Gothamist: Pet Food Recall After Cat and Dog Deaths

mark98115

Sat, 03 May 2008 14:40:07 -0500

If you buy pet food and treats from Wal Mart than you have yourself to blame for your pet's death. It's harsh, but that is reality. How many stories must you see and read about Wal Mart pushing their suppliers to move production to China and then stories about products made in China poisoning people with lead in toys or paint used in dishes. Did you think that producers in China will show any more good sense when it come to pet food?? People will not feed their pets table scraps but will feed them stuff that they buy in a 20lbs bag for $3.99!!!! Are you that stupid?!? What do you think is in that big bad for that little money?? Not giving pets human food leftovers is simply retarded. What do you think dogs and cats have been eating for the last few thousand years?? Do you think that someone in ancient Greece has heard of Alpo, Iams or Science Diet? You want to buy pet food and not give your pets human food? Fine! Here's a simple rule: Do not buy anything made by a big company. Buy a quality product from a small operation that uses real quality ingredients. You want a couple of good brands? Try Blue Buffalo or Natural Balance. Suing is also not very productive. The only people who make out are the lawyers. Best way to show the companies that make that crap that you do not approve is not to buy their junk. Then again how many people reading this feed their kids Fruit Loops for breakfast and McDonalds for dinner, and then wonder why the kids is a fatso?

GeneandGerri

Tue, 04 Sep 2007 13:06:04 -0500

Our pet Rosie, a 3 year old Chihuahua was poisoned from Chinese made Bestro's Jerky Chicken Strips #77849 00006 1 We have this contaminated bag. We have three Chihuahuas and one of them died one month ago. She started with vomiting and dehydration (she was drinking lots of water) and then we were told she may either have an obstruction or have been poisioned. Since our dogs are inside dogs and we are with them at all times outside we thought it was an obstruction. Finally the doctor at Elwood Animal Clinic in Glendora, California said he was almost positive it was some kind of poisoning. They were going to scope her but before that could happen she died July 21, at VCA in Fountain Valley, California. We gave our dogs Waggin train and Bestro's Jerky Chicken Strips. Our Sweet Rosie (our chihuahua that passed) loved them and and she would eat all the treats we put down for the other dogs too. Up until today we never had any idea what happened but now with Wal Mart pulling this quietly from their shelves. (I brought my treats at Wal Mart, Glendora, California) I truly believe that is why she died. Rosie wants all dog owners to be aware of this and a Total Recall of this chinese junk pet treats so other puppies don't slowly suffer is she did. How many other puppies must die before a total recall is called? We are totally heartbroken and will never forget Our Sweet Gypsy Rose! Since Wal Mart had this problem before, why didn't they pull all that Chinese junk off the first time? Our Rosie will still be alive! Is Wal Mart concerned about people and their Pets or Money? You figured it out. Gene and Gerri Richards San Dimas, California Rosie's website: http://www.dogster.com/dogs/614878

guest

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 11:16:43 -0500

I too lost my best friend after feeding her Old Roy Country Stew from WalMarts. The list of recalled cans was not listed until after she had consumed it and she went from a healthy 77 lb. greyhound to probably less than 30 lbs. We could not stand to see her suffer anymore and had her put to sleep on July 6. Her kidneys were destroyed and she lost complete control of them.My heart is still broken, altho I have just adopted another one this past weekend, and I hope that the people who have done this and made our beloved animals suffer the agony's of Hell will burn in Hell themselves. Truly unChristian of me but then at this point I don't care.

guest

Fri, 20 Jul 2007 13:35:44 -0500

there must be some way to make these money hungry bastards pay for this! 10 pets dead my ass! more like 10's of thousands! this is nuts I know of atleast thirty familys who have lost one to four pets from this crap. personally i don't think its even over. my heart goes out to everyone who has gone through this emotional roller coaster of losing a member of their family. my cat has been sick for a month now. he's doing ok but he'll never be a 100%. he's had ulcers and colds vomiting and loss of appetite. after weeks of treatment he's tried to get through it all. he's a trooper and i love him for it i just wish i could make the pain go away. he never deserved any of this. good luck to everyone who has a pet recovering and my sincerest condolences.

guest

Mon, 18 Jun 2007 14:02:13 -0500

This story is crushing.

Cyndi

Mon, 04 Jun 2007 17:01:18 -0500

We have switched our cats to Evo dry food. They like it, though it did give them an awful case of diarrhea the first few days. That cleared up once they adapted. Now I'd say their coats are much softer and shinier than when using Hill's Science Diet. Our allergy-prone kitty seems fine with it, so she must have a grain allergy -- Evo has no grain at all. Our vet wants to keep an eye on one of our older male cats who has had crystal problems in past, but said the high meat content of the new food should be helpful. I am so sorry so many lost loved ones. We were just plain lucky our household wasn't struck and I'll never again pay so little attention to food sources.

keen

Tue, 22 May 2007 23:03:31 -0500

Thank you for any information. Been reading over at howl911, petconnection and itchmo, those bastards are still killing our pets!!! Getting away with it they are! keen seeking justice keen@mac.com

She

Sun, 20 May 2007 22:37:43 -0500

keen

Thu, 10 May 2007 19:48:26 -0500

Post 606 Try these people... Accutrace Arlington, TX 76017 800-224-9551 fax 817-563-1890 They can test for Melamine + Aminopterin + Cyanuric Acid + Amilorine + Amiloride in wet or dry food for about 175.00. keen lost without Abby Gayle

jani1016

Tue, 08 May 2007 03:42:34 -0500

I have a few cans of fancy feast can food that i suspect is tainted, after my cat became very ill in march. i really want to have the food tested but dont know where to send it. If anyone has any helpful information on this please let me know..thanks

Angela Flynn

Tue, 01 May 2007 21:44:30 -0500

I'm afraid this has been going on for a long time. I found this article www.edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/04/30/china.recall.ap/ Chemical behind pet food recall common in Chinese feed POSTED: 0022 GMT (0822 HKT), April 30, 2007 Story Highlights • Mildly toxic melamine a common ingredient in Chinese animal feed • Chinese wheat gluten containing melamine was blamed for pet deaths in March • Melamine makes products appear higher in protein; can lead to higher feed prices • Company linked to recall was found to have posted online ad seeking melamine I have a feeling this is in human food as well. And I really think that the reason for the melamine becoming more toxic is due irradiation. I strongly urge people to stop eating grains from china

keen

Mon, 30 Apr 2007 12:06:12 -0500

Post 603 by Denise, Very sorry to hear about your Spinner!!! Please don't throw that pet food out, it's evidence and I would love to drive it over to UC Davis here in California, for testing in their labs, it is only a three hour drive for me... if you would like to send me that poison, I would be glad to include it with the Iams dry I am to have tested. Please email me at keen@mac.com if you are interested. Has anyone tested their pet foods? What did they test for? I still think there is more going on then what we are being told. keen, doing without for now!

Denise Gee

Sun, 29 Apr 2007 23:46:15 -0500

Posted by: MikeKeen | March 20, 2007 12:06 PM I just read the posting above. My puppy of nine years, past away on March 28. I thought I was giving him the best, Iams Dry Food Green Bag . With the Iams I mixed in 3 pouches of food that was given to me a week before the recall. When we noticed he was not himself ...it was too late he died in my arms as I carried him into the vet. He was part of our family....slept with my son every night. There wasn't a morning that went by that I didn't get a huge hug from my Spinner. Spinner's ashes along with pictures sit on my sons night stand. And we live with the guilt of not reconizing the symptons sooner and feeding him garbage. I spend endless hours of researching pet food and what they put into it and I'm truly disgusted. These large coprorations are making billions. And to read about one of the CEO of Menu Foods sell 50% of his shares a few days before the recall, sounds a bit like a Martha Stewart scam but much worse!!!! I now have a large container of food and don't know what to do with it. I don't dare throw it in the trash thinking a stray may get into in and get sick. Not sure if there is anywhere here in Canada that is testing the pet food. For those of you with loved ones (pets) I wish the best and hope that you take the necessary precautions in keeping your pets healthy.

t'mara

Sat, 28 Apr 2007 23:48:39 -0500

does anyone have a feeling for when this problem actually started, or has it been an ongoing but under the radar issue all along? i'm thinking of a little dog who at seven years of age suddenly developed kidney failure and passed away last summer (06). he had eaten mighty dog regularly. I wonder if this could this have been due to contaiminated grain? also what's wrong with national and local tv news for all but dropping this story? no one would know, if they didn't have access to the internet, that anything was still happening and new recalls were being added daily. i pray for everyone whom has lost a beloved pet. t'mara

keen

Mon, 23 Apr 2007 12:31:50 -0500

Thank you for your concern and yes I do feel a little better. Resection of the right lung on appearance is negative... so far, still waiting on pathology. Having a worse than ever attitude about that which has transpired right before our eyes though. Can you believe this, no one warned us about poisons in our pet foods until it was too late. Do you think money had anything to do with these murders? We all tried to warn each other as the time passed, but who really listened, we are all strangers for the most part. I feel so guilty to live through all of this...and now with what I'm going through, I can't stop crying about everything. Probably because of the strong medications that were provided for me, I just can't get this out of my mind, my doctor has asked me to let it go, I can not and will not, until I to have died. I don't feel as if I've done enough to help right this ship we are all riding in. Hell, I poisoned my pet with the help of a very large company and an even larger country. Words just have not been working well and pets all over are still getting very sick. What else can we do to stop all of this madness other than not provide our pets with anything commercial. My Abby Gayle used to put her nose up the butts of new people, just to kinda check em out. I just wonder! keen thinking of Abby Gayle and you!

Ruth

Sat, 21 Apr 2007 21:56:43 -0500

Glad to see you back Keen. Hope that you are feeling better. Know how you feel about Abby Gayle. I too am terribly missing my pet Marley dog. She also ate the dry food. She was my little puppy dog. Even though she was 6 yrs old.

Angela Flynn

Sat, 21 Apr 2007 00:34:18 -0500

I'm glad you are out of the hospital Mike. I read Abby Gales story over at www.howl911 I am so saddened over all of this avoidable suffering and it makes me pissed. I agree with you. No one has killed their pet. The person(s) responsible and to be mad at are whoever allowed this to happen.

Kam

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 23:12:46 -0500

Oh and to be more specific, I simply boil the chicken with the carrots, boil brown rice. Mash up the chicken and carrots and add it to the brown rice then I add a few drops or cat vitamins once or twice a week. :)

Kam

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 23:09:34 -0500

Hey everyone, It seems every week new products are added to the recall list. I've decided to play it safe and make my own cat food by boiling some chick and carrots and mixing it with brown rice. To make sure you pet is getting enough vitamins etc you can also buy organic vitamin oil you can mix into the food. Both of my cats really LOVE the change, their fur is also getting much shinier and healthy looking. If you prefer not to make your own so far Paul Newmans organic pet food is the best option. It is pricey but it's worth the extra money at this point. Currently Paul Newmans organic pet food states: "Newman's Own Organics pet foods are NOT part of the mass recall by Menu Foods or the extended recall. We DO NOT use wheat gluten or rice protein concentrate in any of our pet products. All our pet foods are made in the US and certified organic by Oregon Tilth, a USDA accredited certifying agency"

keen

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 21:26:35 -0500

Hello again... back from my hospital stay and I have to say, we have all been warned! Our family lost our pet to the non recalled DRY PET FOOD, made for Iams, Green bag, lamb and "rice". I knew then as we all know now that these foods, wet or dry, are sickening and killing our pets. The next time you visit one of our super stores, wally world etc, look around you, are there any isles without Chinese manufactured products? Is pet food so complicated that we have to buy from overseas some of it's main ingrediants? No, the price is right, that's all. Same with all the other Chinese made crap. If we don't stop buying from them, they are going to snuff us out, just like rodents. Selling by the pound is all they know, not what's in the pound. Just remember one thing, we did not poison our own pets, they did, those bastards!!! Hind sight does kill... Just another worthless two cents from "keen" who now desperately needs and misses Abby Gayle.

Angela Flynn

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 20:10:08 -0500

In light of the additional findings of cyanuric acid, ammiline and ammilide in the glutens from China I now think this may have to do with irradiation. Irradiation is known to reduce protein content. Melamine may have been added to the glutens to boost protein content. Melamine degrades into cyanuric acid, ammiline and ammilide when exposed to UV irradiation. Cyarunic acid, ammiline and ammile have increased toxicity after exposure to UV irradiation. China has at least 3 Gamma irradiation plants. As Public Citizen has so aptly put it - "Everyone will be eating plastic food." www.citizen.org/documents/Multinationals_(PDF).PDF "Irradiation blasts food with the equivalent radiation of hundreds of millions of chest X-rays. These high levels of radiation initiate a complex sequence of reactions that literally rip apart the molecular structure of the food. This process creates new and unidentified chemicals that have not been proven safe. One such chemical, known as 2-DCB, has been shown to cause cellular and/or genetic damage in rats and in human cell cultures. This chemical has never been found naturally in any food on Earth. Ironically, it is a well-known “marker” for determining whether food has been irradiated. Irradiated food is also depleted of its nutritional content. For instance — according to the FDA’s own scientists — irradiation destroys up to 80 percent of the vitamin A in eggs and half of the beta-carotene in orange juice. This problem is compounded by lengthened shelf life, because as food sits in storage, its nutritional content declines. If irradiated foods are stored longer and shipped further from the farm, these foods will arrive at the dinner table with nearly no nutritional value. EVERYONE WILL BE EATING PLASTIC FOOD." What is Food Irradiation::: Food Irradiation is the process by which fresh or dried foods are exposed to nuclear radiation: gamma rays or electron beams in order to sterilise them and thus prolong shelf-life.Highly radioactive materials such as Cobalt 60 (or Cesium 137, which is a waste product of the nuclear industry) are used to expose foods (or other products) to extremely high levels of ionising radiation. An irradiation plant, such as the Steritech facility at Narangba (just north of Brisbane), uses up to 3.5 million curies of radioactivity, as food moves on a conveyor belt through a chamber to receive it's requisite dose. Food irradiation has not been satisfactorily proven safe, nor does it seem to work effectively. Problems persist around issues of "safe" dosage levels and the different effects on food of different levels.Scientists speak out against the irradiation of food. Scientific studies since the 1950's reveal the harmful effects of consuming irradiated food. Some of the problems include: decreased vitamin and nutritional content and DNA damage, cancer, and radioaticivity in rats. The Chinese company JPY operates the three largest gamma irradiators in China. Its Shezhen facility is the largest, built in 1987 with 2.6 million curies of cobalt-60. The second-largest facility was built in Shanghai in 2003 and has 2 million curies. The third facility was built in Tianjin in 2005 with 0.7 million curies Preparation of Cyanuric Acid from Urea by Micro wave Irradiation The oxidation of melamine under UV-irradiation in the presence of H[2]O[2] proceeds step by step leading to ammeline, ammelide, and finally to cyanuric acid. The toxicity of the initial melamine solution seems to increase due to the intermediates generated in solution.

brenda

Fri, 20 Apr 2007 11:59:48 -0500

now more Medi-cal food has been recalled, i have to go buy my cat more medi-cal food today. I have no choice, becuase of his previous illness. And Iam very worried about buying any food, especially medi-cal now....It seems every couple days something is recalled from them. After I spoke to the vet and they ASSURED me their food was fine. This is so stressful.

Ruth

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 23:23:54 -0500

Once again sorry for the previous corn/rice mistake. I have already lost one beloved pet dog. I just dont want my daughter to lose her pets. But have changed 3 times and wouldn't you know it they have been on the list in just a couple of days. She's trying to cook for them. Shes not a cook but trying her best. We are all at a loss wondering whats next. There are still 3 other companies Wilbur-Ellis wont name and the FDA won't step in to name them.So in the meantime, we keep changing companies that say their product is safe and in a couple of weeks ....Oh no...our food is tainted because we didn't know that it was coming from China. Read the letter from Blue Buffalo. And see if it makes you feel any better.

Ell

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 23:04:23 -0500

What can I feed my cats now? What's left? What is not going to be added to the list next week. Natural Balance is out of the question now. I'm just so lost.

Ruth

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 22:46:31 -0500

Sorry I meant to write that Blue Buffalo recalled some of the dry cat food because it had tainted rice protein. In South Africa corn has been thought to be the culprit that dogs have been dying from eating certain foods. Sorry for that mistake. Its been a long day of worrying of what is safe and have my pets been affected. Have changed food 3 times and they all have been on the list.

Ruth

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 22:34:14 -0500

Has anyone read today's recalls......now its the corn protein thats tainted. Blue Buffalo is the other company that Wilbur-Ellis was not naming. Today B.B. recalled some its cat dry food. And it just so happens I spoke with B.B. yesterday afternoon and they assured me that their food was fine. So much for believing anyone.

Angela Flynn

Thu, 19 Apr 2007 13:52:02 -0500

Here is an article on the overall lack of safety in Chinese products. I think this is a sad testimony to the effects of over population and the never ending need to increase profits. www.nst.com.my/Current_News/NST/Thursday/Columns/20070419080550/Article/index_html And this on The Price of Dignity on worker's conditions around the world. I have heard that most of China's workforce are virtually slaves. They have no options other than working in harsh conditions for little pay. www.commondreams.org/views03/0922-01.htm While it is easy to blame profit hungry corporations for driving this inhumane force I think we all need to accept some blame. Every day we practice using the power of voting with our money. Sometimes it takes a tragedy to get us all to take a good look at what is realy going on. While I hate the deaths and suffering that this contamination has caused I also hate the conditions that are in place that contributed to the contamination.

petlover

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 16:05:50 -0500

Sorry, my post (587)was supposed to read 'NO RICE AND NO WHEAT'. I accidentally wrote 'now wheat'. I know it's important to be clear on this issue!

petlover

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 15:11:33 -0500

I'm wondering how many more dry foods for both cats and dogs will be placed on the recall list now that rice protein concentrate has been identified as an ingredient that has carried the Melamine in some foods. I know for now it is just Natural Balance but it makes me think back to all of Mike Keen's posts and the others regarding their sick dogs who only ever ate Iams dry Lamb and Rice. If anyone is looking for a dry food that is GRAIN FREE, please check out Innova Evo for cats and dogs. No rice and now wheat. My cats are really enjoying it and are full of energy now.

martha

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 13:21:00 -0500

Ruth post 580 - it doesn't sound like the same symptoms but it sounds like an awful experience. I've very sorry for you. I had what seemed like a perfectly healthy dog and two weeks later she was gone. I just thank God that my other dog recovered. We have switched to a wheat free food - California Naturals but now with this latest news of the contaminted rice protein I'm just not sure what to do. I guess we could start feeding her chicken and rice but I want to make sure she gets the proper nutrician

Angela Flynn

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:13:26 -0500

www.howl911.com is requesting the ingredients listed on recalled Natural Balance foods. NATURAL BALANCE PULLS AN INGREDIENT SWITCHEROO? 04/17/07 As word has spread today about the Natural Balance recall of foods containing rice protein concentrate, a few pet parents astutely observed that Natural Balance has changed their website's list of ingredients for the affected foods. Just a few short days ago, the suspect ingredient was not included among the ingredients listed on the Natural Balance website but, today, after the FDA announcement that melamine was found in the rice protein concentrate, the website was changed to add this ingredient. I believe there is an AAFCO (or is it FDA?) requirement to list ALL the ingredients contained in a pet food on the packaging label. Now, it could be Natural Balance is just woefully behind in updating their website to reflect recent formula changes (note: there are other changes in the ingredients besides the addition of rice protein concentrate.) Conversely, it could be Natural Balance is trying to do a quick CYA. Perhaps some pet parents who purchased the recalled food can take a look at the packaging labels and let us know whether or not the suspect ingredient, rice protein concentrate, appears among the list of ingredients. If not, then this is clearly a violation by Natural Balance of both labeling laws and consumer trust.

Angela Flynn

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 12:10:36 -0500

www.howl911.com is asking for the ingredients listed on recalled foods. NATURAL BALANCE PULLS AN INGREDIENT SWITCHEROO? 04/17/07 As word has spread today about the Natural Balance recall of foods containing rice protein concentrate, a few pet parents astutely observed that Natural Balance has changed their website's list of ingredients for the affected foods. Just a few short days ago, the suspect ingredient was not included among the ingredients listed on the Natural Balance website but, today, after the FDA announcement that melamine was found in the rice protein concentrate, the website was changed to add this ingredient. I believe there is an AAFCO (or is it FDA?) requirement to list ALL the ingredients contained in a pet food on the packaging label. Now, it could be Natural Balance is just woefully behind in updating their website to reflect recent formula changes (note: there are other changes in the ingredients besides the addition of rice protein concentrate.) Conversely, it could be Natural Balance is trying to do a quick CYA. Perhaps some pet parents who purchased the recalled food can take a look at the packaging labels and let us know whether or not the suspect ingredient, rice protein concentrate, appears among the list of ingredients. If not, then this is clearly a violation by Natural Balance of both labeling laws and consumer trust.

Angela Flynn

Wed, 18 Apr 2007 02:31:05 -0500

The FDA says that it researches all suspect food. www.fda.gov/cvm/petfoods.htm#PetFoodContamination Natural Balance says that it has found melamine in rice gluten imported from China. I'm really starting to wonder just how bad things are in China. Are they crushing up used plastic? Adding a cheap protein? Or are is everything so contaminated there is no containing it. www.usatoday.com/money/industries/2007-04-17-premium-pet-food-recalled_N.htm?csp=34

Ruth

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 21:35:11 -0500

This is the latest from Itchmo.com: Natural Balance * Venison and Brown Rice Treats for Dogs (New today) * Venison and Brown Rice Canned Formula for Dogs (New today) * Venison and Brown Rice Dry Food for Dogs (Reported Sunday) * Venison and Green Pea Dry Food for Cats (Reported Sunday

jim

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 16:39:22 -0500

Our dog was fed nothing but Nutro Natural Choice Lite dry dog food. On 1/21/07 her last bag of food was purchased. By 2/6/07 she was so sick it required a visit to the vet. She was prescribed antibiotics. It seemd to help for only a short period. She died on 3/4/07 at the animal emergency center. The attending vet said that her stomach was full of blood. I still have 1/2 the bag of dog food left. Anyone have suggestions on how to go about getting it tested?

Ruth

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 16:35:20 -0500

Martha-579, Its a mystery to the vet as to why my pet died and from what. My pet had blood work done and she had low red blood cells, the white cells were high, her thyroid was low but her cretatin level were normal at the time of the blood work but all that changed when she started to have liver failure. The vet noted that her blood was grandular and hard to draw blood from her. Her condition went down so fast we couldn't save her. The vet gave her shots and meds. predisone and antibotics. The vet said she had an unkown infection. But nothing helped. She went down so fast. She died in my husbands arms. All this happened in just 2 1/2 days. Before that she was a happy little dog running around making us happy. She was close to 6yrs old. Chihuahua/terrier mix. I did notice on her blood work that her glucose levels were high even though on her last vet visit everything was fine. All blood work was normal. Whatever the cause was some of the levels were high. Her symptoms were, bloody tarry stools, vomitting, drinking exessive water, rusty,bloody urine, lots of urine, weakness, lethargic, her body turning yellow, dry mouth. All this happened during vet care. I am sorry about your loss and your other pet still sick. I strongly believe it was the food. I notice that she started to be picky about eating the IAMs since she was such a little piggy. But hindsight is 20/20. And I am devastated about feeding it to her.

martha

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 12:46:29 -0500

Ruth - 575 - what did your dog die of - see my posts 519, 554. I had 2 dogs who ate Nutro Max mini chunks dry food who came down with pacreas issues in the last month and one had to be put down. I too think there is a bigger problem and feel like I'm getting no where with my concerns.

Breianne

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 12:29:34 -0500

This is reason enough to have been avoiding Iams / Eukanuba in the first place: iamscruelty.com Why anyone would support a company who supports cruel and unusual animal testing is beyond me, let alone feed the food to their animals. Iams is one of the largest supporters of puppy mills in the US, and it seems to me that brands who don't do animal testing are a lot less likely to have rat poison sitting around their facilities. A non-complete list of brands who do NOT animal test is available at iamscruelty.com/notTested.asp, though Natural Balance (my chosen and well-researched dog food that has just joined recall rank, much to my dismay) is on there. I'm not trying to preach, just hoping to educate some who may not have heard of the Iams allegations.

Amberine

Tue, 17 Apr 2007 00:47:01 -0500

My cat, Mikey died on March 16, 2007 due to illness from poisoned cat food. He was so sick for one week that he couldn't eat or drink water. He was feeling lethargic and so weak to walk. I took him to the vet and put him on IV for 3 days which doesn't include overnight ( I wish I did at a different vet clinic.) There was no improvement because he was so sick and due to his age. I spend nearly $600 dollars for the vet bills. I had said my last good bye and said I love him with all of my heart. I watched him died peacefully at home. I did not know about the cat food recall after his death. I search on internet and find the brand name, Nutro Max Cat Gourmet Classic is one of them that killed my cat. I had become very angry and felt if I had killed him by giving him that kind of food. I used to fed Mikey the Pro Plan which that brand should be fine. He used to be a healthy 16 yrs old cat. But now its too late. Mikey is gone up in heaven peacefully. I'm seriously considering suing the companies!!

petlover

Mon, 16 Apr 2007 22:34:04 -0500

JR, you wrote in your post (#573) that your cats are eating D/M, do you mean M/D? If so, that food has been recalled by Hills and you shouldn't feed it to your remaining cats. I'm so sorry to hear about your other 3 cats that you've lost. I too was feeding my cats Fancy Feast Grilled for a treat each night for months and months and decided to take them off it when this whole thing started. It still isn't on the recall list but I wouldn't trust it at this point. Before the recall two of my cats started losing quite a bit of weight and their fur was becoming thinned out. I took them both to the vet and had blood tests done and xrays and nothing was determined but their health still continued to decline. What I do know for sure is that once I switched them off Fancy Feast and all wet food completely to Innova Evo dry cat food which has no grains at all in it they both started putting the weight back on and their fur is becoming shiny and getting thick again. They're racing around like they used to which is such a blessing to see. That's enough proof for me. For the odd treat I give them a wee bit of canned turkey or chicken that is made for people. Not much, just a teaspoon or so. Hope your four cats will begin to get healthy again very soon. :0)

Ruth

Mon, 16 Apr 2007 18:41:19 -0500

My pet dog age 6. Died March 11,07 before the recalls came out. She only ate dry IAM's mini chunks, dog bones and tartar treats. I reported it to IAM's but they didn't sound to concerned since its only about the wet food. Same with FDA. Since her death I have spoken with other local people whose pets died around the same time frame as my pet. Their pets also ate IAMs and Nutro. They were healthy dogs too. They also had the same symptoms. I don't think its such a coincidence that so many pets are dying from just eating the dry food. I listen on TV the subcommitte hearings on the pet food industry and what got my attention was the fact that companies only get checked maybe once or twice in a three year period. Isn't it possible that toxins could get in the dry food? And to the Menu supporters who have posted earlier, do you really think that the CFO of MENU Foods didn't know ahead of time of the inpending problems that he dumped 14,000 shares before the recall? How stupid do you think we are. Well, so much for your support. MENU Foods should pay big time because people trusted your products to feed our pets. And to the other poster, the people who have posted are responsible pet owners, why do you think we are angry, and writing about it. We want answers and need to know what to safely feed out pets.

martha

Mon, 16 Apr 2007 10:04:44 -0500

JR #573 - I too had 2 pets - dogs - that suffered from pancreas issues - see post 519. One suddenly became diabetic although her urine which was tested for another reason back in December showed no signs of high The other came down with acute pancreatitis and had to spend the weekend with the vet but thank goodness seems to have fully recovered. I think Pancreatitis is another problem with the food but of course no one listens because the reported problem is kidney failure. We have switched the dogs to a wheat free food. The cat is already on a wheat free food but who knows if it is even the wheat. It is very frustrating and heart breaking and expensive. So far my bills between the two dogs was $4500 and that doesn't count the cost of putting my dog to sleep which I was too distraught to deal with paying the bill - so that is yet to come.

jr

Mon, 16 Apr 2007 02:54:50 -0500

I have had three cats die in the last week from pancreatitis. All of these classic symtoms seem to be the same as ARF. I currently have 4 other cats that are displaying the same symptoms. All of my cats eat D/M and various varieties of Fancy Feast, including some that contain Weat Gluten. I believe their is a major coverup going on and it seems to easy to pin point this problem to one bad ingredient. Anyone that has been given the same diagnosis please speak up. Purina swears their food is safe, but my cats have not eaten anything on the list.

Sharon in Plano TX

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 22:06:58 -0500

I pondered about offering this information in light of all the concerns and grief many of us are sharing these last few months. My prayers and thoughts are with all of you that have lost family pets and still do not have the knowledge you deserve to acquire peace of mind. I am an old fashion and die-hard consumer (I am 61). I only bought Pontiacs, Tide laundry detergent, Dial soap and Hill’s Science Diet DRY pet food. After having to euthanize my 12 year-old black cat, Pete, because of kidney failure and severe dehydration on March 19, and being aware of the pet food contamination (mainly through the internet), I decided to take my dentist’s advice and buy a natural dry food through a milling company in Muenster, Texas. Just a few weeks earlier we brought into our home a 7 week-old black Labrador to be a sister to our 2 year-old yellow lab, Sandi. My 9-year old cat, Jordie, was crying and mourning from the loss of his brother, so a friend offered us a kitten to help Jordie heal. But now I am the mother to four beautiful animals. What an awesome responsibility (but love them so much!). For two years I thought my fate each weekend was to clean up yellow lab hair all over the floor and around her crate (not to mention, clothes and furniture). I thought it was normal for cats to shed hair over everything. All our animals seemed to like the Muenster dry foods I change to (I always had problems getting Sandi to eat during her two years with us, I thought she was just holding out for treats). After eating the diet for a week I began to relax in my choice of food. I also began to notice Jordie’s hair/coat was looking softer and had more shine. But the biggest difference was when I cleaned house this weekend. Sandi’s yellow lab hair was no where to be found. Not behind the recliner, not under the chairs or around her crate. The activity levels have definitely increased with her having a sister to play with now? If Jordie’s and Sandi’s coats are healthier, then what are the unseen, less obvious positive changes from their new diet? Jordie about twice each year would lose patches of hair on her body, and we attributed it to allergies. Sandi has the chronic ear problems and we attributed it to allergies. Well, it may be too much to hope for, but time will tell if these problems get better too? In my wildest dreams I never had hoped for such an obvious blessing from “finally” making a change in their diet and I am very thankful.

Cheryl in CA

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 18:13:48 -0500

I'm just so stressed and sick of all of this. I just read that Natural Balance is pulling their venison dry dog food formulas off of the shelves. They're apparently getting complaints on gastric upset. It may just be from switching foods. I switched all 8 cats and 2 dogs to Natural Balance three weeks ago. The dogs are loving the regular dry formula. The cats re still having some problems with the regular cat dry formula. Their poo really stinks worse than when they were eating the Cat Chow, and they don't even like it as well. They are losing weight though..and they needed that.

Angela Flynn

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 13:44:46 -0500

Well said petlover. The FDA continues to recall pet food. The FDA inspects less than 1% of imported foods. There has been an obvious massive poisoning from pet food. Whether this was done deliberately to increase profits or by careless neglect or indeliberately by a lack of oversight remains to be seen. I fail to see how the common sense reaction of avoiding possibly contaminated foods and the sharing of our stories can be regarded as hysterical.

petlover

Fri, 13 Apr 2007 17:20:59 -0500

re post #568: Perhaps if you were a little less hysterical yourself you'd see that my post is regarding a dog NOT a cat. Of course her dog's kidney problems could be a natural occurance but in light of the food recall it very well could be related. Besides, I really don't think anyone reading my post would become hysterical over Oprah's dog. Relax!

Sandra

Thu, 12 Apr 2007 21:39:47 -0500

Relative to post 567 about Oprah's cat - please do not add to the hysteria. Kidney disease is the #1 killer of cats, ask any vet. So not every damn kidney failure is cause by pet food!

petlover

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 18:02:17 -0500

Did anyone happen to see the Oprah show today? She mentioned that her beloved dog 'Sophie' had been diagnosed with kidney failure. She said she hasn't put her down yet but it sounded like it was something she was planning. I wonder what she has been feeding her dogs? Could be a connection to the petfood recall.

Angela Flynn

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 12:15:15 -0500

I recommend a visit to www.howl911.com I think they have overall the most information. You will find information on where to report sick and dead (I'm sorry to say) pets, alternative food and the latest headlines.

Tim McCormack

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 11:10:23 -0500

HELP! Can anyone tell me what to feed my cat? Now that he has eaten this food he has permanent kidney damage. The vet says he must be on special diet food, but he prescribed food from Hills Prescription diet, and I am worried that this may be making him sick. It is two-three weeks after the incident and now my cat is puking green bile all over the place this morning! This is horrible!

Sharon Foster

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 09:39:19 -0500

I am still very disturbed regarding my cat. Just the fact that I have been feeding my pet poisonous food for a time and didn't know it. He went from a very happy-go-lucky cat to very sick and not eating. I force fed him water because I was very worried. He was throwing up something awful and pooping all other the place. He was just sitting around not wanting to be disturbed. When he tried to walk, he wobbled. No one is calling me back and telling me anthing. I called three times and still no response. I even had someone tell me that his food was not on the list. I said well I have a print-out of it right here. Still no response, other than someone will call you back. Will they give me my baby back.

Angela Flynn

Wed, 11 Apr 2007 00:03:49 -0500

Please the only people who have done anything wrong are the ones who knew the wheat gluten was tainted. I consider most mammals to be sentient loving beings and this whole business makes me pissed. I wonder if Mark Weins lives with any companion animals.

Tim McCormack

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 20:57:20 -0500

Well reading through this page is heartbreaking... My cat became extremely sick about three weeks ago. He stopped eating, but we thought it was because he was upset with our move, since we were moving into a new house. After a week I took him to the vet. He is only 6 and up to this point has always been in perfect health. He was suffering from severe Renal Failure. His creatinine was at 81 (normal range 0.6-2.4, indicating almost 90% failure) and his BUN at 142 (normal range 14-36). We had been feeding him Hill's Science Diet Hairball Light Formula, and he was eating from a bag we bought at a pet store in Santa Clarita, CA back in January. Since his pet food wasn't on the list, I thought it couldn't be due to the "incident", but my vet is suspicious and now I am also. Anyway, it looks like Buster (my cat) is going to make it miraculously enough, but most likely with permanent kidney damager. We hydrate him every night (150 mL of fluids subcutaneously), plus have to force feed him, give him a shot of antibiotics and B12, plus shove a pill down his throat. He is starting to be afraid of us with all the screwed up treatments we are forced to give him and it is having quite an effect on us all... Anyway, if anyone else was feeding their pet Hill's Science Diet Hairball Light Formula and had problems please let me know (tim805@gmail.com). This whole thing is horrible and I hate to think that I did it to him somehow.

Iheartcats

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 20:56:41 -0500

Well, I'm just frustrated and sad. ***MEDI CAL**** formula is now added to the recall list. I happen to feed my two cats that food, I purchase it from my vets office. The formula I have does not have the same date as on the recall notice but my god what's next? I'm switching to Paul Newman's and hoping that won't be added to the list. Business is money so sadly in this case a business usually tries to downplay and cover certain truths. Certain facts with this whole recall clearly do not add up. I hope this brings massive awareness to the public. I can't imagine anything happening to my two boys, animals are beautiful souls and my heart goes out to all who had suffered a loss.

