill’s Pet Nutrition Inc. — announced Saturday night that as a precaution they were voluntary recalling some products made by Menu Foods.http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17650075/wid/11915773?GT1=9145 chris

[thumper]

this is really starting to suck!!!! HANG IN THERE ALL...AND SPREAD THE WORD...:smiley_pirate thumper

[Squirrellady]

Just thinking out loud,:soapbox hope it's ok! First, it's with Our Food, spinch, some fruits and peanut butter, now it's our Pet's Food!!! Hmmmmm! What's going on?????

[island rehabber]

Just thinking out loud,:soapbox hope it's ok! First, it's with Our Food, spinch, some fruits and peanut butter, now it's our Pet's Food!!! Hmmmmm! What's going on?????

My NRBF, Paul, suspects that terrorists are "trying out" their skills this way.....

[Pam]

My hubby has an eleven week old kitten in the clinic right now that is in kidney failure. The owner brought the kitten in to be checked because it had been fed the recalled food. The kitten had been vomiting and drinking a lot of water. The kitten otherwise looks great. My hubby said to look at it you would never believe it was sick. The poor little kitten's kidneys are "shot".:shakehead
Another vet in town is treating a Yorkie with the exact symptoms. Looks great...kidney failure.
If they knew what was in the food, it would be easier to treat the kidney failure. Maybe even reverse it.

[jeniferps23]

When I was researching thuis issue I discovered that many pet food companies do painful, abusive testing on animals to develop their food. One of the worst ones is IAMS. Also Nutro and dozens of others. I am disappointed and disgusted. I will now only buy and feed foods without by-products and that do humane testing (with volunteer pet owners in the pets home). Lots of info on this on PETA website and others. Thanks for reading this.
Jenifer

[thumper]

My NRBF, Paul, suspects that terrorists are "trying out" their skills this way.....
remember when it hit the news about some terrorists training to fly CROP DUSTERS??? **** o dear!!!:smiley_pirate thumper

[Gabe]

My NRBF, Paul, suspects that terrorists are "trying out" their skills this way.....


I think I'm going to have to agree with him. The weird part is that they just shake their head and don't know how it got in there.

My brother-in-law works for a large grocery chain in our area. He is actually in charge of the "Anti-Bioterroism" team. They are forever trying to out think the terrorists and try to anticipate ways for them to get at our food supply.

[Squirrellady]

My NRBF, Paul, suspects that terrorists are "trying out" their skills this way.....
My dh has been saying that for quite sometime now, too!! But what can we do???
Stop eating? (NOT) Grow our own foods, etc. Becareful Everyone!!! Prayers for Everyone!! Stay Safe!!:grouphug :Love_Icon

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

This was on ABC News:

By DAVID KERLEY

March 23, 2007 — ABC News has learned that investigators have determined that a rodent-killing chemical is the toxin in the tainted pet food that has killed several animals.

A source close to the investigation tells ABC News that the rodenticide, which the source says is illegal to use in the United States, was on wheat that was imported from China and used by Menu Foods in nearly 100 brands of dog and cat food.

Watch "World News" for full details on the extent of the poisoning.

A news conference is scheduled for this afternoon by experts in Albany, N.Y., where scientists at the state's food laboratory made the discovery a week after a massive recall of 60 million cans and pouches was issued.

The chemical is aminopterin.


What investigators can't say so far is whether this is the only contaminant in all of the recalled food.


There is some good news according to the source. Knowing the chemical should aid veterinarians who are treating animals that have been sickened by the pet food.

The chemical is used in the United States in, of all things, a cancer drug, according to the source.

[island rehabber]

:soapbox :frustratedx:rantonof:pissed:madd:soapbox !! ! ! !


thanks for posting that, rippie. One more great reason to allow US companies to buy ingredients from anywhere they want, for the CHEAPEST PRICE, instead of for the HIGHEST QUALITY....

[Mrs. Jack]

Menu Foods is majority owned by Menu Foods Income Fund of Streetsville. The company also makes foods for zoo cats, but those products are unaffected by the recall.

The company's chief executive and president said Menu Foods delayed announcing the recall until it could confirm that the animals had eaten its product before dying. Two earlier complaints from consumers whose cats had died involved animals that lived outside or had access to a garage, which left open the possibility they had been poisoned by something other than contaminated food, he said.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/03/23/pet.food.recall.ap/index.html

:frustratedx

[Critter_Queen]

Ugh. The whole thing makes me sick.

I feed my dogs Beneful dry dog food...makes me glad my dogs can't tolerate the "richness" of canned dog food.

I hope someone sues those bastards for not recalling the stuff sooner!

[Alaskan Squirrel Cam]

This was in the news today:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070323/ap_on_re_us/pet_food_recall

bob

http://www.thesquirrelcam.com

[thumper]

glad to see your all ON IT!!! I had a situation on the other board and am running late with the news today...:smiley_pirate thumper

[Gabe]

March 23, 2007 — ABC News has learned that investigators have determined that a rodent-killing chemical is the toxin in the tainted pet food that has killed several animals.

