Daily Paws

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Archive for the ‘Recall Alert’ Category

URGENT: 3 Dog & Cat Food Brands Recalled for Salmonella

Friday, February 7th, 2014

Pro-Pet LLC Recalls a Limited Number of Dry Dog and Cat Foods Due to Possible Salmonella Contamination – No illnesses have been reported, this is a precautionary alert!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – February 5, 2014 – Pro-Pet LLC, St. Marys, Ohio, has initiated a voluntary recall of a limited number of Dry Dog and Cat Foods for possible Salmonella contamination. A single field test indicated products manufactured during a two day period, on a single production line may have the potential for Salmonella contamination. Pro-Pet LLC is voluntarily recalling the potentially impacted products made during this timeframe. There have been no reports of illness related to this product to date.

Salmonella can affect animals eating the products and there is risk to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the products or any surfaces exposed to these products.

Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.

Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

 

Product Best By Lot Code UPC Number
40 lb Hubbard Life Happy Hound Dog Food 05 06 14 096 13 SM L2 2A 1219033878
40 lb Hubbard Life Happy Hound Dog Food 05 06 14 096 13 SM L2 1A 1219033878
18 lb Hubbard Life Cat Stars Cat Food 05 06 14 096 13 SM L2 1A 1219033873
40 lb Hubbard Life Maintenance Dog Food 05 06 14 096 13 SM L2 2A 1219033875
15 lb Joy Combo Cat Food 05 06 14 096 13 SM L2 1A 7065407721
40 lb Joy Combo Cat Food 05 06 14 096 13 SM L2 1A 7065407713
40 lb Joy Combo Cat Food 05 06 14 096 13 SM L2 2A 7065407713
20 lb QC Plus Adult Dog Food 05 07 14 097 13 SM L2 2A 2351780103
40 lb QC Plus Adult Dog Food 05 07 14 097 13 SM L2 2A 2351780104
40 lb QC Plus Adult Dog Food 05 07 14 097 13 SM L2 1A 2351780104

 

These products were distributed through select retailers, distributors and on-line consumer purchases in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and West Virginia

No other products/lot numbers are affected by this recall.

Customers should immediately discontinue use of any impacted product and contact Pro-Pet at 1-888-765-4190 for disposition.

For more information on the recall, customers can contact the customer service line for Pro-Pet at 1-888-765-4190. Customer service representatives will be available Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm CT.

For more information and recalled product photos, check FDA website.

Pet Health Care Insurance, What You Need To Know

Tuesday, August 21st, 2012

by asterix611

How many times have you heard a pet owner wish he had bought pet health insurance?

Statistics show that people are willing to foot the growing medical bills for their beloved pets, making the need for pet health insurance a real concern. Advances in pet health care can leave owners with big veterinary bills. Pet health care insurance is now affordable and available for dogs, cats and exotics.

If you would not think of being without insurance for yourself and your family, that should include your pet companion as well. Pet insurance is not as expensive as human insurance and might come in handy.

Pet health care insurance is similar to human health insurance. Like all insurance, you hope you never use it. Pet health care insurance will pay or reimburse for veterinary services that are covered under the plan. Medical treatments and technologies used for humans are now being used for pets.

If your pet needs an emergency surgery, it would be nice to know that cost is not a factor, and you won’t have to pay for everything on your own. The insurance is just sensible.

Purchase insurance coverage ideally when your pet is still young before pre-existing conditions develop. You can enroll as young as eight weeks. Some plans only allow enrollment up to age 10 for cats and age 8 for dogs (age 6 for some breeds). Once enrolled, your pet may stay in the plan for the rest of its life.

Because of their natural adventurousness and high activity level, very young pets are famous for getting hurt and needing emergency care.

There are many pet insurance companies to choose from, and many different plans available. Read the fine print. Some companies have veterinarians that belong to their network. Under those particular policies, you pay a co-payment up front and the insurance company pays for the covered services. The downside is you have to find a veterinarian that is in the pet health care insurance “network.” Each policy is different and there is no one plan that fits everyone’s needs.