Ilovecats

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 20:54:45 -0500

Tim McCormack

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 20:29:18 -0500

Angela Flynn

Tue, 10 Apr 2007 11:28:59 -0500

www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/print/CTVNews/20070410/menu_foods_070410/20070410/?hub=TopStories&subhub=PrintStory Menu Foods CFO sold stock before pet food recall Updated: Tue. Apr. 10 2007 7:23 AM ET The chief financial officer of Menu Foods Income Fund says it was a "horrible coincidence" that he sold nearly half his units in the pet food company less than three weeks before a massive product recall. Insider trading reports confirm that Mark Wiens sold 14,000 units, or 45 per cent of his stock, for $102,900 on Feb. 26 and Feb. 27, reports The Globe and Mail. The shares would be worth $62,440 at current prices. Wiens still owned 17,193 units and options to purchase 101,812 units after the sale. "It's a horrible coincidence, yes . . ." Wiens told The Globe. "I hold myself to the highest ethical and moral standards possible. I wouldn't do anything to imperil the high governance standards that I demand of myself or anybody in the company." Wiens said the first reports about pet-related illnesses connected to Menu Foods products were made in late February. However, he said that he did not hear about the issue until early March. The Streetsville, Ont. company eventually issued a recall for 60 million containers of dog and cat food on March 16. "In terms of process, during any given year, we get consumer complaints all the time and it becomes matter of course for our technical people, so it's not something that necessarily gets flagged right to the top on an ongoing basis," said Wiens. Paul Henderson, the president and chief executive of Menu Foods, said his company severed its relationship with its Chinese supplier of wheat gluten on March 6. Melamine in the supplied wheat gluten has been identified as the root of the problem. Henderson said in a recent press conference that by March 6, it was evident that "something was wrong" with some of the company's products. Wiens said he has not been contacted by the Ontario Securities Commission or any other regulators since the problems erupted at Menu Foods. OSC spokesperson Wendy Dey told the Globe that the commission reviews insider trading reports routinely but she said they do not comment on individual cases. Wiens explained that he sold his shares for financial planning purposes and that he was prohibited from selling until Feb. 16 because of an implemented blackout period. He said he recognized why questions would arise about his trade. "Certainly there would be questions when you piece all the timing together. I understand that," he said. Multiple manufacturers have since recalled their pet foods after using the same supplier. © 2007 All Rights Reserved.

vnlnsM

Mon, 09 Apr 2007 16:27:06 -0500

Yes britt was pregnat and I slept with her for two hours befor I found out. But we need to take a stand ok. quailty controll or FDA has to be checked do you's know that homeless people eat this shit.I will boycot them and we all have to stick together.Don't ever buy it agin we will put them out of bussines if the fucking groverment!!!! We as a group we can do somthing to get them back!God i'm so lonley with out britt and I fell guilty for giving it to her I can't get over that part!!!!!

amy

Mon, 09 Apr 2007 11:29:49 -0500

hey everyone -- when it comes to pets - we should boycott anything from china at all costs. it seems that china hates dogs, i wouldn't be suprised if this whole dog food thing was a conspiracy... last august, china went on a massive killing spree of dogs, including beating dogs to death in front of their owners while out on walks. here's the article www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14139027/ they are going for round 2 this year... www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/03/07/world/main2544988.shtml and of course, there's this practice of abuse.. www.voice4dogs.org/tsinc.htm

martha

Mon, 09 Apr 2007 10:50:38 -0500

My dog that suddenly came down with diabetes - see my earlier post #519 - had to be put down of Friday. Most dogs once they go on insulin will bounce back but she never did. She still had a hard time standing up, walking and when she would squat to go to the bathroom she would collaps. I didn't give up hope until Thursday evening when she threw up her dinner and then refused to eat her breakfast the next morning. She did drink some water in the morning but threw that back up as well. The vet said she probably had a tumor on her pancreas. She was too old to operate on and I couldn't watch her suffer anymore so I had to say goodbye. It was a peaceful death. She was a good dog and I will miss her. I have seen the other posts with dogs with pancreas problems and 3 of the 4 were eating Nutro brand dry food. My other dog came down with Panreatitis (3/30) a week after my first one was diagnoised with diabetes(3/24). Thankfully she seems to have fully recovered. I still find this more than a coincidence. We've switched dog foods of course to California Naturals which has no wheat but still you wonder - is this one any better?

Cheryl in CA

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 19:58:09 -0500

I'm so sorry for your loss. If this was caused by her pet food, you need to take action. Save the food cans, bags, etc.. There are numbers that you can call to report this. If you post more detail here, we can help you to help stop this from happening to more pets that are also in danger. Again, I'm so sorry. Did you say that Britt was expecting puppies in 2 weeks?

MikeKeen

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 11:17:38 -0500

Post 552... We are so sorry to hear about your pet. Can you tell us more about the food. Circumstances surrounding this death and others are very important, as we are all in this together. Many people here have lost pets to this, PET FOOD COVERUP and understand how you are feeling. Please, accept our sincere condolences. We are here for you! keen remembering Abby Gayle and now Brittiny (keen@mac.com)

vnlnsM

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 09:36:57 -0500

My god my Saint Bernard DIED !!!!!!!!!THIS MORING I ONLY HAD MY BRITTINY. SHE WAS HAVTNG PUPPIES TWO WEEKS.Now use have killed my best friend and I live along,. Ihave had her sicence 8weeks old My mom passed away. sence then just me and britt...I bet you people don't understand loyity.Ihad britt. FOr the best five years I don't know what to do now .shewas800.00 and just had her studed for 1000.00 that's noteven bad part I lostherI can't believe you'scan get away with this something has to be done,I just last night we had hole made peanut butter cookies befor bad!!!!!!!!She passed in my bad 4-6-07.I am very depressedall ready this is taking me over the edge.l,lost britt LAST NIGHT

vnlnsM

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 09:26:20 -0500

AZSue

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 02:19:03 -0500

To Angela post 546 Thanks for the link to that article. It really makes you think. At one time I was going to be a nurse and I have a lot of chemistry, anatomy, physiology and microbiology classes under my belt. Dr. Fox's article has my brain spinning. Right now someone is genetically engineering OUR food. All I can think about right now is the report the other night on the increase in Autism in children, which nobody can understand, not to mention the prevalence of ADHD and related disorders. Could it be that maybe our beloved pets are the first DEAD victims of genetic engineering? Thanks again for that link....Sue

Angela Flynn

Fri, 06 Apr 2007 01:14:57 -0500

CNN is running a video featuring Xuzhou Anying Biologic Technology Development Co. and the overall lack of safety of food in China. edition.cnn.com/2007/US/04/05/pet.deaths/index.html It is incredible that the company has denied any involvement.

martha

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 18:53:31 -0500

Thanks Alex, you inspired me and I also left an email on the Nutro site as well. Is anyone else having troubles with Pancreatitis?

Angela Flynn

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 13:55:21 -0500

I feel veterinarian Dr. Michael Fox has put some pieces together in this article. Please read it. tedeboy.tripod.com/drmichaelwfox/id74.html

Angela Flynn

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 13:39:34 -0500

I feel veterinarian Dr. Michael Fox has put some pieces together in this article. Please read it. tedeboy.tripod.com/drmichaelwfox/id74.html

MikeKeen

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 13:13:16 -0500

Post 543... Editor’s Note: This story has been updated since the first posting. Several days ago, we started reading reports of dry food possibly making pets sick, specifically Iams. We then asked our readers to provide their experience to us. Here’s what we found: Number of pets covered: 134 (47 cats, 87 dogs) Reported ARF (Acute Renal Failure): 24 (17%) 15 cats, 9 dogs Cat Deaths: 20 | Cat Illnesses: 26 Dog Deaths: 9 | Dog Illnesses: 77 Since our report, one DRY food from Hills has been recalled so far. We caution you against accepting this as the final word as these are self-reported numbers from parents who have been reading about other sick or dying pets. Given the caveats, the brands that really stood out were Iams, Nutro, and Science Diet. We expected quite a few Iams reports since the survey results from posts about sick pets who ate Iams, (read about Menu Foods’ exclusive contract with Iams) but the Nutro reports seemed to have come from nowhere. Of the 5 reported deaths parents linked to Nutro, 3 were from Acute Renal Failure. 3 ARF deaths were reportedly linked with Science Diet and 7 were linked with Iams. There may be legitimate reason why some brands are on this list, for example, Science Diet may be recommended by vets to particularly sick pets. Recall resources: Detailed timeline & facts | Possible contamination of human food | FDA may have delayed the recall news | Who sold us the toxins | Future of lawsuits? | Get recall alerts | More Our numbers are not enough data to make any conclusive decision, but some correlations were highly troubling. We are highly in favor of a statistically correct and significant study of dry food-related problems. And we’d love to hear your thoughts in our comments. Important note: If you feel that dry food is causing your pet to fall ill, please contact the FDA. Number of Specific Cat Food Brand Reported: What to feed your cat Iams: 17 (ARF: 5 dead, 1 sick) Purina: 6 (ARF: 1 dead) Science Diet: 5 (ARF: 3 dead) Nutro: 4 (ARF: 1 dead, 1 sick) Special Kitty: 3 (ARF: 1 dead, 2 sick) Royal Canin: 1 (No ARF) Number of Specific Dog Food Brand Reported: What to feed your dog ARF reported: Iams: 21 (ARF: 1 dead, 2 sick) Nutro: 14 (ARF: 2 dead) Ol’Roy: 5 (ARF: 1 dead) Eukanuba: 2 (ARF: 1 sick) No ARF reported: Science Diet: 4 Pedigree: 2 Purina: 2 Authority: 1 Beneful: 1 Natural Balance: 1 Trader Joe’s: 1 Other News: Partial list of foods that contain wheat gluten | Blue Buffalo threatens Howl911. | See the latest recalls and updates here. Report your pet’s death or illness now. Keen and Abby Gayle

MikeKeen

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 12:57:45 -0500

Taeki's Friend

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 12:10:53 -0500

Ah, you're right Angela. I read the email too quickly. My cat Taeki died after eating recalled DRY Hill's Prescription Diet m/d (which does have wheat gluten), hence my suspicions. But, tainted wheat gluten does not explain the other dry food deaths...which are said to not contain wheat gluten. Of course, the labeling laws for pet foods are pretty lax, and as far as I can tell, not really enforced. Could it be that these other dry food products come from the mysterious "fourth manufacturer" who neglected to list wheat gluten as an ingredient on the label(s)? Since that would expose them to even more liability, that might be why they are remaining "mysterious." Has any one tabulated the other dry food complaints to see if they are linked to each other (same manufacturer/different brand, same plant, etc.) in any way?

MikeKeen

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 11:59:03 -0500

Just trying my best to listen and learn. I made mistakes in the past about my dear pets nutrition. I will not make that mistake again. I can't replace my pet until I'm certain that I can care for it properly. As I've said before, they do not know what is killing our pets and continue with a smoke screen that we cannot see thru. When all the smoke clears and the dust settles, it's still up to us to make the correct decision regarding our pets nutrition. THIS IS FROM PETA THIS AM. I'm not sure which reputable labs they used, we should ask them. Yesterday, the dean of the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine confirmed that Menu Foods had contacted the college in early March, when cats in Menu labs stopped eating their food. Almost a full week later, the company sent tissue and urine samples from sick animals to Cornell, acknowledging that the food was toxic. Nearly two more weeks passed before Menu issued a recall. Although the FDA continues to blame tainted wheat gluten for recent cat and dog illnesses and deaths, a mounting number of complaints about sick and dying animals who ate only dry food that did not contain wheat gluten strongly suggests that there is another source of contamination. Evidence from reputable laboratories indicates that an excessive amount of vitamin D in pet food may be to blame. Vitamin D overdoses produce symptoms similar to those seen in animals who recently got sick or died after consuming only dry foods. PETA is demanding that the FDA refocus its investigation to include other likely causes instead of pandering to the pet food industry and focusing on an ingredient that is found in only a moderate number of foods. keen thinking of Abby Gayle

Alex Barnes

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 11:50:00 -0500

Re: Nutro Natural Choice Lamb & Rice dry food. I just sent a complaint to Nutro from a form on their site. I had been feeding Natural Choice Lamb & Rice small bites to my 2 Maltese. Their site claims that no dry food is affected by the recall. I know there is no wheat gluten in the food I had been using. HOWEVER, there are too many other pets who are ill after eating ONLY dry food. I urged them to consider that there may be contaminants other than the rat poison & melamine--I have read excess Vitamin D will show the same symptoms as kidney failure and also pancreatitis. It might even be something else that has not been discovered yet. I told them this is surely not coincidental and to ignore these testimonies would show irresponsibility and callous disregard for the lives of the pets we love so much. Also, I should add that prior to using Nutro, I had been feeding Eukanuba Small Breed lamb & rice for a few years. They had been fine on Eukanuba until late last year when they began occasional vomiting & bouts of diarrhea. I temporarily switched to Kibbles & Bits (and they were fine on that) but I worried because it wasn't a "premium brand." So I switched to Nutro Natural Choice Lamb & Rice small bites because I read it was easier to digest & didn't contain "byproducts." They had only been on Nutro for a few weeks and everything got worse. Lab work reveals elevated BUN, Creatine, and also Platelet count. I'm not happy with my vet's casual attitude about the results since I was given antibiotics and told I would have to put them on a special diet (Hills Prescription K/D) which I DID NOT get. I am looking for a new vet. Meanwhile, after feeding them only home-cooked meals for the last week, they are much better. I used rice, boiled potatoes with skins on and alternated chicken, cottage cheese or eggs for protein. I'm also waiting on a kidney healing program I ordered. Check out Five Leaf Pharmacy at caninekidneyhealth.com --the testimonies are amazing! They also give sample recipes and therapies that I found helpful. My heart goes out to those who have lost a beloved family member in this mess. I am furious at the pet food companies who seem more concerned with making money than ensuring the health of our pets and at the FDA who knew there was a problem but waited so long to say anything. Who can we trust? Not them! Our innocent pets trust us to care for them--and personally, I would rather cook for them myself. I plan to do more extensive research into natural & organic foods for my pets as well as for my family. Who can guarantee that our food supply is safe? We need to press for further research & accountability by pet food companies who are calling their dry food safe. I think there is more to the problem than the rat poison & melamine found in the wet food. We owe at least that much to our trusting & loyal companions.

Angela Flynn

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 11:11:01 -0500

The way I am reading PETAs release about the excessive vitamin D is that it is not linked to the wheat gluten. There is this statement from the PETA site www.peta.org/feat-iams.asp "Although the FDA continues to blame tainted wheat gluten for recent cat and dog illnesses and deaths, a mounting number of complaints about sick and dying animals who ate only dry food that did not contain wheat gluten strongly suggests that there is another source of contamination" PETA goes on to suggest that excessive vitamin D is to blame for the toxicity of pet food, but they do not mention what lab has determined this.

Taeki's Friend

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 03:56:47 -0500

Angela, I don't think anyone is testing for an overabundance of Vitamin D. I have contacted one of the labs, but have not received a response back yet. Hopefully they will listen to PETA's request and test for Vitamin D on their own. My hypothesis would still be that the wheat gluten is the "carrier" of Vitamin D or whatever turns out to be the killing contaminant. The link would be, not the sudden addition of Vitamin D to different manufacturer's food, rather the change of several manufacturers to a cheaper source of wheat gluten which happened to be deadly. According to the latest reports, the chinese wheat gluten was sold by the US distributor (ChemNutra) to four US-based pet food manufacturing customers. I think we know three of them: 1) Menu Foods 2) Hill's Pet Foods 3) Purina (Not sure - customer of Menu Foods or own plant?) 4) ??? But who is the fourth? Is that why dogs and cats are still dying from dry food and other non-recalled pet food from a fourth manufacturer using the contaminated wheat gluten? And does this manufacturer make one brand of food, or many? Why should it be so difficult to find out which manufacturer bought contaminated wheat gluten, and continues to poison our pets by not issuing a recall?!

Angela Flynn

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 01:09:37 -0500

I know Mike Keen posted about a vitamin D link earlier. I would like to know what labs have made this discovery and how it could occur on such a massive scale. It makes sense if it is only Menu Foods, but it seems odd that other companies have added excessive vitamin D all at the same time.

Taeki's Friend

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 23:20:15 -0500

Substance causing pet deaths and injuries may not be identified...dry food not on the recall list may still be causing pet deaths! In an email from PETA today: Alarmingly, it appears that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) may not have discovered the real source of contamination in the recalled Menu Foods items that have caused illnesses and deaths in countless cats and dogs. A mounting number of complaints about sick and dying animals who ate only dry food that did not contain wheat gluten strongly suggest that another ingredient is causing this crisis. Evidence from reputable laboratories indicates that an excessive amount of vitamin D in pet food—among other possibilities—may be to blame. Vitamin D overdoses produce symptoms similar to those seen in animals who recently have become sick or died after consuming only dry foods. This week we have asked the FDA to refocus its investigations beyond wheat gluten and consider other possible contaminants. For the safety of all our beloved companion animals, we must not let the FDA sweep this issue under the rug—as the agency has done so often before with animal and human health issues. We need to ensure that all available pet food is 100 percent safe for dogs and cats.

Jane

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 15:42:38 -0500

Re: post # 535 Wow, I think that says it all. If a veterinarian is only willing to feed home cooked food to his own dogs, and not a brand of food that he most likely sells in his own clinic, it couldn't be more clear that this situation is widespread, dangerous and unresolved. Thank you for sharing that Amy. Jane

amy

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 14:41:40 -0500

Hi everyone - I just found this website today and have spent the past two hours reading everyone's posts, and I am so sorry for everyone who has been personally affected by the recalls. I feed my dog, Sasha, Royal Canin German Shepherd dry food. My father is a veternarian, currently in Africa on safari. Before he left yesterday, he made promise that I would feed Sasha and his 3 dogs I'm babysitting, home cooked food only. The easiest thing he recommeded is ground beef and rice. Or boiled chicken and rice. I'm going out today to get a dog food recipe cook book, but the dogs absolutely loved the cooked ground beef and rice.

Heather

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 10:57:49 -0500

How is this happening? I am absolutely furious that the pet food companies and the FDA haven't been testing all the food as soon as the first recall came out. We also lost our cat to what I can only assume was poisoning by the food he was eating. The food still is not on the recall list, Purina, indoor formula dry cat food. He exhibited all of the signs that have been described by other of poisoning by the food. He had massive renal failure, off the chart BUN and Creatnine levels, vomiting, lethargy, dehydration...etc etc. As I was reading the other comments I noticed that apparently I'm not the only person who has lost a pet to this particular brand, so maybe I'm not being so paranoid after all. I have scoured my house looking for any trace of something else that could have caused this and came up with nothing. I'm not looking to sue; from the sounds of it, it wouldn't be worthwhile anyhow, but I would like to see someone held accountable and I would like to see a formal apology from the makers of the food. I drive past a Nestle/Purina plant on my way to and from work every day, which constantly reminds me of all the drama we went through. I got the cat for my daughter for her 6th birthday and she has lost her best friend in the whole world and she is absolutely devastated. I can only wish these bigshot assholes running the companies could see that and realize what their negligence has caused, because that would be worth all the money in the world. Just keep in mind that just because your brand of food isn't listed, doesn't mean it's not poisoning your pet, if you notice him/her acting strangely or vomiting, take them to a vet ASAP.

Angela Flynn

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 01:26:12 -0500

I discovered this veterinarian - Dr. Michael W. Fox www.tedeboy.tripod.com/drmichaelwfox/index.html Dr. Fox is a promoter of bioethics and I found his site to be heartwarming. Something I think we all could use.

Taeki's Friend

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 01:01:42 -0500

Just wanted to share in the good news with Bridget, and to wish the best for Blake's pit bull's vet visit. Let us know how he is. Deepest sympathy and condolences to Jeri and family for Twister; words can't really express the pain...pets really are family members.

Blake Johnson

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 00:40:49 -0500

I am so sorry to hear everyones losses. I have a 80# pit bull that is like my kid. I have been feeding him Eukanuba Premium dry food for about 4 years. Within the last month, he started throwing up in the house and has been urinating in the house every day. He HAS NEVER done that!! I checked the recall list, and didn't see it on there. Then I found this website. I am bringing him to the vet tomorrow. I hope it's not the same case as everyone else.

Angela Flynn

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 23:14:14 -0500

I've been doing some thinking on this whole pet food issue. I do not have any pets now. I've been traveling too much over the past ten years. I do feel for every one who has lost a pet. I cried more when my last dog died than I ever have in my life. For the last two years I have picked up work from a friend who has a pet care business. I started noticing people complaining about their pet's digestion. I couldn't help but think of genetic engineering. Today, after doing some research, I found that aminopterin is used in genetic engineering. It is part of a compound in HAT. The Cornell Lab and researchers in Canada have been insistent about their finding of aminopterin in the pet food and now I am wondering if the melamine link isn't a bit of a red herring. I find it hard to believe that melamine could have been distributed through so much wheat. It makes more sense that it is genetically engineered wheat. As ge products are not considered to be substantially different from their non-ge product our government does not require safety testing. I do not know what China's regulations are. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HAT_medium A click on the aminopterin link at the HAT site mentions the Canadian findings. It also mentions that there is no evidence that aminopterin has ever been used as a rat poison.

Bridget in Michigan

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 21:31:35 -0500

re: post 474 i took my dog in to the vet, the results are back, she is fine. i stopped feeding her IAMS over the weekend and switched to Paul Newmans Organic dog food. I just don't feel safe feeding her the IAMS still and maybe down the road i'll mix it up but for now i'm staying with Newman's Organic. The vet said her kidney's were in great shape and hasn't been affected by any of the recalled food. She however was pushing me to keep feeding her the IAMS food saying it's better than the organic becuase the organic is usually missing nutrients. I'm not a nutrionist/chemist but to me if they recalled beef for the mad cow disease than i surely won't be eating beef. And since feeding my dog the new food she seems less thirsty. I just wanted you all to know that my dog is okay and my heart goes out to all who have lost their pets.

She

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 21:01:33 -0500

re: 493 Brenda Wysong is apparently a European name, from their site: 1. Q: Where did the name “Wysong” come from? A: That is the name of our founder and present director, Dr. Wysong. It is of European decent and way back was converted through different languages from Vincent. St. Vincent de Paul is in the lineage.

Jeri Mills

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 07:34:23 -0500

I had my dog for 11 years full of engergy. I feed him Alpo prime cuts with gravy for long a very long time. Then 2 weeks ago Wednesday and Thrusday he was acting different I notice there wasn't a lot of stool in the back yard and he was walking around the yard and not stopping his tongue was hanging out and he was acting like he was extremely thristy. Not knowing that he was not drinking the water but did try to eat which he threw up and then he started having seizures. I rushed him to the animal Hospital where they tested him for Anit-freeze poisioning and other test they didn't know what was wrong with him but he had 6 seizures within 1 hour. They were alful. We had to make a decision to either take him home and him continue to have seizures that would evently kill him or put him to sleep. We didn't want him to suffer and ended up putting him to sleep which is one of the worst things you can ever do. I cried for days and miss him every day. My Son was so upset because he had him every since he was 5 years old. Then within a day it comes out that the dog food is bad and has posion in it and that it is killing dogs. At first I wasn't worried because it wasn't what I was feeding him till they came out with the Alpo prime cuts which is what he ate every day. I had to pay $450.00 to put my dog through test and then to sleep when this could have been prevented and he might have lifed a longer life. I think it is the crullest thing that I have heard of first people and now your pets. I think and would like some peace in this manner even though it won't bring my dog back. I lost my Dad a year ago and now we lost our dog. Missing Twister every day Mills in Louisville KY

Jeri Mills

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 07:29:15 -0500

edie ricardo

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 01:04:13 -0500

Thanks Sue for the helpful info. I looked on the cans of grilled fancy feast and wheat gluten was one of the main ingredients. This makes me even more sure of the cause of my cats illness. I too will not be contributing to purina or any other large manufactured pet food. Thanks again for the info.

Marian Steiskal

Tue, 03 Apr 2007 00:32:39 -0500

For all of you who have lost pets to this latest manufactured pet food debacle, please know that you have my deepest sympathy. Nothing can replace a beloved companion. And to have the company/brand that you purchased, tell you that you can get your money back or exchange the product [for another that is just as bad] is unconscionable! I noticed that many commented on "what brand food should I change to?" Since our dogs and cats are carnivores, you could start them on a natural raw diet, which would put a stop to this kind of thing ever happening again. There are many rawfeeding groups on the web with loads of good information to help you get started. It's safe, healthy and your companions will love you for it. [Less vet bills too and no dental work needed] The best way to show your angst and displeasure, would be to stop buying manufactured pet foods! Pet Food Recalls have happened all too often this past year and now already this year! The total lack of caring and consideration as well as the carelessness shown by the major manufacturer only makes one wonder when it will happen again. Our pets are part of our family, not something that if it dies, "oh well"!!! Again, my condolences to all that have suffered losses. Candles lit to honor their passing and to comfort us who have been left behind to mourn.

Taeki's Friend

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 21:07:36 -0500

Once again, from an AP article: FDA Bars Wheat Gluten Used in Recalled Pet Food Even more pet food could be recalled in the next few days, though there probably has been no contamination of human food, FDA officials said Monday.

MikeKeen

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 19:01:10 -0500

Lindsay, I believe there are a few more people with that same type of problem and I've read their posts on menufoodclassaction with yahoo. Also on the pet connection you can search for pancreatitis and find all post relating. Same hold true for howl911 and itchmo. keen without Abby Gayle

Lindsay

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 18:34:40 -0500

My little pomeranian was diagnosed with acute pancreatitis at the end of December. She is only 3 years old and has only ever eaten Nutro Natural Choice lamb and rice small bites dry food. I find it quite coincidental that this illness occurred right around the recall. I just got off the phone with someone at Nutro who has assured me that the Nutro Lamb and Rice jerky treats are not affected by this recall even though they contain wheat gluten. I'm quite confused since all the news says that anything containing wheat gluten is being recalled. Not only did my little pup have acute pancreatitis in December, but she came down with a bad UTI (urinary tract infection) two weeks ago. She has had a perfectly good bill of health since these two illnesses. She's only 3 years old. I spent $1800 in vet bills in December and now $600 in vet bills for the testing/medications last week. When will it all stop? When will these companies fully own up to what they have done?

AZSue

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 18:29:44 -0500

To Edie post 517 I feed my cats 3 Fancy Feast varieties...Savory Salmon...Ocean Whitefish and Tuna...Cod, Sole and Shrimp. I checked each one with a magnifying glass to make sure the tiny little printed ingredient lists did not contain any wheat gluten...none of them did. However, when I run out of Fancy Feast, that's it. I will not contribute any more of my money to Purina, or any other large manufacturer of pet food. This whole recall mess has really opened my eyes to what kind of crap is in these mass-manufactured foods. Edie, do you know what ash is? When you find out you will be sick. Spend some time reading this list and others, along with some major Google searches on pet food ingredients. It will totally open your eyes! I have already switched my cats to Diamond's Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul and Wysong's Vitality. I have read that Diamond had a problem with their food some time ago, however, I believe that was dog food and they have since cleaned up their act. Diamond's Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul is all natural and holistic. Wysong's food, from my research, is a superior kibble. Both are dry foods. Since cats, especially neutered male cats, need extra fluids in their diets, I will either be adding water to the above mentioned dry foods, or making my own wet food for them. They get a tablespoon of Fancy Feast twice a day for a treat, so it's not like they are fed wet food as a main food source. I hope this helps you...Sue

Martha

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 16:49:39 -0500

Two weeks ago one of my dogs (11 year old lab) came down with Diabites suddenly even though her urine was tested in December and looked fine. She is back home taking insulin shots 2 times a day but can still barely walk - it is heart breaking. Insuline is produced by the pancreas Then last friday my other 11 year old lab(her litter mate) had to be rushed to the vet. She was diagnoised with acute pancreatitis - seems odd to me that both of them are having medical emergancies related to the pancreas. They have been eating Nutromax minichunks for several years and this food does not contain wheat glutton but are both also on Thyroid medication and DES which is a hormone. we have two other dogs eating the minichunks who have not had problems - so far. I went to the feed store today and the cashier said someone else had been in last week who's dog also had problems with their pancreas. Are there other people out there seeing this issue. I did notice 2 other people posting issues

Debbie4747

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 16:25:40 -0500

I just checked www.howl911.com and they are reporting that Purina has opened and is operating a pet food manufacturing plant in China, using local ingredients. I'll be boycotting Purina as well from now on. Can't imagine what they were thinking.

edie ricardo

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 16:19:13 -0500

After feeding my cat fancy feast grilled food (with Gravy)he too had signs of vomiting, lethargy. I took him to the vet and he had elevated levels of creatinine..they said he had kidney failure. He is 15, they said that was normal for a cat his age, but i truly believe it had something to do with the food. After 3 days of IV to flush his kidneys he is now recovering...(thank god)...But now i dont know what to feed him, all i have been feeding him is shredded chicken and cottage cheese. The vet gave me some science diet m/d to take home and feed him (which i didnt) and now thats on the list...I dont know whats safe anymore, i fear that there are pet food out there on the shelves that should be on the list...i also wonder if anyone has had a similar experience and fed there cat fancy feast??

AshleySue

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 13:46:44 -0500

Melamine is a synthetic polymer which is fire resistant and heat tolerant. Melamine is a very versatile material with a highly stable structure. Uses for melamine include whiteboards, floor tiles, kitchenware, fire retardant fabrics, and commercial filters. Melamine can be easily molded while warm, but will set into a fixed form. This property makes it ideally suited to certain industrial applications. Melamine is manufactured by mixing urea with formaldehyde under heat and pressure. The substances begin to polymerize and are forced into a mold which will create the desired shape. Under pressure, melamine releases water, which could make the plastic unstable if it is not removed. The materials finish polymerizing and create a finished product, melamine. Melamine is known as a thermoset plastic, because the plastic is fixed after molding. If exposed to enough heat, melamine will melt. For this reason, melamine dishware should not be exposed to high temperatures like those in the oven and microwave. However, the plastic is able to withstand higher temperatures than other plastics. Because it is a thermoset plastic, melamine is difficult to recycle. Melamine can be made into a foam product. Melamine foam has a distinctive structure composed of stacked bubble shapes, which are extremely hard and therefore can easily clean a wide variety of substances. Melamine foam is marketed under a variety of commercial names including Magic Eraser, a cleaning tool well known for removing scuffs and dirt from a wide range of surfaces. Melamine is used in Formica and similar construction products made from composite materials. Formica is made using melamine resin, which is used to coat the fibers in the upper layer of the construction product. The melamine resin makes the end result heat resistant, so that hot objects can be set on the counter without concern. The surface of the material is designed to be easily wiped and cleaned, creating a long lived household product. Melamine plays a role in a wide range of flame resistant materials. These include textiles used in upholstery and the uniforms worn by firemen. Thermal liners, heat resistant gloves, and aprons to protect from splashback of hot substances are made using melamine. Melamine will protect a wearer from heat hazards, and will help to resist the spread of fire in aircraft and buses by providing a fire blocker. Melamine is also used in the manufacture of some filters. The material is porous and will admit substances to pass through, but can be used to filter out particles of a particular size. Melamine filters are capable of handling a high capacity and can be used in hot environments due to the heat resistance of melamine. Melamine filters are also extremely efficient.

AshleySue

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 13:44:40 -0500

Melamine!!! Important read!!! http:// www . inchem . org / documents / sids / sids / 108781 . pdf "The toxicity of melamine is low. Repeated exposure resulted in urinary bladder stones and other lesions of the urinary tract. Bladder tumours occured only in male rats after prolonged irritation of the epithelium by the bladder stones. Melamine is not genotoxic. The exposure of workers and consumers is low. Therefore, melamine is currently considered of low potential risk and low priority for further work."

AshleySue

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 13:21:28 -0500

Everyone who lost a pet, I am SOOOOO sorry! Until a few days ago, I was feeding my pets Nutro dry foods both dog and cat varities. With nutro's dry in question from recent antecdotal accounts I have since switched to Purina Naturals. It is not the best situation, but Purina has assured me that there dry is not made from menu, and that they do not contain contaminated ingredients in there food. It is the best I can do for now. Also, would like for you to know the Natura Brand (Innova, Evo, ect) has wet food made by Menu... but according to them are safe, and are planning on building there own canning facility. ((("Until Natura begins its canning operation, it will have one of their own Quality Control employees on-site in South Dakota to oversee the production of its products. Natura has also instructed its buyers to utilize ingredients from domestic suppliers only.")))

MikeKeen

Mon, 02 Apr 2007 12:06:17 -0500

www.xzay.com/english/index.asp The manufacturers of the suspected wheat gluten from China. Del Monte says they bought food grade gluten from these people. Food grade for pet food? How can we turn our anger, into something possitive? Did you read about the couple that killed themselves over the loss of their pet? www.itchmo.com/ My doctor, who I see 4 times a month, and his wife have a cat and when my pet died I passed along the facts as I knew them and a few of my own personal feelings about this recall. I told him to avoid commercial foods wet or dry. He went home after our visit and found that the food he was feeding his cat was manufactured by Menu Foods. He stopped feeding that food and put his pet on a product his vet advised, which was made by Hill's. This morning, by chance, my wife called and talked to his secretary about the new and re-updated recall. His cat has been drinking a ton of water, urinating on everything and is lathargic. He's leaving his office as we speak to take care of their cat and see the vet that recommended the poison. I'm certain his vet was unaware of any porblem with that pet food he sells. The experts are being fooled by this, and they still don't know for certain what is sickening and killing our pets. keen without Abby Gayle

Taeki's Friend

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 19:16:54 -0500

Sharon, I am so sorry to hear about Pete. Our cat Taeki died on 3/16 (4 days short of his 12th birthday), after eating Hill's Prescription Diet M/D and W/D. We have received absolutely no satisfaction from Hill's. We tried repeatedly (after Taeki's death, unfortunately) to confirm that their food was safe and not the cause of his death, even though the symptoms were all the same, and they kept saying it was. When they finally recalled the food on 3/31, we called again, and they expressed absolutely no smypathy. The extent of their condolences were: "we'll replace the food or refund your money." This after we told them our only cat and pet, practically a member of our family, had passed away after eating their food. They also had no response ("we can't answer that") as to why it took two weeks after the Menu Foods recall (which was itself about a month after the problem surfaced) for Hill's to recall their food which was tainted with the same wheat gluten. It couldn't have taken them that long to figure out they used the contaminated gulten. Anyway, we contacted a couple of lawyers over the weekend and are awaiting a response. We don't think we fit in the larger class action lawsuit against Menu Foods, because as far as we can tell the Hill's issue was the wheat gluten, but not otherwise connected to Menu Foods. We are not sure exactly what we want from a legal standpoint; initially we would probably have settled for an apology and an expression of sympathy, and covering our "huge" vet bill of $35 for Taeki's cremation. Now we are really upset with Hill's response (or lack of response) to Taeki's death. Obviously no amount of money can "replace" Taeki, so... Anyway, if you are interested in us passing your information along to the lawywers as well, please let me know at Taeki@Acorp.net.

F Martinez

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 18:43:32 -0500

Thank you Rebecca. I did have some Del Monte dog treats in the pantry, but they are not the same one's that have been recalled. I've since stopped feeding these to them. Post #508 has scared the hell out of me...as Science Diet Light Hairball Formula was the one I WAS feeding my cats, and Science Diet Adult Small Bites was the one I WAS feeding to my dogs. The only thing I've noticed as far as the cats go is that my white cat threw up a week and a half ago, but otherwise seem fine. As I said earlier, I am now feeding all my cats and dogs Natural Balance. Still, I am concerned.

Rebecca

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 17:59:18 -0500

Im sorry, Beneful contains Corn Gluten not Wheat Gluten.

Rebecca

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 17:58:25 -0500

Josephine, RE:504... I feed my 2 dogs beneful healthy weight. They have been eating it for about a year now. Sometimes dogs eat too fast and they throw up. Also, if you just changed them to a new food sometimes they may throw up. Beneful does not contain wheat gluten, it contains wheat gluten. I am continuing to feed my dogs beneful until something else comes up. If you are giving them dog treats, there was a recall on Del Monte pet treats. Dogs: Jerky treats beef flavor dog snacks, gravy train beef sticks, and dollar general jerky snacks. I have cut out all treats. They get cesar soft food in the mornings and they have their beneful most of the day. If you are nervous check www.mars.com they make pet food that is safe and none of their products are recalled.

Sharon Kotwitz

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 17:27:31 -0500

I put Pete, our twelve-year old black cat to sleep on Monday, March 19, 2007. He and another cat only ate Hills Science Diet light dry food. Pete was a large cat and the vet and I wanted to keep his weight under control. He had kidney failure and was severely dehydrated. I also have a two year old yellow lab, Sandi, and a three month old black lab, Daisy. Sandi began having severe diaherra just yesterday morning and is inactive. I will take her in for blood tests tomorrow morning. I am feeding her rice/hamburger for now. I only feed my labs Hill Science Diet puppy and adult dry food. I switched to a Muenster Texas (I live in Texas) brands of dry food a week ago. I am quite worried. I emailed Hills about my Pete to have it on record. I have not received a returned phone call from the Texas FDA yet. To all the readers, I thank you for corresponding.

F Martinez

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 17:24:31 -0500

I switched my dogs to Dick Van Patten's Natural Balance yesterday. My Chi ate some last night and was fine, but today she woofed it down and a couple of hours later she threw up. I am hoping maybe it's just from eating too fast or changing her to a new food. Is anyone else feeding Natural Choice? I researched it and since it was not made by Menu Foods and contained no wheat, corn, or soy, this is what I chose. Any thoughts are much appreciated! Thanks.

