Nutro Dog Food Contributing to Pet Deaths

Continued problems with Nutro reported

Posted: 23 Jun 2008 03:16 PM CDT
Consumer Affairs is reporting more news on Nutro?

A series of mysterious illness and death dogs Nutro pet food. Scores of pet owners report their animals became ill while eating Nutro products, then recovered when they were switched to another brand.

At least six dogs have died in the past two months, according to an analysis of complaints to ConsumerAffairs.com.

The company discounts the reports, saying they are isolated and unconfirmed; at least one Nutro employee, sickened by the company?s response, told us she resigned.

In related developments, ConsumerAffairs.com has learned:

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently investigated the April deaths of two dogs in Indiana. The FDA tested samples of the Nutro food those dogs ate, but did not find any toxins. No one, however, has tested the Nutro food the other dogs ate before they died;

A pet nutrition specialist for Nutro confirmed she?s heard complaints about the company?s food making dogs and cats sick. She reported those concerns to her supervisor, but said they were ignored. She recently resigned;
There is a shortage of some varieties of Nutro dog food. The company says this is a supply problem ? not a safety or quality issue;

Some consumers have sent their pets? food to Nutro for testing. They have not received any results. Other pet owners plan to hire private labs to test their food and report their concerns to the FDA and the Animal Poison Control Center run by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA).

Read more here.

Pet owners are adamant that it?s the food causing their otherwise healthy pets to become sick and die. Nutro, on the other hand, says there?s nothing wrong with their food.

This might be worth reading if you feed your pets Nutro.

Interesting as I've fed Nutro (Natural) in the past and occasionally still do but usually mix it w/ another kibble, mine havent had any problems, knock wood. I know a lot of dog people in the area and online and havent heard of anyone personally whose dogs have recently been sick and Nutro's been suspected as being the culprit. Would think if it has killed dogs, it w/b pulled off the shelves asap, it's actually quite popular in this area. Curious if they recall it any time soon, guess time will tell. Anyway, we have to be careful feeding our dogs, w/o a doubt, and if anyone notices any adverse effects after feeding their dogs, anything unusual (throwing up, loose stools etc) using any kibble, there's always the possibility the food could h/b bad. Is anyone homecooking for their pets?, how's that going and any tips/recipes etc - ?

Hi Sue,

Thanks so much for posting your concerns on this and weighin in your thoughts. They are greatly appreciated.

This Nutro information was just sent to me via email from my PETSIT USA.com Blog. I am on their mailing list. They are up to date and pretty accurate as far as all pet information goes. They are also involved in FDA boards and their recalls as well. I went as far as to check it out on SNOPES.com and they also admit that this recall is true and have Nutro listed on the Recall List. (Yes, its dated from April but that is because nothing has changed since the last posting)

Sue, I am glad to hear that all is well with your girls and that they have not experienced any problems with the Nutro food that you are feeding them. Just be sure to keep an eye on them, should you decide to keep them on Nutro, in case you do notice any changes in their behavior at all.

Also, dont forget that if you do switch over to another dog food, please remember to do it gradually as the introduction to the new dog food may give your pug an upset stomach at first.


Thanks again Sue for your post and for letting us know how your girls are making out. Your feedback is always greatly appreciated.


Josie

As far as I know, Nutro is still being sold along w/ all the other kibble that's on the Snopes website. I thought it was dated April 2007. I guess my point is that I've seen info about Nutro (am on a lot of lists) and problems but nothing to substantiate it - just a brief mention, a few cases but when you consider how much they sell, it c/b attributed to other problems. That said, I'm not a spokesperson for Nutro and I dont even buy it all that often - it's good we all keep up w/ different recalls etc and post them, better safe than sorry, for sure. If I hear anything else about any problems w/ Nutro or another brand, I'll be sure to post it (and I'm sure each of us will, forewarned is forearmed). As for changing, it's best to do it gradually over a wk or 10 days alth. we've done it suddenly in the past and have had no problems (had not choice when we went away and forgot the dog food ).

Sue Wrote:

Is anyone homecooking for their pets?, how's that going and any tips/recipes etc - ?


Hi Sue,

I am sure that you have most of the recipes that I posted on our thread before, but in case you dont, I will bump them up for you and anyone else that is interested. I have been cooking alot more for my girls lately. Especially for Samantha, since she is my sensitive stomach girl.


Josie