Services covered under many policies include spay surgery, neuter surgery, annual vaccinations, flea preventative, annual heartworm preventative, heartworm test, annual dental cleanings, accidents, illnesses, cancer, x-rays, and surgeries. In many cases, pet health care insurance will cover even more in maintaining the wellness of your loved pet. Your coverage may also include prescription foods, boarding, euthanasia, accidental death, recovery of lost pets, and micro-chip identification. Pet health insurance can prove to be invaluable.

Additional facts to consider when enrolling.

Are pre-existing conditions covered, and what constitutes a pre-existing condition? If a pre-existing condition is covered, what are the deductibles? Does the pet health insurance policy you are interested in cover prescription costs? Will my premium go up over time, as I file claims, or my pet gets older? Does the plan cover chronic or recurring conditions? What are the financial limits of coverage? How are they applied? Do you have more than one pet that could benefit from insurance coverage and are there multi-pet discounts available? Does your particular policy require monthly or annual payments? Talk to your veterinarian about your pet’s health and question the insurance companies about the limits of the pet health insurance coverage before purchasing a particular plan.

The right insurance plan requires some homework. We’ve brought you the best.

What exactly is Salmonella and what should you know about it?

Thursday, August 19th, 2010
Color-enhanced scanning electron micrograph sh...
Image via Wikipedia

Linda

Products being recalled because of possible salmonella contamination, like the 380 million egg recall, are dominating recent news headlines.  Pet food products in particular (Iams cat food, Eukanuba dog food, Merrick pet care treats and many more since the beginning of the year) have been the subject of recalls for the same reasons, possible salmonella contamination.

Why?

Why so many recalls for salmonella in such short amounts of time?

Here is some information on what salmonella is, why outbreaks may be on the rise, and some things you can do to prevent ingesting the virus:

What is salmonella?

from http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-salmonella.htm

Salmonella refers to a genus of rod shaped bacterium, named after their discoverer Daniel Salmon in 1906. Some of these salmonella bacterium are responsible for many illnesses in humans and other animals. Most commonly, salmonella is the cause of food poisoning and typhoid fever. Salmonella lives in the intestines of mammals, birds and reptiles and is usually harmless.

The type of salmonella that is a health hazard is usually contracted by touching raw meat, raw eggs, raw shellfish or unpasteurized animal products such as milk and cheese. Salmonella bacterium can also be acquired by touching living turtles, birds and humans that have the bacteria on their hands. Salmonella is not a threat until it is ingested, which is one reason why hand washing is important.

Salmonella food poisoning is the result of touching or eating contaminated foods. Its symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal cramps and fever. Many foods that people prepare in their home, especially meats and poultry, have warning labels about safe handling on the packaging for this reason. Meat that is not properly cooked or food that is not temperature controlled is often the result of salmonella poisoning when eating out.

Salmonella poisoning usually goes away on its own without treatment in 5-7 days. However, if vomiting and diarrhea are severe and prolonged, a person can become dangerously dehydrated and must seek medical help. In addition, infected infants, the elderly and people that have weak immune systems often need medical care because salmonella sometimes spreads to the blood stream and can possibly become fatal.

Salmonella infections are zoonotic (from Wikipedia)

Zoonotic means the infection can be passed from human to animal and vice versa.  Recently there was an announcement of the first case of human salmonella traced to pet food (August 9, http://www.medpagetoday.com/PublicHealthPolicy/PublicHealth/21576).  An excerpt from this article:

Most of the salmonellosis cases among young children were significantly associated with feeding pets in the kitchen, possibly leading to cross-contamination — highlighting the importance of proper handling of pet food, Behravesh and co-authors wrote in article published online in Pediatrics.
No statistical association was found between illness and children placing pet food in their mouths, the authors added.

The discovery of the pet food link to human salmonellosis led to large recalls of several brands of pet foods and the eventual closing of the plant where the products were produced.

“This investigation resulted in identification of the first documented outbreak of human salmonellosis linked to the use of dry dog and cat food,” Behravesh and co-authors wrote. “Dry pet food may be contaminated with Salmonella and could be an under-recognized source of human infections, especially in young children,” they concluded.”

Why?

Here is an article from 2008, written after a large-scale salmonella outbreak killed several people and affected most areas of the United States.  There is some good information on a probable reason we’re seeing such an increase in outbreaks.  You may or may not agree with the authors of this article, but their conclusions make sense to me.

