I haven’t written about raw diets lately (beyond risks from H5N1 influenza, particularly in cats), but that doesn’t mean the risks from these diets have gone away, and they are still really popular in some areas, and some messages are worth repeating.
Potential problems with raw diets for dogs and cats include infections (e.g. Salmonella
Last month, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) issued a somewhat vague notice about an ongoing outbreak investigation of Salmonella infections linked to dog food and treats. At the time they were still unable to identify a specific brand or manufacturer to which the outbreak had been linked.
This week PHAC posted an
There are a couple of new voluntary recalls because of Salmonella contamination of pet diets or treats. Both are US products, and the recalls were posted on the FDA website just before (Canadian) Thanksgiving.
One recall is for possible Salmonella-health risk associated with a raw frozen beef dog food from Raw Bistro Pet Fare
Oh Darwin’s… here we go again.
Yet again, the FDA has issued a “Do not feed certain lots of Darwin’s Natural Pet Products” warning. It’s a pretty regular occurrence. And, once again, Darwin’s is dragging their feet on responding.
In July, Darwin’s ignored an FDA request to recall diets contaminated with E. coli
The H5N1 influenza situation in North America has been quieter lately (apart from saga with the BC ostriches, but that’s a different story). There’s been less spillover into domestic animals recently and less attention in the news, but the virus is still out there and causing problems. (H5N1 flu activity has already started
I’ve had a lot of questions about this week’s somewhat (understandably) vague notice from the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) about an ongoing outbreak investigation of Salmonella infections linked to dog food and treats. The information available is pretty sparse, but there are still some important messages related to what we do know.
Yesterday I wrote about a FDA notice regarding H5N1 contamination of RAWR pet food that killed a cat in California (and likely sickened others, but that’s a guess). A sharp reader pointed me to the manufacturer’s response that must have gone up shortly after I looked at their website. I’ve seen lots of responses from
H5N1 avian influenza has dropped of the media radar lately (apart from the BC ostrich farm debacle, but that’s a different story), but that doesn’t mean it’s gone away (and with the fall wild bird migration season looming, we need to stay on alert). The same applies to H5N1 infections in pets from contaminated
Pathogen contamination of raw pet diets isn’t surprising. We know it’s a risk. So a new issue with Darwin’s Natural Pet Products isn’t really surprising either, since they’ve had multiple issues in the past, including ignoring an FDA recall request. They’re back in the news again, but this time it’s because of human illness
It’s fair to say that raw pet foods have clearly been source of H5N1 influenza infections in cats, some of which have been fatal – even though sometimes it’s impossible to make a definitive link between the food and infection because of when and how the infection occurred, and what could or could not be