MikeKeen

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 16:42:55 -0500

Companion Animal Food Guide PETA has contacted hundreds of companion-animal food companies, asking if they conduct laboratory tests on animals. Numerous companies responded to let us know that they do not. We have compiled a list of those companies below. Companies that are not on this list either responded to let us know that they do conduct laboratory experiments on animals or failed to respond to our numerous inquiries and are assumed to conduct laboratory experiments on animals. If you are concerned about animals in laboratory tests, you should purchase companion-animal food exclusively from the following companies: (Click here for the U.K. version of this list.) Active Life Pet Products 1-877-291-2913 www.activelifepp.com Amoré Pet Services, Inc. 1-866-572-6673 www.amorepetfoods.com Animal Food Services 1-800-743-0322 www.animalfood.com Artemis Pet Food 1-800-282-5876 www.artemiscompany.com Azmira Holistic Animal Care 1-800-497-5665 www.azmira.com Burns Pet Health, Inc. 1-877-983-9651 www.burnspethealth.com Canusa International 519-624-5697 www.canusaint.com CountryPet Pet Food 1-800-454-7387 www.countrypet.com Dr. Harvey’s 1-866-362-4123 www.drharveys.com Dry Fork Milling Co. 1-800-346-1360 Dynamite Marketing, Inc. 208-887-9410 www.dynamitemarketing.com Evanger’s Dog and Cat Food Co., Inc. 1-800-288-6796 www.evangersdogfood.com Evolution Diet, Inc. (entirely vegan) 1-800-659-0104 www.petfoodshop.com Good Dog Foods, Inc. 732-842-4555 www.gooddogfoods.com GreenTripe.Com 831-726-3255 www.greentripe.com Halo, Purely for Pets 1-800-426-4256 www.halopets.com Happy Dog Food 1-800-359-9576 www.happydogfood.com Harbingers of a New Age (entirely vegan) 406-295-4944 www.vegepet.com Holistic Blend 1-800-954-1117 www.holisticblend.com The Honest Kitchen 858-483-5995 www.thehonestkitchen.com Know Better Dog Food 1-866-922-6463 www.knowbetterdogfood.com KosherPets, Inc. 954-938-6270 www.kosherpets.com Kumpi Pet Foods 303-699-8562 www.kumpi.com Natural Balance Pet Foods, Inc. (has vegan options) 1-800-829-4493 www.naturalbalanceinc.com Natural Life Pet Products, Inc. (has vegan options) 1-800-367-2391 www.nlpp.com Nature’s Variety 1-888-519-7387 www.naturesvariety.com Newman’s Own Organics www.newmansownorganics.com PetGuard (has vegan options) 1-800-874-3221 904-264-8500 www.petguard.com Pied Piper Pet & Wildlife 1-800-338-4610 www.piedpiperpet.com PoshNosh Inc. 613-747-1542 1-866-893-4006 (Outside Ottawa-Outaouais) Raw Advantage, Inc. 360-387-5158 www.rawadvantagepetfood.com Rocky Mountain Natural Products 1-877-768-6788 (Eastern U.S.) 1-800-665-5521 (Western U.S.) www.rmtnp.com Sauder Feeds, Inc. 260-627-2196 www.sauderfeeds.com Stella & Chewy’s LLC 718-522-9673 www.stellaandchewys.com Timberwolf Organics, Inc. 407-877-8779 www.timberwolforganics.com V-dogfood LLC (entirely vegan) 1-888-280-8364 www.V-dogfood.com Veterinary Nutritional Formula 1-800-811-0530 www.vnfpetfood.com Wow-Bow Distributors Ltd. (has vegan options) 1-800-326-0230 www.wow-bow.com Wysong Professional Diets (has vegan options) 1-800-748-0188 www.wysong.net

MikeKeen

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 16:34:19 -0500

Post 504 Josephine, try this until the industry sorts itself out. * * * * Crossposted with permission * * * * Dog food 911 - long Posted by: "Monica Segal" monica@monicasegal.com cassiecassers Date: Sat Mar 31, 2007 Although I receive a lot of private email every day, today's requests are heart wrenching. Desperate to find a home-cooked diet to feed their dogs that were kibble fed just a few days ago, people have been emailing all day. I can't keep up with the emails, so maybe this can help. Please find below, two diets, one for a healthy 20 pd dog and another for a healthy 50 pd dog. These go against my fundamental belief that generic diets aren't a good choice, but due to the food recall, just about anything is better than feeding an unknown. These diets are cooked because that's what people have asked for. I don't have anything against raw diets - just to make it clear :) Please understand that I won't be tweaking the diets if your dog happens to weigh 60 pds or 8 pounds or whatever. The booklets on my site would help most people much more than these recipes, but these should help in the meantime. I've taken into consideration that most kibble fed dogs, especially ones eating foods containing wheat gluten, may have different food tolerances. I've also considered that these dogs are accustomed to more carbohydrates in the diet than what many of us feed. For these reasons, these recipes are *not* indicative of my usual diets. They use ingredients contained in manypet foods and are formulated to make an easier transition. They offer no variety, which is also not the usual way I go about things. However, people are asking for the simplest recipe possible, and I'm trying to honor the requests. You may crosspost to other lists, if the list rules allow. My goal is to help dog owners, so go ahead and post to your breed lists, breeder lists etc - but please post this in it's entirety, or not at all. Please note that I have no way of knowing what supplements someone may have access to, or what those supplements may contain. For this reason, the supplements in these recipes are ones from my site, however, I am not offering these recipes in order to boost sales of my supplements. You can go to my site to look at what a supplement provides and buy a product that's the same, or as close as possible, from another source. Just be sure that you are not adding more minerals, and that includes the iodine is various brands of kelp. The amounts of foods and supplements are per day unless noted otherwise. The weight/measure of a food is the *cooked* weight/measure, not raw. Where weight is noted, use a kitchen scale, not cup measurements. Cups measure volume, not weight, For a 20 pd dog: 4 oz chicken dark meat with skin, stewed 1 oz beef liver - every 6 days 3/4 cup enriched egg noodles 1 TBS carrot (optional) 3/4 tsp bone meal 1/4 tsp. NoSalt (found in grocery stores next to table salt) 1/16 tsp kelp 5 mg zinc citrate or gluconate 2 capsules, vitamin E -- per week 500 mg wild salmon oil or flaxseed oil 1 3/4 capsules magnesium citrate 2 capsules, Multi Mineral Complex -- per week 1/2 tablet, vitamin B compound, per week* * B vitamins are water soluble and excreted through urine. They should be provided often, so feed 1/4 tablet twice weekly. Also, B vitamins can upset an empty stomach. Always feed with food. Best bet: tuck it in a hand held piece of food and feed as a treat. For a 50 pound dog: 8 oz ground beef, lean, 15% fat 1/3 oz beef liver 7 oz brown rice (boiled as 1 part rice in 3 parts water until very, very soft) 1 oz zucchini 1/8 tsp NoSalt 1/8 tsp kelp 1 capsule, cod liver oil 1 3/4 tsp bone meal 2 capsules, Multi Mineral Complex -- per week 1 tablet, vitamin B compound -- every 2 weeks 2 capsules, vitamin E 200 IU -- per week These diets meet 2006 NRC recommended allowances. Nutrient requirements are not linear to body weight. That is, a 100 pound dog does not have the requirements of a 10 pound dog multiplied by ten. So, these recipes would need tweaking to suit the weight of dogs weighing more or less than noted, but they're a start. Feed as required to maintain healthy weight - until you can change the diets to a more suitable profile for an individual dog. Monica Segal - AHCW www.monicasegal.com Author of: "K9Kitchen" and "Optimal Nutrition" Seminars by Invitation: Email monica@monicasegal.com Consultations ~ Diet Analyses ~ Quality-Tested Supplements Keen (Abby Gayle's rep)

Josephine

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 15:54:22 -0500

My 3 dogs have been eating Beneful dry dog food for the past week. One of them just threw up this morning, should I stop feeding it to them? It seems like a lot of people have had their dogs get sick because of Beneful, but it's not on the recall list! I don't know what to feed them anymore! Does anyone know what is safe and what is not?

Angela Flynn

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 14:13:55 -0500

The Merk Vet Manual on vitamin d toxicity www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/40408.htm

Angela Flynn

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 14:10:45 -0500

The Merk Vet Manual on vitamin d toxicity www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/40408.htm

MikeKeen

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 13:12:30 -0500

~!!!NO ONE KNOWS WHAT IS KILLING OUR PET!!!~ April 1, 2007 Barking up wrong tree in pet food recall? Lawyer claims culprit is vitamin D By ALAN CAIRNS, SUN MEDIA As the poisoned pet food crisis widened yesterday with the recall of a dry food, a Toronto lawyer leading a $60-million class-action negligence suit against a Guelph company fears scientists might be barking up the wrong tree. With suspicions in the Menu Foods poisoning shifting from animopterin rat poison to melamine used in Asian fertilizers, lawyer David Himelfarb said suspect food should be "immediately" tested for excessive vitamin D. Himelfarb said the kidney failure seen in the Menu Foods case is "exactly" the same as symptoms that left a Whitby woman's dog seriously ill in 2005. The woman, Janet Grixti, alleges in a statement of claim filed in Superior Court of Ontario that her chocolate Labrador Mocha became ill after it was fed Royal Canin pet food with excessive amounts of vitamin D. 10 TIMES NORMAL "We have taken hundreds of samples of (Royal Canin) food from across the GTA. I can't give you accurate numbers ... but there is an awful lot of (vitamin D) ... some tests have shown more than 10 times the normal amount ... might even be more," said Himelfarb, who is on the class-action case with lawyer Joe Rochon. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received 8,800 complaints of dog and cats deaths or illness. No corresponding statistics are kept in Canada. But after receiving 1,000 telephone calls and e-mails from concerned pet owners, Himelfarb suggests that the poisoning tragedy is much bigger than it appears. "There could be many thousands," Himelfarb said. Vitamin D is essential to a healthy diet for dogs and cats, Himelfarb said, but excessive amounts cause "total (kidney) failure." High levels of vitamin premixes are added to dog and cat food to offset vitamin destruction during heating and shelf storage, Grixti alleges in a statement of claim. While most vitamins break down, vitamin D "remains in full strength," it is alleged. None of Grixti's allegations have been tested in court. Royal Canin has not filed a statement of defence. Royal Canin admits excess levels of vitmain D3 led to the recall of seven vet-only products in March 2006, but its web site assures its foods "are safe" and unaffected by the Menu Foods recall. Meanwhile, scientists still seek answers to the lethal poison which two-weeks ago forced Mississauga-ago forced Mississauga-based Menu Foods to recall wet dog and cat food. CHINESE WHEAT GLUTEN Nestle Purina Petcare Co. yesterday recalled batches of American-made Alpo Prime Cuts in Gravy wet dog food it says contains Chinese wheat gluten bought from the same American company which supplied Menu Foods. Tainted wheat gluten also prompted Hills-Pet Nutrition to recall Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry cat food, the first dry food recall. Michael C. Keen, Sr. Abby Gayles rep

MikeKeen

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 12:55:49 -0500

Adrew, this posts for you! www.topwebsecrets.com/dogfood/?kid=936267&keyword=dog%20food%20scare&actual_keyword=dog%20food%20scare keen Abby Gayles rep

Angela Flynn

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 12:51:33 -0500

The genetically engineered aspect makes the most sense to me because I am having a hard time understanding how such a massive contamination could occur with a chemical and the wheat gluten. Just how many tons of wheat have been contaminated? I wrote to the Cornell AHDL suggesting they test for genetically engineered contamination, but they told me they do not have the ability to test for that. They suggested I contact the FDA. As far as I am concerned the FDA covered up the GE aspect of the tryptophan poisonings back in 1997. Instead of admitting the deaths were caused by a genetically modifed type of trytophan our government banned all tryptophan. www.holisticmed.com/ge/trypt.html I think they are more than likely to cover up any current link. I believe they did their best to cover up the Starlink corn contamination back in 2000, but were forced to ackowledge it after people starting getting adverse reactions. Howl911.com has information on ge wheat gluten. Mike, many human food products have been gluten free for years. Many people have a hard time digesting gluten. It does seem to be a growing phenomon.

MikeKeen

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 12:08:37 -0500

Here I go again... I think this crap has been going on for years and years and years. I thank the internet for most of what we now know about these poisonings. Left to the greedy we would know little. I’ll bet they wish the internet would just go away. They have been spinning their own web of deceit for years, and getting away with murder. The internet and our friends is allowing us all to see them squirm and they are not done squirming yet! Anyone know what they are going to do with all of these recalled products? How and where are they disposed of? Do they burn it, bury it or re-sell it? I have asked this before, I know, but I still have NO answers. How can we as consumers rest assurd that this stuff will not make it’s way back into the retail pipeline somewhere. Maybe with a little patience they can render out the bad stuff that came all the way from China that they mixed in. I don’t know about you, I think they still know very little of what they are doing correctly, let alone what they have done wrong. Prove to us that they are doing the right thing! To date they have bungled this and continue to be dumbfounded by the truth. Really, do they think we are as stupid as they wish us to be? Please everyone, lets redouble our efforts this week and make them pay. BOYCOTT the liers, don’t buy their products, don’t support their retailers or their vets. This late and untrustworthy news I’ve been watching all week on TV depresses me. Please everyone, keep up your outstanding work, don’t let these bile filled ambassadors of death prevail. keen and Abby Gayle (keen@mac.com

MikeKeen

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 11:45:54 -0500

I've haven't been accused of that before. Now the dog and cat foods are on sale... buy one get one free... have you also noticed that human food manufacturers are advertising some of their foods as GLUTEN FREE. Why would they do that? Andrew, thank you for your comments! We do need a good balance of posts here and I don't mind if you wish to trash me for the betterment of our cause. As I have said before, my email keen@mac.com if you wish to chew on me in private as to not offend anyone other that myself. Did you lose a pet to this so called pet food cover up? I'm deaply sorry for you if you did. Michael C. Keen, Sr. for Abby Gayle

Carol

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 07:29:46 -0500

Scott ... Thank You ... I could not have said it better!!! Just Misty's Mom here. :o)

Scott

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 05:05:57 -0500

Andrew - I couldn't believe your post 487... Mike Keen has offered more useful info here on this, and early on than many, and I think you are off the wall for saying "You seem to have a mental health issue in addition to your obvious personality downfalls and you should spend more time seeking treatment rather than sitting at your computer being negative to anyone that does not agree with you." Don't you see the irony at least? You attacked him in post 334, even though you obviously have not read all of mike keen's posts, then you got mad because he slapped you back for being rude to him??? Give me a break with this.... ...on to facts please. Andrew said: post 487 There is relief that the toxin has been found and the FDA is identifying where this wheat gluten has been used. Our food supply is very vulnerable since our own US government scientists could not find the poison for almost 2 weeks. I don't think you understand something, Andrew... The FDA has not said Melamine is responsible for any deaths, in fact, most agree it is highly NON-toxic, so it seems once again the FDA is just spinning for the press in the hopes of helping the companies out. The FDA has: 1) found melamine in certain batches of wheat gluten 2) found melamine in tested animals 3) does not know how melamine could kill the animals involved, since it is higly non-toxic 4) does not think aminopterin is responsible www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/03/30/national/main2627710.shtml?source=RSSattr=Health_2627710 I hope the investigation continues, because this feels like a cover-up to me

AZSue

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 03:47:56 -0500

Saturday night, 10pm news, March 31st... The local ABC affiliate here in Phoenix is reporting 15 pet deaths! ARE THEY STUPID, OR ARE THEY BENDING OVER FOR THE PET LOBBY? (This is not a trick question, we all know the answer) And why is the FDA, paid for with our tax dollars, allowed to say they won't reveal to us, the American people, who the manufacturers are with the tainted wheat gluten? I am so mad! I just don't know what I can do. I've written to President Bush, told everyone I know, copy and pasted stories from this message board in emails and sent them to everyone I know. I want to do more...sigh BTW... Do you all know that big mouth Rosie O'Donnell basically said on The View the other day...why are we so concerned with animals dying when children die every day? My cats are my children! I wish someone would feed her a case of recalled food while she is running that big mouth of hers. I would celebrate that loss of life. Sue...mad and sad and totally frustrated....

brenda

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 03:11:21 -0500

re. post 485. Wysong...is it Chinese??? It's sounds like a chinese name, and I for one will not trust anything Chinese as far as pet food is concerned...I will go check out the link you provided now, thank you for taking the time :)

Spom

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 02:07:45 -0500

Why isn't the media or our vets demanding to know WHAT FOOD COMPANIES BOUGHT WHEAT GLUTEN FROM CHINA? Spom

Spom

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 02:06:44 -0500

Taeki's friend: Thanks. Lazlo is doing well. The water consumption is back down. Feeding him homemade food has made a big difference. No more throwing up his food. No more rejecting his dinner. I am proud my gut told me to cut back on his dog food after I got his abnormal kidney test results (before recall). I just knew that stuff was tough on his system, just not toxic. Spom in Venice

F Martinez

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 00:44:52 -0500

Jerry, I am so sorry to hear about your Tawnee:( My heart truly goes out to you and every pet parent out there who lost their beloved pets or have one who is ill. Can you please tell me if the ALPO Prime Cuts was the canned or dry? I was giving my 2 outside dogs the Alpo dry, switched them to Pedigree for a week, and now bought Natural Balance for all of my indoor and outdoor cats and dogs. They are not sick and I am going to be optimistic that they all are fine...still, I am keeping a watchful eye on several boards and check them often. Again, I am so very sorry for your loss.

Jerry W.Simmons

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 00:12:06 -0500

On 3/19/07 I lost my best friend Tawnee she was a lab shepard because I fed her ALPO Prime cuts dog food.She was drinking water none stop and throwing up all over the yard. at 11:00AM I made her a VET appointment for 4:45 ,I got home from work at 3:30 to take her and found her dead on our patio.I sure miss her she did not have to go that way,The dog food companys need to pay. JERRYSIM310@AOL.COM

Carol

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 00:05:08 -0500

Andrew ~ I actually have no relief because I don't feel that they have found the toxin that has affected our pets. I have not been able to read all the posts to determine if Mike Kean has mental issues as you suggest, however I know that there are alot of worried pet owners here. Maybe I have a mental issue also as I am determined to get to the root of my dog's problem! Maybe we should stop pointing fingers at fellow posters & unite to get to a cause of this mess. Everyone is pretty stressed out & worried about our pets. That is my thought .. I am just Misty's Mom

Andrew

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 23:31:53 -0500

Spom, I believe you are right, you commented on my post 334. More than one pet food company has used the tainted ingredient, but the Menufoods products were the first to the market. I just came back to this forum after many days and am saddened by all the sickness and deaths that I am reading about. My heart goes out to those that have suffered through this. There is relief that the toxin has been found and the FDA is identifying where this wheat gluten has been used. Our food supply is very vulnerable since our own US government scientists could not find the poison for almost 2 weeks. My fear is that this ingredient was used in plants that make our own food. Looks like this chinese company is going down, not Menufoods. However, there are also many individuals on this chat room that are so ridiculous. MikeKean, your reply 336 to my post was rude. But I can see from reading your posts that you excel at being rude. You are a very abnoxious man that thrives on spitting out horrible comments and accusations. You seem to have a mental health issue in addition to your obvious personality downfalls and you should spend more time seeking treatment rather than sitting at your computer being negative to anyone that does not agree with you.

Carole

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 23:29:45 -0500

Del Monte Pet Products Voluntarily Withdraws Specific Product Codes of Pet Treats and Wet Dog Food Products SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As a precautionary measure, Del Monte Pet Products is voluntarily recalling select product codes of its pet treat products sold under the Jerky Treats®, Gravy Train® Beef Sticks and Pounce Meaty Morsels® brands as well as select dog snack and wet dog food products sold under private label brands. A complete list of affected brands and products is below. The Company took this voluntary recall action immediately after learning this morning from the FDA that wheat gluten supplied to Del Monte Pet Products from a specific manufacturing facility in China contained melamine. Melamine is a substance not approved for use in food. The FDA made this finding as part of its ongoing investigation into the recent pet food recall. The adulteration occurred in a limited production quantity on select product codes of the brands below. This recall removes all Del Monte pet products with wheat gluten procured from this manufacturing facility from retail shelves. No other Del Monte Pet Products treats, biscuits or wet dog food products are impacted by this recall, and no Del Monte dry cat food, dry dog food, wet cat food or pouched pet foods are subject to this voluntary recall. The affected products comprise less than one-tenth of one percent of Del Monte Pet Products’ annual pet food and pet treat production. Del Monte Pet Products has proactively engaged and fully cooperated with the FDA since the start of its investigation. The adulterated ingredients were used in limited production over the last three months for those items identified by specific product codes. Del Monte Pet Products has not used wheat gluten from this manufacturing facility in China in any other pet products except those described below. Consumers should discontinue feeding the products with the Product Codes detailed below to their pets. Del Monte Pet Products are 100% guaranteed and all returned product will be refunded. Del Monte Pet Products customers can visit our website (www.delmonte.com) or contact our Consumer Hotline at (800) 949-3799 for further information about the recall and for instructions on obtaining a product refund. Following is a list of the Products and Best Buy Dates that have been voluntarily recalled: Production Code/Best By Date BRANDED Jerky Treats Beef Flavor Dog Snacks Code: TP7C05 TP7B07 TP7B08 TP7B09 TP6B10 Best By: Aug 05 08 Aug 07 08 Aug 08 08 Aug 09 08 Aug 10 08 Code: TP7B15 TP7C05 TP7C06 Best By: Aug 15 08 Sep 02 08 Sep 03 08 Gravy Train Beef Sticks Dog Snacks Code: TP7B19 TP7B20 TP7B21 Best By: Aug 19 08 Aug 20 08 Aug 21 08 Pounce Meaty Morsels Moist Chicken Flavor Cat Treats Code: TP7C07 TP7C12 Best By: Sep 04 08 Sep 09 08 PRIVATE LABEL Ol' Roy Beef Flavor Jerky Strips Dog Treats Code: TP7B06 TP7B07 TP7C05 TP7C06 TP7C07 Best By: Aug 06 08 Aug 07 08 Sep 02 08 Sep 03 08 Sep 04 08 Code: TP7C08 Best By: Sep 05 08 Ol' Roy Beef Flavor Snack Sticks Dog Treats Code: TP7B19 TP7B20 TP7B21 TP7C08 TP7C09 Best By: Aug 19 08 Aug 20 08 Aug 21 08 Sep 05 08 Sep 06 08 Ol' Roy Bark'n Bac'n Beef & Bacon Flavor Dog Treats Code: TP7C14 Best By: Sep 11 08 Ol' Roy with Beef Hearty Cuts in Gravy Dog Food Code: BC6M21 Best By: Dec 21 09 Ol' Roy with Beef Hearty Strips in Gravy Dog Food Code: BC7A19 Best By: Jan 19 10 Ol' Roy Country Stew Hearty Cuts in Gravy Dog Food Code: BC6M15 Best By: Dec 15 09 Dollar General Beef Flavored Jerky Strips Dog Treats Code: TP7C06 Best By: Sep 03 08 Dollar General Beef Flavored Beef Sticks Dog Treats Code: TP7B20 TP7B21 Best By: Aug 20 08 Aug 21 08 Happy Tails Beef Flavor Jerky Strips Code: TPY7B08 TP7B09 Best By: Aug 08 08 Aug 09 08 Happy Tails Meaty Cuts with Beef in Gravy Dog Food Code: BC7A29 Best By: Jan 29 10 As part of the pet community, we value the health and well-being of pets, and we deeply regret this unfortunate situation. We will continue to take any and all actions necessary to ensure the quality and safety of our products.

She

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 21:30:57 -0500

For cats, there is a non-Menu-foods dry food for countering crystals problems: Uretic variety of Wysong food www.wysong.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=WOTTPWS&Product_Code=URETIC&Category_Code=FD&Product_Count=15 Wysong takes quality seriously, I am hoping their dry food is safe. Good luck!

Taeki's Friend

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 19:53:53 -0500

Bridget, are there no vets open any time on the weekend or earlier in the day on Monday? Even if it isn't your usual vet? I don't think you can afford to wait!

Bridget in Michigan

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 18:51:53 -0500

I wasn't able to get my dog in today to see the vet, they said they have had numerous calls from owners of pets wanting to take precautionary measures and were overbooked today. My dog will be going in on Monday evening. I didn't feed her the IAMS today, instead I had made her a scrambled eggs, oatmeal, white rice and peanut butter mixture. She seemed to like it. But every time she goes to drink water i can't help but think if she's sick. She hasn't vomited, but I guess they don't necessarily have to to be ill. I went to a local Pet Supplies Plus and bought Paul Newmans organic dog food today. I gave her that for dinner, she chowed down fast! Post 470: My 2.5 cocker spaniel has a big belly and it's hard too - that's why i bought the IAMS blue bag which is suppose to have 30% less fat in it than the other kind. I thought maybe she was eating too much or the food i'm feeding her is making her big. I purchased it on 3/10/07 and started feeding it to her mixed with the regular red bag stuff. My friend had watched her over a weekend and made a comment to me that I just now am thinking about. He said he has never seen a dog drink so much water - this was the weekend of 3/23/07. I hope waiting until Monday to take her in won't be too late. To all who have posted their stories, I am so sad to hear you have lost your loved pets but please know that you didn't do anything wrong, don't blame yourself, you didn't know the food that has been fed to them for years was going to take their life. You didn't know.

Carol

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 18:42:27 -0500

To Barbara~Brewski's Mom, Thank you so much for the information on milk thistle! I have been on so many message boards I am cross eyed! I will be talking to my vet soon as I am concerned about the prescription diet now also. There is alot of good info out there if you look around. It is sad that we have to search it out as it is not being readily given to us by the pet food industry. Iams actually returned my call after 10 days & left a message saying how very sorry they were as well as asking if I had received a call from anyone else regarding my dog's illness? My feeling is they were concerned about a lawsuit. As I said, we are fortunate that we can spend the money that we need to on Misty so far. I am also fortunate that I am recently retired & can spend the time to walk her every 40 minutes & watch her closely as needed. I hope that Brewski is doing well along with all the other pets out there. Something tells me that this is far from over & we have to keep a close eye on what is going to happen next. Carol ~ Misty's Mom

Barbara

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 17:25:09 -0500

To Carol - Misty's Mom, I posted earlier (post 456) Our huskie mix, age 11 yrs, Brewski, had elevated liver enzymes. They were not as high as your Misty's. He had been healthly suddenly became ill overnight after eating from a new bag of dry dog food. Vet also thought he had gotten into something as this was the morning of 3/17 and we were not aware of any recalls. I have been giving Brew a herbal supplement, milk thistle, this past week. It is excellent for liver repair. You might want to research this and ask your vet about it. I bought capsules at GNC. Brew continues to amaze us that his health is so improved from 2 weeks ago. Hope Misty's condition continues to improve. Barbara, Brewski's Mom

Carol

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 15:02:39 -0500

Our Dog Misty, 10 year old dachshund mix did not eat 3/12/07, on 3/13 ate & vomited entire meal, 3/14 in am vomited yellow foam 5 X's in am. Took her to vet at noon & she was admitted with IV fluids. Xray showed small liver & enlarged spleen. The vet kept asking if she could have gotten into anything? Her liver ALT enzyme was 1420 off the charts. Ultrasound on her abdomen on 3/15 showed very small liver & Diff. Diagnosis of Chronic Hepatitis, Chronic Active Hepatitis, Cirrhosis, No Effusion, Probably an acute exasberation of chronic condition. Her liver is functioning at 33%. The specialist also said her liver seemed to have been "assaulted". She had perfect blood work less than 2 months prior in preparation of dental surgery. She eats the affected Iams wet & dry. I have read other people reporting liver problems. She is now eating Hill's Science Prescription i/d wet & dry. Please give me your thoughts on this .. Are there any other pet owners having liver problems with their pets? We have spent $1100. thus far although she is our "girl". I don't know how people are paying for these bills when they have children. We are fortunate ... This is our Misty's "college fund" as we have no children. This is so sad & I am happy to say that she seems OK although is urinating every 40 mins. due to the prednisone. She is on a ton of meds & we hope her liver regenerates! I am hoping that the fact that our vet flushed her with fluids immediately that she will be OK. I pray each night that your pets will be fine or you will find the peace to move on! Bless you all ~ Carol ~ Misty's Mom

Taeki's Friend

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 14:48:50 -0500

From another post at petconnection.com, Menu Foods saved $0.005 on each can/pouch by using the contaminated wheat glutton. I wonder how much Hill's saved, and was it worth Taeki's life?

Angela Flynn

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 14:07:02 -0500

Howl911 is keeping the most up to date information I have found. Please visit it. Purina has now joined the recall. www.howl911.com/#headlines

jenne

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 13:15:40 -0500

sorry, thats AP article.

jenne

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 13:13:48 -0500

"70 % of wheat gluten used in human and pet food is sourced internationally." (from the latest sp article) theres just something wrong with our whole food supply system, where sourcing ingredients comes down to choosing the lowest bidder, without any analysis of the product that actually gets used.

Rebecca

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 10:53:26 -0500

IT JUST NEVER ENDS!!!! Nestlé Purina PetCare Company today announced it is voluntarily recalling all sizes and varieties of its ALPO® Prime Cuts in Gravy wet dog food with specific date codes. The Company is taking this voluntary action after learning today that wheat gluten containing melamine, a substance not approved for use in food, was provided to Purina by the same company that also supplied Menu Foods. The contamination occurred in a limited production quantity at only one of Purina's 17 pet food manufacturing facilities.

Katie

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 01:59:00 -0500

re: post 465 (Bridget in Mich) I have a golden who had your dogs symptoms off and on since late Dec. She is fed Eukanuba Med Breed Senior dry food and Eukanuba Healthy Biscuits every other day. My dog was drinking 2 to 2 1/2 gal of water a day the last two weeks and off and on since Dec was having nightly episodes of heavy panting like she couldn't get enough air to breathe and lying on her belly and really uncomfortable - we switched to home cooking three days ago and she's like a new dog! I reported this to my vet - he's not sure since her food is not on the list. I'd be interested in what your vet says.

Taeki's Friend

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 01:57:25 -0500

Too bad you couldn't attend the news conference, Spom. They need to hear from those of us on the "front lines." By the way, how is your dog doing?

m

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 01:20:24 -0500

My dog became very ill over a month ago, increase in urine and feces and vomitted a bit for days. It all lasted about 7 days. I only now found out that the food I have been feeding her for the past 2 months had been recalled; the Nutro Max Chicken/Oatmeal puppy food. I knew of the recall but never checked the specific foods. She was perfectly fine after that week, and before the recall was made public. I just feel awful and am scared of permanent damages.

Jane

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 01:18:36 -0500

re: post 465 (Bridget in Michigan) I know it's hard to sift through so many posts but if you use the word find tool on your browser you can type in whatever word you want to read about (i.e. Iams) and it will highlight it everytime it comes up in the 470 posts on the board. You can quickly sort through what relates to Iams wet and Iams dry to read what is relevant for you. I think it's a good idea that you are taking your dog to the vet. No matter the cause, increased thirst is usually indicative of something requiring medical attention. I would be very concerned about the Iams products you've been feeding and taking her off it would be a good idea. You might want to stop in at a petstore and see if you can find a natural or holistic type of dog food that is made by a small company that doesn't deal with Menu Foods or China. There are dog and cat foods out there that are made without wheat. This might be a good option considering the multiple offending substances seem to be found in wheat gluten. Hope your dog will be on the mend soon. Jane

MikeKeen

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 00:15:22 -0500

When's it going to stop??? By Jen, 3-30-07 My beloved 9yr old healthy 140lbs Rottweiller “Hercules” died on March 13/07. He was on the dry Iams weight management. I came home in late February and found him paralyzed and lethargic in my bed. He had stopped eating his kibble apx 1 week prior. However, he would eat human food. His belly was rock hard and he seemed to be in alot of discomfort. I rushed him to the vet -who had no clue what was wrong with him. The vet gave him a shot of steroids, did some blood tests and gave me a supply of steroid pills which gave him the strength to walk with assistance for about a week. I told the vet that I had thought he had a bad batch of food and I actually returned the dry food for a refund after showing the manager my vet bill. My boy hung on to dear life until March 14 until he collapsed on my back step…dead. His belly was 2X the regular size and still rock hard. He also had extreme thirst & urination but no vomiting or diarrhea (however he was burping and gagging quite a bit) I am so guilt ridden with the fact that my poor dog was suffering and didnt have the words to tell me. According to my vet Herc still had many years to go & his illness was not age related. PEOPLE DO NOT FEED YOUR ANIMALS ANY DRY OR WET IAMS FOOD PRODUCTS!!!!!! Also I contacted Iams to inform them that it was the dry food that killed my dog and they said to fax my vet bill to them for an immediate reimbursement. My lawyer has advised against this. Somebody is going to pay. My young children have been so traumatized that they are sleeping with me every night & keep having nightmares from seeing their beloved family member drop dead before their eyes-while I cry hysterically trying to revive him. They wont even go downstairs at night alone because they’re “scared without Herc”. BTW I live in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. jen@goddessfilmproductions.com cross post by keen for Abby Gayle

Spom

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 00:15:05 -0500

Never underestimate how dangerous a product from China could be. Everything made in China is made with the philosophy that once it leaves their hands and money is exchanged, it does not matter what happens.

Spom

Sat, 31 Mar 2007 00:12:01 -0500

Re 466 -- Yes, Taeki's friend, it is remarkable how long it is taking. Also, we should know everyone that was buying wheat from China, period. I believe more than one substance might be poisoning animals. I also believe it is happening at the same time because they all just started using China as a source. By the way PETA wanted to fly me to D.C. to be in their press conference. I did not have time to do it. Spom in Venice

MikeKeen

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 23:04:14 -0500

How pissed off can they make us?

Taeki's Friend

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 22:53:56 -0500

Mike, Essentially, nobody knows. The common thread seems to be the wheat glutton, but the FDA is reporting that they could not find the rat poison, but instead found melamine. Melamine was also found in urine and necropsy samples of affected animals. New York (who reported finding the rat poison in the wheat glutton) stated they found mealmime during their tests, but stand by their additional findings of rat poison. Additionally, Hill's recalled the first dry food, Hill's Prescription Diet m/d Feline, the food I have been complaining about since Taeki died on 3/16. They used the wheat glutton in this food also. The FDA may have other affected brands- they are witholding the information for some obscene reason. It is difficult to know if the brand name they are witholding was Hills, or another brand(s) of pet foods. I think it is just a matter of time before we find out that the same wheat glutton was used in many other brands of dry pet food as well. Why should it have occured in 50 different wet food brands, and only one dry food brand?! Another question that continues to baffle and upset me, why does it takes weeks on end for a manufacturer to find out that they used the same wheat glutton in the manufacture of their dry food? Do they have no control over or information about their own manufacturing process?

bridget in michigan

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 22:41:19 -0500

i have a 2.5 yr old cocker. i just bought a new bag of IAMS blue bag dry dog food, it's the 30% less fat kind and i also feed her the lamb and rice red bag IAMS dry dog food mixed together. the last couple of days i have noticed her drinking alot of water, more than she ever has before and she seems to be panting alot as though she's out of breath. i know the food isn't on the list (yet) but i'm wondering if she has been affected. she's only 2.5, i can't lose her. i am making an appt. tomorrow morning and will skip feeding her the food and just make her some home food. there are so many messages on this site that i can't read them all but if you have any home recipes for dog food i would love to hear about them...or maybe there is an organic brand of dog food out there?? anyone?? i am soo worried now.

Taeki's Friend

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 21:54:48 -0500

FDA warns Iams Co. about chemical in food for overweight pets: The Food and Drug Administration said Thursday it has issued a warning letter to Iams Co. that says some of its diet pet foods contain an unapproved substance. Eukanuba Veterinary Diets Optimum Weight Control/Canine dry, Optimum Weight Control/Feline dry, Restricted-Calorie/Canine dry and canned, and Restricted-Calorie/Feline dry and canned contain chromium tripicolinate, which is not an approved food supplement, the FDA said. The letter was dated Jan. 8 and posted on the FDA's website Thursday. . . . The FDA considers chromium tripicolinate to be genotoxic, meaning it can damage DNA and cause mutations and tumors. Is anything safe?!

MikeKeen

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 21:52:15 -0500

I was out today, can anyone help me, what is in our pets foods, wet or dry, that is killing them. I have read so much bull that my head is spinning. The confusion is taking over, or did I miss something important. keen and Abby Gayle

Taeki's Friend

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 21:10:10 -0500

Brand of recalled dry food named: Meanwhile, Hill's Pet Nutrition recalled its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry cat food. The food included wheat gluten from the same supplier that Menu Foods used. The recall didn't involve any other Prescription Diet or Science Diet products, said the company, a division of Colgate-Palmolive Co. Too late for Taeki...he died on 3/16, as I posted in #145, on 3/21, NINE DAYS before the Hill's recall. We thought it was the Pounce treats- that's what we get for trusting our $4/# Hill's prescription for death food. It's been said before, by myself and others, I'll say it again: THERE MAY NOT BE ANY SAFE PET FOOD, WET OR DRY. Please look into making your own food!! How difficult could it be to see that contaminated wheat glutten is exposed to be the problem, then check your manufacturing information and see if you used any of it in your pet food? What an absolute tradgedy. Why didn't Hill's and EVERYONE else immediately check to see if any of their foods, dry or wet, were using that poison?!! Why wasn't this recall done on 3/16 (or earlier!) when the original recall was made public?! I am so mad...and sad...

brenda

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 20:58:38 -0500

This is bullshit.....Thank you Jane for your info though on medi-cal. I unfortuantly am going to stick with feeding him the dry medi-cal. The crystals frighten me a little to much and develop so damn easily. You just can't win, and i know if it were not for the struvite crystals, I would not feed my baby ANY cat food what-so-ever.

MikeKeen

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 20:10:26 -0500

I think we are going to be hearing from Iam's and Eukanuba real soon! To late for many. Our dog died unncessarilly. Those bastards! keen never forgetting our Abby Gayle

padmini

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 20:06:21 -0500

Our cat 6 year old Fluffy passed away last monday. I always gave her Spectial Kitty -3oz pouch- soft food every day. We found out that she was sleeping all the time and was not eating the food or drinking the water.We took her to animal hospital . They did blood work and found out that she had kidney failure. She was in the hospital for 8 days and they did the blood work every day. My husband and I visited her in the hospital in the morning and in the evening every day. She was happy to see us. But the 8th day she was very very weak and she died. Our friends also were there. We are very sad . Our dog Ginger was her best friend, and now she is also very sad and not eating that much. I just want you the readers to know that Fluffy has a voice through us. I want the authorities to take severe actions towards the companies who does this mean things to the innocent animals.