Salmonella is one of the most common causes of food poisoning in the United States, with about 40,000 cases confirmed each year; because many milder infections are never diagnosed, however, the CDC and USDA estimate the real number of cases may be more than a million. About 15,000 of those people are hospitalized each year, and roughly 400 die. But despite its prevalence and stealth — salmonella doesn’t affect food’s taste or smell — the precautions to avoid salmonellosis are simple. The main ones are second nature to many: Wash your hands after using the bathroom and after handling raw meat. (Click here for more prevention tips.)

Still, consumers have limited control over sanitation of food; a lot of hands touch it before ours do. We can Purell our palms dry and blacken the taste out of our steaks, but we often have little choice but to trust all the farmers, factory workers, butchers and busboys not to be lazy or careless. Global and domestic food industries feed millions of Americans every day without overtly betraying that trust, but there are always a few bad apples. And lately the bunch has been especially rotten.

Food-borne again
Major outbreaks of food-borne illnesses such as salmonella and E. coli have repeatedly gripped the United States in recent decades, part of a trend toward more widespread, if not necessarily more frequent or deadly, bacterial pestilence. Over the last four years especially, several high-profile eruptions of food poisoning have catapulted these bacteria into the national spotlight, and the most recent one has Washington buzzing about overhauling the FDA. But why are these outbreaks bigger than they used to be?

For one, the rise of big agriculture has practically set the table for them. Disease-causing bacteria and viruses thrive when one species of host congregates in high densities, and concentrated animal feeding operations offer a dream home for salmonella and E. coli. Huge farms and food-processing plants also supply a wider swath of people than pre-industrial growers did, meaning a single outbreak has a better chance of exploding into a far-reaching epidemic.

Bacteria are also becoming more resistant to antibiotics, a problem that by the mid-’90s had grown so dire the CDC, FDA and USDA collaborated to establish the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System, which tests salmonella and other microbes for their reactions to our pharmaceutical onslaught. This immunity is a result of overexposure: The more often bacteria come into contact with antibiotics, the more likely they are to develop resistance. That’s because the drugs kill the most susceptible bacteria but often leave a few stronger survivors to reproduce and fill their place, creating a new generation of hardier bugs.

Large-scale agriculture may have a hand in this, too, since farmers routinely give their animals antibiotics to stop bacteria from seizing on the unnaturally high concentrations. A 2005 study blamed the emergence of a multidrug-resistant type of Salmonella Typhimurium — a common strain that caused the recent U.S. outbreak — on “modern intensified farming and food production methods and global trade with live breeder animals.”

And while there’s no evidence they have yet, these outbreaks could get deadlier. Because bacteria that survive antibiotics proved tougher than their fallen comrades, they may also be stronger in other ways, such as virulence. Bacteria can evolve notoriously quickly; when astronauts took salmonella into space during a 12-day research mission in 2007, it responded to the low-gravity environment by becoming three times more lethal.

What you can do to prevent infection:

from the Health Canada article Salmonella prevention

There is no vaccine to prevent salmonellosis, but you can minimize your chances of contracting it by following these steps.

  • Contaminated foods may look and smell normal. Thoroughly cook foods to destroy the bacteria.
  • Do not eat raw or undercooked eggs, poultry or meat. Remember raw eggs are contained in foods such as homemade hollandaise sauce, caesar and other salad dressings, tiramisu, homemade ice cream, homemade mayonnaise, cookie dough and frostings.
  • Poultry and meat, including hamburgers, should be well-cooked, not pink in the middle. If you are served undercooked food in a restaurant, send it back.
  • Avoid raw or unpasteurized milk and other dairy products. Mother’s milk is the safest food for infants. Breast feeding prevents salmonellosis and many other health problems.
  • Thoroughly wash fruits and vegetables before eating them.
  • When buying and storing groceries, keep meats separate from fruits, vegetables, cooked foods and ready-to-eat foods.
  • Because bacteria grow quickly at room temperature, go directly home from grocery shopping and refrigerate or freeze food immediately.
  • Always defrost food in the refrigerator, in cold water or in the microwave, never at room temperature. Set your refrigerator to 4 degrees C (40 degrees F) and your freezer to -18 degrees C (0 F).
  • Wash your hands before handling any food. Be sure to wash your hands, cutting boards, counters, knives and other utensils after preparing uncooked foods.
  • If you have been diagnosed with salmonellosis, do not prepare food or pour water for anyone else until you are clear of the bacteria.
  • Wash your hands after contact with animal feces, for example, after changing the kitty litter or scooping up after your dog.
  • Since reptiles can have Salmonella, always wash your hands after handling them. Reptiles, including turtles, are not appropriate pets for children and should not be in the same house as an infant.
  • If you are diagnosed with salmonellosis, be sure that you or your doctor informs the local Public Health Department. If many cases occur at the same time, it may mean that a restaurant or a particular food item has a problem that needs to be corrected.

