6 replies to this topic

[arby]

http://newyorkcity.i...googleid=300704

Officials have linked an outbreak of Salmonella infections to recalled pet food manufactured by Diamond Pet Foods.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced that fourteen people have developed infections with the rare strain Salmonella Infantis and the agency has linked some of those infections to Salmonella contamination of multiple brands of dog food produced at Diamond Pet Food’s plant in Gaston, SC.

The CDC has received reports of illnesses in nine states: Alabama, Connecticut, Michigan, Missouri, North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Virginia. Illnesses occurred between October 8, 2011 and April 22, 2012. Among the nine patients for which data was available, five required hospitalization for treatment of the infection.

Consumers can contract Salmonella by failing to wash hands after handling contaminated pet food or by touching a pet that has eaten contaminated pet food, even if the pet does not appear ill. They should be alert for symptoms such as diarrhea, fever and abdominal cramps and seek medical attention immediately if they develop symptoms because the infection can spread from the intestines into the bloodstream.

There was no report of how many pets may have become ill from the contaminated pet food. Symptoms of Salmonella infection in pets include decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain, which can worsen to include diarrhea, bloody diarrhea and vomiting if left untreated. Pet owners should contact their veterinarian if their pet has eaten any of the recalled food and exhibit any of those symptoms.

Diamond recalled three brands of its dog food since early April after bags sampled tested positive for Salmonella.

On April 6, Diamond recalled certain lots of Diamond Naturals Lamb & Rice dry dog food.

On April 26, the company recalled certain lots of Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul Adult Light Formula dry dog food.

On April 30, certain lots of Diamond Puppy Formula were recalled.

Yesterday, Diamond expanded its voluntary recall to include all dry cat and dog food in the following brands with certain production date codes. Consumers can determine if their dry cat or dog food is affected by the recall by locating the production code on the exterior of the bag.

Only production codes with that have a number “2” or a “3” in the 9th or 10th digit AND an “X” in the 11th digit are recalled. The best-before dates for these recalled brands are December 9, 2012 through April 7, 2013.

Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul
Country Value
Diamond
Diamond Naturals
Premium Edge
Professional
4Health
Taste of the Wild

Also recalled are the following Kirkland Signature dog and cat foods with production codes that contain both a number “3” in the 10th digit and an “X” in the 11th digit. The best-before dates for these recalled brands listed are December 9, 2012 through January 31, 2013.

Kirkland Signature Super Premium Adult Dog Lamb, Rice & Vegetable Formula
Kirkland Signature Super Premium Adult Dog Chicken, Rice & Vegetable Formula
Kirkland Signature Super Premium Mature Dog Chicken, Rice & Egg Formula
Kirkland Signature Super Premium Healthy Weight Dog Formulated with Chicken & Vegetables
Kirkland Signature Super Premium Maintenance Cat Chicken & Rice Formula
Kirkland Signature Super Premium Healthy Weight Cat Formula
Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain Salmon Meal & Sweet Potato Formula for Dogs

Canidae Corp. is also recalling four Canidae dog food varieties produced at Diamond’s Gaston, SC facility with production codes that have BOTH a number “3” in the 9th position AND an “X” in the 10th or 11th position with best before dates of December 9, 2012, through January 31, 2013:

CANIDAE Dog Dry Dog Food, All Life Stages
CANIDAE Dog Dry Dog Food, Chicken Meal & Rice
CANIDAE Dog Dry Dog Food, Lamb Meal & Rice
CANIDAE Dog Dry Dog Food, CANIDAE Platinum

While not listed in Diamond’s voluntary recall, the following brand pet foods are listed on the Refund Request form:

Apex
Solid Gold

Diamond distributed these pet foods to Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Canada. However, the company says distributors and retailers may have distributed the products further to other states.

The company has posted instructions for consumers to obtain a refund or coupon for a replacement bag of cat or dog food here.

When buying a new bag of dog or cat food in any of the above brands, consumers should verify the production code is not the recalled production code. Some of the recalled dog and cat food remained on retailer shelves today.

Diamond halted production at its Gaston, SC plant on April 8 due to the Salmonella contamination, but the company says the plant has resumed production.

