Please Check! Pet Food Recall
Senior Member
Joined: 05-01-2006
Posts: 2,507
From: New London, CT USA
Thanks for the update.
Happy to report Duncan K Kitty is doing fine. I stopped feeding him the IAMS and perhaps we did not get a bad batch. He is hungry and just a regular food mooch like always!
Kelsey Kitty is doing fine also!
Happy to report Duncan K Kitty is doing fine. I stopped feeding him the IAMS and perhaps we did not get a bad batch. He is hungry and just a regular food mooch like always!
Kelsey Kitty is doing fine also!
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: 08-20-2006
Posts: 21,640
From: Hillsdale, Michigan
Check your Dry Cat Food Now:
Contaminated Cat Food Recalled by Maker
By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer
3 hours ago
Paul Henderson, President and CEO of Menu Foods speaks ...
WASHINGTON - Federal testing of recalled pet foods turned up a chemical used to make plastics but failed to confirm the presence of a cancer drug also used as rat poison. The recall expanded Friday to include the first dry pet food.
The Food and Drug Administration said Friday it found melamine in samples of the Menu Foods pet food involved in the original recall and in imported wheat gluten used as an ingredient in the company's wet-style products. Cornell University scientists also found melamine in the urine of sick cats, as well as in the kidney of one cat that died after eating some of the recalled food.
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.
Contaminated Cat Food Recalled by Maker
By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer
3 hours ago
Paul Henderson, President and CEO of Menu Foods speaks ...
WASHINGTON - Federal testing of recalled pet foods turned up a chemical used to make plastics but failed to confirm the presence of a cancer drug also used as rat poison. The recall expanded Friday to include the first dry pet food.
The Food and Drug Administration said Friday it found melamine in samples of the Menu Foods pet food involved in the original recall and in imported wheat gluten used as an ingredient in the company's wet-style products. Cornell University scientists also found melamine in the urine of sick cats, as well as in the kidney of one cat that died after eating some of the recalled food.
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.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: 08-20-2006
Posts: 21,640
From: Hillsdale, Michigan
Now Alpo!!!
Pet Food Recall Expands to New Wet Brand
By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer
5 hours ago
WASHINGTON - The recall of wet and dry pet foods contaminated with a chemical found in plastics and pesticides expanded Saturday to include a new brand even as investigators were puzzled why the substance would kill dogs and cats.
Nestle Purina PetCare Co. said it was recalling all sizes and varieties of its Alpo Prime Cuts in Gravy wet dog food with specific date codes. Purina said a limited amount of the food contained a contaminated wheat gluten from China.
The same U.S. supplier also provided wheat gluten, a protein source, to a Canadian company, Menu Foods, which this month recalled 60 million containers of wet dog and cat food it produces for sale under nearly 100 brand labels.
Menu Foods and the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates the pet food industry, have refused to identify the company that supplied the contaminated wheat gluten.
Hill's Pet Nutrition said late Friday that its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry cat food included the tainted wheat gluten. The FDA said the source was the same unidentified company. Hill's, a division of Colgate-Palmolive Co., is so far the only company to recall any dry pet food.
Federal testing of some recalled pet foods and the wheat gluten used in their production turned up the chemical melamine. Melamine is used to make kitchenware and other plastics. It is both a contaminant and byproduct of several pesticides, including cyromazine, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Melamine is toxic only in very high doses and has been shown in rats to produce bladder tumors, according to the EPA.
The federal pet food testing failed to confirm the presence of aminopterin, a cancer drug also used as rat poison, the FDA said. Cornell University scientists also found melamine in the urine of sick cats, as well as in the kidney of one cat that died after eating some of the recalled food.
Earlier, the New York State Food Laboratory identified aminopterin as the likely culprit in the pet food. But the FDA said it could not confirm that finding, nor have researchers at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey when they looked at tissue samples taken from dead cats.
Experts at the University of Guelph in Canada detected aminopterin in some samples of the recalled pet food, but only in very small percentages.
"Biologically, that means nothing. It wouldn't do anything," said Grant Maxie, a veterinary pathologist at the university. "This is a puzzle."
The FDA was working to rule out the possibility that the contaminated wheat gluten could have made it into any human food.
Menu Foods announced the recall this month after animals died of kidney failure after eating the company's products.
An FDA official allowed that it was not immediately clear whether the melamine was the culprit. The agency's investigation continues, said Stephen F. Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine.
Menu Foods said the only certainty was that imported wheat gluten was the likely source of the deadly contamination, even if the actual contaminant remained in doubt.
