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Subscribe to RSSTwo of the nation’s top retailers of chicken jerky dog treats are voluntarily withdrawing several popular brands after New York state agriculture officials said they may be contaminated with unapproved antibiotics.
Nestle Purina PetCare Co. officials announced Wednesday that they’re withdrawing Waggin’ Train and Canyon Creek Ranch brand dog treats until further notice. Officials at Milo’s Kitchen, which is owned by the Del Monte Corp. of San Francisco, announced they are voluntarily recalling the firm's Chicken Jerky and Chicken Grillers home-style dog treats from shelves nationwide.
The move came after the New York Department of Agriculture and Marketing told federal Food and Drug Administration veterinary officials this week that trace amounts of residual poultry antibiotics had been found in several lots of each of the brands of jerky treat products.
The agriculture agency found very low levels of four antibiotics that are not approved for use in poultry in the U.S. and one antibiotic that is approved for U.S. poultry use, but is limited to nearly undetectable levels in the finished product, said Joe Morrissey, a department spokesman. The antibiotics include sulfaclozine, tilmicosin, trimethoprim, enrofloxacin and sulfaquinoxaline, he said.
The antibiotics are approved in China, where most of the treats are made, and in other countries, according to company statements.
However, Keith Schopp, a spokesman for St. Louis-based Nestle Purina, said that the issue is not related to the ongoing FDA investigation of problems with Chinese-made jerky pet treats that may have sickened more than 2,200 pets and killed 360 dogs and one cat, according to consumer reports.
"There is no indication that the trace amounts of antibiotic residue is related to FDA's ongoing investigation," Schopp told NBC News.
"Due to regulatory inconsistencies among countries, the presence of antibiotic residue is technically considered an adulteration in the United States," Schopp added.
FDA officials said they were confident that the detection of antibiotics "do not raise health concerns," and that they are "highly unlikely" to be related to the reports of pet illness linked to jerky treats that date back to 2007, according to a statement published late Wednesday.
FDA has conducted extensive testing and said it could find no toxins or other contaminants responsible for causing alleged illnesses ranging from nausea and vomiting to kidney failure and death. Officials said that the New York agriculture agency used a new, particularly sensitive test to detect the antibiotics. Morrissey said food specialists there tested the jerky treats because of "growing consumer concerns."
FDA officials reminded pet owners that jerky treats are not a necessary part of any animal's diet.
Robin Pierre, a New York pet owner, blames Waggin' Train chicken jerky treats for the sudden death of Bella, her 2-year-old pug in 2011. Pierre, who launched a petition urging companies to recall the treats, said she was pleased at the new move, but sorry that the FDA didn't act sooner.
"How many lives could have been saved if, six years ago, when there was first doubt that the safety of our companions was compromised, the FDA and all manufacturers of imported chicken jerky had issued a precautionary recall until the toxin was found?" she said in a statement to NBC News. "How much pain and suffering could have been avoided if only they had met their moral obligation six years ago and did the job the taxpayers pay them to do?"
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Yeah, I don't think the antibiotics are killing your pets. Dig deeper
These things have been killing people's pets for years, and the companies have ignored the news and kept right on selling. Walgreens just came out with their own in-house brand manufactured by the same Chinese sources too. Anyone who buys any food product made overseas needs to have their head examined.
Today it's pet jerky, yesterday it was chidren's car seats, a year ago it was children's toys laden with lead paint, ALL FROM CHINA. STOP buying @!$%# from China. STOP doing business with "U S" Companies with call centers in India. Just try and find shoes made in the good ole USA. Hard to find these days, but at least some of New Balance is made here. I dumped Sirrus radio because it's call center is in India. STOP outsourcing and buying from these countries, bring the jobs back and guess what OUR unemployment goes down. It's that simple people.
