Pet Food Recall

[geebee]

I know this is not heart related but so many of us have pet family members. There is a huge pet food recall going on right now due to some type of tainted ingredient. Some cats and dogs have died already and I want to prevent that from happening as much as possible.

This is apparently for canned or wet pouch food only.

Here is the link to check the food you have in your home:

http://menufoods.com/recall/

Please check your pantry.

 

[Susan BAV]

Thanks, Gina - My snobby cats like Fancy Feast and I was glad to see it's not on the list.

 

[EVELYN]

Hi All

This recall is nothing to fool around with. Petco is accepting all dog foods brands recalled (as long as they sell it) whether they're on the list or not. I just brought back 12-12packs and they accepted it without question.

Please be careful of the cat food, too....if you buy store brands, just look at the labels.....Very scary to think we might lose our furbabies to kidney failure caused by our own dog/cat food.

Evelyn

 

[geebee]

Evelyn,

I had a few cans of Pet Pride and, even tho they were not on the list, I took them back anyway. I received no hassle from Kroger. Luckily most of the food I have here was other brands although, in the past, I have served my cats the type of foods recalled (Eukanuba canned, the Pet Pride sliced foods) so I am hoping it was far enough back not to be an issue.

I wonder if there is a test for kidney problems in cats and dogs?

 

[Bridgette]

Vets can take blood tests from cats and dogs to test kidney function.

BTW - my cat and dog are both on dry food (Eukanuba and Hills Science Diet) only, this is supposed to be a complete diet with no need for meat, wet food etc. They are both doing very well on it.

Bridgette

 

[Bina]

This pet food recall is a nightmare
Over 40 brands of dog food and over 40 brands of cat food affected.

Yes, dry food is sold as being complete, but the processing really kills the nutrition and then they have to compensate by adding the requisite vitamins, minerals, etc. These foods are designed for convenience.

It is quite important for cats, males especially, to eat some wet food (canned meat). A diet of only dry is a primary cause of urinary tract infections and bladder problems.

 

[catwoman]

The pet food recall has been a very hot item yesterday & today on a cat-related board I'm on. I'm sure websites for dog fanciers have been busy with posts about the recall, too.
Most of the cat food we buy is dry (Iam's, Royal Canin, some Hill's); we also buy Fancy Feast and some Rx formulas, none of the recalled foods.

I wonder if there is a test for kidney problems in cats and dogs?

Gina:

Vets test for BUN (blood urea nitrogen) and createnine (sp?). In cats, vets check to see if the kidneys are able to concentrate urine; I'm not sure if this follows the same with dogs.
PCV (packed cell volume) or hematocrit tests also detect any anemia, which I think usually accompanies kidney failure.

 

[MaryC]

Our cats and dogs eat dry IAMS only. I tried giving our oldest manx cat canned IAMS once and she refused to eat it. I can't imagine how those people feel whose pets died as a result of the identified products.

 

[Bridgette]

The vets at the clinic where I work recommend dry food as a complete diet Bina. (high quality like Hills, Iams, Eukanuba).
Make sure the animals have a plentiful supply of fresh drinking water. Dry food has the advantage of being very good for animals (especially cats) teeth and gums...if a cat is fed on wet sloppy food all the time, it does the teeth and gums no good, as they are not chewing vigorously as they do when they eat the cat nuts.
I will have to discuss with the vets your assertion that a dry food only diet is damaging to the urinary tract and bladder - I have never heard it mentioned before. Interesting....

Bridgette

 

[Susan BAV]

I have heard that certain (cheap) brands of dry food (I think I remember it being the ones high in ash content?) are bad for neutered male cats, contributing to those dangerous urinary blockages.

Cats must have fresh drinking water available for optimal health.

 

[hensylee]

we had some ol roy for Miss SS but the numbers were not on the list. Daughter picked up Alpo after church to give her instead. We feed all our cats and dog wet and dry.

Yes, the ash content can be troublesome for urinary tract infection in cats. Daughter is careful and gets the ones below 2. we have one male cat and he is prone to get it.

 

[Bina]

I worked for several years in a specialty pet food store...I was expected to read all the labels very carefully; it is surprising that some of the higher end products are not always what they brag to be.

And yes, my neutered male had showed preliminary signs of UT problems; he was going pee out of the box. When cats have some discomfort urinating they will sometimes associate it with the litter box and try to go somewhere else.
Dry foods usually have a higher ash content; this is bad for the urinary tract, especially if the cat is not a big water drinker, (like mine).