Be careful and take the steps necessary to protect your health and the health of your pets.

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Mice Direct recalling frozen mice.

Sunday, August 15th, 2010

Mice Direct Logo

Frozen mice and other reptile feed

Frozen reptile feed (mice, rats and chicks) is being recalled because it could potentially be contaminated with salmonella, the FDA announced.

Georgia company Mice Direct is recalling the critters, which were distributed in all states except Hawaii through pet stores and by mail order and direct delivery.

Human illnesses that may be related to the frozen reptile feed have been reported in 17 states. The recalled product should not be fed to animals, even after heating in a microwave, because the heating may not be adequate to kill salmonella, the FDA said.

Consumers who purchased reptile feed from Mice Direct are urged to contact the company by telephone at (888) 747-0736 or by e-mail at sales@micedirect.com for instructions concerning the recall and for credits toward replacement of unused product.

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Feline’s Pride Expands Nationwide Recall of its Natural Chicken Formula Cat Food Due to Salmonella Contamination

Friday, July 16th, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – July 15, 2010 – Buffalo, NY – Feline’s Pride is expanding its July 1, 2010 voluntary recall of Feline’s Pride Raw food with ground bone for cats and kittens, Natural Chicken Formula, Net Wt. 2.5 lbs. (1.13 kg., 40 oz.) produced on 6/10/10 to include the product produced on 6/21/10, because it may be contaminated with Salmonella. People handling raw pet food can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the raw pet food or any surfaces exposed to the product.

When consumed by humans, Salmonella can cause an infection, salmonellosis. The symptoms of salmonellosis include nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, minimal diarrhea, fever, and headache. Certain vulnerable populations, such as children, the elderly, and individuals with compromised immune systems, are particularly susceptible to acquiring salmonellosis from such pet food products and may experience more severe symptoms.

Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

The product is packaged in uncoded plastic containers and sold frozen to private consumers nationwide. Once thawed, the pet food has a shelf life of about 1 week. The firm manufactures the pet food by an as-ordered basis. This expansion of the recall affects those orders placed and shipped from June 21 through June 26, 2010 (produced on 6/21/10).

The firm and FDA are investigating this matter to determine the source of this problem, and will take any additional steps necessary to protect the public health.

To date, both the firm and the FDA have received no reports of Salmonella infection relating to this product.

People who are experiencing the symptoms of Salmonella infection after having handled the pet food product should seek medical attention, and report their use of the product and illness to the nearest FDA office.

People should thoroughly wash their hands after handling the pet food – especially those made from raw animal protein such as meat or fish — to help prevent infection. People may risk bacterial infection not only by handling pet foods, but by contact with pets or surfaces exposed to these foods, so it is important that they thoroughly wash their hands with hot water and soap.

Since certain vulnerable populations, such as children, the elderly, and individuals with compromised immune systems, are particularly at risk from exposure they should avoid handling this product.

Consumers with questions should contact the company at (716) 580-3096, Monday -Friday from 10 am – 4 pm EDT.

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The problem with poop

Tuesday, July 13th, 2010
Pooper Scooper

Pooper Scooper

One man’s poop is another man’s profit, and when there’s a poop problem, there’s someone willing to solve that problem, for a fee.

One of the hottest business opportunities around these days is starting a Doggie Pooper Scooper service.  Just a quick check on how many pooper scooper related searches google has (a good way to see how many people are looking for solutions) shows there are over 191,000 page results dedicated to scooping poop, and 246,000 dog poop searches per month.

That’s a lot of poop!