Tags: recall, dog food recall, pet food recall, Diamond Pet Foods, Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul, Country Value, Diamond, Diamond Naturals, Premium Edge, Professional, 4Health, Taste of the Wild, Kirkland Signature, Canidae, Apex, Solid Gold, Salmonella, salmonellosis, outbreak, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC

[Mt_Rider]

Thanks for the heads-up, Arby.

MtRider [...gonna be checking ALL of our dog/cat food ]

[Darlene]

This was important info arby, at least to me. Breeding dogs and having puppy people contact me about it, makes it important to know all the details. I was are of the Diamond brand because that's what I use. I didn't realize that they also made so many other brands under other names.

I'm starting to make my own dog food. Not sure how it will go. I have the ingredients down pat but the time it takes is something I'll have to consider. For now, my dogs are eating like kings and queens and it's actually costing me less. It's a time issue for me so we'll see. Feeding 12 dogs isn't a 30 minute operation.

[arby]

IN the last couple of days I have seen additional information coming out too, so the recall information has increased but mostly was away from computer and didn't get it copied and pasted, or more news agencies are reporting the original info to get it out to more people.

I wish I had a recipe of cat food for my cat. Actually I don't think I can afford a bit fancier food for her as it is although I try to get the better quality, more natural types I have available.

I think its great if you can feed good quality homemade food to your dogs for a well rounded diet that you KNOW is safer.

Over the last decade or so our manufacturing has really fallen off, especially for medicine and foodstuffs and this is becoming so prevalent, too much bacteria and such things are getting into our food and medications because of the lack of monitoring going on and lack of simply hygiene practices by the workers they hire.

One of the other issues is with dog food is it is supposed to be made safe enough for human consumption. People who are not able to afford much in groceries do resort to it.

Although this risk with this stuff is simply when you handle it to feed your pet, from bag to bowl... scary thought isn't it?

We felt secure for a long time in how food was processed but now I don't. Plus the govt wants to cut down on food inspections in the processing plants~! To cut costs..... AT this point they need to increase it!

Maybe going to the sites for these companies and reviewing the lists as soon as you see this might be helpful so you have an accurate list on the recalls involved to give out information.

Edited by arby, 10 May 2012 - 09:58 AM.

[mi_familia]

Arby, several of my cats adore raw meat. I usually just chop into chunks a few pieces from whatever meat we are eating for dinner. Could you try this with yours? I know you said you got your fishing license, maybe start with a few pieces of fish?

I now cook for my dogs. It is cheaper than the better brands right now. I don't have to worry about storing big bags anymore in my small house. It is also a huge prep relief for me, knowing they can eat whatever I am storing for us.

[Darlene]

arby, this recipe has been put together by a vet. She has spent alot of time putting alot of information about making your own cat food and I'm sure cat lovers won't have a problem with reading it all, especially if you plan on making your own cat food from now on. You'd need a meat grinder and if you don't have that perhaps your grocery store would grind it for you:

http://www.catinfo.o...k=makingcatfood

I use the following ingredients - in amounts listed - per

3 pounds of poultry thigh meat/bones/skin

or

2.25 lbs of whole carcass ground rabbit + 0.75 lbs of boneless chicken or turkey meat/skin/fat (see reasons above):

1 cup water (or, preferably, more if your cat will eat it with more water)

2 eggs - use the yolk raw but lightly cook the white

5000 mg fish oil (a good source of essential fatty acids - note that this is increased from the original amount of 2,000 mg - if your cat does not like fish, it is ok to use only 2,000 mg)

400 IU (268 mg) Vitamin E (powdered E in capsules is the easiest to use)

50 mg Vitamin B-complex (capsules or tablets)

2,000 mg taurine (use powdered - either in capsules or loose)

3/4 tsp Morton Lite salt with iodine when using chicken but not when using rabbit (contains potassium and sodium - make sure that it contains iodine - see below for further explanation.)

For people living outside of the United States who cannot source Morton Lite Salt with iodine, use 1/2 tsp of regular salt (sodium chloride) with iodine.

Liver - If using ground rabbit (which includes liver) from wholefoods4pets.com, do not add additional liver. If using chicken legs, thighs or a whole chicken carcass minus the organs, add 4 ounces of chicken livers per 3 lb of meat/bones/skin.