Feeding canned meats (types without gravy) 3-4 times a week should not do too much damage to the teeth, and it really helped my boy with the sensitive UT. The key is to feed dry food as well as meat.
He is now a very happy senior

 

[geebee]

Apparently the cause of the deaths and illnesses in the pets that ate the tainted food is a form of rat poison (not warfarin). They still do not know the source and are not even sure if it was accidental or intentional.

Right now I am waiting for the results of my pets blood work testing for kidney problems.

Very sad.

 

[Granbonny]

Having 1 dog and 2 cats. hard to leave dry food out..Kallie (papillon)eats 3 cans of Cesar a day..I know, I should leave some dry food on the floor for him..When I do..sometimes he will nibble it..mostly not.......I have 2 cats..age 14 and age 8..They eat Fancy Feast..several cans a day..Question..I just found a bag of IAMS hairball Care for the old one. half the bag gone. she will nibble on it......Anyone have a handy list of IAMS to check that?..............I know that when I am at the Pet food counter at Grocery store..I see many people picking the cheapest brands.My bill is about $30.00 a week for their's ...Anyone else notice..they are never hungry until you run out?then a quick trip to pick up more.. Hubby always says..better to spend money on good food than a Vet bill..Bonnie

 

[hensylee]

Bonnie, there was something on the news yesterday that said this company, along with others, makes the cheap as well as the expensive and ingredients are the same. We buy two brands of cat food and dry Purina for adult cats and also hairball kind (which doesn't seem to help much) and Ol Roy dry for Sally plus Alpo and WalMart brand, too (canned).

daughter has one small adult cat that gets only Fancy Feast and some dry. Our cats nibble on the dry during the day and at night I hear crunchers, too.

 

[geebee]

Bonnie,

None of the dry foods are recalled so your Iams dry should be fine.

 

[tobagotwo]

I went through every can we have by the UPC code. Found a couple that were on the list.

The problem I have with Science Diet, Iams, and Eukanuba is that they're aimed at show animal convenience, and are specifically designed for "smaller stools." That doesn't seem healthy to me. Animals need roughage, too. Also, I have never had an animal that would eat Iams food, dog or cat.

Note that Eukanuba, Science Diet and Iams are all on the recall list, too. Money doesn't buy safety, it seems.

Other than those brands, I try to give an assortment of the better foods, and that has led me to have some of the brands in the recall, such as Nutro.

The dog likes anything, so she gets a high quality dry food and a little high-quality canned food daily- rabbit, buffalo, venison, and brands like Chicken Soup For Dogs, California Natural, Neuro all-meat, etc.

The cat likes Sophisticat (cans) and Deli Cat (dry). All my cats have. I've wasted so much money trying to get them to eat "better" food, and now just get better canned foods to mix in sometimes instead.

Best wishes,

 

[Bina]

The problem with the foods is the wheat gluten that was imported from china; it was tainted with rat poison. It's all about manufacturers continuing to buy whatever is cheapest. The sick pets are now paying the price

 

[Susan BAV]

One of the canned foods that I have yet to get any of my animals to eat is the expen$ive canned stuff the vet will sell you when your pet gets ill with anything, or when they have their "surgery." I dutifully buy into that nonsense every time and drag cans of it home and the dogs and cats won't touch that nasty stuff.

When I used the word "cheap" in my comment about dry foods, maybe I could have used a better word; but I couldn't think of a substitute without mentioning one brand that jumps to my mind that has that really bad ash issue. I feed my cats Purina dry and the Purina One dry and they are all healthy and very happy.

We've switched the dogs' foods around a bit recently but one dog is just a garbage disposal (and will do about anything for an Oreo cookie) and the other dog likes her steaks medium-rare please -- such a food snob. We often put bacon grease in their dry food. It can't be much worse than those numerous live gophers they catch and swallow... and it sure makes their coats nice!

 

[Marguerite53]

My little Cairn terrier had dental work last friday. The vet said give him soft food for a week (he had some gum work with stitches... $$$$ ). She suggested several varieties (this before the recall and problems) and I just balked and said no thanks, I'll pour some boiling water on his dry food (Hill's) and let it sit for a half hour....that'll soften it up!! Thank goodness I was cheap!!!!!!!!!! I don't know if Oregon has actually had any cases of the soft food problem, but I'm glad I don't have to worry about it. My little guy eats lots of vegetables (tiny carrots and romaine lettuce spines...his favorite) so I don't worry about roughage.

Gina. I hope your little loved ones are okay!

Marguerite