Salmonella in dog food sickens 14 people in US

[snagglepuss]

Source: Associated Press - The Guardian

Associated Press= COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Fourteen people in at least nine states have been sickened by salmonella after handling tainted dog food from a South Carolina plant that a few years ago produced food contaminated by toxic mold that killed dozens of dogs, federal officials said Friday.

At least five people were hospitalized because of the dog food, which was made by Diamond Pet Foods at its plant in Gaston, S.C., the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. No pets were sickened, according to the Meta, Mo.-based company.

"People who became ill, the thing that was common among them was that they had fed their pets Diamond Pet Foods," said CDC spokeswoman Lola Russell.

snip


The recall covers a number of pet food brands made at the Gaston plant, including Canidae, Natural Balance, Apex, Kirkland, Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul, Country Value, Diamond, Diamond Naturals, Premium Edge, Professional, 4Health and Taste of the Wild.

Read more: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/feedarticle/10228273

---

Online:

http://diamondpetrecall.com/

www.naturalbalanceinc.com

[gateley]

1. K&R -- hope everyone affected is made aware. Thanks! nt

[freshwest]

2. Will pass on to pet owning friends. K & R for visibility!

[uppityperson]

3. Dang, thank you. We use some of those brands as they are good food. Washing hands now.

[tabasco]

5. "they are good food"

That's a pretty bold claim after reading that article.

[robinlynne]

6. taste of the wild is one of the most expensive organic foods.

[tabasco]

9. Well, that's good.

They'll have plenty of money to pay off the claims for dead dogs and sick people.

[obamanut2012]

18. There are no sick or dead dogs

Nor has there apparently been any salmonella found, but the CDC thinks it has to be the reason. This is a voluntary recall.

[tabasco]

27. Were they just making this part up, then?

"In 2005, a toxic mold called aflatoxin ended up in food made at the same Diamond Pet Foods plant in South Carolina and dozens of dogs died. The company offered a $3.1 million settlement. The Food and Drug Administration determined the deadly fungus likely got into the plant when it failed to test 12 shipments of corn."

[magical thyme]

22. toxic mold a few years ago killed dogs

this time around it is salmonella.

[snagglepuss]

10. It's a sad truth that price is no guarantee of quality. Google different

brands and it is surprising to see the brands that have been involved with recalls.

[Samantha]

11. Yes, I know -- I recently bought a large bag

I just went and double checked the name on the bag. I purchased it at Mighty Healthy Pets, an organic pet food store. I am going to call them tomorrow and let them know about this. Additionally, I scoped out a bagful and gave it to my daughter for her dog to try. This is pretty upsetting -- I try to be so careful with both my food but that as well for my dog.

Sam

[Worried senior]

26. Taste of the Wild

is what we feed our dog. Will have to contact the store and see if there has been any recall for the bag we got. Not sure where it was made.

[robinlynne]

31. go to the diamond foods website. You can check the numbers written on your bag to see if it is

in the recall. I checked. Mine was not.

[uppityperson]

14. Gee, guess I should have read this article 10 yrs ago when I first started using them

for my dog with bad skin allergies. He did great on them, much better than any food he'd been on. Too bad I didn't read this article back then.

[obamanut2012]

16. TOTW is one of the top three rated dog and cat kibble

It is an excellent food, and I just checked the SKU on the bag here and had to pull it.

[snagglepuss]

8. My mom thinks I am a irrational when I insist she washes her hands after

feeding her kitteh. I am going to be showing her this article.

[Rhiannon12866]

4. Good God, not again! Kicking for visibility!

[robinlynne]

7. crap, my brand is in there. costco brand, thousands of people's brand.....

[mindwalker_i]

12. Moral of the story

Don't french kiss your dog right after it eats.

[PatrynXX]

13. and to imagine Pink Slime is bad enough that the dog food companies won't accept it

yet people get sick off dog food. Might as well use asbestos as one's air filter

[FlaGranny]

15. My god, many of those brands

are premium quality dog foods. I had been feeding Taste of the Wild last year. Surprising no dogs got sick, but dogs' digestive systems can handle bacteria better than a human's.

[obamanut2012]

17. I read all the recall info last night, and no salmonella has actually been found

Even in tested bags. Fourteen people have become sick over the last couple months, and the CDC says the only common thread is dog food from brands made in this plant. But yet no salmonella has been found? Very confusing to me.

Cat food and canned food from these brands aren't affected. I do feed y dogs TOTW and the bag I have had an affected sku. Of course, every bag I have been feeding them for almost five months almost positively did, too.

[Incitatus]

24. That doesn't make sense.

What about the bags the owners were using? If none of them tested positive, how can they say it was the dog food? Maybe there happened to be more than 1 source of salmonella that affected the group.

[Trillo]

19. So many apparent brands, yet all made in the same place.

Is banking similar?

[robinlynne]

20. our food is similar. It is not a good thing.

[dana_b]

21. we use both Premium Edge and Natural Balance.

crap. As soon as my kid gets home, we'll check the SKU (I can't pick up the bag). These are all top rated brands BUT if they aren't handled well in the factory it doesn't matter. It's strange how it affects people but not the dogs.

[a la izquierda]

28. My bag was recalled.

My dog already ate half of it.

[dana_b]

29. eek!! are you and your dog

alright?? I hope you are both okay. The company should do more than compensate you for the price of the food, even if you guys are alright. I'm not sure what but they definitely need to clean and regulate that factory better.

we live in California but got the food from Amazon. It looks like we and others on the west coast escaped this recall but it could happen anywhere again. This crap has got to stop! they are putting people and pets in serious danger.

[a la izquierda]

30. Well, I'm fine and my dog seems okay.

We like Natural Balance because the Potato and Duck has no grain. When we found our pup (abandoned, living under a car), he had terrible mange. As a result, he's got some skin problems that are likely allergy related. Natural Balance keeps him from scratching himself raw.

The pet store I get it from is a locally owned store. I hate for them to have to deal with this.

[blm]

23. Figures - there ARE no standards too low for South Carolina's GOP lawmakers. No rules, S.C.

Oh yes - South Carolina is Open for Business, y'all.

[julian09]

25. Are people eating the dog food?