So, besides being a lucrative business opportunity (low start up costs, no need for a college degree, and apparently a lot of people willing to pay someone else to scoop their dog’s poop), this segment of the business world seems to be a gold “mine” in more ways than one.

For example:

Missouri pooper scooper finds $58 in doggie doo

Missouri pooper scooper finds $58 in doggie doo. Posted by Woosk on Friday, June 25th 2010. 25. Jun. In this photo provided by DoodyCalls Pet Waste Removal, Steve Wilson, a worker with DoodyCalls Pet Waste Removal holds a plastic bag of …

Read more….

Scoopers even have a week dedicated to educating pet owners as you can see here:

Pooper Scooper Week Starts Today

Special week of educating pet owners on importance of cleaning up after their dogs.

Read More

Their very own association:

The Association of Professional Animal Waste Specialists (aPaws)

And in Colorado scooping poop is a bright “spot” in an otherwise dismal economic climate.

Despite Economy Denver Pooper Scooper Turns Land Mines into Gold Mines

Pet Scoop, “Colorado’s Preferred Pooper Scooper” business is actually expanding. The privately-owned company is doing quite well in the economy, despite the current economic downturn. PET SCOOP is picking up…literally. …

Read More…….

So my question for you is:

Have you ever used a pooper scooper service?  If so, what did you think about it?

Linda Ferguson

Editor – Daily Paws
www.vetlocator.com

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A glimpse into how the FDA evaluates a pet drug

Saturday, April 24th, 2010
:Original raster version: :Image:Food and Drug...
Image via Wikipedia

Did you ever wonder what the FDA’s approval and review process is for a pet drug?  I did.

Since the time of the Great Melamine Pet Food Recall of 2007, pet owners have been painfully alert to new recalls and warnings issued by the FDA, and there have been many (I just posted another one today on our Daily Paws blog, the second one in a week).

While I was researching a recent article on an FDA issued warning for flea and tick products, I came across this page on their website:

Transcript for the March 24, 2010 Veterinary Medicine Advisory Committee from March 24th, 2010, and this transcript deals with the pet product ProHeart 6, a canine heartworm preventative.

It is a fascinating and revealing look at the process that the FDA takes after it has received complaints about a particular drug or pet food on the market.

The FDA develops a RiskMAP (Risk Minimization Plans, which is a  process of assessing a product’s benefit to risk balance, developing and implementing tools to minimize its risks while preserving its benefits, evaluating tool effectiveness and reassessing the benefit-risk balance, and making adjustments as appropriate to the risk minimization tools to further improve the benefit-risk balance), for a drug and this is one of the terms that you’ll see when you visit the link above so it is good to have a grasp of what they are talking about.

If you google ProHeart 6, you’ll see that it is a product that has been controversial, both with pet owners and with some veterinarians.  I visited www.proheart6.com today and – while the site isn’t working quite right – I saw what I think the is RiskMAP for this product there.

It is well worth your time to peruse these transcripts.  See what a typical product evaluation process is and just how the FDA treats all those reports of adverse results a drug has on our pets.

It’s good to know.

Linda Ferguson

Daily Paws
VetLocator.com

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Recall Alert: Purina horse feed and poultry feed recall

Wednesday, April 21st, 2010

purina_logo

Purina Mills is voluntarily recalling two types of feed because of metal fragments found in the mixes.  There have been some complaints but no reports of injury or damage to animals has been reported yet.

Below is the FDA’s recall:

Purina Mills Undertakes Limited Recall of Strategy® Horse Feed and Layena® Poultry Feed

Contact:
Jeanne Forbis: 651-481-2071 or 612-308-5441
David Karpinski: 651-481-2360

Products Distributed in Mississippi, Arkansas, Kentucky,Tennessee, Alabama, Indiana, Missouri and Virginia

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — St. Louis, Mo., April 16, 2010 — Purina Mills, LLC, is voluntarily recalling two specific lots of 50-pound bags of Strategy® Professional Formula GX horse feed and one lot of Layena® SunFresh® Recipe Pellet poultry feed. The recall is being implemented due to the discovery of metal fragments in a limited number of bags from one of the Strategy® product lots. At the time the recall was issued, five customer complaints had been received. No animal health issues had been reported.

The products being recalled were manufactured in Nashville, Tennessee, on March 24-25, 2010. They were shipped to retailers and dealers in Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, Missouri and Virginia.