RC

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 19:03:13 -0500

I don't want to count my chickens yet but my two cats seem to be ok after eating both Eukanuba and Nutro Natural Choice dry food the past couple of months. I am keeping an eye on them though. My condolences to those of you who have lost a friend. I recently switched to Innova EVO which contains no grains. For those of you concerned about the food you feed and want to go raw but just can't seem to work it, try this food. Both my cats really like it. I'm hoping something more substantial will come out of this, like better regulation, but sadly I highly doubt anything will change.

Rebecca

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 17:13:07 -0500

Such B.S. Why won't they tell us which company the Dry food problems are with?!?!? I know IAMS obviously is one but I feed my dogs Purina Beneful and I am extremely nervous!!!! ANYONE HAVE ANY PROBLEMS WITH PURINA DRY FOOD?!??! PLEASE LET ME KNOW!!! I saw this on yahoo news web site. In a news conference, FDA officials said that the apparently melamine-contaminated wheat gluten also was shipped to a company that manufactures dry pet food, but they would not name the company. The FDA is attempting to determine if that company used any of the wheat gluten, imported from China, to make dry pet food, Sundlof said. The head of Menu Foods, the manufacturer of the recalled pet food, said Friday it had dropped the U.S. supplier of the imported ingredient. Paul Henderson also suggested his company would sue the unnamed supplier.

Barbara

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 14:58:27 -0500

I have read numerous entries on blogs since the Menu Foods recall looking for others whose pets were sickened by a possible link to dry dog food. I see two brands of kibble being mentioned repeatedly, Nutro Nautral Choice and Iams (in the green bag). I think it is time I posted our pets story. We were at our vets at 9:30 a.m. Saturday morning 3/17 with our Huskie mix unaware of the Menu recall. Our dog was ill exhibitng all the symptoms listed later that day with the recall info. He had been fed dinner earlier in the week from a new bag of Nutro Senior dry kibble purchased on March 3, 2007. He had been in excellent health but woke the next morning disoriented, lethargic, had excessive thirst, developed diarrhea. He would lay by his water bowl to drink, had difficulty standing. I tried to hand feed him kibble mixed with ground beef . He would spit the Nutro kibble out. Refused to even eat Iams Lamb Meal & Rice Biscuits. Extensive blood work sent out to a lab on Saturday showed elevated liver levels. After I learned of the Menu foods recall later in the day on 3/17, I discontinued trying to entice him to eat his kibble just on the chance the kibble too was tainted. I hand feed him chicken, rice, vegetables and ground beef. Everyday he grew stronger. It is almost 2 weeks now that he has not eaten Nutro Natural Choice kibble and he is like a different dog. None of the earlier symptoms remain. His energy level is back and he is very alert. I have saved a sample of the Nutro kibble just incase a link is found. We were lucky that our beloved pet is recovering. Our heart aches for those who were not as fortunate.

Angela Flynn

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 14:22:58 -0500

Thanks Lauren. The ASPCA now has an update at www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=press_033007 The following is very detailed, but if you scoll down to section 4.2.2 it documents feed studies performed on rats. Again there is very low toxicity associated with melamine, but it has been suggested that cats in particular have more sensitve sytems. www.inchem.org/documents/sids/sids/108781.pdf What I have to wonder is how so much fertilizer could have been mixed into a grain. Especially the wheat gluten which is a highly processed form of wheat. Good idea to email Bush. I'll send one off.

AZSue

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 13:57:32 -0500

I wrote to President Bush this morning. Here is an excerpt of my letter. The full letter has quotes and other non-allowables, so the server rejects the entire letter. ...I want the FDA to name the company that is making the dry pet food that is killing so many pets. This is my right to know and I want to know right now! How am I, as a concerned pet owner and consumer, supposed to make an informed decision about what to feed my pets if the FDA continues this cover-up?... You all want to make a difference? Write to the President, who has two dogs that he obviously dearly loves. Here is his email...president@whitehouse.gov. We CAN make a difference, but you have to write to make it happen. Sue

Lauren Dees

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 13:55:36 -0500

Angela, Here's more info on the melamine: www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=press_033007 www.cnn.com/2007/US/03/30/pet.food.recall.ap/index.html

Angela Flynn

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 12:34:19 -0500

After a bit of searching on melamine I can find no studies linking it to renal failure or even of it being anything more than mildly toxic. 5.10 Melamine CAS no. 108-78-1 Melamine seems to be only mildly toxic when ingested by animals. There is not sufficient data to predict acute toxicity from dermal application in humans. The available data does not show evidence of irritation, cancer induction or mutageneity by melamine. Based on animal tests it seems there is a risk of formation of stones in the urinary bladder. A risk of inducing dermatitis in humans exposed to melamine among other chemicals in the working environment has been reported, however, the data was obtained in a formaldehyde-rich environment. The LD50 for application of melamine on rabbit skin is found in one study to be slightly larger than 1 mg/kg (1 mg/kg implicates a high risk of adverse effects on skin of humans). One experiment indicates that melamine may be harmful to crustaceans (LC100=56 mg/l), but otherwise the reviewed toxicity data show little aquatic toxicity. The available BCF and the pKa values indicate that the bioaccumulation of this compound is low in the natural pH range (pH 6-8). The available biodegradation data indicates that this compound is persistent both under aerobic and anaerobic conditions.

Rebecca

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 12:16:36 -0500

FINALLY ALL OF YOUR EFFORTS PAID OFF!!!! PETA RELEASED THIS STATEMENT TODAY ABOUT THE IAMS DRY FOOD! After Pennsylvania resident Yvette Faulkner contacted PETA about the death of her cat, Sassafras, who she reports suffered kidney failure and had to be euthanized although “he was fed only dry Iams food that I had just recently purchased,” PETA has called on the FDA to issue an emergency expansion of the pet-food recall to include all dry food subject to complaints until it is chemically tested for safety. In addition, PETA is asking the FDA to investigate whether Iams may have known about the contaminated food as early as February 20, even though the recall wasn’t issued until March 16! Iams has a history of causing animal suffering. During a 2002 to 2003 undercover investigation of an animal-testing laboratory doing contract work for Iams, a PETA investigator documented terrified animals confined to cramped, dirty cages in dilapidated rooms; dogs who had chunks of muscle cut from their thighs, and other forms of cruelty. To read the full story go to www.peta.com

Debbie4747

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 11:24:26 -0500

This just put out by FDA could substantiate the bad dry food claims. I just wish they'd say who the company is. WASHINGTON - Government testing of recalled pet food linked to dog and cat deaths has found a chemical used to make plastics, officials said Friday. 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. Menu Foods recalled 60 million containers of cat and dog food earlier this month after animals died of kidney failure after eating the Canadian company's products. It is not clear how many pets may have been poisoned by the apparently contaminated food, although anecdotal reports suggest hundreds if not thousands have died. The new finding comes a week after scientists at the New York State Food Laboratory identified a rat poison and cancer drug called aminopterin as the likely culprit. They have since detected melamine as well, although it is not clear how that chemical would have poisoned pets. New York officials have detected melamine as well, though it's not clear how that chemical would have poisoned pets. It's typically used to produce plastic kitchen wares, though it's apparently used as a fertilizer in Asia, said Stephen F. Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine. The recall involved nearly 100 brands of "cuts and gravy" style dog and cat food made by Menu Foods. The recall covered products carrying names of major brand-name and private-label products sold throughout North America. The apparently melamine-contaminated wheat gluten also was shipped to an unnamed company that manufactures dry pet food. The FDA is attempting to determine if that product, imported from China, was used to make any pet food, Sundlof said. Menu Foods used wheat gluten, a source of vegetable protein, to thicken the gravy of its pet foods, FDA officials have said. The FDA alone has received more than 8,000 complaints from consumers and veterinarians. (from MSNBC's site)

dpb456

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 09:14:15 -0500

For all who have lost a PRECIOUS PET or has one who is sick, my heart goes out to you. At the present time I do not have a pet but I have in the past & know what you are feeling. My friends have 2 standard Poodles, both of which are their “BABY’s”. The oldest is a 9 ½ yr old “RESCUE“, & the younger one is 4 ½, both were fed “ONLY THE BEST FOR MY BABY” Hills Science Diet. During the early part of 2006 the older dog’s health SUDDENLY started to deteriorate to the point where the Vet was advising that he soon be put to sleep. The younger dog never had any problems or showed any signs of distress, while both were on the same food. As no REAL diagnosis could be found as to his illness my friends became convinced that he was allergic to his food & through a friend they learned about the differences in the ingredients of pet foods. They did a lot of research & found a Super Premium all natural pet food that they tried. After a short time his condition improved to the point where he got back to being “HIS OLD SELF”. This occurred in early 2006 so his illness was not related to this recall. BUT since the switch BOTH pups are healthy & happy today. The brand they found is not available nation wide but is available in limited markets for both dogs & cats & they do free home deliveries. Check out www.naturesselectusa.com & decide if this product would be RIGHT for your pets. I suggest that you also do some comparisons to other Super Premium pet foods. I just had to post this story & I hope this post is helpful.

Carole

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 01:44:59 -0500

TRIBUNE-REVIEW Friday, March 30, 2007 U.S. Food and Drug Administration testing found a chemical commonly used in plastics, but no rat poison, in the recalled pet food that has killed and sickened cats and dogs nationwide, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review learned Thursday. Testing by the FDA and at least one lab independent of the agency found melamine, a chemical used in plastics and household textiles, in samples of the recalled pet food and in one of its ingredients — wheat gluten — said an FDA official and another source close to the investigation. Neither wanted to be identified prior to the FDA’s formal announcement this morning. Whether melamine is the source of the animal illness is unclear, they said. The National Toxicology Program of the Department of Health and Human Services reports on its Web site, however, that melamine in rats caused loss of weight, marked reduction of food consumption and high mortality — the same symptoms pet owners have witnessed in cats and dogs that ate the recalled food. Because of a lack of scientific data, it is unclear what level of melamine would be harmful to cats and dogs, the sources said. An unknown number of cats and dogs nationwide have died or become ill with kidney failure Ontario, Canada-based Menu Foods recalled 60 million cans and pouches of “cuts and gravy” style cat and dog food it produced under 95 brand names after consumer complaints and seven animals died in the company’s own tests. New York state officials said March 23 their tests indicated the pet food was contaminated with aminopterin, which is used as rat poison in other countries and is found in chemotherapy drugs in the United States. Neither the FDA nor the independent lab tests found aminopterin. The agency is expected to announce its findings at a news conference at 10 a.m. today but is not commenting on New York’s findings or that lab’s methodology. The FDA has not determined how melamine got into the pet food. Melamine is used as a fertilizer in Asia and has several commercial and industrial uses. The FDA has received 8,000 complaints regarding the recalled food and is testing hundreds of customer-submitted samples.

Animal Lover

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 00:15:44 -0500

Best thing to do for animals lovers for the mean time with all this going on is make and prepare home made food for your pets. It's safer and you know where it came from; the contents won't hurt your babies.

Animal Lover

Fri, 30 Mar 2007 00:09:21 -0500

MikeKeen

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 23:10:45 -0500

Post 444, Thomas Prevett, Yes, yes, yes, be concerned about the DRY and your Jack Russel Terrier should go in for baseline tests just to make sure and create a record to fall back on in the future. My Airedale Terrier died 3.19.07, from what you have described here is very similar to what took our Abby Gayle. She wasn't ever four years old yet. She had just been to the vet had her boosters and a nice grooming in middle of February. Our dog only ate Dry Iams, lamb and rice, green bag. Please be careful!! It's happens so fast, if you see advanced simptoms, generally it's to late. We are so sorry to hear about your pet, but at this point she has plenty of company. keen and Abby Gayle

Thomas Prevett

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 22:23:58 -0500

Our little 5 year old cockerpoo died yesterday. She had Kidney Failure, Liver Failure, Vomiting, She was Jandis (spelling?), Here Red Blood Levels were down to 8%, Bilirubins up to 10.1. These symptoms came on suddenly (Literally 24 hours after feeding out of a new can of IAMS Beef and Rice Entree (Not on the Recall List). We daily mixed 2 tbs wet with 2/3 cups of IAMS Dry food (Blue Bag - Weight Control). The can of food finished just prior to opening this new one was Chicken & Rice Entree. (None of these products are on the recall list). The doctor gave us a Diagnosis of Autoimmune Hemalytic Anemia. I am having a very hard time believing this. Her Coombs test came back negative, but DR still felt diagnosis was accurate. She was perfectly healthy and then 2.5 days later she was dead. Does anybody think I am wrong by not believing that the doctors diagnosis is incorrect. I find it just too coincidental. Our Jack Russel Terrier is fine (so far). He does not eat any wet food (he doesn't need enticing). I am now reading all of this stuff relating to dry food, and the FDA has released a letter with regards to dry food. I have saved the suspect can of food (In the Freezer). One thing I have noticed is that the can was manufactured during the correct time frame of the suspected recall products, but at a different plant. (I can't find plant info to determine exactly where). I am really getting scared that there is also a possibility that the dry food may be tainted? I am beginning to think I should take our Jack Russel in for Liver Testing/Blood work. Is it possible that because he is a much stronger animal the Amber was, his body could hold out against the poison longer? They have been eating out of this current bag for 3 weeks to a month now.

Jane

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 13:30:11 -0500

Hi Brenda, I can completely understand about your concerns with regard to the struvite crystals. Since switching my cats off Preventive, I have been keeping a close eye on my one male cat who has been blocked before that required life saving surgery. I have to tell you that I too am wondering which way to continue with this as far as he is concerned. I had switched my cats off Preventive and onto Nature's Logic dry food for the past week. He is acting kind of 'cranky' now which has always been a sign or symptom of crystals beginning to build up and I'm worried about it. I went on the Medi-Cal website this morning to examine the ingredients of the Preventive dry food. The website link is: www.medical.ca/consumers/Feline/preventivepage2_en.asp My main concern is where the wheat gluten is coming from (i.e. China).It looks as if there is corn gluten in it rather than wheat gluten. I wish there were no fillers at all. I tried to call Royal Canin this morning to find out for sure if there is any wheat gluten in their dry Preventive or not and now there is an automated system that says all lines are busy. There is another dry food that I'm interested in made by Innova called Evo. It is a grain free dry food and I just read this link:(cats.about.com/od/catfood/gr/evo.htm) that writes about the benefits of the food with regard to crystals. It's hard to know what to do. I'm considering putting my cat who is prone to struvite crystals back on Preventive dry because I am concerned that he is becoming blocked. What I might also do is pick up a bag of the Innova Evo and slowly mix it in with his Preventive over a week or so and then try him on the EVO dry by itself and monitor him closely. It's hard on their systems to keep changing from food to food but by mixing it half and half until one food is slowly weeded out it should be okay. I looked through all these posts to see if there was anything submitted about Innova Evo and post # 269 writes that the company does use Menu Foods for it's wet food but uses it's own plant to create their grain free dry food. You might want to call your vet and ask about the tuna. Tuna can create problems for cats that have urinary tract issues. Here is a link about that: www.sniksnak.com/cathealth/health.html Scroll down to the 'diet' section and it talks about tuna. Sure is complicated to feed pets these days! Yikes. Jane

AZSue

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 13:03:02 -0500

To Brenda post 440 20 years ago I had a cat with cystitis, which I guess is now referred to as crystals. My vet suggested we put him on prescription Hills CD, and he lived to be almost 16 years old. My vet explained to me that neutered male cats do not drink enough water (for whatever reason) and Hills CD was his answer. My cat had two attacks before being put on this food, and none after. I do not know anything about Hills CD any longer, so I would caution you to check it out with others on this and other boards, along with your vet (since he has to prescribe it). Hope this information helps you...Sue

MikeKeen

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 11:00:00 -0500

Please, anyone with DRY food issues, email me at keen@mac.com Would love to learn more. There are known problems with the DRY pet foods according to the FDA and PETA. Possible Dry Food Recall today! keen for Abby Gayle

brenda

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 02:45:23 -0500

Jane in response to #419... My cat needs to eat Medi-cal prevenitive formula dry & wet, due to crystals he had in the past. I almost lost him once due to the crystals, and now seems to be fine... he's been eating dry/wet Medi-cal for over a year. I haven't fed him any wet Medi-cal since hearing all this, as I am a little iffy on that topic. But I don't know what else to do, If I switch brands then his crystals could form again... Arg I am so terrified and in disbelief... I'm at a total loss of what to do, I don't want to feed my baby anything to do with menu foods but I also feel that I have to, due to his sickness. Jane... Do you think that feeding him the dry is alright for now? I won't feed him wet, but he needs to get more water into his diet, so i water down his dry food, and add a little tuna to make im eat it, he seems to really enjoy it. I have noticed on both wet/dry food packages of MEDI-CAL that (gluten) is in it, but not wheat gluten? So just hoping for a little input Jane or anyone...what do i do, if the cat needs specific food from the vet to stop his illness from one thing, how do i prevent him from getting sick from this other nonesense. Also Jane if you aren't feeding the cats of yours the vet food anymore, what are you feeding them for prevention of crystals, have you found other food...Thank you for any input once again.

Dixie for Bullie

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 02:43:02 -0500

I am writing on behalf of my best friend who taught me more about unconditional love and loyalty than anyone could possibly ask of their pet. Since the food I usually feed her was not available, I had purchased a bag of IAMS (green bag. She at first did not eat it and then later ate it. After awhile she vomited and began to just lay around and did not act like herself. I had heard about the recall but since I rarely use canned food I was not too concerned. My dear Bullie passed away the day before after being hospitalized for three days and nights. No problem with dry dog food...bunk.

Susan W.

Thu, 29 Mar 2007 00:05:00 -0500

If the symptoms that my dog is having is due to the dry iams food i will make sure that iams no longer has any business making money. I love my dog so much and if i lose her from her having seizures and vomiting i will die...

Cheryl in CA

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:46:58 -0500

Well, I feel a little better after reading this from Pets It USA: Natural Balance (verified by company 3/27/07) No products made by Menu Foods. Dry food is manufactured at Diamond, with Natural Balance machinery, by Natural Balance employees. Natural Balance personnel are the only ones to work with the machines and products. Diamond packages the products. Canned food is manufactured at American Nutrition in Utah, with Natural Balance machinery, by Natural Balance employees. Natural Balance personnel are the only ones to work with the machines and products. American Nutrition in Utah packages the products. Products contain no wheat gluten. All ingredients are from the US except for lamb and venison from New Zealand. Food is tested before and after production.

lacy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:43:29 -0500

I have a feeling this will NEVER end. Sometimes i wish I could have that peace of mind that my kitties food is safe again, but I am glad that this had made my do my research and switch to a higher quality food.

Cheryl in CA

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:36:02 -0500

Lacy, I bought the cats a huge bag of the Natural Balance dry cat food ($27.00)for kittens to adult cats. They seem to be okay with it. The dogs loved the organic Natural Balance. I only gave them sample packets mixed with their home cookin' (chicken liver, chicken breast, rice, carrots, & green beans). I haven't actually bought anything for the dogs yet..just testing things with samples. Will this ever end? We need answers, for crying out loud! What the heck is safe anymore?

lacy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:23:50 -0500

I didnt mean to post that comment twice. Cheryl, I am so confused too!! I felt really comfortable about Natural Balance. I am only using the Venison and green pea formula because I think that since it only has one protein source and one carbohydrate source and no grains at all, that is safer. I still dont feel comfortable feeding Blue Buffalo. I called C.J. Foods, their manufacturer and they said use U.S. suppliers, but they couldnt guarantee that those suppliers didnt outsource to other countries!! Please update me on your dog if you continue to feed Natural Balance.

Bart

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:20:07 -0500

PS; an addendum to the dry food recipe One could probably make a dry cat kibble also..just add more fish. ( Know any fishermen?) It may not last as long at room temp. because of the oils though..keep it cool. Sheesh..lots of litigious Americans posting here! Rather than SUE! Sue! sue,..maybe put your energie$ into creating you own animal food manufacturing businesses. BTW, I taste(not eat, I don't like liver) all the food I make for my dog. I'd like to see the CEOs of these companies eat a can! You know damn well the government won't legislate any testing or quality laws concerning animal food unless it's endorsed(payola) by corporations - a catch22!

Bart

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:12:33 -0500

lacy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 22:01:08 -0500

lacy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 21:51:07 -0500

Bart

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 21:49:34 -0500

PS: I'm sure the same dry food could be made for cats by adding more fish content (know any fishermen?) It may not keep as well at room temp with the additional fish oils though.

MikeKeen

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 21:38:42 -0500

I talked to an attorney todayjay@blimlaw.com He is taking these on contingency and is trying very hard to get the recall up and running on the DRY pet food. The more people that talk with him, and yes he will call you back, the better for our living and lost pets. It has nothing to do with the money at this point, and if these lawyers take these guys down, that would not bother me a bit. You see, all of the lost jobs will just be shuffled to another, possibly better, organization. The cream rises to the top, maybe it will be taken over by an employee owned organization, creating a new true atmosphere of caring knowing that if they do a good job the customers will come. The distributors will start seeking safer pet food alternatives. Veterinarians will be forced to pursue safer products to sell and recommend or they themselves will be financially affected. We might start seeing Kitty and Doggy drive-thru clinics where blood tests and urinalysis can quickly and cheaply be done, then if needed referred to a good doctor. If we keep loosing these battles, they, the largest corporations, the greedy and all of their friends will continue to poison our pets and eventually this will spill over into the HUMAN sector in a major way. The invisibles are what scares me the most, we can't see or smell them and usually when we find them it's only because someone or someone's animals get sick and sometimes die. They are playing with our very existence. I would like to see a better way for the general public to be informed and educated about the recalls, voluntary or involuntary, wether they be deadly or not. When it comes to FOOD we can't be careful enough. Are we recalling cars here? Did someone tighten a nut to tight? (maybe) We can't wait until there is sicknesses and deaths before we take action. Isn't 1 enough, why wait until there is 27, or 14 cases of illnesses and deaths before they take action. Intentional infliction of emotional distress, is the minimum I see here almost reeks of negligence resulting in involuntary murder. People that want to show restraint, let cooler heads prevail and have a sense of felling sorry for or understanding these monstrous organizations frighten me. It's like the good and the bad to me, not wanting to over complicate things, they are simply bad. Sending them to rehab wont make them better, the money poison has taken them over, like a bad drug. They have been full of themselves for so long it's automatic for them to put their bad foot forward. This battle has just begun, if you don't choose sides now we may never have another chance. In our live we have endured much, this was to make us strong and now these battles can be waged on our loved ones behalf, and win we can. keen remembering Abby Gayle

Bart

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 21:27:23 -0500

lacy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 21:02:47 -0500

Does anyone know anything about The Honest Kitchens catfood called Prowl. It looks really good. Any info would be SO helpful! Thanks!

Cheryl in CA

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 20:57:17 -0500

I didn't want to hear that about Natural Balance since I just started my 8 cats and 2 dogs on it last night! This morning my dog vomited yellow fluid all over my carpet..OY! I'm just hoping it's from all of this food switching. So, was I right to put them on Blue Buffalo, as I had last week?? I'm so confused!

lacy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 20:33:50 -0500

Does anyone know anything about The Honest Kitchens catfood called Prowl. It looks really good. Any info would be SO helpful! Thanks!

kim maloney

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 19:22:09 -0500

The grief I hear coming through on all of your e-mails is just so awful. It's just dumb luck that my cat,"otto" likes 9 lives dry food. She gets an occasional can of 9-lives super supper for a treat. I really don't think this brand is any more carefully produced, though. We need more oversight and accountability.If I were you guys, I'd "lawyer up".

A Pet Lover

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 17:28:34 -0500

My 75 year old mother had a 9 mth old Beautiful AKC Black Lab Puppy. Healthy, Beautiful and Smart,Smart,Smart. In her lifetime, our beautiful baby lab had: six vet visits, all vaccinations, spayed and homeagain chip protected. We did everything we knew to do to prepare her for a long, healthy, happy life. When puppy started behavior training, we purchased a pouch package of soft fish flavored treats from Walmarts pet food aisle. Three days after puppy was feed the treats as a training aid, she became deathly ill. She had: NO energy, would not eat anything, peed a dark colored urine and vomited a frothy yellow foam and began to bleed from her anus. Vet informed us that she required intervaneous feeding for at least three days. We allowed our baby to be cared for by the Vet. Vet informed us early morning of the fourth day that she passed during the night. We had our baby cremated, and a family funeral service for her where we placed her ashes in a local body of water. Since she loved the water so very much. If we knew in November 2006, what we know now about this poisoned food, made by Menu Foods and sold under the Walmart name, we would have had her little body autoposied. The autoposiy would have given additional weight to the case we strongly believe should be pursued against Menu Foods and the corporations which allowed these poisoned foods to be sold to the public. We have always had faith in our government to protect our food supply and that of our children and animals. We no longer have this faith or confidence.

MikeKeen

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 16:43:23 -0500

Getting some where! Dear Mr. & Mrs. XXXXXX, Thank you for bringing your concerns to our attention. Please accept our sincerest condolences for the loss of your cat. I want to assure you that I, or one of my associates will be following up with you, in a phone call as soon as possible. I want you to know that Nutro Products is standing shoulder to shoulder with their consumers in this extremely difficult time and we apologize for any delays in response. We thank you for your patience during this difficult and painful time. We have added a new call center to help us address your needs; it should be much easier for you to reach us now. In order to assist our consumers during this difficult time our insurance carrier, The Hartford, will be contacting consumers shortly to begin claims processing for the families affected by this terrible tragedy. Please keep note of this case number XXXXXX and include it any correspondence to Nutro Products for the purpose of identification. Please be assured that all Nutro products are 100% guaranteed and that all returned product will be refunded. Please visit our web site for a full list of the voluntarily recalled products. We will update the website as more information becomes available. In order to properly investigate this issue we would like to ask for your assistance in getting information related to your pet's illness and death. Please answer the following questions: What was the date of your cat's demise? How much did it weigh? What if any, pouched food did it eat? What if any, dry foods did it eat? What if any, canned foods did it eat? Have there been any diet changes recently? If not how long has this been your cat's diet? What are the name, phone number, and address of your veterinarian? When was its last veterinary visit prior to its death? Did the veterinarian do a post death examination? Do you still have any of the unopened pouches of food your cat was eating at the time of its demise? If so, may we send a Postage Paid envelope to retrieve a sample of the food for testing? What was the UPC bar code for the pouched/-canned food it was eating? (Will start with 79105...) What was the Best if Used By Code information from the pouch/ can of food? (For pouches: All of the printed information on the back, side seam of the pouch. For cans: all of the numbers and letters from the bottom of the can.) Please mail or FAX us copies of any paperwork that would be pertinent to your cat's demise. We would like to see copies of any diagnosis, lab work, veterinary records from that time period and bills for review. If you are mailing the information please send it to: Nutro Products Inc. Attention Roger Clark (597666) 445 Wilson Way City of Industry, CA 91744 If you are faxing the information: Attention Roger Clark Ext. 804 Re: (597666) (626) 581-7463 Please let me know if I can be of further assistance. You can reach me by e-mail or Toll Free phone call, Monday - Friday, 8 AM - 5 PM (PST), at 1 (800) 833-5330 ext. 804. At your service, Roger H. P. Clark Team Leader Nutro Products Inc. I was on hold for 35 minutes with Iams "escalation department". I go > through the entire saga and then I'm told to submit the vet bills as > well as the lab work. I told them the vet bill is almost 2k. She's > like, REALLY!?!? I said, how much would you think it would be for > hospital treatment from Thursday til Monday? She said they are > reimbursing people a "well check up" visit of 150.00!!! I said > WHAT!?!?!? You're out of your mind! I explained to her that this > wasn't a "well baby check up" and I'm looking for my co-pay. He was > brought in because he was SICK! I told her, I suffer a financial > inconvenience, almost lost a family member and you want to send me > 150.00 in COUPON MONEY!!! I said, I'm 100% positive that I am not the > only one with a vet bill of over 150.00. And I'm positive these people > wouldn't be participating in the Class Action if they were happy with > 150.00!! She also asked me if I had any of the cans. I said I did but > I would not be parting with them since this is my only proof I had > anything from that plant. To ask or think people save empty dog food > cans or pouchs for no reason when they waited to announce the recall > is unreasonable. > I'm not looking to jump on the Class Action Suit Bandwagon, I just > want what is right. I'm sorry but 150.00 is not right. > > Hope this helps anyone who is wondering what to do. I was one of the > lucky ones. My cocker spanial is almost 15. What a joke. My vet bill exceeds 2,500 for two cats. Lawsuits may be the only option.

Nancy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 16:18:14 -0500

My 130lbs Rotti is dying of kidney failure and I can't do anything to save him. He has been at the vet since Monday hooked up to IV to flush toxins in kidneys. He has 75% Kidney failure. I purchased Nutro NC can food (12 cans) as a treat for him on 3/3/07. He loves that stuff but after two days he started to throw up every night so I mixed with dry food which encouraged him to eat all 12 cans within a 6 day period. After that he didn't want to eat he just wanted to drink water, he was loosing weight so I started cooking chicken and rice for him, which he ate but kept loosing weight. on 3/24 I had CNN on while cleaning and I heard for the first time about the recall and sypmtoms associated with it. I broke down crying because know I knew what was wrong with him. I had poisoned him without knowing it. I had him at the vet on MOnday at 9AM. They did blood work and confirmed his kidneys were failing. The vet said to hook him up with fluids to see if they could pump out the toxins. Today is Wednesday the 28th of March and its not working he doesn't have a good prognosis. What I want to know is are they (Nutro Natutal Choice) sure the bad wheat was only used in wet food?? How do I know where the wheat in dry food came from? My dog has eated the same brand food for six years (since we took him of the bottle at 2 months old). I'm loosing my baby and my best friend. I raised him from birth because his dam didn't want to feed any of her litter.

Jane

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:46:22 -0500

Brenda (post 412) First let me say that I have always fed my cats Medi-cal Preventive dry for years and years and they have always thrived on it and been very healthy. It is an amazing diet that provides all the nutrients cats need and helps my cats from becoming blocked by struvite crystals. However, I have made the decision to at this time, take them off it until this whole situation is resolved. I had learned that Royal Canin took over both Medi-Cal and Walthams in the last year or two and decided to call Royal Canin directly to get informed. I just called again this morning after reading your post to re-confirm what I was told the first time because I do not want to confuse the situation in any way. What I have been told both times by Royal Canin is that Royal Canin (and Medi-Cal and Walthams) have their wet food produced by Menu Foods but not in the U.S. Menu Foods plant. They are produced at a Menu Foods plant here in Canada in Mississagua. Their dry food is not produced at Menu Foods at all and is instead produced at their own Royal Canin plant in the U.S. So, you just have to decide for yourself what is safe enough to choose for your pets at this uncertain time. In light of the wheat gluten issue with regard to China, I don't trust the big companies right now and think it is very possible that other big companies aside from Menu Foods may be using the same wheat gluten in their dry food too which is why for now I have switched them to a small company that produces dry cat food with no wheat in it. The toll-free phone number for Royal Canin is 1-866-545-0637. Their website link is: www.royalcanin.ca/contact/index_en.php I expected that I wouldn't even get through but I did and they were very helpful and forthcoming with information about their food for which I was grateful. It is very possible that there will never be a single illness in relation to pets eating foods produced by Royal Canin and I hope that will be the result but the fact is they deal with Menu Foods and while I have always trusted them in the past, I do not trust Menu Foods. Bottom line. Jane

MikeKeen

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:44:12 -0500

Dear catlover, Thank you for taking the time out to write us. And thank you for your interest in BLUE. BLUE products have never been produced by Menu Foods and we are not affiliated with them in any way. Best regards, Samantha Wuhrer The Blue Buffalo Company (203) 762-9751 Ext 11

lacy

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:10:45 -0500

I really hope the natural balance one tally on the dry food list is really not related. They dont have anything to do with any of those other companies listed. After all my calls to a billion brands, they are the only one I trust.... urg.

AZSue

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 14:06:58 -0500

Thank You Post 414 for that link...very informative. I immediately went there and found what I was looking for. Yesterday I went out and bought Diamond Pet Foods brand...Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul...and Wysong brand...Vitality. Both are feline diet and holistic. Sammy and Shadow seem to like both of them very much and have a lot of energy this morning. I had been feeding them Purina One Senior Protection Formula and as a treat, Fancy Feast. Neither of these was on the recall list, but this recall and this message board have really opened my eyes to what I have been feeding my precious babies. And I really thought that I was the best Cat Mom ever...just shows you that every day can be a learning experience! Here are 3 cut and paste tidbits from 414's post link: 1) Royal Canin (verified by company 3/28/07) Brands include Canine Health Nutrition, Feline Health Nutrition, Kasco, Sensible Choice, as well as prescription available through veterinarians. Menu foods is used for a limited number of foods They also have their own production facility They do use wheat gluten, but when asked if they used the same source as Menu Foods, I was told that was “proprietary information.” 2) Diamond Pet Foods (verified by company 3/28/07) Brands include Diamond, Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul, Nutra Nuggets, Premium Edge, Professional Pet Food No products made by Menu Foods All foods contain US and Canadian ingredients Manufacture their own dry food Canned foods made by American Nutrition 3) Wysong (verified by company 3/27/07) Menu Foods is used for 2 canned products but not involved in recall. These are Au Jus (chicken, duck, turkey, NOT rabbit) and Stew & Gravy (beef & chicken) All other foods manufactured in their own facilities (2 factories) in the US. No wheat gluten is used in their products. All products are from the US Sue

MikeKeen

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 13:11:02 -0500

I have been ringing the dry food alarm since 3/19/07 the night my dog died of Acute Renal Failure. This particular problem has been going on now for years, as my earlier post state. The DRY FOOD sicknesses and deaths are not new and may not have been noticed if the WET food fiasco had not gotten so out of control. www.news.cornell.edu/stories/Jan06/dogs.dying.ssl.html Announcing the recall 5, (five), days after their big shareholder meeting is not only a traviesty, but in my oppinion a serious crime has been committed. Thank you post 414 for keeping us informed and helping others save their pets. keen and Abby Gayle

4lgdfriend

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 12:39:59 -0500

REPORTS OF RECALL-REALTED DRY FOOD DEATHS AND ILLNESSES NOW COMING FORTH. If you have friends or family members who feed dry food mfr by brands on the recall list, please forward this information. I AM ONE OF THE REPORTED STATISTICS IN THIS TALLY! itchmo.comreports Voluntary Dry Food Reports releasing the following results with some troubling stats: Given the caveats, the brands that really stood out - Iams, Nutro, and Science Diet. We expected quite a few Iams reports since the survey results from posts about sick pets who ate Iams, but the Nutro reports seemed to have come from nowhere. Of the 5 reported deaths parents linked to Nutro, 3 were from Acute Renal Failure. 3 ARF deaths were reportedly linked with Science Diet and 7 were linked with Iams. There may be legitimate reason why some brands are on this list, for example, Science Diet may be recommended by vets to particularly sick pets Number of pets covered: 134 (47 cats, 87 dogs) Reported ARF: 24 (17%) 15 cats, 9 dogs Cat Deaths: 20 Cat Illnesses: 26 Dog Deaths: 9 Dog Illnesses: 77 Number of Specific Cat Food Brand Reported: Iams: 17 Purina: 6 Science Diet: 5 Nutro: 4 Special Kitty: 3 Royal Canin: 1 Number of Specific Dog Food Brand Reported: Iams: 21 Nutro: 14 Ol’Roy: 5 Science Diet: 4 Eukanuba: 2 Pedigree: 2 Purina: 2 Authority: 1 Beneful: 1 Natural Balance: 1 Trader Joe’s: 1 FOR A FAST LINK TO ALL NEWS AND SITES COVERING THE RECALL SCANDAL I SUGGEST: howl911.com ►WHO MAKES WHAT?

AZSue

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 12:20:54 -0500

Cut and pasted from the Royal Canin/Medi-Cal website: "No Medi-Cal/Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Products are affected by a RECALL Special Note: Medi-Cal/Royal Canin Veterinary Diet would like to assure you that our products are completely safe and reliable. Secondly, the company is prepared to vigorously defend the recent allegations presented in the media." Sue

brenda

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 02:32:09 -0500

In response to post 177: Medi-Cal diets which are only sold in vet hospitals are owned by Royal Canin. I called them the other day to ask if they have their food created at Menu and I was shocked to learn that they do! I went to a natural pet food clinic here in B.C. canada and bought a huge bag of Bark at the Moon dry food by Solid Gold for my dogs and a bag of Nature's Logic dry food for my cats. It is made with whole foods and their is no wheat and no connection to Menu foods. [346] Posted by: Jane | March 25, 2007 6:29 PM IN RESPONSE TO JANE #346 I too called my vet here in BC and also gave them a visit... They informed me that MEDI-CAL food was made by vetrinrians themself, and have nothing what-so-ever to do with menu-foods or any manufacturer??? So you must be thinking of a different food, because I'm sure the vet would not lie and risk being sued for still selling the stuff. I buy my little baby dry/wet... I have yet to feed him the wet again since this recall of wet foods, I'm a little scarred by it, but he is fine and dandy off the dry. Please get back to me Jane, I would like to discuss this matter further, as I think there is a misunderstanding between vets here.

