Pet Food Recall

PET FOOD RECALL INFORMATION

There is already a great deal of excellent information on the web regarding the recall, which we will not attempt to duplicate here. If you go to our "links" page, there is a link to the American Animal Hospital Association with a complete listing of all the pet foods involved in the recall. Because some foods have different names depending upon who is the seller, here is an interesting link which tells what foods are NOT on the recall list. http://www.thepetfoodlist.com/

If you have an animal which was fed one of the recalled products, we have the lab tests which will detect the early stages of renal distress or failure before outward symptoms begin. Our laboratory supplier has developed a special test which pin-points the problem areas and permits a quick diagnosis and treatment. This is especially critical in cats, as they may have advanced damage before the symptoms become visible. If you have any questions regarding testing or the recall, please do not hesitate to call our office.

ROYAL CANIN RECALL

Royal Canin has refomulated the below products. These are now free from the rice which was contaminated with melamine. The new formulas are back on our shelves and available for those who use these diets:

Veterinary Diet Canine Early Cardiac EC22 dry food

Veterinary Diet Canine Skin Support SS21 dry food

Veterinary Diet Feline Hypoallergenic HP23 dry food

"HOME-MADE" PET FOOD

We have had numerous questions regarding pet owners creating their own pet food at home in order to avoid the problems associated with the current contamination of commercial pet food. The short answer is DON'T DO IT! Not only is it extremely difficult to match the nutritional values which are present in commercial food products, you may run a significant risk of creating illness in your pet AND YOUR FAMILY several times greater than has been associated with the current round of recalls. Quoting statistics from the "Homemade Pet Foods in a Pet Food Crisis" article from the Veterinary Information Network, Inc.,:

"Published homemade recipes for dogs and cats have been found to be almost uniformly unbalanced, leading to nutrient deficiencies or excesses."

"Homemade 'universal' recipes are for the mythical 'average' 20 pound dog. Energy requirements for your pet may vary as much as 50% from the 'formula.'"

"Human vitamin and mineral supplements cannot be made into dosages accurate for pets at home. Calcium, B-12, taurine, and other nutrients must be manufactured. Splitting human supplements for pets is potentially risky and can easily lead to the administration of toxic amounts, especially in very small animals."

"Home-cooked foods are a more expensive, inconvenient, require a major time investment by owners, require the purchase of new measuring equipment, resulting in a great deal of time and money for little advantage and potentially deadly results."

"Veterinary nutritionists see a high percentage of pets with poor nutrition (1-3%) from pets on homemade food versus commercial."

"In people, there are 76 million annual food poisoning cases per year. Fatalities are estimated to be 5000. If we compare these human statistics to the current pet food incidents, the effected pets have been less than .005%, or 1 in 100 million. The likelihood of your pet becoming ill from commercial pet food is substantially less than from bacteria in homemade food."

Keep in mind that using raw meat with your kitchen utensils also increases the chances that both your pet and your family may contract food poisoning from the preparation area, and improper storage will rapidly turn the homemade pet food into a bacterial breeding ground. There are many commercial brands which are available on the market today which have been tested to be safe. Please see the website on our "Links" page for a listing of all "safe" foods, or call our office to order one of the many safe food products we carry.

Nurturing the love of companion animals...