My dog has been eating these for years without incident. Waggin' Train specifically. Maybe I've just been lucky. I can understand why people are so irate but this is nothing new. I seem to recall that WalMart had a problem a few years back with bones sold under the Ole Roy label. My dogs had withdrawal when I couldn't get them anymore...lol! But seriously, you can make your own chicken jerky and dry bones. Probably cheaper and a hell of a lot safer. All kinds of recipes are available on line. It's worth the work to keep your pets safe since the manufacturers and retailers really don't seem to have that as their prime objective.
I don't think anyone is arguing over the fact that something is causing a mass pet die-off. It usually takes massive grassroots efforts to get the FDA to even lift a finger if its over anything other than babies.
They said "extensive testing" has been completed with no clear correlation. I'd be interested to know what exactly they had tested for. It they ran a simple metals analysis and nothing else, then that statement doesnt hold much merit.
Being in the consulting industry, I can tell you the private sector is ALWAYS leaps and bounds ahead of state/federal regulators when investigating environmental/exposure problems at its facilities. They hire consultant companies like the one I work for and pay good money for them.
Do not overlook the fact that these unlicensed antibiotics are coming to light at the same time you have multiple companies pulling the same products. More than likely, the private consultants discovered some sort of bacterial or fungal issue with the treats. China is well known in the industry to use pesticides, herbicides, illicit antibiotics, etc at levels well above the manufacturer's recommendations (hey, they have no liberal environmental laws, YEEHAW). Repeated use of high dose antibiotics in the same setting (i.e. rancid chicken pens with standing sewage) is the perfect breeding ground for some type of exotic, "superstrain" of bacterial agent to develop. My guess is the FDA was looking for the wrong culprit.
But that's just my opinion! What would I know!
P.S. And of course their spokesman is going to deny there's any coincidence! That's what he's paid for, to lie through his teeth. If they give even an inch in admitting the correlation, they are assuming massive liabilities. Plausible deniability!
Joyce, you are lucky. I fed my dogs chicken jerky treats purchased at Costco. After a while, one of my dogs developed kidney problems and we eventually had to put her to sleep. The vet said it could have been from the jerky as there had been much discussion amongst the local vets in the area.
Mine isn't allowed any treat not made in the US for this very reason. Needless to say, he hasn't had chicken jerky in years because I can't find any in my area that aren't made in China.
I wish Grocery Outlet would pull these treats off their shelves! I have sent them a letter, but nothing has been done! They probably got them from Walmart, as they have pulled these things off of their shelves. It is sad, but China bought much of our debt, so we HAVE to send our manufacturing there and unfortunatly have to pay the price with our loss of jobs,dangerous and unsafe products and air pollution that comes from CHINA thru the Pacific airway:(
I saw these chicken jerky treats at Sam's Club just last week. How the spokesman for Purina can say in the article that these treats are safe in the face of the huge numbers of sick and dead pets. Something is very wrong with this product! Finding out what is way overdue, but they need to be pulled fromt he market now.
It's about time they pulled these.
I haven't bought any of this kind of treats for my dogs for quite a long time. Just not safe.
I'll just keep to my Blue Buffalo dog treats for my puppy. It's good for him and, so far, safe for him to eat.
Jeepgal66, what proof do you have that Wal-Mart sold those to your grocery store, or are you just trying to drum up controversy?
If you don't know, don't post crap.
Why spend ridiculous amounts of money on commercial dog treats? Feed you dogs baby carrot sticks, green beans or apple chunks. No funky stuff there and tastier. Your pet and your vet will thank you.
However, Keith Schopp, a spokesman for Nestle Purina, said that the issue is not related to the ongoing FDA investigation of problems with Chinese-made jerky pet treats
------------------------------if you believe this I have some ocean front property in northern Minnesota I'll sell you.
This is why i don't feed my dog these type treats....i go to local butcher, gets rib bones, leg bones etc....cut up to size for my dog, freeze and give out as i see fit....theres too many unknowns in dog treats and food for that matter, read the labels!