MikeKeen

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 00:31:19 -0500

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gossypol We have five children, it's obvious we havn't gotten any in us, yet. Just the mention of China freightens me, check this out. Gossypol Gossypol is a chemical found in the seeds of cotton plants. Cotton plants produce gossypol in order to slow down the reproduction of the insects that eat cotton bolls and seeds; the compound also affects reproduction in mammals. Pressed cakes of cotton seeds, a byproduct of the cotton industry, are sometimes fed to livestock with unintentional contraceptive effects. The effect of gossypol on human male fertility has been known in China for many years. In 1929, a study of couples who used crude cottonseed oil for cooking showed that they had smaller than average families. Specifically, researchers showed that the oil affected male fertility. Eventually researchers isolated the contraceptive compound gossypol from the cotton seed oil. This discovery led to large scale testing of gossypol as a male contraceptive in China during the 1970s. The studies involved over 8,000 men, and continued for over a decade. The researchers found that men taking a daily gossypol pill had reliable contraception and no complaints about change in libido. However, the studies revealed two serious flaws: disruption of potassium uptake and incomplete reversibility. What side effects are expected? The large-scale trials of gossypol in Chinese men reported an abnormally high rate of hypokalemia among subjects, varying from 1-10%. Hypokalemia is characterized by low levels of potassium in the blood. Potassium is one of the elements used by the muscles and nerves to transmit signals. Symptoms of low blood potassium include fatigue, muscle weakness and at its most extreme, paralysis. Hypokalemia is usually the result of kidney malfunction, and can be caused by excessive consumption of diuretics. Researchers do not understand exactly how gossypol affects the kidneys. Several studies of gossypol as a contraceptive in male monkeys tried to remedy potassium loss by giving the monkeys a daily potassium supplement. The supplement did not stop the monkeys from losing potassium and the researchers concluded that hypokalemia was an inescapable side effect (Lohiya 1990, Kumar 1997). However, the dose the monkeys received was higher than the equivalent dose given to men, and there is evidence that the incidence of hypokalemia depends on dosage. Two more studies of gossypol as a low-dose contraceptive in men report no incidences of hypokalemia (Gu 2000, Coutinho 2000). Dr. Elsimar Coutinho (2002) of Brazil contends that previous reports of hypokalemia were the result of “the Chinese diet, which is poor in potassium, and not to the effect of gossypol on the kidneys.” Regardless of gossypol’s possible causal relationship with hypokalemia, researchers at the World Health Organization (WHO) have other concerns about side effects. Gossypol is a known toxin, and a toxic dose is less than 10 times the contraceptive dose. Some argue that this alone should disqualify it from further study. How long does it take to reverse? Lack of complete reversibility was the second major concern raised by the Chinese trials. Some men in those studies remained azoospermic after stopping treatment. The longer the men had taken the gossypol and the higher their overall dosage, the more likely they were to lose part or all of their fertility. Various studies reported between 5 and 25 percent of the men remained infertile up to a year after stopping treatment. A long-term follow up study of men who had taken gossypol showed that 61% of the men regained normal fertility with "a median recovery time of 1.1 years" (Meng 1988). However, 22% remained azoospermic after 3 years. Dr. Zhi-Ping Gu’s (2000) trial of low-dose gossypol is the only study to report no incidence of lasting infertility. The highest cumulative dosage taken by men in Dr. Gu ’s study was 36 grams over 18 months. Dr. Coutinho ’s (2000) low-dose trial used a different regimen and found that 20% of the men remained infertile 1 year after stopping treatment. The highest cumulative dosage taken by men in Dr. Coutinho ’s trial was 44.8 grams over 14 months. If Dr. Gu ’s trial had lasted longer, it is possible that the study participants would have experienced similar rates of lasting infertility. Where does gossypol stand now? In the late 1990s, the WHO's Research Group on Methods for the Regulation of Male Fertility reviewed the studies to date on gossypol and concluded that contraceptive research should be abandoned (Waites 1998). Some researchers have contested this, arguing that the data on hypokalemia were misinterpreted, and that diet and genetic predisposition are responsible for this side effect (Yu 1998). No one has contested the concerns over irreversibility, but gossypol research has continued in China, Brazil, Kenya and Nigeria. Gossypol as an alternative to vasectomy Some researchers propose taking advantage of gossypol’s lack of reversibility by using it as a non-surgical alternative to vasectomy. Dr. Coutinho (2002) proposes that gossypol “should be prescribed preferably to men who have completed their families or for those who would accept permanent infertility after a few years of use.” Even this type of use for gossypol may be controversial unless the WHO changes its stance. www.malecontraceptives.org/methods/gossypol.php Who would have known, should have come earlier, keen with Abby Gayle

MikeKeen

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 00:15:48 -0500

Yikes, what kinda mess have we, they, gotten us into this time? I just don't know what to do, I think I will wait until all of this just BLOWS over to replace our pet. This heartache is to great for us to have to bare again because the new pet we adopt has unknown liver and kidney problems from these dufusses products. Who's to know what's going to happen in the future. Did anyone see the old movie Soilent Green? Some of these chemicals these people are putting into what we call food, is damned scary. What the hell is gossypol anyway. I sure hope I don't get any in me, let alone on me. Tammy, My dogs death does not count according to the FDA... My grand daughters teachers dog is really sick right now and may not make it through the night. It won't count either, because she's so busy, she didn't even know of the recall. Oh yea it wouldn't count anyway, her dog eats only DRY. Thank you for keeping us up to date. This whole thing is just killing me and our pets. Good luck with everything all. keen for Abby Gayle

Tammy

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 23:09:44 -0500

I spoke with both the FDA and IAMs today. Here is what I got: FDA, Consumer complaint line (CT): B/c my call concerned only dry dog food, it was recorded as a complaint. They have no other records of any dry food complaints. She further questioned why I was even calling b/c my dog's tests were fine. As we know (see post 382 for our history), I think I have good reason to suspect a problem with the dry food. She told me the FDA at that point was uninterested in a sample of the food, or even the bag info (lot number, ect). IF, and only IF, the FDA receives enough calls in regards to dry food issues, will they investigate. The FDA will not speculate about the safety of the dry food. They only follow their own investigations. They only act on verifiable complaints they directly receive. The FDA was not interested in researching the web in the less formal avenues, such as this blog. She continuously told me that renal failure would result in fasting...therefore, if our tests were OK, then the food must be fine. How does the poisoning start again? I though there were occurrences where the dogs refused to eat (probably smelt POISEN), then after they were continuously fed the food by the unassuming owners, did they consume enough, and then develop the disease. I can't believe she refused to link the two together in the most obvious scenario. As for my IAMs conversation (earlier today): I gave them the chronology of events, and the totals of the bills. IAMS requested for me to send about 2 cups to them for testing. No problem. I was told IAMs had not received any illness/death related complaints related to pets consuming the dry food. As far as compensation for vet bills ($600), the IAMS vet will have to call my vet; they will discuss my case. Then the IAMS vet will determine if I should be compensated for my bills. The IAMS vet will call me with his judgment. Mitch told me that may or may not pay my bills-he could not give me any guarantee. Sounds to me like the FDA and IAMS aren’t too concerned about the recent events of my dogs, only b/c they are not directly related to the recalled wet foods. How do recalls/investigations start again? I am infuriated by the lackadaisical approach by both groups thus far. Is it possible that people are lying about the illnesses of their pets? Why wouldn’t they report these events to the FDA. Could it be a standard answer by the two groups to deny any possible interrelations concerning unsafe food, and stick only to the facts (the official, confirmed facts, as they would say I guess), and not speculate further to determine the size of the iceberg at hand? I have spoken with many dry food feeders at work-they are unconcerned as the recall only affects wet. They are not even questioning the recall further!!! The politics of food safety have cast a dangerous shadow of trust and credibility onto consumers, many who rely solely on the information supplied by the food industry or regulating agencies. I for one am a very weary consumer at this point.

Angela Flynn

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 21:42:37 -0500

I have suspected that there may be a link to ge wheat with this contamination. Suspicion is now on Archer Daniels Midland as the supplier of the wheat gluten. This is because the other two major suppliers have openly denied a connection while ADM has refused to comment. The following is quite disturbing and shows a pattern of ADM purposely poisoning animal feed. www.populist.com/01.4.krebs.html "Whitacre advised that ADM has illegally disposed of genetic organisms by adding the organisms to corn glutten (sic) feed. The organisms are in liquid form and are sprayed on the corn glutten feed rather than disposed of as required by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The liquid spray also added weight to the feed. Whitacre advised that Jerry Weigel and Jim Randall oversee this activity." Weigel was ADM's head nutritionist at ADM Biochem and Randall was the corporate president and overseer of plant process and operations. "The creed of greed of the Andreas crime family," Hoech charged, "found it more economical to export the poisonous waste rather than build a treatment facility." In a subsequent lawsuit, filed by a Missouri farmer Rodger Moberly and several other Missouri cattlemen, the focus was on a substance known as free gossypol, which is derived from crushing cottonseed and used in ADM's animal feed known as 39% Protein Quanah Special. As Nicholas E. Hollis, president of the Agribusiness Council (ABC) explains, "free gossypol can be toxic to calves and even larger cattle if ingested in sufficient qualities. Often gossypol sickens an animal, slowing down its ability to gain weight." The plaintiffs' claims were enhanced by an affidavit from Whitacre, ADM's former head of its BioProducts Division, who stated that ADM knew about free gossypol's effects and intentionally sold it to enhance profits. The affidavit also repeated the charge concerning ADM's spraying biomass residues on its corn gluten feed. Oklahoma State University toxicologist Dr. Sandra Morgan has noted concern for gossypol as a potential sterility agent in an article which also states "there is concern for the effects of gossypol on humans because gossypol is a biologically active compound and because gossypol in the food chain may ultimately lead to its consumption by humans." "If we are to regain confidence in the overwhelming majority of our food companies and their honest suppliers," Hollis adds, "isn't it time we stop ignoring the lessons of Moberly v. ADM and get the truth out about the Supermarkup to the World?" A.V. Krebs operates the Corporate Agribusiness Research Project, P.O. Box 2201, Everett, WA 98203-0201, email avkrebs@earthlink.net; www.ea1.com/CARP. [link to www.populist.com]

Angela Flynn

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 20:05:51 -0500

The ASPCA is now saying that illnesses seen in pets are not consistent with aminopterin exposure. www.aspca.org/site/PageServer?pagename=press_032707_2

Carole

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 18:35:34 -0500

I don't know if this is duplicate information, but I want to make sure that everyone know that IAMS is taking full financial responsibility for all vet bills, regardless of whether your pet ever got sick. Menu is not handling IAMS bills, IAMS wants to handle their own. I have already been in contact with IAMS and they have set me up with what I need to submit my vet bills for precautionary tests. This is not my biggest concern by any means but it is something, and anyone who wants to see a vet but cannot afford, please do so and let IAMS cover it (if you cat eats IAMS). You do not need cans, store receipts, etc. Just your vet bills and test results, no questions asked.

Ron

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 17:51:18 -0500

I lost one cat ten days prior to the recall due to dehydration and kidney failure. A second cat is still at the vet hooked up to IVs. The $'s are approaching $1,500. Both cats were eating Nutro Natural Choice which is part of the recall. It's very sad to see what happens to these animals. Calls to the FDA, Nutro, and Menu Foods get you nowhere. The vet's office has had numerous other animals die due to the contaminated foods.

MikeKeen

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 17:17:03 -0500

391, I've fallen for that crap for years and now I've no one to play with. No one to feed that 40+ pounds of IAMS I have left. Anyone heard about those barrels they have on the drive up to menu foods? Hopefully I just read a bad post! It bothers me to think that a company would supply containers for the general public to drop of dead stuff just doesn't sound safe. Where do all the dead rats go? What do these large manufacturers do with a bad batch of food? How do they dispose of it? Does anyone really know for sure? keen for Abby Gayle

Cheryl in CA

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 16:21:24 -0500

What I really don't get is why did they add a new product to the dog food list yesterday. Shouldn't they have already known all of the suspected products when they first put the list out? How do they explain that? I wouldn't have even known this, but my son stocks shelves at our local Target and told me that they had to pull more canned foods from the shelves.

lacy

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 16:06:21 -0500

Thanks Elderta! I will go to those sites. Our cats are eating natural balance too. :)

Elderta

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 15:46:32 -0500

Just wanted to make sure, Jane! Lacy, catnutrition.org and http://www.catinfo.org/makingcatfood.htm are good places to start. I don't make my own food, so I can't be of more help. (My cat eats Natural Balance.) And Concerned Consumer... or Rational Pet Owner, thanks for that article link. I feel bad for the folks in Emporia who are on unpaid leave because of this. I haven't been hearing anyone saying that someone at one of the plants may have intentionally poisoned the food. Still, it's the response to this from Menu Foods that has caused folks to be riled up. They could have handled this a whole lot better, and that's the bottom line when it comes to why so many people are upset.

lacy

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 15:25:51 -0500

Elderta or anyone else, Do you know of any recipes for making food for cats, including supplements? Do we buy human supplements?

Jane

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 14:23:46 -0500

Elderta, I absolutely agree with you about the nutrients you mentioned in your post. I'm only giving them baby food as a treat every other day or so and it's just a teaspoon of it. Their main diet is a dry cat food called Nature's Logic that has the daily dietary requirements. Same for my dogs, I will only put a spoonful into their dry food (a wheat free kibble made by Solid Gold) for a treat. :0)

She

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 14:05:22 -0500

I felt like I was walking in a horror movie, the early scenes, before people know who the monsters are. The above transpired when I saw, at the front of my PetsMart, a few pallets of dry food for sale: Eukenuba lamb & rice, Science Diet lamb & rice, and Nutro lamb & rice. All were $3-$5 off per huge bag. *shudder*

Ronda

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 14:01:37 -0500

This is for post # 353. How does this sound? It is for homemade dog kibbles. www.seefido.com/html/dog_kibble_recipes.htm

MikeKeen

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 13:52:00 -0500

Just got off the telephone to the FDA again, this time Maryland answered even though we called the California offices, they are no longer fielding questions about this pet food recall. They are taking messages only and offering you the phone numbers of Menu Foods etc... Talked to them last week and they were going to get back to us with a list of Labs that will test our pets food for these poisons. Today they said that they do not want to test our products or anyone elses product, they are so overwhelmed and cannot respond. Left a message for Cal FDA to call back. How many more pets are going to become sick and possibly die because they, the FDA, are just to busy. Anyone with product testing ideas for those of us who found out about this recall to late and lost our pets because of lousy reporting, lies, deceit, greed and misguided judgement on everyones part, can email me at keen@mac.com I'm sure if they wait long enough, they believe that this will just blow over and fix itself. Not on my watch! keen

Cheryl in CA

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 13:33:43 -0500

Angela Flynn

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 13:05:21 -0500

And here are people who are choosing to make a difference www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_4594.cfm Until we all insist on fair trade and high quality companies will continue to cut corners and exploit workers. If Menu Foods is so honorable perhaps it is time for them to acknowledge the scope of the poisonings. The fact remains that MF was well aware of this contamination long before they issued the recall. Quick action would have saved many lives. Someone somewhere made the bad decision to delay recalling the pet food. The Vetenarians Information Network (VIN) is reporting hundreds of sick and dead pets from this contamination. Details are at www.petconnection.com/blog/2007/03/27/1320/

Angela Flynn

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 11:51:56 -0500

I recently watched "China Blue". It is a documentary on sweatshop labor in China at a bluejean factory. The owner of the factory is a good man. His wife was very religious and most shots of her were of her praying at her altar. But when it came down to keeping a contract the owner had no problem with forcing his workers to work over 20 hours a day to meet the deadline. The real problem in this world is that we are driven by profit motives and then cut corners in many ways. I think Menu Foods decided to purchase cheaper ingredients and then did not budget money for testing these ingredients. I am sure that most of us are "good people". I have no doubt that the workers at Menu Foods are good people. But somehow we need to stop this drive for profit over quality. I think this problem largely stems from most of us trying to live beyond our means. My former boss is a good person, but he has overextended himself in the purchase of his house. This forces him to make his workers work harder so that he can make enough money to pay for his lifestyle. In fact this "good man" decided that his workers could not take breaks while on the job. This was for work that is hard labor in often extreme weather. Fortunately California has labor laws and I was able to call him on his violation of the law. What I am trying to illustrate here is that this world is made up of good people making bad decisions because we all want to increase our profits. Someone recently pointed out to me that if we had simply purchased the oil in Iraq it would have cost less than the invasion and occupation. I imagine that is true, but with the way it was done the money that would have gone to Iraq has gone to companies like Halliburton. What is going on in the pet food industry is the same thing that is going on in most industries. But there are people who are making the harder choices of sticking with higher priced quality ingredients. As we all become more aware of our choices and the impacts they make I believe that those companies will find it was worth it to stay with quality.

MikeKeen

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 11:42:34 -0500

Now isn't that nice. No one to hold accountable for my dogs death. It was from outside the US. and therefore out of our control. Who knows, some one could have dumped poison into one of those barrles that lines the road to the menu food sfactory for locals to drop off their dead and dying animals. I think this is a cop out and cover-up. keen

Rational Pet Owner

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 09:40:34 -0500

THis article is important for all of you to read. It made me take a step back and think through this rationally. www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2007/03/pet_food_emporia.html "What kind of people could make pet food that kills cats and dogs? People just like you and me, it turns out. The pet food that's blamed for the deaths of least 16 dogs and cats nationwide came from Menu Foods production plants in Emporia, Kansas, and Pennsauken, New Jersey, where employees are just as puzzled and concerned as everyone else. In Emporia, a town of about 30,000 located 120 miles southwest of Kansas City on Interstate 35, Menu Foods is known for its high standards and demand for excellence. It's a company that has pumped 476 good-paying jobs into this primarily blue-collar community in the past ten years. And one townspeople describe it as an "excellent community citizen" with "caring employees." "This is unbelievable and doesn't make any sense," former Mayor Evora Wheeler says when asked about Menu Foods' production of dog and cat food tainted with rat poison. "There has to be another explanation," Wheeler says of the contamination. "This is a fine company and I am confident they did not know an ingredient they were using was contaminated." Wheeler and other townspeople ConsumerAffairs.com interviewed during a recent trip to Emporia are also confident that none of Menu Foods' employees are responsible for the contaminated pet food. "It's somewhat insulting -- and a slam to our community -- when people talk about tampering," Wheeler says. "The thing that people don't see is the management and employees of Menu Foods. They're all good people. These are people who are our neighbors, our kids go to school with their kids, or we go to the same church. "For this to have happened is devastating to them," he says. "And there is deep concern within this community for Menu Foods and its employees." There's also tremendous concern for the scores of grieving pet owners across the country. "My heart goes out to those pet owners," Wheeler says. "And I am confident that Menu Foods will do everything it can to correct this negative situation." New York investigators last week identified the source of the contamination in Menu's pet food as a toxin called aminopterin. That's a rat poison widely used in other countries, but not in the United States. "I was glad when I heard that (the contamination) wasn't anything in Menu's processing ... that it was something from an outside vendor," Longbine says. "I knew Menu Foods was too good of a company to take any short-cuts."

Elderta

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 08:22:47 -0500

Jane, just remember that baby food is not a complete nutritious food on a constant basis for a cat or dog. I would urge you to find alternatives that contain the correct vitamins needed for cats, too. Good luck. Howl911 mentions this new blog were you can post your stories along with a photographs of your friend. http://menufoodsvictims.blogspot.com/index.html

Scott

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 05:49:00 -0500

I just realized we are talking about a mass poisoning of our pets, and it happened to coincide with "2007 National Poison Prevention Week: March 18-24 " - Nice... um, timing, huh? www.poisonprevention.org

Lois

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 03:30:47 -0500

I have read all these posts; I wanted to add that although I have been feeding my pug Science Diet for 2 years and adding Merrick's wet food: Cowboy Cookout -- I 'googled' for information and discovered that in 2004 there were pet deaths in San Francisco from a 'private label' of dog food that was actually manufactured b "Merrick" -- I'm now not trusting well....any company that sells more than 10 bags in the country -- which is all of them. I am thinking of switching to a new brand - Chicken Food for The soul which is no associated with any of these companies -- after reading that Menu Foods is associated with Innova -- I am distressed by that information -- that was the food I was going to use -- I must say that I am aware Science Diet is.....alright -- what we know it is -- but my pug has been very healthy on the kibble -- even healthier than when he was on WELLNESS which was too 'rich' of a food. But I want a better food and now I am not going to use INNOVA even though he has loved the samples. Does anyone on this board use Chicken Food for the Soul? Or Wysong? Solid Gold? Thanks. I am like all of you -- horrified and saddened by the deaths of your pets.

Jane

Tue, 27 Mar 2007 01:20:27 -0500

I decided to try some of the suggestions posted on this board and I'm so glad I did! Turns out my cats LOVE baby food. I bought a few kinds today, chicken with vegetables and beef with vegetables. I made sure there was no onion powder in it. I dished it out thinking they'd just look at it and walk away but they went nuts for it. I've been feeding them a wheat free dry food (Nature's Logic) for the past few days that is made by a small company that is not related in any way to Menu foods. But it's so nice to be able to give them an added treat to replace their previous nightly spoonful of fancy feast. Whatever happens, I won't go back to the way they used to eat. At least I can feel pretty safe about baby food. I hope!! I'm thinking of mixing babyfood in with my dogs wheat free kibble every now and then for a treat too. They loved the gravy part of their old wet food (which I will never be buying again) and the baby food is just like gravy for them. I won't give them much, just a bit to liven up their crunchies. And thankfully, it doesn't cost much at all. I also picked up some wheat and corn free dog biscuits made by Innova Evo today at the petstore. Thankfully they enjoy baby carrots as a snack as well so that is another alternative for them. Hope everyone is finding solutions that work for them. Thanks to all for the good ideas.

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 23:29:45 -0500

Spom, Supposedly the FDA wants some to test, ha, and I'll pay for a test as soon as I can find someone to do it. I figure I would have it tested for the anti freeze component, aflatoxins, and that damnws rat poison. Shouldn't cost to much, I've done water tests in the past and they were under 2K. keen

Tammy

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 23:12:01 -0500

I still have about 40 lbs of the the IAMS green bag. I am more than willing to send it for testing. I will report my suspected IAMS dry food poison to the FDA tomorrow.

Spom

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 23:00:20 -0500

Mike: Are you getting your food tested? I think our best chance of getting word out on the dry Iams is a professional testing it and finding a toxin. I do not know if I still have a tainted bag or not at home. I opened a new one recently before I stopped feeding to my dog. Spom in Venice

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 22:11:58 -0500

This a re-post of my post last from last Tuesday... I'm so upset trying to convince people of the dry food situation that I have a hard time processing all of this. My head is about to pop, pop right off. This is outrageous, now my dog just died. Less than 24 hours after reading these post and posting a few myself. 4 year old Airedale, picture purfect purbred with no health problems. Opened a new bag of food on thursday, she would not eat saturday but was active enough to not alarm me or my family. Monday am she was in the back yard having trouble walking, called vet, walked her in the garage, she layed down on warm pad and we started fluids. Vet said, bring her in in the morning if she makes it through the night. She did not. THEY STILL ARENT TALKING ABOUT THE DRY FOOD YET. LET ME TELL YOU, THEY WILL AND MY VET SAY THE WILL HAVE TO REAL SOON. THEY ARE TREATING OTHER CASES AND SOME ARE RELATED TO DRY FOOD. I WAS USING ***IAMS DRY, GREEN BAG, RICE AND LAMB AND SOME FREE OF CHARGE, POISON WITCH WAS ADDED BY ACCIDENT AND HIDDEN FROM THE ONLY PEOPLE THAT COULD HAVE SAVED OUR ANIMALS, US. AND YES WE HAVE BEEN MISLED, DUPPED, LIED TO AND WORST OF ALL THEY MURDERED OUR PETS. JUST AS BEFORE IN JANUARY OF 2006. READ ALL ABOUT IT AT THE CORNELL UNIVERSITY... www.news.cornell.edu/stories/Jan06/dogs.dying.ssl.html

Tammy

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 22:00:32 -0500

Update to post #256 and #287. As a recap, my 3 dogs ate only dry IAMS. These are our facts: 1) started new bag 2) 3/16/07 a.m. Switched from free feeding to scheduled feeding 3) 3/16/07 p.m. I noticed that all three bowls were still full-original food, but they were drinking a lot of water 4) 3/16/07 Lexi (110lb Rotweiller) comes down with terrible cough-like she is choking 5) a few days go by with limited dry food eating, but a lot of begging for human food-IAMS is not yet a suspect 6) 3/19 I bring L. (110 lbs still) to the vet $300 for chest x-ray, ect to figure out why she is gagging- ALOT- still hadn't subsided. She stayed the day at the vet, sent home w/antibiotics...perhaps it is an infection-IAMS is not yet a suspect 7) 3/20 Buddy starts gagging/coughing, is later put on the same antibiotics 8) 3/21-22 I did a lot of research online about the food recall, and became v. concerned for each of my dog’s well being…they still weren’t touching their IAMS. They were now on a people-food diet. By this point, I was suspect of IAMS, so I rather they eat my food. 9) We changed to another brand food-the dogs ate it up QUICK!! V. suspect of IAMS now. 10) 3/23 I brought my 3 to the vet for blood cultures. Lexi’s weight was down 5 lbs from only 5 days ago. I also found out that her thyroid is under producing. Hypothyroidism. More pills. 11) 3/26 Blood cultures came back OK. 2 of 3 dogs are still coughing. Lexi's coughing a little, Buddy's still coughing a lot. 12) They have been IAMS free (officially) for 4 days...their health will be closely monitored 13) 3/26 I spoke with IAMS representative about our saga. They will have to call me back after getting the details...they are not sure how soon due to the volume of calls they are handling and limited resources. Otherwise, each question I asked received a v. scripted answer, all in line with what IAMS will officially say. They are not concerned with my case b/c we ate the dry food. IAMS is "unaware" of any other dry food concerns. Unbelievable

Rizzi

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 19:31:46 -0500

Rebecca, That is because Menu Food Income Fund really want to down play this tainted food problem. They want it to be last week news fast so they can get back to making money again. 14 to 16 dogs is not alot, the truth is over 1000 have died as a result of this. Please write the news media and ask/tell them to dig deeper. Rizzi

Rebecca

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 19:13:54 -0500

Keen, This is from our paper here starsandstripes. It was from the paper on the 21st of March. Let me correct myself, there hasn't been any pet illnesses here in Europe, that I know of. About two dozen varieties of pet food sold at AAFES and five varieties sold at commissaries in Europe have been pulled from shelves, and the stores will take the products back for a full refund. Recalled items sold at exchanges and commissaries in Europe are limited to certain wet food products from Iams and Nestle Purina, which makes Mighty Dog. So far, “We haven’t had anyone with any concerns,” said Kaylene Elliott, a receptionist at the military veterinary clinic in Vogelweh, Germany. The Vogelweh clinic is the only military vet clinic that serves the Kaiserslautern Military Community, the largest military community outside the continental U.S.Elliott added that the facility also hasn’t seen any animals come in with suspected food-related illnesses. That has been the only thing posted or printed about it here. I hate being here and NOT KNOWING THINGS! I haven't seen anything else about it on the news either. ~Rebecca I copied and pasted sections of that article.

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 19:11:46 -0500

What are these pets symptoms and so on? Are they getting vetranarian care? Types of treatment and are they recovering? Any other cases? How are people being notified of the recall there? Not being nosy, we just need as much information as possible. Thank you, keen

Rebecca

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 18:55:38 -0500

Keen, What else would you like to know?

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 18:30:34 -0500

lacy, please, can you keep me posted? Please everybody, keep me posted keen@mac.com

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:54:12 -0500

Yes lacy, those are the first symptoms and the pet needs a vet now... I mean now, any delay what so ever may be fatal. Our dog threw up terribly and it was extremly smelly. My dog was very lathargic, for and Airedale thats really weird. Please Rebecca, tell us more. keen

Rebecca

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:46:46 -0500

Keen, I have read many of your posts and warned my friends about the Iams. Regarding your last post about it being so wide spread. I am in Italy on a military base and there were 20 animals affected in Germany on the military bases there. That is why I keep coming on here trying to get more information because we don't get ALL the information here. It scares the hell out of me about all of this. I feed my dogs Purina Beneful Healthy Weight. But they did eat Mighty Dog in the pouch for about a week and then I saw the recall. Now I feed them cesar wet food manufactured by masterfoods. I am a very paranoid person and I have panic disorder so when I saw the news I freaked!!!

lacy

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:42:10 -0500

Sorry, vet, not ver.

lacy

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:40:19 -0500

So, a dog, that is not mine, that I am very close to and see everyday, is now sick. All he eats is Nutro Dry. He is throwing up and cant seem to make it to the yard. I will find out what the ver said this afternoon. Mike Keen, where those any of the signs you saw?

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:09:54 -0500

1% of our pets food has been recalled and from that 1% there will be many thousands killed. Damned efficient. Is this how they reached that one dog per family in China? Another thing that bothers me; why is this so spread out? It seems to me that if poison got into a batch of food and this batch is trucked on pallets to it's distributors and then sold to us the consumers then this thing shoud be more localized. On the other hand, if they knew about it and simply put a little here and a little there maybe they thought they could pass it off a normal deaths and get away with this whole mess altogether. To bad for them, we have computers now, finking on them is our only hope and for now my only outlet. I wish the vets would get off their asses and get on the band wagon and help us out. keen

lacy

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 17:06:25 -0500

Cheryl, I called Natural Balance and talked to them for a long time. I think I found a brand that I will be willing to use. Maybe you should try them! You can call them and they will answer ALL of your questions!

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 16:56:36 -0500

I tried to get the word out last week about the Dry Food problems. But... this guy would not listen. I still have food here for testing but still no takers. I received this on morning of 3/20/07. He could have saved an awful lot of suffering if he would have only listened. keen I am a producer for The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, and am working on a story about the pet food recall issue. I read your email post about your dog. First off, let me offer my condolences, I know losing a pet is a very difficult thing. I am wondering if you could email me your phone number or call me at (917) 848-8419. Would like to talk to you about what happened. Thanks, Mike Solmsen

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 15:58:20 -0500

Check this out, scares the hell out of me. I too, used to share a little of my dogs food. Now they will share a little of my food. If I would have known, kinda feeling... stupid. A person has been affected and 3 days hospitalization from sampling her pets food! www.canada.com/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=d19e0d1d-67dc-4ab7-911e-cf38390df54e&k=23093 keen

Rebecca

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 15:28:21 -0500

sorry here is the web site: http:// www.masterfoods.com/

Rebecca

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 15:26:20 -0500

Just wanted to let you guys know that there are other foods you can buy. Masterfoods.com!!! GO NOW! THIS IS FROM THEIR WEB SITE::::---------> The recent US pet food recall initiated by Menu Foods and other companies does not include any Mars Petcare pet food products. All of our brands, including PEDIGREE, CESAR and THE GOODLIFE RECIPE food for dogs, and WHISKAS, SHEBA, TEMPTATIONS, and THE GOODLIFE RECIPE food for cats, are safe for pets to enjoy. The safety of products not involved in the recall was validated by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on March 23. According to the FDA, pet owners should feel confident feeding unrecalled products to their pets. The safety and nutritional quality of our pet food is our top priority because for many people, their pets are their top priorities. ~Rebecca

Cheryl in CA

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 14:58:11 -0500

Oh, great! I thought I had found a dog AND cat food that I would feel comfortable with, and now I hear this about Blue Buffalo! Well, I guess I better get over to the grocery store so that I can spend 4 hours making dog and cat food for 8 cats and 2 large dogs. Cheryl in CA

lacy

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 14:21:17 -0500

I am more confused than ever. I called C.J. foods who makes blue buffalo. They use all U.S. suppliers, but she said those U.S. suppliers might outsource to other countires. So even if we call around and ask if an all natural company only uses U.S. suppliers, who knows if those U.S. suppliers outsource!!!! I guess there really isnt any safe dry food out there...I would feel uncomfortable making my own cat food.. What are we as pet owners supposed to feel comfortable feeding our animals!!!??????

rizzi

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 14:15:36 -0500

Seems like all the news grps are only reporting 14 to 16 deaths as a result of the recall. Guess I can't list a link, but please contact news grp and ask them to die deeper into the true numbers. If you have an animal that is sick or has died as a result of menu food or dry food, let them know. If enought people email them, they may take notice. Thank you, Rizzi

Rebecca

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 05:48:01 -0500

Rizzi, I think my dogs are okay. I went to the Mightydog website and it says pouches with the numbers 6337-7073 and their pouch was 6319. It has been over a week and they are still eating and both still playful. I have a 4 yr old shih-tzu and a 9 yr. old jack russell terrier. I know if the terrier starts to act lethargic something is wrong. But, neither one of them have been vomiting or urinating a lot. Thank you for responding to my post. I was a little concerned, and after reading everyone's post I still haven't heard anyone say anything about Mightydog, as Purina just did a voluntary recall. I feel so bad for everyone who had pets that have gotten sick. I don't know what I would do if I lost my babies.

BB

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 04:33:55 -0500

Neither Nutro nor Menu Foods have officially recalled or even mentioned DRY FOOD. However, buzz is accumulating around the internet as individuals -- one who has reported dry food [possible] poisoning to the FDA -- report illness related to IAMS DRY and NUTRO DRY. (I personally threw out my kitten Nutro dry and bleached the container. I will never buy Nutro again...) I can only pass along these accounts (below) as organized in our recent action campaign against Menu Foods. If you are interested in receiving the ENTIRE alert, with sample letters addressed to Menu Foods and other authorities, please request “Demand Action In Menu Foods Recall” at kinshipcircle@brick.net Brenda Shoss, Kinship Circle Below is an excerpt pertaining to dry food: ============================== #6: Recall Info, Alternative Food Sources, DRY Food Scare? What's in a Can of Dog Food? Don't ask. EYEWITNESS ACCOUNT: PET FOOD RECIPE? SOURCE: Cornwall's Voice For Animals, cvfa.uk@virgin.net [From my friend on myspace] 3/22/07, Gayle writes: My brother has actually been to the [MENU FOODS] plant in Columbia/Lexington, South Carolina. (He automates machinery and they bought machinery from the company my brother works for.) He said it was DEPPLORABLE! Upon entering the road to the plant, there are barrels lined up, starting at the street. People from nearby areas bring their dead pets, cattle, road kill and shelters (their euthanized animals) and dump them in the barrels. The barrels are then taken inside the plant where the carcasses are boiled. They pull out the larger bones to resell as pet bones. The meat, hide, small bones and fur are ground up and sold as pet food to the companies on the recall list. My brother said the smell at that place is unbearable. He could not stay there because of the smell and knowing how they made the pet food. He said he could not stop from gagging... He said they also use rotten fish from the grocery store, old dead chickens. After his trip to that plant, he began making his own dog food for his dog KINSHIP CIRCLE RECOMMENDS... Check out natural, preservative/additive-free We [the five furry ones] love Wellness, PetGuard, Innova, Wysong, by Nature Organics, Avoderm, and Halo.

rizzi

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 02:37:06 -0500

Rebecca, Please consider getting a blood and urine test for your pet(s). I did this with my pets (2 cats, 1 dog) and per my Vet, we now have a baseline and we will be monitoring this. It is worth it for the peace of mind. I believe Banfield Hos[pital (not sure of name) will do them for $40.00. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong. rizzi

Taeki's Friend

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 02:17:35 -0500

Just wanted to reiterate what someone posted earlier - and what Keen and I have been asking about for awhile: The Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory is offering to provide analysis of pet food or... There are, unfortunately, several caveats. 1) Must be submitted by a veterinarian 2) The results "and charges" will be returned to the vet...how many vets are going to want to foot the bill, and how much are we talking about? 3) It is unclear if they will test foods not on the "official" recall list, though I presume they would 4) They need a minimum of 2 cups of food 5) They can perform an autopsy/post-mortem if you want, but... The ISU Statement: If you suspect that an animal has been poisoned, veterinary toxicologists at Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine can confirm the presence of toxins in the food or samples from the pet. The Iowa State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory has the capability to analyze pet food for the suspected toxic agents described above and examine tissues from animals that have died. Samples should be submitted to the Diagnostic Lab through a veterinarian. Results and charges will be sent to the submitting veterinarian. I certainly have a lot of cat food (Hills Prescription Diet W/D mixed with M/D) and Pounce cat treats that I'll try to talk my vet into sending their way for testing, since unfortunately Taeki no longer needs it, and I'd NEVER feed it to another cat. For those of us with pet deaths and illness due to "non-recalled" foods, this may be the only way to go to explore the possibilty of a dry food culprit. Cut and Paste these URL's for more info: www.itchmo.com/read/iowa-state-university-offering-to-test-for-toxins_20070322 cvmweb2.cvm.iastate.edu/departments/VDPAM/default.aspx?id=2784

AZSue

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 01:45:57 -0500

Everyone: I posted a couple of comments on this board yesterday. I am grateful to God that my precious cats' food was not on the list and I grieve for those of you that have sick, dying and dead pets. I have watched the news ignore this topic and I am becoming more and more concerned as I continue to read this board. I am a very rational, level headed, non-histrionic woman, but I have to tell you, the more I think about this poisoning, the more I think that it has to be deliberate. Just think about the amount of rat poison that would have to be involved to kill an animal within 72 hours. This cannot be just a pesticide as they are reporting. This wheat gluten went into millions of dollars worth of pet food...that is not just a few cans or pouches. Something is wrong with this whole picture...the local news media has stopped reporting this in Phoenix, while more and more people show up on this and other message boards by the hour. Does anyone know what lobby in Washington the pet food industry uses/funds? Has it occurred to anyone else that terrorists just tested our food supply, by the way of our pets, to see just how vulnerable we really are? Add that to the fact that Menu Foods knew about this over a month ago and rather than issue an alert, decided to test and kill some additional animals before they finally stepped up and issued that alert. Something really stinks here...Sue

Jane

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 00:36:23 -0500

Amar, please see post #330 about Hill's C/D. Is your cat on this food because it is prone to struvite crystals? There might be some natural dry cat foods that are made with similar properties that might offer the same benefit but without a connection to Menu foods and perhaps one without wheat. I know you mentioned the cost factor but I used to buy C/D in the past and I know that it is not cheap. You might even save money by switching to a natural, wheat free 'Menu Foods' free diet for your meowsers.