"The important point today is that the source of the adulteration has been identified and removed from our system," said Paul Henderson, Menu Foods chief executive officer and president. Henderson suggested his company would pursue legal action against the supplier.
About 70 percent of the wheat gluten used in the United States for human and pet food is imported from the European Union and Asia, according to the Pet Food Institute, an industry group.
One veterinarian suggested the international sourcing of ingredients would force the U.S. "to come to grips with a reality we had not appreciated."
"When you change from getting an ingredient from the supplier down the road to a supplier from around the globe, maybe the methods and practices that were effective in one situation need to be changed," said Tony Buffington, a professor of veterinary clinical sciences at Ohio State University.
Sundlof said the agency may change how it regulates the pet food industry.
"In this case, we're going to have to look at this after the dust settles and determine if there is something from a regulatory standpoint that we could have done differently to prevent this incident from occurring," he said.
Pet Food Recall Expands to New Wet Brand
By ANDREW BRIDGES, Associated Press Writer
5 hours ago
WASHINGTON - The recall of wet and dry pet foods contaminated with a chemical found in plastics and pesticides expanded Saturday to include a new brand even as investigators were puzzled why the substance would kill dogs and cats.
Nestle Purina PetCare Co. said it was recalling all sizes and varieties of its Alpo Prime Cuts in Gravy wet dog food with specific date codes. Purina said a limited amount of the food contained a contaminated wheat gluten from China.
The same U.S. supplier also provided wheat gluten, a protein source, to a Canadian company, Menu Foods, which this month recalled 60 million containers of wet dog and cat food it produces for sale under nearly 100 brand labels.
Menu Foods and the Food and Drug Administration, which regulates the pet food industry, have refused to identify the company that supplied the contaminated wheat gluten.
Hill's Pet Nutrition said late Friday that its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry cat food included the tainted wheat gluten. The FDA said the source was the same unidentified company. Hill's, a division of Colgate-Palmolive Co., is so far the only company to recall any dry pet food.
Federal testing of some recalled pet foods and the wheat gluten used in their production turned up the chemical melamine. Melamine is used to make kitchenware and other plastics. It is both a contaminant and byproduct of several pesticides, including cyromazine, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Melamine is toxic only in very high doses and has been shown in rats to produce bladder tumors, according to the EPA.
The federal pet food testing failed to confirm the presence of aminopterin, a cancer drug also used as rat poison, the FDA said. Cornell University scientists also found melamine in the urine of sick cats, as well as in the kidney of one cat that died after eating some of the recalled food.
Earlier, the New York State Food Laboratory identified aminopterin as the likely culprit in the pet food. But the FDA said it could not confirm that finding, nor have researchers at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey when they looked at tissue samples taken from dead cats.
Experts at the University of Guelph in Canada detected aminopterin in some samples of the recalled pet food, but only in very small percentages.
"Biologically, that means nothing. It wouldn't do anything," said Grant Maxie, a veterinary pathologist at the university. "This is a puzzle."
The FDA was working to rule out the possibility that the contaminated wheat gluten could have made it into any human food.
Menu Foods announced the recall this month after animals died of kidney failure after eating the company's products.
An FDA official allowed that it was not immediately clear whether the melamine was the culprit. The agency's investigation continues, said Stephen F. Sundlof, director of the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine.
Menu Foods said the only certainty was that imported wheat gluten was the likely source of the deadly contamination, even if the actual contaminant remained in doubt.
"The important point today is that the source of the adulteration has been identified and removed from our system," said Paul Henderson, Menu Foods chief executive officer and president. Henderson suggested his company would pursue legal action against the supplier.
About 70 percent of the wheat gluten used in the United States for human and pet food is imported from the European Union and Asia, according to the Pet Food Institute, an industry group.
One veterinarian suggested the international sourcing of ingredients would force the U.S. "to come to grips with a reality we had not appreciated."
"When you change from getting an ingredient from the supplier down the road to a supplier from around the globe, maybe the methods and practices that were effective in one situation need to be changed," said Tony Buffington, a professor of veterinary clinical sciences at Ohio State University.
Sundlof said the agency may change how it regulates the pet food industry.
"In this case, we're going to have to look at this after the dust settles and determine if there is something from a regulatory standpoint that we could have done differently to prevent this incident from occurring," he said.
Senior Member
Joined: 05-23-2006
Posts: 1,082
From: Chandler, AZ
Having 8 Cats I hope we've dodged a bullet on this one!