I stopped giving my Chihuahuas all jerky treats. They seem to splinter into sharp little pieces that harm the stomach and intestines causing internal bleeding. I noticed bloody stools. No problem. Now I like the meatball treats and try not to buy any thing with a number "6" in the UPC code. If you didn't know, "6" means it was made in China.
Better read the labels on people food also. It's incredible how many food products from foreign countries are on our grocery shelves, including China. It takes more time, but I check every label. I'd rather eat USA dirt. LOL
We had a gorgeous big lancier newfie/Norw. elkhound mix and several years ago we bought our baby girl the chicken jerky treats from Petsmart. :( Well, you can guess the rest. She suffered a horrible death with her organs shutting down. And not knowing what was making her so sick she would not eat any good food so I kept giving her the jerky treats. It was not until I went to the www.petsmart.com site and found the same treats had been recalled! I told my vet and he confirmed that she had the same symptoms that the treats had been recalled from! When I took the rest of the big treat bad back to Petsmart, the manager said, "yes, that's why she's sick, these have been recalled for that reason"! I always read the label now and NO MORE CHINA made treats for our babies! I noticed that Hartz brand are all made in China! And get this...I bought frozen strawberries from our local Grocery Outlet and got home and read the label. They were from China!! They went immediately in the trash! Living in a state that grows strawberries I never thought to read the label. My mistake! And to those that have not gone through the agony of having one of your pets die and suffer from this terrible situation, please take our advice. It's tough to have to witness! Thanks!
Wow,Sadden American, you must be a Walmart lover! Geez! It just so happens Walmart WAS selling these a few months back when this warning first came out. They are the biggest retailer around here that was selling them. So, there's a good chance that's where they came from! AND Grocery Outlet does sell quite a few products Walmart liquidates because it's getting close to the expiry date or it's overstock. You better take some meds and calm yourself down! BTW-I Buy ALOT of fishing supplies from Walmart, so it's not like I am a hater of the chain!
FINALLY!!!! These treats have killed or sickened so many dogs over time. We had one with terrible bloody diarrhea for several days after eating them. I have made a point several times of asking stores to stop carrying them to no avail. So glad the companies are finally showing some responsibility.
Don't you think that when it was learned that the stuff had been killing dogs that the manufactuers would have stopped making them? I guess it is another case of profit before people (or dogs in this case). They are not showing responsibility by pulling these products, they care less about your pet, they only care about your dollars coming their way. They are concerned that the anti-biotics that are banned here might find their way into the poultry chain and create problems there. I am sure their logic is that it is easier to pay 360 bereaved families for a dead dog but to be sued by the entire poultry industry for destroying it is more than they can afford.
I have been approaching shoppers in Sam's Club for the last couple of years after hearing of all the pet deaths due to Waggin Train Chicken Jerky whose label states, PROUDLY distributed in America! However, the UPC codes shows...MADE IN CHINA.. Most people thanked me and put the items back on the shelf. I took my complaint to Mangement and it's GOOD TO KNOW that actions are FINALLY being taken to get rid of these products MADE IN CHINA that KILL!
BOYCOTT these companies that try to DUPE us.
BUY AMERICAN!!!!
BOYCOTT...BOYCOTT...BOYCOTT!!!
WRITE LETTERS...SIGN PETITIONS...FACEBOOK...TWITTER...USE ALL SOCIAL MEDIA...
This is the ONLY THING these COMPANIES UNDERSTAND!!!
This is why I only buy treats made in America. I wish everything I bought could be made in the USA.
Have you noticed how difficult is is to find the country of origin on the packaging? I've stood in the store, studying the labels on various brands of dog treats and the majority of them say, "Distributed by (name of some US Company)." Unless the label reads, "Made and packaged in the US," I won't buy it. Needless to say, my dog doesn't get many store-bought treats.
