QUESTION:
My vet tells me that contaminated pet food kills thousands of dogs each year. I find this hard to believe! Can this really be true?
ANSWER:
Veterinarians see the dangers of contaminated pet food on a regular basis.
In many cases, they cause dogs to vomit, stop eating, and have diarrhea. In more dangerous cases, mycotoxins can cause weight loss, liver damage, lameness, and even death.
In early 2006, at least 100 dogs in the United States were killed by toxic pet food, despite a recall of the products.
The dog foods recalled include 19 brands of Diamond, Country Value and Professional dog foods.
Professor Sharon Center, an expert in veterinary medicine who specializes in liver function and disease at the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University said of the contamination, "Entire kennels have been wiped out, and because of the holiday these past few weeks, the dispersal of recall information was disrupted”.
The contaminated canned foods were tainted with deadly aflatoxins that wasted dogs’ livers away. "Every day, we're hearing reports from veterinarians in the East and Southeast who have treated dogs that have died from liver damage this past month or so," Center said at the time of the outbreak. "We're also concerned about the long-term health of dogs that survive as well as dogs that have eaten the tainted food but show no clinical signs." Unfortunately, according to professor Center, surviving dogs may develop chronic liver disease or liver cancer.
There was a similar story in 1995, when Heinz recalled hundreds of tons of its Nature’s Recipe dog food after consumers complained that their dogs were vomiting and losing their appetite. It was found to contain vomitoxin - a toxic substance produced by mold from grain in the food.
Again in 1999, another toxin prompted the recall of dry dog food made by Doane Pet Care at one of its manufacturing facilities, including Wal-Mart’s own-brand Ol’ Roy dog food and a further 53 other brands. This time, hundreds of dogs were killed by this batch of toxic dog food.
To find out about the dangers of contaminated dog foods, please see pages 13-14 of Labrador Health For Life! And to find out how to ensure your Labrador eats the healthiest possible diet, see pages 30-47!
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