They mainly eat the Science Diet Indoor Cat Dry Food and maybe 2 or 3 cans of Friskies Moist a day, but not any of those with chunks and gravy! All I can say is "So far so good!"
Senior Member
Joined: 03-10-2007
Posts: 211
From: Ottawa, Ontario
The one common thread in this is that the ingredient that did the damage cam from wheat gluten - a filler. I know it sucks to have to spend more money, but I really think people should consider getting better food for there cats and dogs.
I almost started my pup on Eukenuba thinking it was a good food. Hell, they charge "good food" prices! Read the ingredients, if you see words like by-product, "animal" fat, or any other non-specific item - don't buy it! Would you eat that crap? Good food is still inexpensive compared to what we feed ourselves. My dog get one of the better foods out there - Fromm Puppy Gold - and it costs me around a dollar a day. Yep, that is a ton more than if I bought Ol'Roy (about a 24 of beer more expensive per bag!), but the peace of mind is worth it.
Watch those foods! Be VERY leery if they say "new formula" as it may mean "cheaper formula".
Pet food should be regulated - it may be in the States (I'm not sure), but it isn't in Canada.
I almost started my pup on Eukenuba thinking it was a good food. Hell, they charge "good food" prices! Read the ingredients, if you see words like by-product, "animal" fat, or any other non-specific item - don't buy it! Would you eat that crap? Good food is still inexpensive compared to what we feed ourselves. My dog get one of the better foods out there - Fromm Puppy Gold - and it costs me around a dollar a day. Yep, that is a ton more than if I bought Ol'Roy (about a 24 of beer more expensive per bag!), but the peace of mind is worth it.
Watch those foods! Be VERY leery if they say "new formula" as it may mean "cheaper formula".
Pet food should be regulated - it may be in the States (I'm not sure), but it isn't in Canada.
Senior Member
Joined: 10-19-2005
Posts: 20,687
From: Miami
So thankfully, we did dodge this bullet!
Senior Member
Joined: 03-10-2007
Posts: 211
From: Ottawa, Ontario
I hope this doesn't seem like I'm try to sell the food I give my dog - and NO, I do not work for Fromm - but you may want to watch out for foods with Wheat Gluten...
You should think about reading the following - don't worry - it's short!
http://www.frommfamily.com/contact-recall-info.php
You should think about reading the following - don't worry - it's short!
http://www.frommfamily.com/contact-recall-info.php
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: 08-20-2006
Posts: 21,640
From: Hillsdale, Michigan
Kris, I checked out Fromm and it looks pretty good. Unfortunately no retailers sell around here and shipping costs would really raise the cost. Checked into Innova and also seemed like a good option but a little on the pricey side as well. Another option was Eagle Pack but didn't go that route either. Found a brand called Wellness from Old Mother Hubbard and seems like a reasonable price and a good product (no wheat gluten) and they sell it locally. Check here for Wellness products: Wellness Pet Foods
WHAT GOES IN
Highly Digestible, Beneficial, Human-Grade Ingredients
Quality Protein Sources for Strong Muscles
Wholesome Grains for Healthy Fiber and Energy
Full Rainbow of Fruits & Vegetables for Antioxidant Protection
Omega 3 & 6 Fatty Acids for Skin & Coat Health
Glucosamine and Chondroitin for Joint Health
Taurine for Heart Health
WHAT STAYS OUT
Inferior Quality, Nutritionless or Potentially Allergenic Ingredients
No Meat By-Products
No Rendered Animal Fats
No White Rice
No Corn
No Dairy or Egg
No Soy
No Artificial Preservatives
No Wheat
No Added Sugar
No Artificial Flavors, Colors or Dyes
WHAT GOES IN
Highly Digestible, Beneficial, Human-Grade Ingredients
Quality Protein Sources for Strong Muscles
Wholesome Grains for Healthy Fiber and Energy
Full Rainbow of Fruits & Vegetables for Antioxidant Protection
Omega 3 & 6 Fatty Acids for Skin & Coat Health
Glucosamine and Chondroitin for Joint Health
Taurine for Heart Health
WHAT STAYS OUT
Inferior Quality, Nutritionless or Potentially Allergenic Ingredients
No Meat By-Products
No Rendered Animal Fats
No White Rice
No Corn
No Dairy or Egg
No Soy
No Artificial Preservatives
No Wheat
No Added Sugar
No Artificial Flavors, Colors or Dyes
Last edited by HillsdaleHHR; Apr 4, 2007 at 01:58 PM.