I joked about it with a friend, but he had a Red Ink Stamp made. It reads " Made in China poison !" and he takes it into stores and stamps it on price tags or boxes of these things.
LOL I love that.
OMG! I LOVE THAT! I should make a stamp like that!
Well, I don't give a damn what excuse the FDA comes up with for making these companies stop/discontinue selling these tainted treats to consumers - just get them off the shelves and stop killing our pets!
So, no recall? We just get to eat the costs of these withdrawn treats?
Yes, this problem has been going on for years. However, how much blame can China take? They did not send a "snack man" to each petowner's house and force-feed the item to the pet over the years. There has been much publicity about this over the years and if pets have recently died because of it, the blame has to be on the one who purchased the damned stuff. Come on, take responsibility.
C'mon Spybear. The publicity about this drek has only been widely distrubited in the last year or so. We keep up with all things dogs and were feeding our six these treats until we read about it last year. I didn't know until today that it had been happening for six or so years. The bottom line is that food goods for dogs, or humans, that aren't made in the U.S. should be avoided.
When are we going to learn to stop sending all these jobs to other countries? They should know our guidelines if they are making things for our country. These things keep happening.
As a first time pet owner, when I first adopted my dog 4 years ago, I was naive in thinking that all pet treats were made in America. Luckily, my stupidity did not lead to any problems with my dog, but I definitely have become more aware and only buy made in the USA food and treats now. Some brands don't specifically state where they are made, so I do research online or contact the company before buying.
Even if the product is labeled made in USA - some of the ingredients are from over seas often CHina and they are not differentiated on the label. Continue to do the research before buying, and stick with the more established complanies (Purina, DelMonte, Mars, etc)
Purina and DelMonte are the 2 biggest that sold the treats from China...the same treats that you said to "stick with the more established complanies" The article even said that. Please, if you comment, make sure you understand the article's content.
Exactly. Actually, I have had more luck with smaller dog treat companies. Plus, part of the problem with the Chinese made treats, from what I have read in other articles, is that the FDA cannot launch an investigation into the factories since the Chinese government won't allow them to go over there, they can only test the actual treats, which doesn't really help if they are being made in poor conditions. At least I know that if something were to happen with American-made treats, the FDA has the power to look into that company's manufacturing plant. Also, I try to stay away from meat-based treats and mostly use ones made with fruits and veggies, like apples, cranberries, sweet potatoes, etc. If I do purchase meat-based treats, they do not have chicken in them regardless of where they are made.
We have to read every line on the label, the manufacturers don't make it easy to find the China connection, but it is there. Just wedged in and quite small. A person thinks they are buying a quality Purina or Nestle brand but you are not. Pesonally I'm tired of all the poisonious junk foisted on us be China. Everything from pet foods, toys and dry wall. How much more damage must the Chinese manufactureres do before we get smart?
Holly,
Sorry honey, but you didn't read the article or you would have noticed that "the more establised companies" Purina and Del Monte was specifically mentioned (see below).
Nestle Purina PetCare Co. officials announced Wednesday that they’re withdrawing Waggin’ Train and Canyon Creek Ranch brand dog treats until further notice. Officials at Milo’s Kitchen, which is owned by the Del Monte Corp., announced they are voluntarily recalling the firm's Chicken Jerky and Chicken Grillers home-style dog treats from shelves nationwide
Just be careful guys. I have seen some of these products that prominently display the distribution location (somewhere in the USA) but hidden on the pkg in very small print you'll see it's made in China. Don't let 'em fool you!
Time for new pet jerky control laws!
My solution: do not buy anything from china. I have done this for years and have many less worries about what I eat, ear and use. Not always easy but it can be done. Of course, it means no Wal Mart. Could not be happier about that. China and their products are a global scourge and I refuse to given them a penny of my money.
One more thing: both Purina and Del Monte sell garbage. For us and for our pets.
From China again, and again, and again. If it's not made here it shouldn't be allowed to be sold here.