A source close to the investigation tells ABC News that the rodenticide, which the source says is illegal to use in the United States, was on wheat that was imported from China and used by Menu Foods in nearly 100 brands of dog and cat food.



Hope no one bought that wheat from China and used it in our bread and cereal.

[thumper]

more info...http://www.breitbart.com/article.php?id=070323160755.ayf41dzr&show_article=1

[thumper]

wish I would have read :::::"The substance in the food was identified as aminopterin, a cancer drug that once was used to induce abortions in the United States and is still used to kill rats in some other countries";;;in the story posted earlier...that sort of changes um,,um,, everything...:attention .chris.

[acorniv]

I don't know if this article is more updated or just more thorough than others I've seen, but it addresses some of the concerns expressed here. Boy, what a tragedy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/24/us/24petfood.html

In the course of my research, I found this website. Great information for people with cats! http://www.catnutrition.org/

The good news:

As tragic as this event is, it is raising awareness in pet owners, and I expect thousands of pets will get better nutrition in the future because of it. Last time I went to Petsmart, the aisles were filled with people reading the labels, and a well informed employee was on hand to discuss nutrition and make recommendations.

Here is how it has helped my cat:

Rose came to me from a shelter with FIP - feline infections peritonitis. This disease is considered to be 100% fatal and is a HORRIBLE way to die. We lost Bud, Rose's brother soon after their arrival. Rose recovered, perhaps because she hung on long enough to be given an immunization against FIP. (it has since been given up as other cats did not fare as well on it) However, between the disease itself and the many meds she received as a kitten, her stomach lining was permenantly damaged. She must keep food in her stomach at all times or is in pain. She is now 8 years old and very obese, even though she never eats large meals. She can't. they make her vomit. Looking at food the wrong way makes her vomit, so she nibbles all day long. OTOH, cat food made for weight loss makes her extremely constipated. I thought we'd lose her the first time that happened.

Because she must graze, she needs to have food available to her at all times. She is terrible abotu getting underfoot and snatching anything that falls to the floor during food prep. She has this THING for oil - she will sneak into cabinets just to lick the oil off cans. We feed her yogurt, and are always looking for the canned food that is gentle on her tummy.

Because of this recall, I discovered that low fat and other 'diet' cat foods are particularly high carb. That won't help any cat lose weight! It will also increase their chances of getting diabetes. And as Rose will attest, they plug a poor kitty up. What cats need to eat is meat, not grains.

Back in December/January, I tried once again, to find food Rose can eat and keep down. I tried a number of items on the recall list, but because my other cat won't touch anything sliced or cubed, I think I missed the dangerous ones.
Iams, Hill, Nutra, science diet - They all made Rose sick - in fact, the (supposedly) better quality, the sicker she got. She got sickest on the 1.50 a can private label stuff my vet sells.We ended up with Friskies and Fancy feast, two cheap brands that are not made by menu foods, but by Purina. Purina is not a bad way to go on a budget - their labs are some of the best around. Rose has been keeping her food down, but continuing to gain weight.

The staff at my vet, have been of no help, and do not seem to quite believe that she is in pain. They think I can't tell the difference between begging and discomfort. Her's a clue - when the cat licks all the fur off her stomach trying to get to the source of her discomfort, that is pain. This is the 'best' vet in the area, and they are good at other things, so I just try to solve the weight thing on my own. People doctors don't get nutriton either, but I tend to expect more from vets ( because by and large they know more!).

After speaking with the employee at Pet Smart I recently tried an all natural, low carb catfood made by Blue. Rose has responded very well to it, and Pansy, my chronically underweight 16 yo loves it. I'm going to switch to Blue and possibly try making food from scratch, using that website. I'm eager to see how Rose's weight and health changes.

Laurel

[Critter_Queen]

New info:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070330/ap_on_go_ot/pet_food_recall

[susanw]

So in other words, they still don't know! :dono

[Pam]

I'll stand behind Hill's Sience Diet and Hill's Prescription Diets...they are still a great company.

[island rehabber]

Sinbad has never gotten anything but Friskies canned and Chef'sBlend dry food for his eight years of life so far. He's incredibly healthy and fighting-trim weight, too -- the only time he was ill was an allergic reaction to Advantage and/or Frontline. He has thrived on the Friskies food -- despite the fact that his mother is embarassed, when in certain circles, to admit that she feeds it to him. :o

[Pam]

IR- Don't be embarrassed...I own a pet shop, sell Hill's Science Diet, but I feed my cat Purina Indoor Food:D (He doesn't like Hill's) I do feed my dog Hill's Lamb and Rice.

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

I always fed my 18 yr old girl Friskies or 9 lives. Towards the end they all got Purina one and still do.
When she started getting sick with renal failure I started doing research on what foods to give and I read with cats a good quality canned food is best and with dogs quality dry food.

[Pam]

:thumbsup Purina One is a good food...Just stay away from store brands...too much filler

[island rehabber]

IR- Don't be embarrassed...I own a pet shop, sell Hill's Science Diet, but I feed my cat Purina Indoor Food:D (He doesn't like Hill's) I do feed my dog Hill's Lamb and Rice.

