Every dog owner wants the best for their companion, whether it be from good quality care products to cool toys. But one of the top priorities of a dog owner is the quality of ingredients and nutrition of the dog food they are giving their pets. Don’t you agree?
Good nutrition is one of the building blocks that allow your dog to grow and live its best life. What makes all the difference in your pet’s health is the quality of their dog food. Not everyone has the capacity to feed their dog with raw diets, since it does take up a lot of time and can be more costly. So, an alternative that most dog parents have are processed dog food, canned meat, or kibble. It’s affordable and pretty straightforward when it comes to prepping, with little to no prep at all! Once you’ve found one that’s high quality, affordable, AND your dogs like it — you’ve hit the jackpot!
You most probably have a brand that you trust and continuously buy for your dog, just like any other dog parent. But with the recent rise of dog food recalls and market withdrawals, numerous dog owners were alarmed and started doing their research on the brands that they buy.
Dog food recalls or market withdrawals aren’t new, the first recall in recent years was back in 2007. It was when the FDA learned that certain pet foods were sickening and were taking the lives of cats and dogs. The FDA found contaminants in the vegetable proteins imported to the US that were used as ingredients in pet food.
Now, there are several well-known brands that have recalled their products because of various complaints. If this is the first time you’re hearing about this, or if you’re concerned about the ones you buy, then keep reading to see if your usual dog food brand is on the list.
1. Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc.
On January 11, 2021, the company expanded its recall to include all pet food products containing corn that was made in the firm’s Oklahoma plant and that expire on or before July 9, 2022. It was because they contain potentially fatal levels of aflatoxin, a toxin produced by the mold Aspergillus flavus, which at high levels, can cause illness and death in pets. More than 1,000 lot codes are affected.
Prior to this, they had to recall Sportmix pet food products, and the affected products were distributed to online retailers and stores nationwide within the United States.
The FDA said Midwestern Pet Foods had not taken the necessary steps to address the conditions that led to the recalls. The FDA then sent the company a letter, dated Aug. 9, giving Midwestern 15 days to produce a written response detailing the steps it was taking to correct the violations.
Products recalled: Sportmix, Pro Pac, Nunn Better, Unrefined, Earthbound Holistic, and Venture
2. Bravo Packing, Inc.
Back on September 26, 2019, pet owners were cautioned not to feed their pets Performance Dog frozen raw pet food after a sample tested positive for Salmonella and Listeria monocytogenes (L. mono).
Two years later, they’re in hot water, yet again. All packages of the company’s frozen raw pet food were recalled in early March 2021 because of potential contamination by salmonella or listeria bacteria. Salmonella is a bacterium that can cause illness and death in humans and animals. Pets do not always display symptoms when infected with Salmonella, but signs can include vomiting, diarrhea (which may be bloody), fever, loss of appetite, and/or decreased activity level.
Products recalled:
- Performance Dog (chubs) frozen raw dog food, 2 lbs. and 5 lbs.
- Performance Dog (patties) frozen raw dog food
- Green Tripe frozen raw dog food, 2 lbs. and 5 lbs.
- Tripe (¼ lb. patties) frozen raw dog food
- Ground Beef frozen raw dog food, 2 lbs. and 5 lbs.
- Bones (smoked), 14 varieties
* To clarify, this company is not to be confused with Bravo LLC, which also makes raw pet food. That is a completely separate company that is not in any way affected by this recall.
3. Pedigree
This dog product can be found in almost all pet stores and groceries. It’s widely available for those who are feeding quite a few dogs all at once and can’t afford premium foods. It’s the easiest one to access, but it probably comes at a cost.
Last February 2021, batches of Pedigree dog food were recalled as they could contain levels of Vitamin D which may cause harm to pets if consumed over several weeks. This isn’t the first time they’ve recalled products. In the past, they recalled because of foreign objects and wires found in their food.
Products recalled:
- PEDIGREE Adult with chicken, 10kg, expiry date 15.02.2022
- PEDIGREE Adult with lamb, 3kg, expiry date 08.02.2022
- PEDIGREE Dry Adult with chicken, 3kg, expiry date 06.02.2022 and 15.02.2022
4. Zuke’s
The company calls it a “voluntary removal” of products from stores rather than a recall. Their customers were finding mold in the product months ago and reported that their dogs got sick because of it. Their Amazon page had multiple bad reviews and comments with pictures of the mold inside the packaging.
Product recalled: Zuke’s Mini Naturals
5. Top Quality Dog Food
The company, Top Quality Dog Food, says testing of a sample of its Beef HVM dog food came up positive for salmonella and listeria bacteria, and the lot numbers listed below are being recalled out of caution. The company says that there were no illnesses reported, but it was better to be safe.
The mix of ingredients in the Beef HVM (Healthy Variety Mix) product includes ground beef, heart, liver, kidney, spleen, lung, kale, celery, carrots, and a few other vegetables and fruits.
Product recalled: 1-pound packages of Beef HVM with Lot #071521 printed on the bottom right corner of the label
The affected product was distributed by mail order or direct delivery from July 27 to Aug. 2 to customers in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Customers with the recalled products have been notified, according to the company.
What to do next
Is your usual dog food brand part of this? In case that you have any of the listed products above, immediately stop feeding them to your pets and throw them away in a secure container where other animals, including wildlife, cannot access them.
U.S. citizens can report complaints about FDA-regulated pet food products by calling the consumer complaint coordinator in your area or go to the FDA’s “Report a Pet Food Complaint” page.
Canadians can report any health or safety incidents related to the use of this product by filling out the Consumer Product Incident Report Form.
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