Clue #1: everything from china is garbage. A lot of the major cheap varity producers of dog & cat food use ingredients from china. Remember the corn glutten deaths a few years ago? In short do NOT buy anything from china, it will kill you, your pets or children. Unfortuneately we live in the wal-mart era bottom line: only the all mighty buck rules. Cheap is cheap.
This is not the first time there has been a problem with WAGGIN' TRAIN. About six months ago, I returned waggin' train jerky because it had problems. I found out that it's MADE IN CHINA ... can you image what they put in dog food?
I love my dog like a family member. I won't buy any food product that is made in CHINA for me or my dog.
Get yourself a supply of live chickens for your dog to eat.
Mine only eat a raw diet of meat and fresh vegetables. Besides being healthier, for small dogs, it's actually cheaper than buying dog food.
Here's the real reason we should not be importing ANY food products at all from China!
The antibiotics, which have not been identified, are approved in China, where most of the treats are made, and in other countries, but not in the U.S..
As far as we know, there may not even be any chicken in those 'chicken jerky treats!!!!
Stop trading with China!
Ok... riddle me this. If the antibiotics have not been identified ...how do they know they are not approved in the US ?
Treats that are not good enough for Pets pass all requirements for school meals. ??
Something is wrong here
The answer to all the debate is simple ... don't buy anything made in China. It's not only true of dog treats but also pet food in general as well as baby formula and wallboard in houses. Quality standards in the US, developed with the requirement of providing SAFE products are not adhered to in China. So buy things made in the US ... and keep your pets and your family safe from poisons used by manufacturers of cheap products that kill.
More and more labels on food products are just showing Where the product is shipped from and Not what country it is made. In fact a few years back some food companies were trying to get a law passed that would do away with putting information on a label saying where the food was from. All these businesses care about is the profit, not you not me, just the profit.
Why does this article not surprise me. When it comes to China. its un-edible in my house, pets or people.
After all this chicken jerky stuff I've developed my own resolution for dog treats; I give then a slice of liverwurst from the sandwich meat section of any supermarket. My veterinarian liked the idea when I told him of my solution, saying it was protein with a little healthy crude fat and dogs just love it, probably cats, too. Since it's manufactured for human consumption I think questionable contaminants may be limited since I eat it myself. Just an FYI for folks...
Seriously... you think heavily processed meat products that are full of who the hell knows what , not limited to TONS of salt and sulfites is "healthier" for your dog ? Wow... YOU need your head examined.
For years I've always insisted on my pet's foods and snacks being made in the United States. Not just distributed in the United States, MADE HERE. Read the labels on the things you buy for your pets. Lots of American based companies distribute pet food in the United States, but that doesn't mean it was MADE in this country. In years gone by I had pet store people look at me like I was nuts when I insisted on everything I bought for my pets being made in America. Then about 5 years ago many dogs died from tainted foreign pet foods and all of a sudden I wasn't as crazy as a lot of these pet store people thought. Bear in mind, these foreign concerns could give a damn about your pet and they have very little regulation compared to American pet food makers. And if your animal dies from eating foreign pet food products what are you going to do about it? It's kind of like a promiscuous person trying to prove which of his/her many lovers infected them with an STD. There's not much you can do except learn to live without who might have been one of the best friends you ever had. Also bear in mind, that in America our pets are usually thought of as family members. In many of the countries these tainted pet products are coming from, they don't share this sentiment. In fact in many of these countries they eat animals that are thought of as pets in this country. They don't think like we do and they could give a damn about your pet if they're making money producing and selling the crap they make.
People Jerky is not that much more expensive....So I get it, cut it in little bite treats for my husband and my dog..=-)
People jerky is full of CRAP... like high fructose corn syrup, propylene glycol, sulfites, salt, sugar, etc. PEOPLE shouldn't even be eating that garbage.
Thanks for replying, gemini. For a moment I thought Brandy was talking about cannibalism.