Only the following specific products and lot numbers are involved in the recall:

Formula No. Item No. Description Lot Number
35SS 0066547 Strategy® Professional Formula GX 0MAR24NST1A1
35SS 0066547 Strategy® Professional Formula GX 0MAR24NST2A1
61R3 0056922 Layena® SunFresh® Recipe Pellet 0MAR25NST2A1

The lot number is found on the sewing strip of each bag and is interpreted as follows:
0=Year / MAR=Month / 24=Day of Month / NST1A1=Plant Code.

Customers with products that do not have the specified lot numbers are not affected by the recall.

Customers who have purchased the recalled products should not store or feed the products and are asked to return unused product to their dealer for replacement.

Customer questions or concerns may be directed to the company’s Nashville Customer Service Office at 800-424-5234.

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Recall Alert! Response Products recalls Cetyl M Joint Action Formula for Dogs

Saturday, April 17th, 2010

Cetyl M Dog

The FDA issued a recall alert for Response Products Cetyl M Joint Action Formula for Dogs because of possible Salmonella contamination. This is a voluntary recall by the company as a precaution only. No adverse effects have been reported thus far.

Below is the FDA’s official recall.
—————–

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 12, 2010 – Response Products, Broken Bow, NE is voluntarily recalling Cetyl M for Dogs, lot numbers 1210903 and 0128010, due to a possible Salmonella contamination from the hydrolyzed vegetable protein component provided by Basic Foods of Las Vegas, NV. Tests conducted by Basic Foods to detect Salmonella produced negative results; however, Response Products has determined to recall the above-referenced lots.

People who handle dry pet food and/or treats can become infected with Salmonella, especially if they have not thoroughly washed their hands after having contact with the chews or any surfaces exposed to these products. Healthy people infected with Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. Consumers exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product should contact their healthcare providers.

Pets with Salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever, and vomiting. Some pets will have only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and infect other animals or humans. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian.

Cetyl M for Dogs was distributed nation-wide through direct sales, retail stores, veterinarians and online retailers.

The above-referenced lots of Cetyl M for Dogs were distributed in either a 120-count bottle (shipped between January 8, 2010 and April 2, 2010) or a 360-count bottle (shipped between February 11, 2010 and April 2, 2010). The affected lot numbers are as follows: #1210903 and 0128010. The lot number can be found directly above the bar code on the label. These lots were sent out in the time periods as set out above. This product is in tablet-form, is approximately the size of a dime and is light brown in coloring.

To date, Response Products has received no reports of illness associated with the use of this product. Response Products recently learned that the FDA and Basic Foods of Las Vegas, NV, the producer of one of the components of the affected product’s vegetable beef flavoring, hydrolyzed vegetable protein, had detected Salmonella in Basic Food’s facility and had issued a recall on said component. The manufacturer of the vegetable beef flavoring used in Cetyl M for Dogs, tested the hydrolyzed vegetable beef protein for Salmonella and the results were negative. However, due to the concern regarding Salmonella in Basic Foods’ facility, it decided to recall two lots (only one lot affected our product) of said vegetable beef flavoring. The finished product manufacturer of Cetyl M for Dogs had tests performed on both the raw materials used to make our product and also the finished product, and all tested negative for Salmonella, however, it has issued a voluntary recall on two lots (see lot numbers listed above) of Cetyl M for Dogs.

Response Products requires that testing for Salmonella and other harmful pathogens is completed during the manufacturing process. Even though the testing performed at each level of the process showed negative results for Salmonella, in an effort to produce the highest quality product for our customers, Response Products ceased distributing the dog product in the above-referenced lots and is issuing a voluntary recall on its Cetyl M for Dogs in the affected lot numbers. In addition to the testing listed above, Response Products sent samples from said lots, as well as from lot produced after those lots, to an independent laboratory, and all samples received a negative result for Salmonella.

Response Products continues to investigate the cause of the problem and continues to be committed to producing a high-quality, effective product for dogs.

Consumers who have purchased the listed lots of Cetyl M for Dogs are urged to contact Response Products or the place of purchase for further direction. Consumers may contact Response Products at 1-877-266-9757, Monday through Friday, from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm CST.

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