Everyone has asked the burning question… “What should I be feeding my pet?” There has been much frustration over the recent scare with pet food. The information we have so far indicates that a shipment of wheat gluten from China was contaminated. In late March the agent melamine, used in plastic production and as a fertilizer in Asia, was identified as the possible cause of illness. All the foods containing this source of wheat gluten have been removed from the market.
The majority of recalled food was the canned cuts and gravy style manufactured by Menu Food, Inc., a Canadian manufacturer of wet pet food. There has also been limited dry food and treats recalled voluntarily because they contained the same source of wheat gluten.
Affected animals have symptoms of acute renal failure. Signs include vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite, lethargy, and increased water consumption. If your pet shows any of these symptoms, contact your veterinarian immediately. There has not been a final estimate as to how many animals have been fallen ill after eating the contaminated food.
For the latest information on the pet food recall, including a complete list of recalled foods, information on how to report a suspected case of food poisoning, treatment protocols, and other resources for pet owners visit www.avma.org.
At Manchaca Road Animal Hospital, we have complete confidence in the companies represented by the diets we sell. None of the diets we carry were affected by this recall. We carry many quality prescription veterinary diets by companies such as Purina, Royal Canin, Eukanuba, and Science Diet. We feel that these products are manufactured with the highest quality ingredients and are safe to feed your pets.