Dog food is not exempt when it comes to food contamination, and unfortunately, it happens more often than it should.
Just a few days ago, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalled pet food products from four different brands after six pets died or became ill. According to Time, they believe products from the companies Redbarn Pet Products, Raw For Paws Dog Food, Darwin's Natural Pet Products, and ZooLogics Pet Food may have come in contact with salmonella.
Around the same time news broke out about the possible salmonella contamination in pet food products, the FDA also learned some more frightening news about what may be lingering in our beloved canine's food.
Nikki Mael was feeding her five dogs a can of Evanger's pet food when they all suddenly started falling ill on New Year's Eve 2016.
"They were falling over. They were running into the walls. They were convulsing," she told ABC7. She sent what remained of the food to get tested, which revealed that her dogs consumed pentobarbital, which is a euthanasia drug.
Pet consumer advocates conducted further investigation by testing dozens of wet dog food from different brands, discovering that many of them were positive for the lethal drug.
Now the FDA is warning pet owners to avoid certain dog food brands...
Gravy Train is the one brand that investigators are stressing to stay away from. Although the FDA says there is not enough of the drug to endanger the life of your pet, the presence of the drug is still an issue.
"In total, we tested 15 cans of Gravy Train," WJLA said in its report. "Nine cans "” 60-percent of the sample "” were positive for pentobarbital. And while the levels detected were not lethal, under federal law they are also not permitted at any concentration."
J.M. Smucker Comapany is also voluntarily withdrawing their Gravy Train, Kibbles 'N Bits, Ol' Roy and Skippy products.
"We take this very seriously and are extremely disappointed that pentobarbital was introduced to our supply chain," said Barry Dunaway, president of Smucker's Pet Food and Pet Snacks, in a statement. "We will continue to work closely with our suppliers and veterinarians to ensure the ingredients used in our products meet or exceed regulatory safety standards and our high-quality standards. Above all, we are a company that loves pets and understand the responsibility we have in providing high-quality food for the pets our consumers love."
"We have narrowed the focus of our investigation to a single supplier and a single, minor ingredient, used at one manufacturing facility," a Gravy Train statement said. "We will take the appropriate steps to ensure this does not occur again."