MikeKeen

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 00:12:19 -0500

Will this book help us answer some of our questions! It seems very informational to me. What do you think? www.topwebsecrets.com/dogfood/?kid=936267&keyword=dog%20food%20scare&actual_keyword=dog%20food%20scare Please let us know what you think, not trying to sell or represent anything just trying to help! keen

Jen

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 23:48:22 -0500

My question is this: WHY are you feeding your cats and dogs things with WHEAT in them? Cats and dogs are carnivores! Its a well known fact that wheat, corn, soy, and yeast are allergens. Furthermore, they are CHEAP FILLERS. Dogs and cats do not need this to survive. All these fillers do is give your animal a sense of being full. Because these are not very digestible, your animals poops more frequently. Then you feed more. CHEAP FOODS are not economical! Please, if you care about the health of your pets, pick up a copy of "Foods Pets Die For" by Ann M Martin. You will never again shop for food at your local grocer, Wal-Mart, Target, etc again. You will see that Iams is responsible for countless deaths and cruel animal testing. They are using your money to manufacture cheap food but promote animal suffering. Get educated. There is no excuse. www.dogfoodanalysis.com www.dogfoodproject.com www.dogaware.com

lacy

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 23:19:45 -0500

Cheffy, I just found this site... www.catinfo.org/makingcatfood.htm I would be so scared to do this, but it sounds like it would be healthy...

Cheffy

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 22:03:27 -0500

Bart your recipe sounds great! I was wondering if anyone has some good kitty food recipes? My baby can't eat fish (he develops crystals in his urine)... Also, does anyone know of a safe kitty supplement that would provide the necessary taurine and other nutrients cats need? Thank you so much for any help/recipes you can provide! Again, my heart goes out to those of you whom have lost your precious critters. :( Cheffy

Bart

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 20:56:15 -0500

Here's my dog food recipe (cut & pasted) Add/delete any ingredients that fuzzbutt may be allergic to. My next task is to crate a decent dry food ( kibble) recipe..I'm sure it'll stink up the house (or garage) with the dehydrator; On with the recipe; My last(beagle)dog was getting kind of weak at 12 years old and I thought she didn't have many days left. then started making her food from scratch. Between the new food and a new backyard to play in, she lived to the ripe old age of 17-1/2 years. I make this up ~ every 2 weeks or so for my new unit (Aussie Shepherd) - ~2 Kg mechanically deboned/ground Chicken - 250 g Pork or Beef liver, rinsed, finely chopped * - 1 bunch Kale, destemmed & finely chopped * - 3-4 large Carrots, peeled & finely chopped * - 1 Tomato, blanched, peeled & chopped * - 1/2 cup dried red Lentils, rinsed several times - 3-5 cups raw Rice - 3-4 raw Eggs - Olive oil -optional (only if your dog needs the extra calories/fat) - 2 tins drained Sardines/fish or equivalent - ~3/4 cup Corn meal / brown Rice flour (thickener) - Optional Vitamins: I get "Medi-Cal" Canine Vitamin-Mineral Pre-Mix from my vet, otherwise 1-2 ground Calcium pills, but NO vitamin C! It’s supposedly bad for dogs! - Optional Stuff; ground Beef, Lamb, Vegetables, Grains. * Food processor makes chopping easier Place rice in large pot, rinse the rice with water until the water flows clear, add water to cover plus ~1" over. Add ~1/4 cup of ground chicken and/or liver to the rice (to flavour it) & bring to the boil & stir. Move the rice pot to a small burner on LOW, stir again, then cover & simmer ~23 mins. Rinse lentils, add water to cover + 3/4" & boil separately for ~20 minutes. Meanwhile, in a very large pot, add the remaining ground chicken, liver & optional meat. Cook ~15-20 mins. to brown, stirring occasionally so it doesn't burn. Add the chopped kale, carrots, tomato, cooked lentils & optional vegetables to the pot, lower heat, stir & add water if necessary. Cook 5-10 mins Add a can of sardines/cooked fish mixed with 3-4 beaten eggs to the meat mixture. Cook for ~ 5 mins on low/med heat. Add vitamins. The rice should be done by this point, add it by large spoonfuls to the meat/veg mixture. Add optional corn meal /rice flour until mixture is quite thick/bulky. You may have to wait a minute as the corn meal thickens. Add optional oil now & stir again. You will have a "tennis arm" at this point. Let cool a few minutes, then spoon portion size "blobs" onto individual sheets of plastic wrap, then wrap, cool & freeze. (I weigh out 350 gram bundles for my 50lb. Aussie) When ready to serve, microwave 2-5 mins (depending on size), then let the edges cool a few minutes (caution; HOT after microwaving), unwrap & let Fido enjoy! Dog Jerky Treats!!?? Slice fresh pork liver into ~1/3” slices and dry for 24hrs on high in your (Gardenmaster) dehydrator. I’d suggest drying this in the garage, as it really stinks up the place! Dogs LOVE it! (& it’s a lot cheaper than buying commercial dried liver treats)

Jane

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 20:34:33 -0500

In response to post 295! That is false information. The food sold at vet hospitals is NOT made by themselves. I called Royal Canin a few days ago and they confirmed that they also have their food produced through MENU. Royal Canin owns Medi-Cal and Walthams too! The best bet is human food but if you want to buy pet food, find a company that does not deal with Menu and has high standards. I recently bought Solid Gold's Bark at the Moon dry dog food and Nature's Logic dry cat food. I'm going to pick up some baby food for wet food as a treat for my cats and will mix in canned human grade ham or turkey for my dogs. But please know that the vet hospital food is just as vulnerable and deals with MENU!!

amar

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 20:29:19 -0500

Two bits of info: 1. ETHYLENE GLYCOL: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has determined propylene glycol to be "generally recognized as safe" for use in food, cosmetics, and medicines. Like ethylene glycol, propylene glycol affects the body's chemistry by increasing the amount of acid. Propylene glycol is metabolized into lactic acid, which occurs naturally as muscles are exercised, while ethylene glycol is metabolized into oxalic acid, which is toxic. 2. THE ONE-DOG POLICY: China in November 2006 has recently announced a one-dog per family policy in 8 provinces. It is also forbidden to have large dogs such as golden retrievers or huskies. The policy has been on the books for a long time, but only enforced recently. In China, at one Dog Management Office --- a person was asked why the crackdown. He said officials wanted to ensure that no one was bitten and injured during the 2008 Olympics. "Of course, it is related to the Games," Shi said. "Everything needs to be cleaned up before the Olympics." Last summer in Hunnan Province 54,000 dogs were slaughtered as a way of dealing with "a rabies problem." However, according to a state media report, there is no rabies problem in Beijing, so the rabies excuse is just that. I haven't seen too many vicious golden retrievers around the US either. Maybe Chinese golden retrievers are different? You know the drill. If there's no other way to adequately explain a phenomenon, develop a conspiracy theory to cover it. Here's yours for the day---Chinese revenge killing of western dogs. amar

Jing

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 19:45:42 -0500

Randy,my scottish terrier was fine 2 days b4 i fed him iams' wet food (chicken,i believe).2 day later, he started vomiting at 2:30 in the morning and all the way till 7:30am and then he started vomiting blood.Took him to the vet at 9am and by the time the vet arrived at 10am,Randy had threw up so much blood and they took him to another room and he died there.I didn't even had a chance to say goodbye.He was only so young and the vet say he died so suddenly that he didn't even have time to try to find out what is wrong and treat him.My poor baby.I hope the pple who caused these poor animals' death would ROT IN HELL!! Till now,we still have not gotten over this whole thing. People in Toronto planning to sue,pls contact me at pinkpinkgal@hotmail.com cz i'm gonna get justice for all dogs and cats out there. They should not go free.Let's boycott all these recall product and work togather to ensure the better health of our pets. good luck to all pet owner out there.

Spom

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 19:38:26 -0500

Jane, that is exactly what I said or meant to say in my previous posts. It is likely that Menu Foods was not the only manufacturer to start buying its grain from China. More often than not, companies will make these sorts of changes in tandem. Therefore, it is not unlikely other manufacturers also have been buying grain from China. Is this not an obvious question for journalists to ask? I will not go on an another anti-journalist rant, but I am not sure they know how to ask the right questions. I will go on an anti-Chinese products rant, though. I go out of my way to avoid anything made in China. Aside from the moral issues of slave labor, nothing works right. The simplest devices fail because the Chinese will try to squeeze every last penny from the product. Spom

Jane

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 18:53:40 -0500

There has been some mention in a few posts that Menu foods does not make dry food and that there is mass hysteria and people are just freaking out etc.. What I think is clear is that there are people on this message board who have pets that have died and these pets have ingested dry food only. Obviously Menu foods will not be responsible for this but it does bring to light that there is a connection and that connection is probably the wheat gluten. I'm guessing that the companies that produce the dry foods may have outsourced their wheat gluten from China as well and when it is finally revealed, it is likely that their foods will pulled off the shelves too. If this is the case, it will be so devastating to know that all these pets may have died because companies wanted to cut on their costs and get wheat gluten from China rather than from North America. The poison found in the wheat gluten is deemed acceptable in other countries but not in North America. We have standards that provide protection for our beloved animals and people and this may not have happened if the ingredients were not purchased from overseas.

MikeKeen

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 18:42:25 -0500

I'm terribly sorry for you amar, I too have recently lost a pet to IAMS DRY Lamb and Rice and am really upset that it to is not being recalled. Alot of jackasses still beleive that it's ok because it's not on the OFFICIAL RECALL LIST. The late, inaccurate, added to every day OFFICIAL RECALL LIST! Please don't feed your animals that slop. Slop is probably a little bit of a high end discription for the poisonous food we've been forcing on our pets. Even before all of this, we were still feeding our pets... pets. We are using our pets as disposal systems or filtering systems for our toxics. Wet and Dry. grouchier than ever keen

Jane

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 18:29:49 -0500

amar

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 17:59:49 -0500

To all of you --- yes, my dog was killed by Iam's lamb & rice. Hardy little soul, she lasted a few months on vet care, tests, Gerber's baby meats and rice. My cats also became deathly ill on Iam's dry food. They barely pulled through. Now I'm afraid of any cat food. The vet said to feed them Hill's CD/feline dry, which I'm doing. All but one cat does well on it. Now I've had to switch her to Eukanuba Low-Residue dry food. These prescription diets are hard on the budget. The vet seems to think they're safe. I hope that's true. My neighbor's cat ate Special Kitty only once and then disappeared. I think that extensive testing should be done on all dry cat & dog food, especially regarding the substitution of ethylene glycol (anti-freeze!) for the usual pet food ingredient propylene glycol. That dry food scandal will, I hope, soon force the dry food mfrs to come clean. amar

Steve

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 17:54:52 -0500

I lost my beautiful six year old Maine Coon cat to poisoning on Wednesday. He was on a diet of fresh cooked beef, chicken and turkey, and dry food. However, we also gave him Nutro Natural Choice and Nutro Gourmet Classics (from the pouches) as a "treat". He was in terrible agony before we had to euthanize him. I believe that if the toxic agent was aminopterin then pets are not only dying from renal failure, but also liver and other vital organ failure. Aminopterin is an insidious poison that can cause the failure of several vital organs. I hope the focus on pet deaths isn't limited to renal failure. I also switched him from Royal Canin to Nutro dry food about two weeks ago - I hope this diet change wasn't a contributing factor. Nutro has not answered personally either my first report to them of his illness or my report of his death. I wish I had never fed this loving, beautiful soul commercial pet food.

Rebecca

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 17:44:26 -0500

Rizzi! Thanks so much, I have asked that same question a few times. My dogs seem to be okay... I stopped giving them the food a week ago and they aren't exhibiting any symptoms. I switched them to Cesar wet food, it is not recalled and manufactured by a different company Masterfoods. Thank you for responding!!!! :)

A. Lee

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 17:12:59 -0500

My little dog, Lady, died from Ol'Roy pouches. She went into complete renal failure and the veterinarian said there was nothing he could do to save her life. She was laid to rest one week prior to the news release coming out. Her body was creamated so now science can't study (and prove) the cause of death in relation to the food. Our cats were eating pouches of tuna on the recall list at the same time. Now, I have one dead dog, two other dogs poisoned and two cats poisoned. I'm angry, to say the least.

MikeKeen

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 17:05:09 -0500

This is a nightmare... waiting for an another nightmare to take it's place. This is one from the yahoo group, and there is so many more. Can we do anything else to get the word out, people are not listening. I am new on this list just joined yesterday. Last Wednesday my vet told me my service dog was dying from renal failure. We go back on Friday to see how far it has progressed. He currently is on antibontic and pain pills. His eyes look so sad I can't hardly look at him. I am a paraplegic and cannot walk at all so he helps me is so many ways. He tells me when I need to go lay down, picks up things whenever I tell him to, comes up under my legs when I transfer to the bed to help me get my legs in bed too. I trained him myself and he has served me very well for 7 yrs now. I was going to retire him but was not prepared to literally lose him to death. He was very healthy until 3 wks ago. He now pants all the time, won't lay on his side, he sleeps on his belly, drinks a lot of water and won't eat his food. I am just watching him waste away. I tried to call 2 different IAMS phone numbers but either get a busy signal or a message telling me the number I called could not be completed. I am thinking that IAMS does not want or care what is happening to our animals. I have another number I am going to call tomorrow and see if I can at least express a concern. I switched my service dog to IAMS Large Bite Light 3 wks ago and now he is in renal failure. This is dry food and supposedly it is not on the list of tainted food. But being an old farm girl "When there is a rat in the barn, there is a rat nest nearby." Dee & Walker SD CGC Winfield, KS www.itchmo.com/read/grim-milestone-1000-reports-of-pet-death_20070323 Notice that 1,000 number, it's growing by over 200 per day. These are just the reported cases, can you imagine! keen

MikeKeen

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 16:58:09 -0500

This is a nightmare... waiting for another nightmare to take it's place! www.itchmo.com/read/grim-milestone-1000-reports-of-pet-death_20070323 keen

Spom

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 15:54:17 -0500

Andrew, I believe other manufacturers - not just Menu Foods - might have bought gluten from a contaminated source. I believe my dog was getting poisoned by dry Iams food. I do not believe Menu Foods made it. I think another manufacturer did, but that manufacturer could have bought from the same supplier. Spom in Venice

rizzi

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 15:42:07 -0500

Keen regarding post 333 I believe if you go the www. howl911.com site, they have a notice up on where to send pet food and/or deceased animals to be tested. Sorry about your loss rizzi

rizzi

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 15:20:27 -0500

Rebecca regarding #332post My understanding with pouch type food, symptoms show up with in 24 hrs after eating contaminated food. If you suspect your pet is sick, PLEASE RUSH it to the Vets NOW. Earlier the diagnoses, the better chance for recovery. Symptoms should included vomiting, no energy, will not eat food, and a marked increase in liquid consumption. I'm not sure about Mighty Dog food, you could check the Menu Food recall site. Hope this helps, truly hope your pet is o.k.

MikeKeen

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 13:45:00 -0500

Haven't you been reading and learning anything Andrew post 334... you too beleive these simple cold blooded murderers... All righty then, you feed your pet the crap and hey if they get sick and die like our pet did, I guess you probably deserve it, I don't think your pets derserve that fate though. Like I've said before, I have 35 pounds of this poison left, any takers? Go suck that recall bottle down. Information is worthless to you unless it comes from a source that is ____________? fill in the blanks for us Andrew. keen

Rocky

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 13:18:25 -0500

I agree with Jo on post #308... It is not possible to test every ingredient for every possible toxin, chemical, pesticide or heavy metal used in animal and human food before it hits the shelves. This is a rare toxin that was found; in fact it is illegal in North America. No pet food or human food manufacturer would have caught this and it is unfair to criticize the manufacturer for not catching this in their quality control measures. I think that the public is losing focus on what the cause was - the suspect ingredint used. I am very curious to see how this all transpires when/if the supplier is identified and if this ingredient was used in the human food chain. I don't believe there has been this much mass-hysteria for any human food that was ever recalled due to sickness and human death.

Andrew

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 12:18:28 -0500

MikeKeen, Have you not paid attention? The company Menu Foods only produces wet pet food, not dry.

MikeKeen

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 11:25:19 -0500

Please, if you have lost an animal due to what you think is food related, post your pet death here. There is under 30 so far in this group and I'm certain that number should be much higher. health.groups.yahoo.com/group/MenuFoodsClassAction/database?method=reportRows&tbl=5 Still waiting for info on where to send our poison. We have over 35 pounds of the last product we fed our Abbey, I know it killed her, just need some test done. I can pay for the test if that's the issue. keen

Rebecca

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 08:04:29 -0500

I was just wondering if anyone has fed their dogs the Mighty Dog in the pouch and if so has any of them gotten sick? And Does anyone know how long it takes before symptoms show up????? Please respond!!!!! I need to know!!!!! Thanks Rebecca

Barb

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 07:26:44 -0500

http:// iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring04/Perhach/PetFood/Processing.htm Please read this I am in Shock.

Janice

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 06:36:25 -0500

Please contact your state FDA with any concerns. They were very prompt to respond and are testing the remaining DRY Hills' Prescription c/d. Also read the article "The Tip of the Iceberg" at www.animaltalknaturally.com. It is by a vet. www.catnutrition.org also has some good dietary information. Report the illness or death of your pet to www.thepetcenter.com. We lost our cat in Jan. due to renal failure. We had purchased a new bag of Prescription c/d just 3 days before. Please urge the FDA to test all food--both dry and wet.

Cheffy

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 02:48:41 -0500

I've cried so much over the comments on this page and I can totally empathize. :( My baby boy sits on my lap as I type this and I thank GOD he's still with me...he's already been through so much...I made the mistake of going to the PETA website today and downloading one of their vids...BAD IDEA...ugh...they make me just as angry as the sickos abusing the animals! I wish, I WISH they'd show them RESCUING these poor babies...rather than just TAPING/FILMING them for their own propaganda/agenda... My heart is heavy with empathy for those of you whom have lost your loved ones... Today I pressure cooked some cheap beef roast, baby carrots together with a little bit of grey sea salt, powdered vitamin C and oregano (I hope that's okay...I've never heard anything bad to the contrary)? Then I blended some up in a food processor with the broth and my boys gobbled it up... My baby was always on the "Wellness" brand and I have two BIG packages of canned kitty food that I refuse to feed him now until I know for sure... I'd rather be paranoid and have my baby alive rather than trust a website that says "We aren't on the recall list"...like THAT is going to make me feel okay...right! The Wellness brand cat food doesn't use any wheat products and so far the rat poison is linked to wheat from China but I'm not taking any friggin' chances... Sorry for ranting...I'm just angry and sad for those of you that lost your fur babies...not to mention the medical bills and mental/emotional grief you're experiencing... I hate to sound overly dramatic but if this happened to me and my own little boy after all we've gone through together I don't doubt I'd feel close to suicide... Some people just don't understand how important a pet/human bond can be...and they never will unless they've experienced it for themselves...it's a true blessing when you are lucky enough to find that gift... My prayers go out to you all that have lost your living angels...please know, PLEASE know that their spirits live on in you and in heaven... Tearfully and Sincerely, Cheffy

lacy

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 01:58:42 -0500

Mary, I found that info off a website and I honestly I cant find it right now. But it makes sense. I called them and they told me their dry was manufactured in kansas. On C.J. Foods website, it says they are located in Kansas. Ill keep trying to find it again. I have no idea what to feed my Kitties!!

Barb

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 00:55:53 -0500

http:// www.vetinfo4cats.com/ Please visit here Dr. Richards is wonderful!

Barb

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 00:33:37 -0500

The toxic effect of the onions are the same whether the product is raw, cooked or dehydrated. The hemolytic episode usually occurs several days after onion ingestion (lowest hematocrit around day 5 post ingestion). Daily feeding of onions could have a cumulative effect due to ongoing formation of Heinz bodies versus a single exposure with a wide gap until the next exposure, allowing the bone marrow time to regenerate the prematurely destroyed red cells. The cat is even more susceptible. Recently, Gerber began to add onion powder to all its meat baby foods. They are labeled as "better tasting". Since baby food is often used in sick cats that are not eating (to stimulate their appetites), there was concern that the onion powder would cause a Heinz body anemia in these cats. Within a week or two of the change, there were numerous reports of Heinz body anemia in cats receiving Gerber baby food in their diets. I strongly recommend NO ONIONS for dogs. There is no benefit and certainly the potential to cause harm.

Barb

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 00:29:16 -0500

Spom any theory is possible on the rat poison as to how it got in the wheat. I do think they are probably all looking for the source we can be sure of that, but will probably never be 100 % sure. My heart goes out to every single person whom has a sick or dying cat or dog, or whom has lost a animal they love. My friend is hard broken over losing her cat and just thinking of losing our little guy here, our Dog just tears me up. We use Nutro dry and wet and no small cans were on the recall but Nutro ask to send them all back in. We are feeding our little guy Rice and Chicken right now I am afraid to feed him any thing else right now. As for Menu or any other company out there, their money cannot replace any of our animals.

Genevieve

Sun, 25 Mar 2007 00:12:50 -0500

If you buy baby food, make sure it has no onion powder.

Spom

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 22:58:07 -0500

Theory on wheat contamination There is a reference in one story I found in the NY Times that said sometimes "bait" will be placed around the perimeter of the grain to catch rodents on ships coming over from China. My theory is that instead of just using bait, some wise guys on these vessels began using rat poison around or even in the grain. Another theory is that the Chinese farmers were having trouble with rodents and knew their grain was not going to feed humans. To stop rodents from eating it they mixed poison in with it. They might not have realized or cared what would happen to the canine or feline end-users. Either that, or someone sabotaged multiple food plants inside the U.S. That seems unlikely. I feel for everyone that lost a pet. My dog may have escaped death (again). After 3 days of quality Wholefoods meals (now he eats REAL lamb and rice), he is bouncing of the walls and smiling. He is also drinking and urinating less. Spom in CA

Spom

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 22:51:28 -0500

Relationship between Iams and Menu Foods I was doing some stock research because I thought Menu Foods might be a good short sell. (Betting it will go down more.) After analyzing their financial disclosures, I learned that Iams actually sold them at least one of their food plants. Essentially, at some point Iams decided it was in the "brand" business, not the "pet food-making" business. They were going to leave the pet food-making to their good friend, Menu Foods. Little did they know, Menu Foods was less interested in preserving the Iams brand than Iams. Wonder when a SINGLE journalist will write the story on industry. Sunday NY Times? Spom in Venice

Angela Flynn

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 22:16:54 -0500

This really brings to light how important it is to monitor companies. My sister buys a dry dog food which uses organic chicken. Or I should say used to. She read the ingredients when she first purchased the food about a year ago. After this poisoning with Menu Foods she decided she had better read the ingredients again. Now there is no mention of organic chicken. I buy mostly organic food and much of the bulk grains and beans come from China. I have to say I do not have much confidence in them now. And I still feel that this may have a genetic engineering link. What if China was experminenting with pharma crops. They may have implanted an anti-cancer trait or a rodenticide trait into wheat. I am having a hard time seeing how such a vast amount of wheat could have been contaminated otherwise. This article is a bit beyond my level of expertise, but it does illustrate the experimenting going on. www.pnas.org/cgi/reprint/88/11/4572.pdf And this one from I-SIS illustrates many of the documented poisonings from ge experiments. www.i-sis.org.uk/GMFoodNightmareUnfolding.php

mary

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 21:35:52 -0500

someone made an interesting comment to me about the anti freeze in the food. the machines used in the process need anti freeze to keep them cool. i wonder who's inspecting theese machines & if theres a leak.

mary

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 21:21:23 -0500

lacy i forgot they also said that they had to plants 1 for wet & 1 for dry & neither of their manufactures was in any way affilliated with menue foods

Barb

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 21:17:49 -0500

Taeki's Friend Thank you! I appreciate everyone here. I think we are all terrified. These are our furbabies and we love them. And what someone said it might get in our food chain is correct. Now how did Rat Poisin get in the Wheat, think about that long and hard. Someone put it in there, no way in landed in all that Wheat unless someone dropped it in.

mary

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 21:12:02 -0500

lacy how'd you find out b.b. was manufactured by c.j. foods? when i called them they told me they could not give me that information because thier manufacturer was such a small company they were not equiped to handle publicity & calls. that made me nervous along with knowing its manufactured in kansas they did tell me all of thier ingredients are human grade & are only purchased from the u.s. on the news friday their food was advertised as safe for human consumption

Taeki's Friend

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 20:59:00 -0500

Barb, Sorry about my prior response, I should have read your original message closer! I can't find a URL, but an earlier dry food recall was in late 2005 (though with food good until 2007), from Diamond Pet Foods, and included the range of date codes "Best By 01-March-07" through "Best By 11-June-07". I still wouldn't trust ANY manufactured pet food right now, though.

MikeKeen

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 20:50:29 -0500

Yikes, you mean the Blue Buffalo could be cross contaminated just by proximity alone. Suppliers usually have routes and I'm kinda thinking... since money rules and pets are the fuel, blue buffalo would definitely be suspect at this point, in my opinion, which is only that. These are my personal conclusions but If they would expose their supply chain for scrutiny that could be of great benefit for us and them. Sharing information is really helping me with all that has transpired. We can not thank you enough, your all kinda like our temporary replacement pet x 1000. keen

Taeki's Friend

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 20:45:57 -0500

Barb, The URL for the Menu Foods Recall is: www.menufoods.com/recall/ Be aware that there may be other affected foods, not on the list, and not acknowledged by the manufacturer. I would caution that just because it isn't on the list, doesn't mean it is safe.

lacy

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 20:16:21 -0500

So Blue Buffalo is manufactured at C.J. Foods in the same city, Emporia Kansas, as the contaminated Menu Foods plant. Would it be crazy to be paranoid about that? Should I switch?? Someone help please!

Barb

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 19:20:54 -0500

What is the URL for Dry Dog Food recall, please share it.

Rebecca

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 19:17:17 -0500

HEY EVERYONE! I know you are all freaked out about this food problem, believe me I am too! I was feeding my dogs Mighty Dog in the pouch! Fortunately they seem to be doing fine and the only reason I was feeding them that is because both of them are on antibiotics! I was mushing their pills into the food. Anyway I wanted to let everyone know that there are other companies that make dogs food that is not "tainted"... I now use Cesar wet food for them in the mornings and it is made by Masterfood. You can go to there website to see a list of their cat and dog foods Masterfoods.com. I believe they make Pedigree products as well. As far as dry food my babies are still eating Purina Beneful healthy weight. It does make me nervous. I HOPE ALL OF YOU HAVE LUCK AND PLEASE LOOK AT MASTERFOODS.COM FOR OTHER BRANDS THAT ARE SAFE FOR YOUR PETS!!!!

Cynthia Hall

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 17:55:03 -0500

Hello Mike, Thank you so much for getting back to me. You have really suffered from having the tumor. I hope that you can find some answers soon to your health. I too, have been to endless doctors the past few months. It is something I really dislike doing. Anyway, yes I know you are right about the foods being tainted regardless whether they are wet or dry. Clearly, since there is a toxin in the wet it is not going to be destroyed by baking it into little kibbles. I really started thinking today about possibly losing my male dog and I started getting teary. He is my kid and I have nursed him through the surgical removal of a deformed kidney from birh. He has one kidney now and it has been perfectly healthy as I have constant BUN's done on him and watch every morsel of food he eats. But one healthy kidney can't take toxins for sure! My female seems to be doing better today but it seems my male is still suffering. Of course, last night she was the one that woke me up at 4 AM to go outside and has so the past two weeks off and on. So I am in a knot waiting to see what the vet has to say Monday. I am hoping he went to his vet school to get more information on what is going on with the treatment of this toxin. It is such a shame that these companies are so ruthless. Do they really think they can survive by keeping the information hidden from us? Like I said I believe this started in Dec. and am almost certain of it from the way my dogs have been ill. I really believe they are not telling us the whole truth. I have obviously gotten two different answers directly from the same company. So it seems somebody is lying. And if they will lie about one thing they will possibly lie about another. Maybe they don't have informed people working for them but it is all a bit too strange. This is just heartbreaking watching this happen to so many pet owners that truly love their pets as part of the family. I am so sorry for your family's loss. Please know you all are in my thoughts and prayers. I will keep you posted if anything changes or I come up with new info.

MikeKeen

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 17:24:22 -0500

Cynthia, my blood work will not be back from San Francisco until next week. Doctor was a little concerned about the dog and now me. But honestly I have to tell you that in 2005 I had a very rare tumor removed from my pancreas. There were only 64 others world wide. So my problem, no one knows, I worked in the printing industry with a great deal of chemicals. Have spent 10's of thousand of dollars with specialist that say they have no connection. First of all, I have a very hard time listening to poeple that have no interest in my dogs health or my families happieness. These people, or companies are driven by the dollar, and truly have no allegance to us. We have pets they have food, we have money, they have our money to use to spin this thing any direction they would like. I have read of three seperate problems now with our pets food, be it wet or dry. These dry foods must certainly start out wet, don't you think. They dry it and screen out the excess hair, metals and plastics. I've read nothing about removeing or testing for any of these suspected chemicals before they make a new batch. First wet batch goes down the shoot, on to production, no one knows about there being a problem with it and they start the next shift and they start with another new wet batch. I'm sure this goes on many hundreds of times a year. How, why would they and when do they sterilize their equipment. That is my reasoning for recommending that we not feed our animals any food stuffs that are packaged by these manufactureing giants. If anyone can gurantee to us that their foods are safe please help us out here. I have read so many names of so many manufactures that it's truly mind boggleing. Who is to say what is safe, the only true test is to eat it, and that in itself has been deadly to say the least. If you haven't noticed, MENU FOODS may be just the tip of the iceburg and the slow manner in which this is being handled may affect us all, one way or the other. I guess the best test of all is to have the CEO's feed it to themselves or their pets and see how they react. If 1 in 6 of these SOB's passed, we wouldn't miss much. Cook em chicken, cook em steak, just keep that pet food off their plate. keen

Jo

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 16:48:56 -0500

The news reported that this rodenticide came from wheat gluten from China and is illegal in the US. How could this have been tested for by Menu Foods? Is our food screened for every single poison and toxin before it is used? Did anyone watch the press conference Menu Foods had yesterday? I'm trying to download it from the net.

Cynthia Hall

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 16:39:28 -0500

I forgot something can you believe that?? Both dogs have been low on energy. And one has been so weak at times she could barely get up.

Cynthia Hall

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 16:35:30 -0500

Mike, I am so sorry about the loss of your dog as well as everyone on here that has lost their pets. I know how much they mean to you and how you feel so desperate to try and help them when they are ill and suffering. Do you know the results of your own blood work? My dogs (collies) have been in and out of the vet since Dec. I had wondered if it was the food I was feeding. And am now really wondering about this recall. I keep getting conflicting answers from Hill's Prescription Diet when I have called them. As to whether the canned food is manufactured by Menu. I have heard that no Menu doesn't make the Prescription diets. And I have heard twice that yes they do but in a different plant. Lamb and rice are in J/D. Rice and Pork hearts are in K/D. Hmmmm? Back in Dec they stopped making the K/D for several weeks. I couldn't get it and I had to go to feeding Purina vet formula NF. Clearly both of my dogs are suffering from something and have seemed to be since Dec. I have been ill since Dec. too with elevated ALP tests and other weird problems. I am 43. Long shot I know. I have wondered since the beginning of this recall if it had something to do with the food I have been handling that the dogs were eating. Both have been on dry K/D (which by the way they wouldn't hardly eat after the last bag I bought) One dog was eating wet J/D and the other wet K/D. Both are off all the food now but are waking me up and crying to go outside at 4AM to go to the bathroom. Other weird things like stomach upset that we treated one dog with Pepcid a week and half ago. We did 5 X-rays of his stomach and he had this strange area in his stomach on the films. The vet and I couldn't figure out what it could be. Also neurological symptoms in the same dog (last Thursday) and mucus in both of their stools. Antibiotics were given to both dogs for a short period of time for the mucus. Water consumption has gone to barely none to more today. Have had some vomiting back about a month ago. Maybe two or three times. More vomiting around Dec than now. Have gone to a home cooked diet now but I am scared to death. Had full blood panels on both dogs last week. BUN and creatitine (sp?) were good but don't know about the rest of the results. Since then the dogs are acting worse. The dogs have been to the vet numerous times since Dec. including last Friday. I have an appointment with my vet Monday again at 4:00. Seems like I am there every day now. By the way, he is gone for the weekend and has my dogs records with him. They told me this today. I know he is concerned about these sudden strange problems they are having in the past few months. What do you think? I have read your posts and am wondering if you could help me out with any additional info. Thanks so much and my deepest heart felt sympathy to all.

She

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 16:33:22 -0500

#302, Links to the articles on dry foods, please? You can post links if you remove the h,t,t,p,:,/,/ from the front of the link. Then it becomes just text. The h,t,t,p part of most links is what makes it an automatic link. Like this: leda.law.harvard.edu/leda/data/784/Patrick06.html -- not a clickable link, but you can c&p it into your browser. Thanks!

MikeKeen

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 15:57:34 -0500

Ok, I know, I can't speel airy good!

MikeKeen

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 14:13:16 -0500

Spom, I've been reading articles on the net from all over the country about DRY pet foods killing pets since Monday. Many different brands scattered, almost maticulously, around the world. I know, this is starting to sound like some spy novel or conspiracy theory but this is as real as a heart attack. You know as well as I do that this thing is snowballing, possibly out of control. I have read of police k9's having some problems with the dry. I've also read that the FDA and PETA are indeed calling for an investigation into the dry products. What I'm trying to say is, don't feed your dogs or cats or anything else for that matter dry food until we, the pet owners, are convinced that our pets foods are 100% safe. Until then I suggest, scraps from the table and home made kibble just to be safe. You know, I'm sure haveing a hard time even looking at Walmart, let alone to stop and take the time to shop. They sold the DRY IAMS that so brutally kill our dog. I have about 35 pounds of this poison left, you think IAMS CEO would feed it to his pets, if he has one? I wouldn't feed it to my worst enemy. This stuff is so poison the rats won't touch it. keen

Spom

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 12:12:30 -0500

Finally! Dry food being questioned. The news articles are trickling in on the dry food.

Spom

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 11:56:19 -0500

No one knows yet what other producers bought grain from China or from this particular Chinese supplier. Why is no one asking this question? Why have all other dog foods been deemed safe? Why aren't journalists asking more questions about who else bought grain from China? Why aren't our vets making some noise about getting to the bottom of what other producers used questionable grain? Spom

MikeKeen

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 11:21:40 -0500

Tammy Post 256, Please can you contact me at keen@mac.com I would like to share some information with you. Dry Iams killed my 3.5 year old Airedale Terrier this week. keen

MikeKeen

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 10:48:11 -0500

Not in dry food??? The front page of the newpaper today had it's little articale... 86 pet deaths linked to rat poison. B.S. This is really getting me down. I have eveidence of dry food deaths from all over the country and parts of the world. Go ahead feed your pets dry food. I not going to say I told you so... but you are taking your pets life into your own hands not the pet food industry for you have been warned... No one as of yet has opted to take my dry food for testing. I will pay for the tests! What the hell is going on folks? keen

Jan

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 10:11:26 -0500

Stop feeding your pets any prepared pet foods. You can trust NONE of them. Please give your pets people food, i.e. chicken, rice, fish, steak, whatever. Make your own kibble if you have to. There are pleanty of do-it-yourself recipes on the internet. Let's not loose any more beloved pets. This wheat gluten with rat poison that is coming in from China has to be stopped! The pet death toll must be in the tens of thousands. It's horrible! Contact your Senators and Congressmen. No more rat poison! Why isn't this stuff tested when hitting our shores before it goes to the manufacturer to be put into food products? It just as easily might appear in people food as well. My condolences to all that have lost these beloved family members. I weep for you.

cat

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 08:57:05 -0500

#269, unfortunately, both Wellness and Innova (Natura) companies do business with Menu Foods as well. I spoke with someone at Natura because my cat eats both Innova EVO and California Natural dry foods. She told me that they manufacture dry foods in their own plant, and some wet foods through Menu. It doesn't say that on their website, but she was upfront about it when I called. They don't have any cuts and gravy style foods so nothing in the recall. Of course I can't trust that cuts and gravy is truly the only thing to worry about until they actually figure out what really caused this, so I wouldn't trust any wet foods from Menu at all. I also don't want to support any company that does business with Menu, so I was very sad to find out about this, I have a lot of respect for Natura foods. For now, I am feeding Merrick canned food and the Natura dry foods, but I am going to buy some Natural Balance dry food to transition her over. They both have no outsourcing to Menu Foods. Also, according to the Merrick website, they have a new dry cat food coming in April, so I will probably try that as well, that company seems very good and my vet really likes them.