Thanks Pam! When I first rescued Sinbad and his brother & sister I tried Iams, Science Diet, Hills, and something-Max which was really expensive and only sold at chi-chi pet shops on Madison Avenue! They all hated them....but Friskies? Couldn't get enough of it. So I let the cats tell me what to do. As it should be. :D

[rippie-n-lilgirlsmom]

So I let the cats tell me what to do. As it should be.
__________________

yes, and the squirrels should be so lucky!:squirrel1 ;)

[Pam]

IR...remember cats rule...

Rippie...squirrels rule, too...

[Critter_Queen]

New info!!

The recall has been expanded to at least one brand of dry dog food now...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070418/ap_on_bi_ge/pet_food_recall

[acorniv]

I'm starting to wonder how long contaminated food has been in the pet food chain. I know this incident is fairly recent, but one of my cats nearly died last July of some sort of stomach problem we've been treating as if it was an ulcer, with only partial results. It ws really really weird, so I'm going to post it here,a nd if any of you have heard of anything similar, will you pelase let me know?

It began with my picking Pansy up one evening and having her scream in pain. Her rear right end seemed to be where the pain originated - like she'd injured her hip or something. She is elderly and arthritic, so that made the most sense - perhaps she got tripped over or soemthing? Took her to the vet where they found nothing, but generalized sensitivity and gave her meds for arthritis.

Two days later, she was less seneitive, but I found a large (about half a tablespoon) puddle of blood on a magazine in my dd's room, where Pansy spends most of her time. I checked on all our pets and no one was bleeding, nor were my children. I got stool samples from Pansy and took it to the vet, along with the blood. He found no match. I took him a stool sample from Rose, our other cat. no match. I searched the house for a wild animals - no luck.

Two days later, Pansy vomited blood - a LOT of it. I took her in to the vet. At this point I am hazy on what all we did and in what order, but we ran every possible test and the only thing that came up was mild anemia (to be expected with blood loss). The vet decided to treat it as an ulcer, for want of better recourse. She did anibiotics, Keopectate ( special for vet use - the human has some deadly additive) plus an acid reducer - pepcid AC.

By this time, she was a very sick kitty - regularly vomiting blood and vomiting everything she ate. She was dehydrated and starving because she could keep nothing down. Had I not started the vet ball rolling when I found the blood, before she showed symptms, I'm sure we'd have lost her.

She got a lot better pretty quickly, and so we did the various meds for a couple of weeks and then tapered off all but the pecid ac. We've tried, but when she is not on it she starts vomiting all over again. She has a thyroid condiiton so is on meds (methamazole) for that, and I don't think they help.

We normally feed her friskies or fancy feast, and she likes the flavors that have less filler ( most of the fish ones) Because our other cat is obese due to her own stomach sensitiivites, and because of ongoing tummy toruble in Pansy, we have recently switched to Blue, which is pretty much just meat. None were on the bad food list. However just before all this began, we tried a variety of vet approved high dollar brands, all of which made Rose sick - when she would touch them. Pansy, who is undereweight, has the bigger appetite, and ate most of what was put out for both of them. I'm now wondering if she got something that has made her sick? Frm the very beginning, it has made me feel like her food had fiberglass in it - like her insides are just all torn up from something.

My fabulous vet retired back in June, and his replacements are not the best, nor is the other vet I've consulted. I don't feel I have anyone to really puzzle this out with. It's very frustrating - we just had another episode this week, and pepcid AC helped again, but what could possibly be the cause of the problem and is it going to get worse (could it be a tumor?).

My dh asked me this week if I was sure she had never had any of the recalled food. She didn't - none that was in the window being discussed, but I find it hard to believe this was a one time incident.

Any comments or ideas?

[cpietra16]

I rescue cats and Purina One is not really that good because it has too many fillers. You want to to try and get a food that has the first ingredient as a meat...
Merricks, Innova, Wellness and Felidae are just a few that are highly regarded . Since I have taken my cats off Purina, friskies, whiskas, etc.. I have been less at the vets and their fur is very shiny and they also shed less.

[TexanSquirrel]

Thanks for the update.

[Critter_Queen]

More new info...

Now they've found the contaminent in hog urine on a pork-producing farm in California!! GREAT.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070420/ap_on_he_me/pet_food_recall

[Mrs. Jack]

As well as rice protien and corn protein imported to other countries.
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18173908/

It's starting to look like they put that sh*t in there on purpose because a side effect is that it boosts the appearance of protein, never mind that it's poison :mad:

[susanw]

Makes me mad the chinese won't let our fda check their factories. I don't think we should buy from them anymore, bring the jobs back to the u.s. I am trying to be on the safe side and not buy anything with wheat gluten in it.

[Critter_Queen]

Now they are saying that it could be in NUMEROUS human foods as well!

Sounds like those of you that use baby rice cereal might want to find an alternative for a while....

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070424/hl_nm/petfood_testing_dc_4

[thumper]

wish I would have read :::::"The substance in the food was identified as aminopterin, a cancer drug that once was used to induce abortions in the United States and is still used to kill rats in some other countries";;;in the story posted earlier...that sort of changes um,,um,, everything...:attention .chris. here we go...