Fiber - A cat's natural diet is extremely low in fiber. Contrary to popular belief, the hair and feathers of their prey is not a source of fiber. Fiber only comes from plant material - not other animals. The only source of fiber for a cat in the wild is the miniscule amount in the gut tract of their herbivorous/omnivorous prey or the plants that they may eat. Since cats don't generally chow down on much plant material, this is also a negligible source of fiber.

When I first started feeding raw, I used psyllium whole husks but I did not see much difference in their stool consistency. It was still very dry and and low in volume but then I came to realize that this was normal for a cat eating a diet like this. I was just so used to the big, bulky, stinky stools of cats fed commercial canned and dry diets.

For the next 8 years, I added no source of fiber.

Left = homemade diet.............Right = canned food diet

Take my word for it....the one on the left = very little odor

The one on the right = very stinky

Recently, Robbie, my best buddy with no colon whose picture adorns the top of all web pages on this site, has needed his stools softened due to an anatomic abnormality in his intestines. I have chosen to use guar gum powder but I am not adding it to the entire batch. I am just adding it to individual meals so that I can play around with the amount.



I am using ~1/8 per 3 ounces of food. If you are going to try it, start with 1/8 tsp and work up from there. Also, add more water to the food since fiber 'soaks up' water.

There are two types of fiber - soluble and insoluble. Psyllium is a combination of both types. Guar gum is strictly soluble. I use this source of fiber because it does not seem to add as much bulk to the stool when compared to insoluble fiber but it does increase the water content of the feces, thereby softening it.

Soluble fiber also has some properties that promote intestinal (colon) health.

If you want to use psyllium, add 2 tsp if using psyllium husk powder. If using whole psyllium husks, use 4 tsp.

If using any fiber source, be sure to add more water to the this recipe.

At the request of several readers, here are links to specific products that I purchase from iherb.com:

Fish oil - Note that I strongly prefer using fish oil capsules - not bottled oil. Capsules stay fresh longer than bottled oil which can become rancid. Make sure that whatever you buy is not lemon flavored!

Vitamin E - dry

B-Complex - 50 mg per capsule

B-Complex - 100 mg per capsule for larger batches

Taurine - loose powder

Guar gum

Lite salt with iodine - sample link to show picture - can be purchased at most local grocery stores (not available at iherb.com)

Salmon vs fish oil: I prefer to use fish oil from smaller fish such as anchovies and sardines. Oil from fish that are lower on the food chain are less contaminated with heavy metals and other impurities.

If you prefer to use salmon oil, here is a link to a product that I used for many years before switching to oil from smaller fish:

Wild salmon oil

Bone meal powder - for use if you are not going to buy a grinder. Please note that different brands of bone meal powder vary in their composition. I have calculated the amount needed based on the NOW brand product so please use this brand if possible.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Most cats eat 4-6 ounces/day. Therefore, this recipe yields enough food for one cat for approximately 10-14 days.

If using capsules, open them and add the powder to the water. If using tablets, dissolve the tablets in the water.

You can either poke the fish oil capsules with a pin or cut the tip off with scissors and squirt the oil into the water....or you can do what I do and just dissolve the fish oil capsules in the water for ~10 minutes and then, once they are somewhat dissolved, make sure that all of the oil is liberated from the capsule by squeezing the capsules with your fingers within the water. Using warm water helps dissolve them faster. I use this method because I make so much cat food at one time that it would take forever to poke each capsule with a pin.

It is fine to leave the capsules in the water. They are gelatin (a protein) and most cats readily eat them.

For the boneless poultry meat and skin that you are adding to the pre-ground rabbit carcass, you can either use a grinder or a food processor for the meat that you don't chunk for dental health.

[arby]

Thanks everyone will copy and paste to a document!
yes, miss macy like sardines and tuna and salmon, chicken and beef and probably would adore liver although I dont tend to eat it, can always get it for her if its at the market. ( I like chicken livers but high cholesterol problem keeps me from indulging). I will have to ask the store if they have it often and will get some . freeze the rest for the next batch I guess!

the other thing I need to get then is the Taurine supplement.

Edited by arby, 10 May 2012 - 06:22 PM.