Kat

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 03:50:53 -0500

In response to the queries about Fancy Feast: Yes, I've possibly had problems with this. Like so many pet owners, Purina was the only brand of food that my pets would eat over the years. The vets were always pushing Iams and Science Diet and so many pet food nutritionists (and snobs alike) would push Eukanuba and other now recalled products, but none of my pets would touch the stuff. So, they got what they liked (mostly Purina One dry cat and dog food and Fancy Feast and Friskies as well as copious amounts of table scraps). Tuesday I went away for a short trip (38 hours) and left my cat an extra day's food supply. When I came home she hadn't eaten any of it. I thought perhaps that she was angry, but she greeted us in her normal eager and affectionate way, but continued to refuse to eat anything Wednesday evening, all day Thursday, and this morning. She had drunk all of her water (which I didn't think she'd touch as cats normally drink very little) and slept all day when I expected her to have scratched up the furniture as she normally spends most of her time outside in the spring. Instead she was very lethargic, had no interest in going outside even after being cooped in the house for a couple of days and basically slept for 24 hours straight. This afternoon she started showing signs of feeling better she was more active and even went outside for a couple of hours in the evening. Her appetite had partially recovered, however she was only eating her dry food. She still wouldn't touch her Fancy Feast (that I have now thrown out). This is only one report and her behavior could easily be a stress reaction to being left alone overnight or simply a non-food related illness. I do not care to take that chance and will be cooking for my girl for some time. But, I see at least one other person has had this experience with Purina products. I wonder if there are others?

whataboutthevet

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 02:10:10 -0500

WHY NOT JUST BUY FROM THE VET...THERE FOOD IS SAFE.. THEY MAKE THEIR OWN, EXCLUSIVLY FROM THE VETRINARIANS THEMSELF.

Barb

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 01:35:50 -0500

Buy Gerber's Baby Food pureed turkey and chicken. Feed them that it is safe!

sumbunnylovesyou

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 01:13:22 -0500

To all you cat owners out there buy the meat baby food at the store's. Until all this is over. My friends darling persian cat died yesterday, kidney failure and she only ate 2 cans of Priority ,Von's brand . Most of the time she only gave her the meat Baby Food. She now wishes she never bought the canned cat food afew weeks ago. Expences incurred were almost $500 dollars. Nothing will replace her dearly beloved cat.

sumbunnylovesyou

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 01:09:46 -0500

MikeKeen

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 00:56:02 -0500

Please read these posts and understand that this in not just wet pet food. Dry pet food starts wet, and just because they have dried it out does not mean it no longer has poisons in it. Come on, lets get off of it and tell the truth. Why have so many dogs and cats been sick and dying from Dry Foods of all kinds? I can't sit here and listen to this crap anymore, if you think it's only wet then you too have a most important and possibly painfull lesson to learn, hopefully you won't have the learn the lesson as hard and painfull as we have. Please don't let it be your pets, don't let them eat the dry foods. I'm having a very hard time recommending any of these glorified poisons wether they be wet or dry. Keep your pet alive, feed it PEOPLE food for now at least until we know for certain what the hell is killing or most precious pets. Just because you hear it on the news or read it in your newspapers does not make it so. Remember WMD's, where has that gotten us anyway. Sorry I'm a pessimist, but you would be to if you knew you killed your 3.5 year old dog with the dry food you were feeding her. IAMS still SUCKS!!!

Barb

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 00:55:39 -0500

Barb

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 00:49:12 -0500

To all you cat owners out there buy the meat baby food at the store's. Until all this is over. My friends darling persian cat died yesterday, kidney failure and she only ate 2 cans of Priority (Von's brand) . Most of the time she only gave her the meat Baby Food. She now wishes she never bought the canned cat food afew weeks ago. Expences incurred were almost $500 dollars. Nothing will replace her dearly beloved cat.

4Woofer

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 00:31:14 -0500

On Feb 26, I bought a new bag of IAMS Lamb Meal and Rice DRY dog food. My Basset Hound ate it for about a week. On Thurdsay March 8 he vomited a slimey watery fluid at least 3 times before I got him to the vet. The vet thought he had pancreatitis. He died at 2am Saturday March 10. Prior to that he was a healthy happy guy, my best friend and only family, I miss him terribly.

Tammy

Sat, 24 Mar 2007 00:00:28 -0500

My sympathy to each of you as we all figure out what is going on. As an update to post #256…we went to the vet today. My darling Lexi has lost 5 lbs since Mon, which was our last vet trip for our current illness. I will know the blood work by Mon. She is a Rotweiller, but still, this is too much...and she didn't loose the weight by exercise. Again, my 3 angels have made it v. clear to me that they will not eat their dry IAMS... we noticed their boycott this past weekend b/c we changed from free-feeding to scheduled eating, per the recommended amounts/wt. So, have my dogs been trying to tell me something for a longer period of time? I see a dramatic difference in their energy and moods w/in only 24 hrs of food-brand change, though. Oh, today I learned that Lexi’s blood show’s diminished thyroid capabilities now. This has never been a problem. Could it be related to the great food scare? Rat poison? Antifreeze? What are the effects? I have now spent >$600 in the past 5 days. I will post with further updates. P.S. A phone call was placed to IAMS yesterday, obvious reasons. The gentleman had to call us back. He was fortunate to get the machine when he did… ironically, when we called **** back today, he had taken the day off, and they (IAMS) would only allow us to speak to him…no cell phone number to reach him this weekend, though. No additional people to talk to. Just ****. I will never buy IAMS again. PERIOD. Good luck to each of you. Again, if you haven’t already, please, have your animals tested, and furthermore, tell everyone you know about this. Be PROACTIVE!! Even more so, there are still many people unaware of the wet-food recall.

lacy

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 23:32:54 -0500

Ok now i might take that back..Maybe im switching back to blue buffalo. I just read a story about 7 cats getting sick and two kittens dying from a bad batch of felidae!! I am going crazy!!

lacy

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 22:49:45 -0500

Mary, To me they seemed very nice, but through research have found that people believe that Blue Buffalo is unreliable and not trustworthy. I just dont know anymore. Im so confused. Just today I switched to Felidae which my cats like a lot more. I cant decide which one is better!! Does anyone know??

AZSue

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 22:37:34 -0500

To Justin H. post #267 I found this on the Menu Foods website under "frequently asked questions." It appears that this company does not manufacture dry pet food (if I read this correctly). I hope this makes you feel better... 8.I feed my pet dry food. Is dry pet food safe? Menu Foods only manufactures wet pet food in cans and foil pouches. Dry pet food is not part of the Menu Foods recall.

Angela Flynn

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 21:48:41 -0500

Here is a link for information on aminopterin from the vetenary information network. The link on community information at this site has information that should be shared with your vetenarian www.vin.com/WebLink.plx? URL=http:// www.vin.com/Promo/News/RecallAminopterin.htm - I have broken this into 3 sections to make it permitted on this forum. To go to this site please take out spaces and make one address. There is no information yet as to how the aminopterin contaminated the wheat gluten. This whole tragic poisoning illustrates how the practice of purchasing foods from countries which do not have the same regulations as the US is a risky business. This applies to human food as well.

AZSue

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 21:05:11 -0500

Everyone: I have been heartbroken since this news was released. By the grace of God I feed my cats (Sammy & Shadow) Purina One Senior Protection Formula dry food and as a treat, Fancy Feast wet food. Neither of these foods are on the list. My heart goes out to all of you who have lost your "babies." I truly grieve with you. ...Sue

Sean

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:49:55 -0500

Two weeks ago we fed our house cat from a fresh batch of IAMS dry food purchased at a Walmart ... shortly after the cat started vomiting - this continued for two days. Took him to the vet, he was examinied, re-hydrated by I.V. and sent home a day later. Today he is still lethargic and not eathing drinking much but is alive. Our cat had eaten IAMS dry food exclusively - he does not like wet cat food or table scraps. Perhaps he picked up something from the environment ..? Coincidence or a bigger problem - I still suspect the food, perhaps I should get it tested?

mary

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:47:56 -0500

sweeey Thank You

sweeney

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:41:34 -0500

A friend posted this on another board. I found it comforting: “More are coming every day. We must be prepared to show them around, and explain why they’re here.” She said quietly. “You all know what to do. Allow them to see their loved ones if they request it. Show them to their places and, if they choose to, touch or caress their loved ones one more time. They will be confused and sad. That’s to be expected, under these circumstances. “ “But,” said another, “they are many. Will we be able to take care of them like we’re supposed to? I would not bring them more hurt and pain…to be left standing and waiting. They’ve suffered enough.” “You forget the children, and the others who have volunteered. A lot of those coming will need the joy and innocence of the children to help them through this. Get ready, here they come,” she whispered. They all turned and watched the new arrivals..some looked confused, some tired and sad. “Oh, look at them,” another angel whispered. “We need to let them know they’re loved, and it will be okay. We need to tell them they’re people still love them. This is so sad. I wish this hadn’t happened. Their people will be so lost without them. I’d like to have some of the cats to love.” "I want a few of the dogs. You all know how much I love dogs," said another. “And so you shall. They’re coming now. Everyone, bring the children and the others forward, so none stand alone too long. Hello little one, come with me. I’m your angel.” In memory of all those who have crossed the bridge before they were supposed to, and for those they left behind. God speed and safe journey, God’s newest angels.

SHARON SMITH

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:28:07 -0500

My once happy healthy ncats gotvsick and I

mary

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:25:41 -0500

MikeKeen just read 274. i agree fully with that one too. good for you. my dog only eats my food too. he goes everywhere with me. the cats (several) unfortuneately arent that easy. but you can bet from now on they will be getting alot more food cooked cooked for them.

mary

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:15:16 -0500

Mike Keen, i agree completly with your comments in 230. hopefully i think this unfortunate ordeal will change the way alot of us think about our pets food from now on, be it wet or dry. this is a major accomplishment to the rights of our animals friends in the world. its just a shame it had to come this way. i only wish i had this knowledge years ago. this whole time i always thought i doing good by them.

mary

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 20:04:21 -0500

lacy, since the recall i switched my kids to blue buffalo. what kind of bad things are you hearing about it? comments to me from anyone about this product are welcome ( except cc & lexie )

MikeKeen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 19:17:15 -0500

It sounds like we are finally getting the word out and saving some of our families pets from certain death. THANK YOU EVERYONE!!! I was talking with another on the net and she suggested that we go to where we purchased our pets foods and talk to others and see where that goes, just an idea. I tell you, it's very hard losing a pet like we lost and the way we lost her, lets not let this continue because these sob's, say it's all better. When I repace my Airedale terrier, it's gettin people food and nothing else. My Great Grandfathers animals were always extemly large, whether they be cat or dog and everyone of his animals lived happy longer than normal lives. He only fed them what he ate. When I was young, I didn't understand that, another lesson I have failed and it cost me my baby. In 2005 when I went down with abdominal surgery, rare tumor of the pancreas, she was all I had and she literally saved my life. What compensible value can you put on a friend like that? IAMS SUCKS!!! keen

ABC Girl

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 19:04:36 -0500

Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc., Announces Voluntary Participation in Menu Foods’ Nationwide U.S. recall of Specific Canned Cat Foods. Topeka, KS (March 21, 2007) – In response to the Menu Foods, Inc. nationwide recall of wet pet foods, Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. announced on March 16 a voluntary precautionary recall in the United States of a very small number of canned cat food products that are manufactured by Menu for Hill’s. This involves less than one half of one percent of Hill’s total product line. This voluntary recall only affects Science Diet® Savory Cuts Feline canned products sold in the United States. Hill’s is voluntarily recalling the following feline products: 1. Science Diet® Ocean Fish Dinner in Sauce Savory Cuts® Kitten, 3 oz. and 5.5 oz. 2. Science Diet® Beef Dinner in Gravy Savory Cuts® Adult, 5.5 oz 3. Science Diet® Chicken Dinner in Gravy Savory Cuts® Adult, 5.5 oz. 4. Science Diet® Ocean Fish Dinner in Sauce Savory Cuts® Adult, 5.5 oz. 5. Science Diet® Chicken Dinner in Gravy Savory Cuts® Mature Adult 7+, 5.5 oz. No other Hill’s Science Diet® products and no Prescription Diet® products are affected by this voluntary recall. Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc., is taking this precautionary step to protect the health and well being of your pets. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said that consumers of other pet food brands manufactured by Menu Foods have reported a small number of cases of cat fatalities or of cats who become ill with loss of appetite, vomiting, and lethargy, which are potential signs of kidney failure. This voluntary product recall by Hill’s involves discontinuation of all retail sales and product retrieval from consumers. Consumers should stop using the effected products immediately. Consult with a veterinarian if any symptoms are present in your pet. All Science Diet products carry a 100 percent guarantee, and consumers can receive a refund for recalled products. For more information, consumers can contact the company at 1-800-445-5777 or visit www.HillsPet.com for details. Hill’s is recalling the product codes listed below. Product codes can be found at the bottom of the can. Only relevant code numbers have been listed here (‘X’s indicate irrelevant numbers). 1. . BESTBEFORE 09 2008 M06XXXXXX 4414 5. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4603 2. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4416 6. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M25XXXXXX 4457 3. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4415 7. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4414 4. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4601 Hill’s made the decision to voluntarily recall these products in consultation with the FDA and in accordance with their guidance. The company regrets any inconvenience to its consumers, retail customers and veterinarians.

ABC Girl

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 19:02:10 -0500

Hills Science is part of the recall, voluntarily: Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc., Announces Voluntary Participation in Menu Foods’ Nationwide U.S. recall of Specific Canned Cat Foods. Topeka, KS (March 21, 2007) – In response to the Menu Foods, Inc. nationwide recall of wet pet foods, Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. announced on March 16 a voluntary precautionary recall in the United States of a very small number of canned cat food products that are manufactured by Menu for Hill’s. This involves less than one half of one percent of Hill’s total product line. This voluntary recall only affects Science Diet® Savory Cuts Feline canned products sold in the United States. Hill’s is voluntarily recalling the following feline products: 1. Science Diet® Ocean Fish Dinner in Sauce Savory Cuts® Kitten, 3 oz. and 5.5 oz. 2. Science Diet® Beef Dinner in Gravy Savory Cuts® Adult, 5.5 oz 3. Science Diet® Chicken Dinner in Gravy Savory Cuts® Adult, 5.5 oz. 4. Science Diet® Ocean Fish Dinner in Sauce Savory Cuts® Adult, 5.5 oz. 5. Science Diet® Chicken Dinner in Gravy Savory Cuts® Mature Adult 7+, 5.5 oz. No other Hill’s Science Diet® products and no Prescription Diet® products are affected by this voluntary recall. Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc., is taking this precautionary step to protect the health and well being of your pets. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said that consumers of other pet food brands manufactured by Menu Foods have reported a small number of cases of cat fatalities or of cats who become ill with loss of appetite, vomiting, and lethargy, which are potential signs of kidney failure. This voluntary product recall by Hill’s involves discontinuation of all retail sales and product retrieval from consumers. Consumers should stop using the effected products immediately. Consult with a veterinarian if any symptoms are present in your pet. All Science Diet products carry a 100 percent guarantee, and consumers can receive a refund for recalled products. For more information, consumers can contact the company at 1-800-445-5777 or visit www.HillsPet.com for details. Hill’s is recalling the product codes listed below. Product codes can be found at the bottom of the can. Only relevant code numbers have been listed here (‘X’s indicate irrelevant numbers). 1. . BESTBEFORE 09 2008 M06XXXXXX 4414 5. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4603 2. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4416 6. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M25XXXXXX 4457 3. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4415 7. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4414 4. . BESTBEFORE 08 2008 M28XXXXXX 4601 Hill’s made the decision to voluntarily recall these products in consultation with the FDA and in accordance with their guidance. The company regrets any inconvenience to its consumers, retail customers and veterinarians.

Johanna

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 18:44:13 -0500

I have read through everyone's post and my heart goes out to everyone that is struggling with the loss or illness of a pet at this time. I lost my cat very suddenly on 2/2/07, and have had a hard time comming to terms with how a perfectly healthy 4 year old cat could die so suddenly of kidney failure in a matter of 2 or 3days. After the pet food recal was announced I started paying closer attention , but still thought it was unrelated to what happend to my cat. After hearing that so many animals were dying due to kidney failure I started to wonder.When the list of recalled foods came out I checked the list and found the brand name of food we have been feeding our cat. The brand was PAWS , but we never fed any of our animals wet cat food only dry food. I still have half the bag of food in my garage. My cat had a lot of the same simptoms that have been described on this site, vomiting , sluggish behavior, refusing to eat. When we took him into the vets office after he started throwing up she diagnosed him with an urethral obstruction and rushed him into emergency surgery. Before performing the surgery she warned us that his kidneys may have been damaged to much for him to be saved. She also did a full blood work up. He never woke up from surgery and she said that is system was probably in to much shock to handel the anestesia. The next day she called with the results of his blood work and what likely killed him was uremic posing due to kidney failure. After looking over his blood work , everything was out of whack. His creatin levels were off the chart and he had actually become diabetic. When I explained to the vet that he had seemed completly normal 2 days ago, and asked her what could have caused the ureathral obstruction, she explained that there could have been several causes but his diet could have played a part. He was only 4 years old. I have been beating myself up about this for the last 2 months as this event has been very truamatic for me and my family. I just can't help but think that the food he was eating may have had something to do with his death. He had only been eating the food for a month before he died.

Bastet

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 17:34:30 -0500

Oh gee where's our "beloved" Concerned Consumer now that they've discovered the rat poison? Should innocent little Menu Foods NOW be held accountable?

dent

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 17:29:51 -0500

I really feel bad for everyone. I returned my dry nutro dog / cat food simply because Nutro does buiness with the same company as Iams. Ever since www.iamscruelty.com was out I would not touch their product. Return all food from these vendors and buy from companies that do not deal with such vendors. Eagle Pack, Acana, Wellness, Innova, etc. just my 2 cents.

Justin H.

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 17:16:20 -0500

Also, I should add that my dog has been sick lately (for two weeks) and is fed Nutro Natural Choice Lite DRY dog food. I know of another person who feeds their dog the same and has seen similar symptoms of vomiting and lethargy. Coincidence?...especially given the timing???

Justin H.

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 17:13:25 -0500

@ConcernedConsumerist ("CC") While, in some way, I thank you for posting some of the facts regarding this case, I have to say that your tone is deplorable. The confusion and outrage on behalf of the posters in this forum is no fault of their own. From what I've seen by the media, as well as Menu Foods own temporary recall site, nowhere - NOWHERE - does it say that Menu Foods does NOT manufacture dry dog food. They simply say the recall "only applies to wet canned/pouched food". As opposed to what else??? It is misinformation by omission. The responsibility to clear up public confusion is in their interest and rests solely on their shoulders. You're pointing the finger in the wrong direction.

Justin H.

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:46:31 -0500

I just wanted to chime in here that my dog, too, became sick recently for a period of two weeks while being fed Nutro Natural Choice Lite dry dog food. And I know of another person's pet, who is fed the same food, that has been ill as of late.

Angela Flynn

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:34:05 -0500

Poop City is also requesting reports of possible dry pet food poisoning. Reports can be emailed to tips@itchmo.com

Scott

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:27:30 -0500

It really pisses me off that the mainstream news seems to work hand in hand with the companies to minimize the impact of this. Tom Costello ( I could not find his email ) reporting on MSNBC today, said "luckily, we are not talking about very many affected at all, only 16, not thousands..." Great reporting, I guess he missed the many, many, sources (not on TV) who have a different view. Like that so far, there are over 1100 dead animals. After finding that rat poison was the cause, and after the news reports started to minimize the impact of the event (incorrectly, I might add) and Menu Foods Income Fund stock (mew.un) rose over 30% !!! Stock info: finance.google.com/finance?q=TSE:MEW.UN Links that show more than 16 affected(just the posts here): abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=2974319 www.petconnection.com/blog/2007/03/23/pet-food-recall-source-of-poison-found/#comment-11481 The FDA doesnt want to know how many dead: www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/03/22/BAGILOPM0I1.DTL

Angela Flynn

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:23:55 -0500

Iowa State University is conducting testing of pet food and (I am sorry to say) the corpses of pets that have died. www.vetmed.iastate.edu/departments/vdpam/ They have a link to an article on the rat poison discovery made by NY State Food Lab and Cornell University.

Scott

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:23:45 -0500

Denise from SD

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 16:16:38 -0500

Denise from SD, here!!... Why am I not surprised that CHINA could be behind this... Within the last 6months, they imposed a law limiting the weight/size of your pet dog, and only 1 per household...You can just imagine what they wanted you to do if you didn't meet their criteria.. So why would we trust them with our pet food supply??? !!I'm outraged!! There are many articles on China/dogs.... I'm horrified!!

friendof4leggeds

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 15:26:26 -0500

DEAR CC; GO EAT PUPPIES OR SOMETHING. SUGGEST YOU BE LOOKING FOR OTHER EMPLOYMENT SOON!commondreams.org/news2007/0322-02.htm PETA Calls for Cruelty Investigation Into Iams' Role in Delay of Pet-Food Recall Company May Have Known of Contamination a Month Before Recall DAYTON, Ohio - March 22 - PETA has sent an urgent letter to The Honorable Joseph D. Deters with The Hamilton County Prosecutor's Office, urging him to investigate Dayton-based Iams and file appropriate charges if the company knowingly withheld information about pet-food contamination. At least 13 cats and one dog are reported to have died of kidney failure after eating food manufactured by Menu Foods under several brand names, including Iams, and veterinarians across the country are reporting daily cases of cats and dogs in renal failure because of the contaminated food. PETA points out that because reports indicate that the first complaints of tainted food surfaced as early as February 20, Iams should be held responsible for the deaths of companion animals that occurred after that date because the public was not notified. If Iams argues that its manufacturer, Menu Foods, withheld the information, PETA is calling for Iams to sever all ties with Menu Foods immediately. (PETA has also called for an investigation and, if appropriate, cruelty charges against Menu Foods in Canada.) Conducting cruel and lethal experiments on live animals in Menu Foods laboratories constitutes a violation of Iams' policy against lethal experiments on dogs and cats for dog and cat food. This isn't the first time that cats and dogs have suffered or died in tests associated with Iams products. During a 2002-2003 undercover investigation of Sinclair Research Center -- a Columbia, Mo.-based animal- testing laboratory doing contract work for Iams and Menu Foods -- a PETA investigator documented terrified animals forced to live in cramped, unsanitary cages in dungeon-like rooms; dogs left piled on a filthy floor after having chunks of muscle cut from their thighs; dogs surgically debarked; animals subjected to unregulated temperatures during extreme weather; and other forms of cruelty. At least 27 dogs were deliberately killed. "People are looking on helplessly as their cats and dogs suffer and die, when the tragedy seemingly could have been avoided had Iams immediately issued a recall after hearing from people whose animals got sick," said PETA Vice President Bruce Friedrich. "If it violated the law, both the company and its manufacturers and all its involved employees must be held accountable." For more information, including products involved in the recall, action steps for consumers, and PETA's letters to prosecutors, please visit peta.org.

uws

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 14:51:03 -0500

oh my god, there's an article on washingtonpost.com that says the tainted substance was rat poison. gothamist won't let me link but here is part of the article: Pet food linked to the deaths of at least 15 cats and one dog across the United States contained rat poison, New York agriculture officials said today. The poison has been identified as aminopterin, a highly toxic chemical that is on the Environmental Protection Agency's extremely hazardous substances list. The chemical is used to kill rats in some countries. It also is used as a cancer drug.

Bridget

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 14:50:30 -0500

Lacy (Post 250) I feed my cats grain free products made by Prarie (Raw Instinct kibble) and Natura has an excellent line of kibble as well. Wellness has excellent wet foods if that is the route you are looking for. When cooking for your pets, make sure research is done so they don't become mal-nutritioned. I keep hearing people cooking white meat and white rice for their pets. THere is NO NUTRITIONAL value in those foods. I cook my cats ground fowl and once a week, I give them ground organ meats (cooked for now). I am choosing to switch them to an all raw diet (the diet their digestive system was created to process). In doing that, extra care and percautions need to be taken and researched as well. Best of luck finding an agreeable food for your pets!

Elderta

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 14:49:33 -0500

Catmanager.wordpress.com is reporting that Menu Foods will be holding a press conference at 4PM.

Tammy

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 14:04:59 -0500

Fluke, Buddy, and Lexi have been eating IAMS dry food for years (either the blue or green bag-none of the wet stuff). These dogs are pigs. Suddenly, they stopped eating their food this past weekend. One of them came down with a terrible gagging "cough". On Mon, I paid a $300 vet bill for what we think is canine bronchitis...I swore there was something stuck in her throat. Now we have two dogs infected. Plus, all three will not eat their IAMs, and are drinking a ton of water. Lethargic, you ask? I figured it may be the winter time blues. After reading around the internet yesterday, we switched to an organic brand (made locally) last night, and they ate it up QUICK. Is there something wrong with the dry IAMS, too? Dogs have ridiculously sensitive noses. Or are we not eating b/c of the supposed bronchitis? I read that once the dogs show symptoms of the renal failure, that 2/3 of them will die...it is too late at that point. We are piling into the car in a few minutes for testing at the vet. I will post with results when we get them. In the meantime, I suggest you don’t take any chances. Oh, yeah, I forgot to mention, my friends dog just died... renal failure @ 4 yrs old. He only ate DRY EUKANUBA. IAMS, we better not have a problem....if we do, I will be sure someone pays for this negligence. There are no excuses.

Justine

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 14:02:54 -0500

Nestle Purina recalled Mighty dog wet food, but like I said, breaking news, the chemical killing animals in pet food was Rat Poison, do not feed your animals ANY COMPANIES FOOD THAT IS MANUFACTURED BY MENU FOODS!

Taeki's Friend

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 13:43:13 -0500

Keen, An admin at itchmo (Benhuh) had mentioned testing dry food. They were looking for people to overnight dry food to them for testing and had lined up a University to perform the testing. I emailed him at tips@itchmo.com and haven't heard back. I should probably just hop over to their website and see if that is progressing. Anyway, just thought I'd mention it again since there are so many questions about dry food that isn't purported to be under recall, and you asked about it, Keen. On a separate note, my feelings about pet food - dry and wet - have really changed through all of this as I try to become more educated. Does everyone realize that "rendered" animals, including 10% euthanized cats and dogs in some places plus dead, dying, diseased, and disabled animals (separate from the 10%), go into making most pet food? That is unbelievable to me. I would never have guessed it; what on earth was I feeding my cat in the first place? I was paying nearly $3/lb for my cat food. I would have been better off feeding him people food that more closely matched his natural diet instead of this virtual cannibalization.

carol shepard

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 13:29:00 -0500

Rainbow Bridge - That was beautiful. I can sit here and cry but not help. Out in this state, I too have found recalled items on grocer's shelves in small towns, including a Wal-Mart. My ll year old dog ate a wal-mart chewy, which I found out later had false sugar in it and immediately had stroke-like symptoms. It was a horrible experience. Then I fed her nutro packets,thinking it would be vitamins and good food. Right after she had bloody urine and stools and would not eat. I almost lost her twice. She still hasn't been herself, but made it through, and was advised by the vet, who said it must have been something she ate,I never gave a thought about bad food products. I am so fortunate after reading everyone's comments about their pets. We can only pray that this country not only watch over our food but our darling companions' feed. We spend oodles of $ on high-priced pet food. And we have no guarantee of its safety. P.S. And someone wrote that nestle purina recalled soemthing, does anyone know what it is? I can't find out. All our lives are saddened enough about the world situation today and now this.

Justine

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 13:18:45 -0500

They found what it was....RAT POISON!!!! Now that we know it was the wheat how do they know what to recall?

MikeKeen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 12:48:57 -0500

Has anyone sent their suspected bad Dry dog food in for testing? I have about 40 lbs of the product is think killed my pet and would love to send it out. The 2lb batch I sent to Cornell came back as undeliverable, maybe I addressed it wrong. Any Ideas would greatly be appreciated. keen

lacy

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 12:40:36 -0500

All of this has me so stressed about what to feed my precious cats. I just switched to blue buffalo, but now im hearing bad things about them too. Would anyone recommend Felidae? Im thinking about switching to that. What is everyone switching to?

MikeKeen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 12:38:33 -0500

Now we are talking about another foreign country responsible for our pet deaths? Sounds like the pot calling the kettle black. Is this product just in wet food, if so, how do we explain the dry food deaths and sicknesses. Yikes we are all doomed!!! Just a quick note: Since my dog has passed of renal failure, I went to the veterans hospital in SF this Wednesday and was found to have blood in my urine, they took some exrays of my kidneys and today I go back to the doctor to get the results. Just a koinkindink... keen

draegen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 12:27:04 -0500

Spom, It may be a function of size and age to some degree. I had three dogs and one cat at the beginning of the year. The cat ate Special Kitty dry food, and the dogs primarily ate Ol' Roy dry food, both from Walmart. For our oldest dog, 13 year old Lab, we used to mix some of the cat's food in with hers because she seemed to like it best that way. From mid-January on she took a rapid turn for the worse and we had her put down on Feb 22. We chalked it up to old age finally catching up with her. The cat suddenly died two weeks later seemingly in her sleep. We found her curled up in her box with some blood trickling out of her nose. The vet said she had most likely been poisoned and asked if we used rat poison in our home since it causes internal bleeding which she felt was the cause of death. We didn't, but we thought maybe since she spends some time outside that she had come across some poison or a poisoned mouse, etc., though it seemed a long shot since she never left the yard. Our other older dog used to "raid" the cat's dish any time she got the opportunity. During this same time period she had become increasingly sluggish, but we were so wrapped up with the other two that we didn't worry too much about her. She is a 12 year old mutt and has been slowing slowly for the last year. Since the cat died and we stopped putting out the cat food, she has perked back up again. The younger dog, 2 year old Lab, never paid much attention to the cat's food, so I don't think she was affected at all. They have been fine eating the Ol'Roy that we have had throughout this. The recall of the moist foods came a few days after the cat died. It never occurred to me that perhaps the food was harming the animals. I guess we will all have to be much more careful about what we are feeding our animals. Now I see they found rat poison in the moist foods. I wonder if they will find it in the dry foods as well? I am sorry for everyone's losses. Hopefully some good will come of all of this somehow.

Spom

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 12:25:48 -0500

Since they tried to blame a Canadian supplier, this raises the question whether this was their attempt to limit the bleeding (their own). Perhaps the Chinese supplier -- if, in fact, a separate supplier from the Canadian -- was used in a wider array of foods. They will have to explain this and pretty quickly. Spom in Venice

Denise in San Diego

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:59:07 -0500

I live is San Diego, and it just came over the morning news that some of the testing results from MenuFoods revealed "rodent poison"...more news to come..has anyone else heard this!! Whatever it is...Corn that has been Genetically Modified..that has turned to/or resembles ethylene glycol "anti-freeze"..is doing harm to all of us, including our pets... All of the pet food WET & DRY should be pulled off the shelves and destroyed...

spom

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:47:35 -0500

I thought perhaps a short cut -- buying a component from China -- by the manufacturers took caused the poisoning. Honestly, "China" passed through my mind. This will get me on another rant about things we import from China. Yes, we get things 20% cheaper. In exchange, nothing works, nothing is safe and nothing lasts more than 6 months. This applies to everything from electronics to garden hoses. I want whoever makes food for my dog to be as paranoid about what goes into it as I am about my own food. That is why I will be cooking for my dog for the forseeable future. I hope some of these lawsuits involve discovery on exactly how this Chinese ingredient made its way into the food -- and exactly what food. I firmly believe my dog's Iams dry food poisoned him, only not enough to end his life. Being so much smaller, I think cats were more sensitive to the toxins, and many could not make it. My heart goes out to all that lost a pet. Spom in Venice

MikeKeen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:37:40 -0500

Yes your correct, //poopcity.typepad.com/poop_city/ Very good NY, NY web site and sound like they are on the front line of the truth. keen

Elderta

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:25:43 -0500

Sorry, that's should be sometime in the afternoon. "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."

Elderta

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:24:59 -0500

abc is reporting that the wheat gluten was contaminated by rat poison. they said a press conference from Albany, NY will be held today at noon.

MikeKeen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:17:31 -0500

Abby Gayle, almost 4 years old, healthy Airedale Terrier until Sunday March 18. Got home from grandma's 69th Birthday just before dark, only to find her laying in the backyard, she hadn't touched her food or water that day. Took her downstairs and put her on her doggy bed, with special treats and water near by and came upstairs and called my friend who worked for the local vet. We live in the boon docks, about 3000 foot elevation. I got on the computer and read about the Pet Food Recall, noting that it was only the wet food not the dry which we had been feeding her. I thought that she was just not feeling well. The next morning she could not walk, there were black stools on the garage floor and she had vomit all over her face. We cleaned her up that morning and my friend from the vet called, I told him what was going on and he assured me that the recall was only for wet types of dod and cat food manufactured in Canada. My first mistake was to listen to these damn liers in the first place. I was told to get some pediolite and try to get as much down her as possible. By this time her mouth and tounge were not under her control. Her eyes were milky and I believe she could not see. I'm disabled and can not lift. I desperatly tried to get her to the vet but my friend that worked at the vet said it was to late for her that she was in acute renal failure and the local vet would not be able to help her. She died with in my sons arms at 10:05 Monday the 19th of March. If I would have know that there was a problem with the DRY food, then maybe Abby Gayle would still be here. I can't say, maybe I would have not thought she was just having a bad day and taken her to the vet much earlier. She was about 100 lbs bright eyed and gentle. She could grab your arm with her big mouth and drag you around the house and not even make a mark on you. She was our protector, when bad people tried to get into our yard, Abby Gayle was there to stop them. She would walk up to strainger and stick her nose up there butt, I don't know why but it sure made us laugh. She was an excellent dog to walk until she would see a deer then all hell broke lose. She would jump straight up and down reminding me of a cartoon dog, a simple pull on the leash and a no Abby was all it took to settle her down but she sure was energetic. She loved to lay in the sun in a large whole she had prepared on the highest spot on the property so she could see everything. I swere to you she could smile and show her teeth when doing so. I don't know when I will get over losing my dear Abby Gayle, but right now with all the lies being dealt out, I can't stop crying. Now all I want to do is help someone else save their pets. It seems impossible at this point, but I will continue trying to save our best friends where ever I go. This has been an extremely long week for me and my family. After several calls to the local newspaper, finally printed an article on the front page of the Empire news. Folks, I don't think we are doing a very good job here, the DRY FOOD is not a problem according to this article. A woman took her cat to the emergencey room late last night and the vet was to see her today. The pictures caption was a beautiful black cat being held by it's owner. It said that this cat was lucky and was saved. This paper said that 17 deaths have been linked to this pet food recall. I know of 6 people in the local area that have lost their pets. The real numbers are getting close to 1,000 deaths and thousands injured. Sounds like an explosion, a bomb blast but nothing like pet food. This is surreal, no one wants to listen or people are just plain affraid to believe that our dogs and cats are dying in large numbers from this. Maybe someone should start a group of people who only fed their animals DRY. This may help seperate the two different problems. keen

Melanie

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:09:34 -0500

FYI, IAMS is reimbursing people for vet bills. We had both our cats' blood tested after we found that they'd eaten recalled food. I spoke to an IAMS rep the next day and they told me to send a copy of the receipt for the vet and they'll reimburse us for it. Fortunately, both my girls are ok.

Christine

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 11:04:15 -0500

I have two dogs and only one has been acting strange over the past few weeks. His eyes are very red, runny and droopy; he is sluggish and weak, is eating (some of his food- very abnormal) but is literally sitting by the water all day long and drinking throughout the day. His entire demeanor has changed, but the vet doesn't see any signs that relate to kidney disorders (possibly thyroid). I don't see the UPC of their food on the list, but do you think he may be been effected by his food (Nutro Max- both wet and dry)? This has evolved over the past month.

michael clarke

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 10:48:58 -0500

It already has, I was lucky and switched my cats b4 they died

ABC Girl

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 09:13:10 -0500

I have 2 dogs: a 2 yr old male & 7 month old female, both Yorkies. Both are perfectly normal in everyway. Last week out of the blue, both got sick with vomitting and diarrhea that started getting bloody. Desperate, I took them to AMC in the Upper East Side at 4am and they were both given IV and antibiotics but I never got a reason why they were sick. Later I read that Iams food was part of the huge pet food recall. Although Menu Foods website states it's only recalling wet food (the food I was giving my Yorkies was Iams dry food)I threw the food away. I figure it's better to be safe than sorry-- who knows if the recall will widen to include dry food eventually?

Scott

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 08:01:55 -0500

For those that use Iams and Eukanuba, I just came across the "official" updated stance that they are taking. " First, we want to assure you that this recall affects only a small portion of our “wet” pet food products manufactured at the Menu Foods plant in Emporia, Kansas. We have a variety of canned wet food products that are currently available on store shelves that are not affected in any way by this recall. We also want to assure you that our Iams and Eukanuba dry foods are not affected by the recall, and are readily available in stores. These foods are not part of the recall – there are no concerns at all about dry food. P&G manufactures Iams and Eukanuba dry foods at our own plants, not at Menu Foods. " Obviously, each person should be every bit as paranoid and careful as they see fit, but I thought I'd pass on the statement anyhow in the hopes that it offers some relief to some. it can be read in full at : us.eukanuba.com/eukanuba/global/EukanubaNews.htm also a FAQ at : us.eukanuba.com/iams/global/PGPetCareUpdateQA3-22-07.htm

Elaine Rommel

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 05:36:51 -0500

My dog Lainey has always eaten this food - X-mas she was so sick I had to carry her to the tub to wash her up from puke & diarrhea and lethargic - couldn’t take her to the vet due to Holidays and work. Gave her rice and pedialyte to help. After that I obviously fed her less of the Iams with rice and Pedialyte each day but she was never right after that. She kept being sick having diarrhea and threw up until February when I finally had her put to sleep. At the time I assumed it was because of her age. Now I know it wasn’t her fault or her age. It’s only been about 4 weeks since I had her put to sleep, it was the most devastating thing I’ve ever had to do. She was old and had hip issues but in December she started getting real sick and had diarrhea and vomiting so bad she couldn’t even get up to walk around she just laid there on the floor and couldn’t even make it out of the house to throw up or go to the bathroom - it was the most horrible experience I’ve ever had with her. I stopped feeding her the dog food and gave her chopped up banana’s rice and pedialyte. For weeks after New Years I fed her less food mixed with rice and Pedialyte but she was so lethargic and was constanly having diarrhea that I figured she must be dying from something being wrong with her stomach so I took her to the vet finally and stopped her suffering. I never realized that it was the food I was giving her and that I was poisoning my own dog. I am totally devastated and horrified now on how she must’ve been feeling. She was my whole life.

Taeki's Friend

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 01:04:40 -0500

"Concerned" Consumer, please lay off. There are very few people here who are out for blood. We just love our pets and are concerned about them. The monetary/lawsuit issue is far down on the list of things on our minds. Out of 230 posts, I think a lawsuit is mentioned about four or five times. Your whole point in posting seems to be to tell people to "get over" their pet's death, and not blame the company that probably led to that death. The whole point of our posting is to share information to try to keep our pets safe...Our concern is for our pets, and the pets of others. Yours is for the profits of a mega-corporation. The facts are: 1) Menu Foods had complaints in December 2) Menu Foods didn't start testing until February 27th 3) 18-25% of the animals tested died 4) The recall wasn't announced until March Those are the facts. By comparing stories, we may help keep our pets alive. That isn't being hysterical. If you are feeding baby food to your kid, and there is a recall on baby food, with reports of non-recalled food making other babies sick, is it hysteria when you decided to make your own baby food? Is it hysteria when you try to find a safe food? It is possible that all of the dry food deaths reported are "natural." I don't know how many cats and dogs die of accute renal failure "ordinarily." I do know that my indoor cat died after exhibiting symptoms of what I now understand to be Acute Renal Failure, eating Hills Science Diet Dry M/D, W/D, and Pounce cat treats. Neither is on the recall list. If this information helps ONE OTHER PERSON keep their cat safe, then my purpose in posting has been accomplished. What is the measuring stick for your posts? Regardless, most of us, even those of us who love our pets and have lost them, are not screaming hysterically for blood. We are desparately trying to help others keep from going through the same pain we feel. If we can share our stories, find a common thread, and keep someone else's pet safe, that is our goal. Regarding your comment about people's inability to take their pet to a vet because of financial concerns: That is a low blow, and very unfair. Many of us make do without human health insurance, and skip doctor visits because we can't afford it. That doesn't make us bad people, and it doesn't mean we can't own pets. It's just a fact of life and economics. If someone rescues a pet from euthanization, gives it a good home, love, and companionship, but can't afford vet visits, is that wrong? I don't think so. If you do, you explain that to all the pets who are put down across the US because no one can afford to take them to the vet if they get sick, so they don't adopt them. If we lose our jobs, or have a change in our financial situation, what do you suggest we do, get rid of our pets? In a perfect world, we can all afford to take our pets to the vet. But the world isn't perfect.

sheilla

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 00:45:25 -0500

Response to #206, Menu food should have issued a recall immediatly is their responsiblity as a manufactor. It would have given professionals more of a chance to know what to do. Also consumers would have a choice in what to do. I do not want to be left in the dark while lawyers plan a strategy of how to handle the aftermath. I want to know what is going on, so when my animal has a chance for recovery I can spend the money that might save its life on the correct procedures and treatment to save her. If I would have known what I know now I might have spent the money I spent on the correct diagnosis instead of treatments that caused her pain, and suffering, gave me false hope, and left me without my animal in the end. I do not feel like it is crazy or a witch hunt I feel like this would have been humane. The choice I made to end her suffering took me weeks. I wonder if they cared about all of us who have had to think about this. I can't imagine you lost a pet you probably work for the company and you are trying to do damage control.

MikeKeen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 00:36:18 -0500

By the way, if anyone has comments or would like to chew on me in private, I'm at keen@mac.com, PO Box 1273 Lakeport, California 95453, I would love to hear from you. keen

brenda

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 00:26:12 -0500

Just checking in.... my cat is seeming fine now, eating a little and walking around. i think i may have been over-reacting. I'm praying he is fine. Thank you all very much.

MikeKeen

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 00:21:31 -0500

These are some of the informational web sites I've gathered through the day. Hope some of this is new, news for you. There is alot of fact based info here. www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/12/31/earlyshow/living/petplanet/main1172326.shtml?source=mostpop_story www.livescience.com/animalworld/060106_dog_deaths.html cvmweb2.cvm.iastate.edu/departments/VDPAM/default.aspx?id=2784 www.cfsan.fda.gov/~mow/chap41.html www.leda.law.harvard.edu/leda/data/784/Patrick06.html www.itchmo.com/read/fda-still-unaware-of-gluten-source-contaminated-plant-still-open_20070321 You see, I believe that the dry food problems have been with us for years, they are being magnified now because of the newer wet food problems...in a big way. In the past your dog got sick and you didn't go on the net to see who elses dog or cat died, no, you just buried them. Now we have the resources to compile and assimilate a great deal more information in a short time. With these tools we have the world and all of it's good and bad at our fingertips. I have been in touch with people in all over this great country and Great Britan, Mexico, Newfoundland and South Africa all since the death of my dear Abby Gayle. I have found that pets are in serious trouble every where and no one wants to admit it. The news papers give us the back page, the syndicated columnist under state the crisis, the vets are getting wealthy. Hell, they sell to us what is killing our pets and then charge enormous sums for treatment. The pet food manufactures make their quick bags of change and the pet owners foot the bill. This is just the opinion of a person who has lost something very dear and knows it will be impossible to replace. Any money we recieve should be used as Mary stated earlier, get your pet at the S.P.C.A. or Animal Shelter, maybe then, if we all did this, it could put animals in our homes instead of in our pets food. Good Night

Taeki's Friend

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 00:02:51 -0500

Hi Brenda (#218), PLEASE take your cat to the vet. Taeki got sick before the recall was announced, and he did the same thing. He did vomit food on occassion (usually hair ball related) so we didn't worry when he did it this time. He was also quiet and a little withdrawn, but nothing exceptional, so we didn't think twice about it and didn't take him to the vet, but it was serious and now he is no longer with us. Be safe, even if you have to pay a little to the vet, it is better than wishing you had taken your cat once it is too late!

Brenda Wych

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:50:33 -0500

To All pet owners, Hi my name is Brenda and I have a sick dog, her name is Sasha Roo, and she is our best friend, she keeps my husband company and keeps him safe while I am at work or just out running errrands. My husband is diabled and he depends on our Sasha Roo. Now our pet as well has become very sick from eating the food I have fed to her since she was a puppy, she is going to be 8 years old this year if she makes it, I have more vet bills than I know what to do with , like the rst of you and we think we are feeding our pets the best food we can because we love them and want to take are of them with giving them what we have thought is the best and that is the I AMS I have been feeding to her, I am so upset and now the vet bills I dont know what to do and will I AMS pay for the cost of losing our pets and the vet bills. I didi not just wake up and go oh lets just sue I AMS PET FOOD,

rizzi

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:22:20 -0500

Brenda Regarding your post # 218. If you have not already got your answer, I would recommend getting your pet to the Vets. The truth is, the people on this board can only give opinions, not a diagnoses. And it is my opinion that you get your pet to the VETS. Chances are if you changed your pet's diet recently with out doing it gradually, this can cause vomit, and other unpleasant stains. My pets went to the vet yesterday for testing and I had to switch food suddenly, yep I'm dealing with clean up duty. Good luck, hope your pet is feeling better, but please get it checked out

rizzi

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:17:25 -0500

Angela Flynn

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:12:27 -0500

Mike I have been following this unintenional poisoning quite closely. I have not found a link with Menu Foods to aflatoxin. There was a case a while back where corn gluten had become contaminated with the aflatoxin. I do agree that there seems to be two distinct cases here. The one being Menu Foods wet foods and the other being numerous brands of dry dog food. Class Action Suit file against Menu Foods www.cnn.com/2007/US/03/22/pet.food.recall/index.html?eref=rss_us

Rose Pepe

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 23:02:45 -0500

I am so upset. My dog wouldn't eat anything but table food. He would go 5 ot 6 days without eatting. He hated the dry food no matter what I bought. I finally tried the Pedigree Pouches. He loved them. He would eat 2 to 3 at dinner because he is a big dog. Little did I know that I was feeding him poison. I hope that nothing happens to my dog. You see, he is my best friend, my child and my family. Someone will pay for this.

Jo Anna P. Hurley

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:58:44 -0500

After being very torn up about the death of my Pomeranian in February, I now at least have some answers. He had all the syptoms, vomiting, lethargy, and after 3 days he lost tons of bloody urine, but then improved. I gave fluids through a dropper, stayed up nights checking on him, nursing him, fed him boiled beef. He got better and just when I thought he would make it after nursing him for 2 months, late one night he wouldn't pee and the next morning he was dead. He had been super energetic before. I had fed him a wet gravy type treat. At least now I have what may be the answer but I sure do miss him. I have no children. He was my baby.

MikeKeen

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 22:24:29 -0500

Post 221 you are correct, but I think we have two differnt situations taking place. The anti freeze components in the Dry food and the Aflatoxin in the wet. I have been reading since my dog died Mon night and have found people all over the country with dead animals from acute renal failure after using the dry products. I know that the wet foods have largely been the problem, the vets are having their customers change their pet to dry foods and some of them are sick and or dying as we speak. I think we all would love for this to be as simple as it seems. One manufacture, wet food only and so on, but from what the evidence to date shows, that is not the case. Renal failure from dry food, liver failure from wet food. The dry foods problems have not been totally solved since the last outbreak in early 2006 not to mention the one in Mid 2005. At this time we can ask ourselves. Do we love our pets? Do we trust large multi million dollar corporations to tell us the truth? I don't know your answer, but until all the facts are out on the table, we will be holding off replaceing our Airedale terrier. keen

Angela Flynn

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:53:56 -0500

Aflatoxin causes liver problems not kidney problems. It was indicated in a prior pet food recall, but I don't believe it can be responsible for the acute renal failure that is occuring with Menu Foods products. And from what I gather at the Iowa State University site - www.cvmweb2.cvm.iastate.edu/departments/VDPAM/default.aspx?id=2784 - the antifreeze components have been found in the Menu Foods products. And please, concerned consumer, you come across as agressive and not at all sympathetic. This does not mean that you are neither, but you are not doing a good job of expressing yourself if you are. I do not know how the pet food industry works or is regulated, but it does seem to me that Menu Foods was slow to act.

jenne

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:51:27 -0500

thank you to those who answered my question about the time to wait for symptoms after eating - i actually went to my vet this morning and she said that most cases are acute, within 1 day of eating symptoms happen, and they happen severely and immediately. blood tests were fine. i dont think anyone is overreacting on this comments - this kind of stress brings out every possible sort of anger and the most important thing is just keep an eye on your pets, and now ive learned to really scrutinize where thier food comes from.

Sharan

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:44:11 -0500

I have a 10 year old German Shepard that got sick in the beginning of February after I opened a new bag of Beneful dry dog food. He had the same symptoms as all the dogs and cats that ate the wet food. If the cause is wheat gluten Beneful dry has wheat gluten in it. My dog got better after a stay at the vet. It makes me very sad that some pets did not get better. I think I will just cook for my dog from now on.

brenda

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:32:36 -0500

PLEASE GIVE ME ANY INFO!!! I just got home from work to find puke on my floor, my cat appears fine but is a little quieter then normal. Don't know if I am over-reacting or if something is actually wrong. I know puking is one of the symptoms and my cat "never" ever ever pukes. Is it normally bile that they puke up, or cat food, because this is straight cat food, should I be worried??? I feed him cat food from the vet, medi-cal prevenitive formula, but he was eating whiskas moist treats as well? Please if anyone had a cat go through this please give me any info you can....like if your cat had puked, did he/she seem fine otherwise, or was it puking and lethargic right away?

MikeKeen

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:32:19 -0500

Not wanting to get personal cc. You keep us all informed of the facts and I will just sit back an listen, who knows, maybe I'll learn something from you. All of us would love to learn and be educated, come on cc you can do it. Tell us the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth and I will remain silent. Until that time, shut up, listen and learn for a change. keen

"CC"

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 21:04:49 -0500

MikeKeen, you seem to be the spokesperson for all that are on this board. When did this happen? You try to discuss things with me by insulting me. Is this how you make your point across? You say that if people would take my advice, there would be less pets in the world? Thank you, I actually had a good laugh for once. Your comedic presence is noted.

MikeKeen

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 20:07:03 -0500

CC stands for completly confused. Anyway folks, it does indeed look as though we have two seperate problems in regards to our pets food, the wet with the toxic aflatoxins and the dry with the chemical being mixed up with some sort of anti freeze component. CC Please you need to back off, you are constantly belittleing us for having strong feeling against a corportation that while trying to manufacture a profitalbe product, made a mistake. Maybe they tried to cut a few corners or save a few bucks to continue on their road to financial recovery. Maybe they didn't. It does seem that you somehow fine solice in maybe they didn't. No one knows the scope of this and I mean no one certainly not you CC. If you would spend a couple of hours investigating things instead of you talking off the cuff and being upset with people you don't even want to know. If people were to take your advice then maybe we would have a few less pets in the world. Go ahead CC push your views on us, post them a couple more times, believe me, we really need a laugh.

traci h

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 19:49:37 -0500

I can't find any info on wheather the (dry)cat food my cat eats is recalled or tainted, but is NOT made by MenuFoods('Nature's recipe', made/distributed by 'Nature's recipe'). But the wet I very occasionally feed her isn't either ('Sheeba' by Masterfoods/Mars Corp). If anyone knows anything on either of these, it would be helpful. Brief history; Last yr my cat started getting an allergic reaction rash,after going through several months of eliminating other things first; litter, detergents, household cleaners, tap water...even our other cat, I was finally told to switch her food to a no wheat/byproduct/beef/artif. preservative food. Our other cat was on a very specific diet because of a heart murmur, so after his unfortunate passing (he lived to 8, they said he'd be lucky to make it to 5) I was able to switched foods (several times) before finding this one that she would actually eat. At the beginning of the week I had to take her to the vet, where she still is today, 3days on IV, not much improvement. They believe it is her liver, but no solid conclusions yet, possibly Hepatic Lipodosis which is typically a secondary problem to something primary that causes not eating. Does anyone know if 'Nature's Recipe' dry or "Sheeba' wet(bought at PetCo) was tainted? Has anyone else had a kitty with similar problems recently? Maybe it is purely coincidental, but this was a new bag and w/in 2wks, went from eating all her food 2x's daily, to little, to nothing for several days (other than a few bites of turkey and hot dogs, the only thing I could even get her take a few bites of at all). I just find it odd that a perfectly healthly cat of 12, but looked/acted and I was even told by the vet just last summer, how remarkably healthy and vital for her age she was, got to this point in such a short time. I am very upset at the possibility of loosing my second 'child' in such a short amount of time. Any help to this stressed out mom would be greatly appriciated!

Angela Flynn

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 19:49:26 -0500

I have to agree with Gwen. We have no way of knowing what the tainted ingredient is and how widespread its use is/was. Iowa State University has isolated ingredients from antifreeze from their testing. This is helpful, but it doesn't answer other questions. If Menu Foods is not to blame then whoever has supplied the tainted ingredient is.

Shandy

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 19:08:06 -0500

Just thought I would shed some light on an unfortunate matter. Please understand that I sympathize with each and everyone of you who has lost a pet or had one fallen ill. However I must point out that issues like these also point out the lack of regard we have for human life. If you read the news you will know that in many parts of the world people are dying on a daily basis from war, famine etc. (Darfur for one) These stories have been in the headlines for years....where is the outrage? Where is the concern for human life? Let us focus our energy not only on our pets but also on the well-being of humans. If this many people can take the time to co-ordinate a class action lawsuit against a North American pet food supplier. Then maybe some of these concerned individuals could also direct some of this energy toward making the world a better place for human beings as well. Sincerely - a pet and human lover

Concerned Consumer

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 18:56:38 -0500

Gwen, here you are posting away, insulting me at your will. Yet you fail to realize that you are hypocrite. If you want to engage in some meaningfull discussion, don't be a hypocrite. Like I have stated before, I can empathize with those who have lost dear ones (pets or people). It is very hard to deal with. The pain is too much especially when you consider them a part of your family. What I can't empathize with is when people create a vandetta against a company, who sole purpose is, to provide the highest quality of food to our loved ones. I wish people would take a deep breath, take a step back and wait for this story to unfold. This is what I mean by rational thought. I know it is hard. Especially with this story out.

Gwen

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 18:53:07 -0500

RE this statement: "Menu Foods only manufactures wet pet food, so all the complaints about dry foods is the public's panic-stricken reaction to the media." This may indeed be true. However, the problem is that, without knowing the cause of the contamination, we can't know that other foods- including those that have absolutely no affiliation with Menu, such as dry foods- are safe. A tainted ingredient purchased by Menu could understandably have been purchased by other manufacturers as well. Perhaps Menu simply purchased a greater quantity of the ingredient, used it in more of their foodstuffs, or had the dumb luck of being the first manufacturer whose tainted food wound up on the shelves. It's not necessary to panic by any means, but until the contaminant and its source are identified, I think it is absolutely wise for all pet owners to keep an eye on things regardless of what their pets are eating.. and to promptly report instances of suspected food-related illnesses in animals having eaten non-recalled / non Menu-affiliated products to both the manufacturer and the FDA as soon as possible.

Gwen

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 18:41:02 -0500

On a more positive and far less disgruntled note, an update on my cat (for those of you wondering whether or not attempts to treat the ARF induced by these foods have been successful): After days of IV therapy and SQ fluids, Tyson is doing wonderfully, and his renal values have begun to plummet. No word yet on whether or not there will be any lasting damage, but at this point it appears as though he is turning the corner. Some of these animals are indeed recovering. Here's hoping that the rest of you whose pets are currently undergoing treatment are as fortunate as we have been.

More than a little disgusted.. (a.k.a. Gwen).

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 18:29:03 -0500

CC, maybe you ought to consider this before your next tirade: Yes, pets can and do get sick, and yes, one of the unfortunate circumstances that goes along with pet ownership is the fact that, eventually, just like the rest of us, they're going to die. Death is a fact of life. However, I fail to see how that even remotely translates into 'therefore rationality demands that you shut up and pretend this never happened'. Maybe this isn't Menu's fault. Maybe it is. Before this can be definitively determined one way or the other, we need FACTS. Facts we don't have right now. One thing we do know, however, is that there was some sort of quality-control breakdown somewhere in the chain at some point.. and hundreds if not thousands of our pets are paying the price. That is not acceptable. If we want to prevent this from happening again, we must determine where the breakdown occurred. We need to know how, we need to know why- and we need to know how we can prevent it from happening again. If there are contaminated ingredients still in circulation, more pets- and, potentially even people, were this an ingredient that could make its way into human foodstuffs- could be at risk. Also, because we don't know the nature of the contamination, it is ENTIRELY possible that Menu's products may not be the only ones that have been tainted. If the gluten was indeed at fault, is it still in circulation? Who else bought it? Are unrecalled items making animals sick, too? Where is the harm in discussing these things? I don't understand your ire, and, frankly, I don't appreciate the venom. These are people who have just lost cherished members of their families. They're hurting. They're angry. They're confused. They want to know what happened to their pets. And, IMO, that couldn't possibly be more understandable.. or rational. If you expect people to take the time to listen to what you have to say, maybe you ought to take the time to start showing them a little respect. Insulting and belittling those who are here expressing their grief is an incredibly tactless, callous, and just plain nasty thing to do. (And, seeing as you've chosen to do it anonymously, more than a little cowardly.)

Dr. Dan

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 18:20:37 -0500

Re Steve's comment on Dry dog food (i.e. Purina). "Purina One" dry dog food contains corn gluten. Gluten is toxic to animals. Some animals more than others and some glutens (wheat vs corn vs barley et c.) than others - not yet established. Other than adding a cheap but toxic filler to our pets sustenence, there is no reason why any legal commercial operation in the U.S. of A should be adding that toxic material to our pets food supply.

Concerned Consumer

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:59:50 -0500

Elderta, I am sorry if I am coming off as stern and unsympathetic. My goal was to shed some rational light without being harsh. Unfortunately because there were too many posters who simply had an unjustified vandetta against Menu Foods, my tone quickly changed. I just hope people stop their rampage against Menu Foods as they are not the 'bad guys' in this mess. I support Menu fully, and I think it shows in their PRECAUTIONARY recall. Like I said before, I too have pets, and too have those which died. So I know exactly where you guys are coming from. So please, please excersize some rational thought before jumping to conclusions (such as suing Menu, or spreading hysteria).

spencer

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:39:20 -0500

With the advent of the latest pet food poisoning by pet food manufacturers, and that's what it is, one strange thing has come to light. It appears that Hill's/Science Diet brand has been using co-packing arrangements for years while at the same time using your Bull Sh*t scientific formular marketing crap as an excuse to charge significantly higher prices. Well, your little secrete is out. Hill's uses the same crappy ingredients in their pet food that Wal-Mart, K-Mart,etc. and everybody else uses. We can now see Hill's branded products are essentially the same stuff with a higher price point and those products are coming off the same belts as the cheaper branded products, and in some cases there is very little difference Well if it's all the same crap then we'll be buying the cheaper crap rather than fall prey to Hill's lies and marketing hype.

KZL

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:34:55 -0500

In response to Lexie's post #191: Although it is speculated that the cause of the problem is an ingredient from a new supplier, that has not yet been proved. No one is certain yet what the cause really is. The symptoms reported in pets are similar to those caused by chemicals such as those found in anti-freeze, and the food could have been contaminated at any point in the process. Menu Foods received the first complaints about its products in December (there is a link to an article about this in today's business section of the Canadian paper The Chronicle Herald at the Pet Connection website; I am unable to paste web links here), not in February, as they claimed to the FDA. They claim to have received complaints starting Feb. 20, began testing Feb. 27, and finally issued the recall on March 16. You say a company cannot recall products based on one complaint. They got a lot more than one complaint. A long time ago. See previous paragraph. As for Menu Foods' receiving such a high health and safety rating, consider this from CBS News (you can find this on the CBS News website): "FDA has sent inspectors to company plants in New Jersey and Kansas...FDA inspectors had never before visited the Kansas plant. The FDA warned the company following a 2004 inspection of its New Jersey factory after it failed to flag food made for zoo cats of the risk of mad cow disease if the product were fed to cattle." I'm sure you mean well, Lexie, but you seem to be misinformed.

Judy T in virginia

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:33:36 -0500

Lexie #191 --etc Just how brown is that nose of yours? Looks like you have the menu food all over it. Yes, pet owners are responsible for the health care of their animals. But when a manufacturer sells a bad product they are responsible for the damage caused by their bad product. Menu Foods received complaints as early as mid February --- they waited until Friday night on March 16th to announce the recall and bury the story. All bad news press releases always come out on Fridays. I will be willing to forgo reimbursement for my Vet bills which are actually quite low at only $1,000 if in return the executives for Menu Foods will eat one packet of the food each day for every day from the first complaints to the March 16th news release -- that would be 16 to 30 days.

Concerned Consumer

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:21:23 -0500

Keen (post 195), its people like you that irritate me. Do you even know that by owning a pet, you assume all responsibilites that may come your way? Good or bad. So by saying that you don't have money for vet bills, what did you expect? That your pet will never, ever get sick? I can sympathize with everyone that has lost or has an ill pet, but DO NOT start a vindictive rampage against a company who has the BEST reputation for manufacturing pet food. There is a reason why Menu has a HUGE share in the wet pet food manufacturing sector. Their reputation is beyond repute. Consider this before your next tirade: Your cat can get sick, you dog can get sick, your fish can get sick, your ferret can get sick, your mouse can get sick, your lizard can get sick, your poney can get sick... these are unfortunate circumstances of owning a pet.

anon

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:17:30 -0500

lexie, do you think by posting the same thing over that people won't read the responses to your original two postings? Well, I guess I'll post my response again, too: While that may be true, Lexie, Menu Foods' public relations on this has cost them with the public. I'm sure they worked their butts off, but the way the non-information is coming out and how they issued the recall (on a Friday) makes it seem like they are hiding something. There have been varying stories reported on how and when they first knew of this. I wish it were otherwise, but you only get one chance at it, and they kinda blew it. It's quite unfortunate for all concerned.

Steve

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:12:14 -0500

I too find it very suspicious that dry dog food is not talked about. We had a perfectly healthy yellow lab you died suddenly on March 2nd with the exact symptoms. He ate mostly die Purina dry dog food. We have no reciepts or vet bills to prove what he ate. All we have is a fresh hole in the back yard where he is buried. I believe this is all related to the same problem. What is the best way to report this? When they decide to expand the recall list, I would like to be on record.

Lexie

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 17:11:26 -0500

I own a pet specialty shop in east coast USA and have a background in food safety and food science. Previous to that I used to work as a buyer for a large pet food brand. I have sold Menu Foods' products in my store for many years and am in full support of their company. They manufacture for so many brands - from big to small companies and they are chosen as the top pet food manufacturer for a reason. They are ethical, quality conscience manufacturers with the best expertise in the US. It is well known in the industry that Menu Foods is one of the "good guys" in the pet food world. I will not mention who the shameful bad guys are but don't be fools people! I have returned container upon container of poor quality product and cannot tell you how many complaints I have received regarding these other manufacturers. Menu Foods has the best reputation and has the customers to prove it. Menu Foods did the right thing and the media is making them out to be killers and I can't believe how viscous people are. What on earth does the media and public know about Menu Foods before they voluntarily recalled suspect product? It is ridiculous how fast the public will slam the company because of the media. Remember that the media are bloodhounds for bad news and a gruesome story sells better. They have taken the truth and turned it into lies. There are a few facts that people need to bet through their heads and understand because the media is clouding it all over: 1. Menu Foods only manufactures wet pet food, so all the complaints about dry foods is the public's panic-stricken reaction to the media. 2. As per the Menu Foods Press release and the FDA, this issue is linked to a suspect ingredient used in production from a new supplier. 3. Menu Foods issued a precautionary recall once they linked this ingredient to animal health concerns, so it is possible that not all of this product recalled is unsafe, rather it is a precaution just incase the ingredient was used in this timeframe. 4. A company cannot recall products based on one complaint, they need to validate the complaint. 5. According to the pet food brands, Menu Foods has achieved some of the highest standing ratings for health and safety inspection audits in the in US. My suppliers have always stood by them and speak very highly of this company. For this reason, I believe that: Menu Foods' customers should come forward and voice their support for this company that has manufactured their products for decades without any quality issues. This company will only heighten their quality standards and incoming ingredient testing now that this issue has come to light. If anything, I believe that Menu Foods will most likely become the best pet food manufacturer in the future. They have my support and many others should be publicly standing behind them.

KZL

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 16:53:31 -0500

Another good site for updated information is www.petconnection.com/blog. You can click on the comments section and see a very lively discussion from all over the country. I took my two kitties to the vet to get them checked, and the vet's advice was: DO NOT FEED YOUR PET ANY WET FOOD AT ALL, EVEN IF IT IS NOT (YET) ON THE RECALL LIST. Additional brands are still being added to the recall list, and a poster on petconnection.com says she was told by a rep at Wellness that even their food is made by Menu Foods. We cannot be sure that any wet food is safe right now. However, my vet said I can replace the cats' wet food with meat-flavored baby food to supplement dry food. Consensus so far seems to be that Beech Nut is a popular choice.

MikeKeen

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 15:16:49 -0500

Dear Friends, I have just read and signed the online petition: "Menu Foods Must Reimburse Pet Owners" hosted on the web by PetitionOnline.com, the free online petition service, at: www.PetitionOnline.com/menupay/ I personally agree with what this petition says, and I think you might agree, too. If you can spare a moment, please take a look, and consider signing yourself. Best wishes, Michael Craig Keen, Sr

Debbie4747

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 14:42:33 -0500

I am so very sorry for all those that have lost/or will love their loved pets. This is all such a nightmare for all. So far, none of the products I've been feeding my cats is on the list, but this has raised some questions for me. Wheat gluten....from what I've been reading, animals do not process it well anyway. It is used just to thicken gravy. Why is it there; can't they use something else, less harmful? It shows up in Friskies canned cuts. Today I've emailed Purina asking them if they plan on removing it as well as any other unneccesary, potentially harmful ingredients. Another question, regarding any lawsuits....how many animals in feral colonies have perished that may never be counted be compensated for? How can anyone be sure of what is in the foods when ingredients are listed as "by-products" or "artificial and natural flavorings"? It may take some time, but I do plan on haunting as many pet food companies I can as to what goes into their foods. My heart goes out to all that has suffered losses and hope going forward any more will be as minimal as possible. (just needed to vent a bit; thanks for listening)

MikeKeen

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 14:18:18 -0500

Wow Lexie with that crystal ball, post 191. How many pets do you own? Have you too been feeding your pet Menu Foods? Is it still alive? Can you afford the cost of dialysis? Mabe you could help some of us out with our tragic situations. First off, you should probably apologize to these inocent people. Haven't you been doing your home work? I think maybe you should rush out and purchase yourself some of that great MENU FOODS stock, if you don't already own some. It's down now and with your assesment of the current situation they should double up and split soon. You should post your diatribe on another site, maybe Menu Foods home page would suit you just fine. If you haven't lost a pet, then what are you doing here, trying to stir up the gluten? What's the name of that Specialty Shop you own on the coast? I'm sure we all will make a bee line to that business just as soon as we all replace our pets. Any good deals for a purebred Airedale Terrier. I look forward to meeting with you. All we need is to be heard, later the justice will follow. keen

anon

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 14:08:14 -0500

While that may be true, Lexie, Menu Foods' public relations on this has cost them with the public. I'm sure they worked their butts off, but the way the non-information is coming out and how they issued the recall (on a Friday) makes it seem like they are hiding something. There have been varying stories reported on how and when they first knew of this. I wish it were otherwise, but you only get one chance at it, and they kinda blew it. It's quite unfortunate for all concerned.

Bridget

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 14:05:55 -0500

Suzan who posted #188 makes an extremly valid point. There are many foods out there that are not in pushed on us commercials or in vet offices that are excellent and healthy without the additives that you get in the pet&food store brands. As a whole, we all need to do indepth research on what we put in our pets bodies (as well as our own bodies). Research our pets digestive systems and what they actually process and check out the ingredients in grocery store pet foods (there are alot of unpronouncable ingredients!). Don't let the vets push you around into buying the food they supply in their offies, they get kick backs from the company they are pushing. It is all our responsibility to educate ourselves. And in doing so, we all can live longer and healthy lives. I just wanted to put this word out there......the pet food industry is a scary dangerous place.

Bridget

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 14:00:04 -0500

Lexie

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 13:51:58 -0500

Lexie

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 13:46:28 -0500

Elderta

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 12:57:30 -0500

Dear Consumed Customer, Wait... hold on... my connecting people with information from reputable sources, my comments are then shallow? Brilliant, because they were never meant to be those of an expert. I made it clear in my comments that I am not an expert, but have basically shared information where there is a lack of information and have shared with people what I've found as a means to help. I never told anyone as far I can see, what they "should" do (unlike you), but where they could find information. Oh wait... I told someone that they "should" call Blue Buffalo for more information... I guess that was wrong to do. CC, I don't own a pet food store. What I have done over the last year since my cat, Zanzibar, was diagnosed with an adrenal gland tumor, has been to educate myself on cat health and nutrition. (Zanzi has since passed away.) From being on several cat-related lists, I've found a lot of information over the years and have determined, through much trial and error, what sites and information is 'useful' or not. I'm a librarian, it's what I do. I have only let people know what I've found over the years, and hopefully I've been of more help than hurt, I hope. I won't bother answering your query on any lawsuits because that's not what I find at issue with you. People will do what they do, and in moments of pain, want to reach out for some restitution for that pain. (In fact, I did make at least one off the wall remark earlier in this thread, which I apologize for, as it came out anger.) What I find at issue is that you attempt to teach people a lesson with a baseball bat instead of empathy. You could share your insight a whole lot more effectively without that bat. As it is, I think you tune out and insult people who "should" be listening to what you say, because on the whole, you have some good points. But like I said before, I hope your need to educate people makes you feel better, because I can tell you, you're doing one hell of a crappy job at it. And again, good luck with that. Have a great day.

Suzan

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 12:51:20 -0500

Menu Foods should pony up and start a fund for vet bills; I read an interview with one woman who is facing the decision to have to eunthanize her beloved cat since she cannot afford the $8000 bill for the dialysis the cat will need in order to survive this ordeal. It's so easy to obtain nutritious, healthful food for your pets, folks; the small extra cost upfront will avert possibly large vet bills in the future by preventing diabetes, allergies, kidney and dental diseases, not to mention needless suffering.

Scott

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 12:43:31 -0500

Concerned Consumer, you are a troll and have nothing to offer but ignorant statements to hurt others who are already suffering. As for your simple minded post about your pet lizard.. "But I wasn't irrational. I tried to find the cause for her death, but couldn't isolate one thing." Guess what, you self righteous little troll, these good people have not been irrational. They have taken their pets to the Vet and had tests done to find out whats wrong. They didn't just sit there and assume it "could have been anything" as you did with your dead lizard. It's not a mystery as to what they are dead or dying from.. Kidney Failure. What has caused this acute outbreak? The investigation seems to show a common thread and that is the ingestion of foods or component parts used by Menu Foods Income Fund. "Sherri, it makes me ill reading your ignorant post. Get educated, please." Concerned Consumer, thanks for letting us all know your true intentions. I would have been upset had I not realized you only post in order to spit your inadequacies out at people in public. As for educated.. here are some words you posted in some language only you are aware of. avengfull supstantial unfortunatelly speachless deydration accidentelly

Bridget

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 12:14:11 -0500

Dearest Concerned Consumer. You were so kind enough to respond to my post #168. I would like to bring to light that the majority of these people with sick animals are ones that are not able to afford the high cost of the vet bills for treatment. This is not the consumers fault the loved ones have got sick and are dying. It is the suppliers fault. The very least the suppliers can do is say "hey, we screwed up and did not test our ingredients before putting them in the foods we process, we should do something more than just have the food pulled." In my opinion, they should step up and assist those families affected and pay the vet bills (at the very least). Unfortunately, before any of that will happen, there DOES need to be a suit brought against them, it is the way the world works (unfortunately). Perhaps a bit more empathy for others on this site would be appropriate from you. And in regards to you saying I should get educated before creating a "mass hysteria", take a look around sweetie. This was already in the works before I said what I said. Again, my heart goes out to all who are experiencing this hardship. I send you and your pet all warm loving energy.

Concerned Cosumer

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 12:09:15 -0500

Elderta, like you, I have read all of your comments. I do must say that you have a very shallow point of view. You are trying to 'inform' people on what they should do, when you have absolutely no clue. Its like trying to give people tips on flying a plane when you are a bus driver. Just because you own a pet store, doesn't give you a permit for pet food education. As for me, I am not being insensitive, I am just being real. I too lost pets, pets dear to me. I cry too when they die.. but what I don't do is start a rampage against the world. And that is what is happening here. People are trying to find answers for their pets, and Menu is an easy way out. If my kid ever got sick and had a kidney failure, should I go and sue all food manufacturers? Should I action a class-action lawsuit? Its OK, take your time to answer.

christine

Thu, 22 Mar 2007 11:51:44 -0500

Hi please see my story post #137. Please do us all a favor and CALL THE FDA with your story regardless of whether your food is on the list or not. They called me back and it seems are investigating DRY food=but you must call so they know the extent of the problem. ok, i can't post the link here but it is fda.gov, just follow the links for Complaint Coordinators. Please do it for all of us and our babies!!!