Pet food shock: manufacturers recall stocks

PET owners in South Africa and Namibia are reeling after two major pet-food manufacturers announced that they were recalling products that had caused kidney failure in dogs and cats.

Royal Canin South Africa, which manufactures Royal Canin premium dog and cat food as well as the cheaper brand Vets Choice, yesterday advised veterinarians in both countries to stop selling Vets Choice until further notice. Dog owners who have already bought Vets Choice are advised not to give the food to their dogs until the all-clear is given.Laboratory tests are being done to determine whether the food is contaminated.The results are expected today and an announcement on the safety of Vets Choice will be made shortly, the Windhoek Veterinary Clinic confirmed yesterday.In South Africa, 19 dogs in Cape Town and Johannesburg that had been fed Vets Choice have been diagnosed with acute kidney failure, according to the news24 website.According to a statement sent out to veterinary surgeons, it wasn’t clear what had caused the condition.”In the interests of patients and pending tests being conducted on Vets Choice products, Royal Canin South Africa has decided to suspend all sales of Vets Choice with immediate effect and vets are requested to advise clients to cease feeding Vets Choice products to their pets until further notice,” the statement said.Earlier, the South African subsidiary of Hill’s Pet Nutrition recalled a batch of its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry food after a similar recall in the United States, where hundreds of cats reportedly died from kidney failure after eating contaminated food.The product is only available from veterinarians on prescription.According to the South African Veterinary Association’s Gerhard Steenkamp, the recall of Hill’s in SA was a precautionary measure, as it hadn’t appeared to affect cats there.Dr Guy Fyvie, spokesperson for Hill’s in South Africa, is quoted on the news24 website as saying that the potentially affected product had never been released from the warehouse for South African vet shops and all food sold in that country is safe.The US Food and Drug Administration said tests indicated the food was contaminated with the industrial chemical melamine.Recently, Woolworths in South Africa had to recall all of its dry dog and cat food due to contamination of certain products.Additional reporting by news24Dog owners who have already bought Vets Choice are advised not to give the food to their dogs until the all-clear is given.Laboratory tests are being done to determine whether the food is contaminated.The results are expected today and an announcement on the safety of Vets Choice will be made shortly, the Windhoek Veterinary Clinic confirmed yesterday.In South Africa, 19 dogs in Cape Town and Johannesburg that had been fed Vets Choice have been diagnosed with acute kidney failure, according to the news24 website.According to a statement sent out to veterinary surgeons, it wasn’t clear what had caused the condition. “In the interests of patients and pending tests being conducted on Vets Choice products, Royal Canin South Africa has decided to suspend all sales of Vets Choice with immediate effect and vets are requested to advise clients to cease feeding Vets Choice products to their pets until further notice,” the statement said.Earlier, the South African subsidiary of Hill’s Pet Nutrition recalled a batch of its Prescription Diet m/d Feline dry food after a similar recall in the United States, where hundreds of cats reportedly died from kidney failure after eating contaminated food.The product is only available from veterinarians on prescription.According to the South African Veterinary Association’s Gerhard Steenkamp, the recall of Hill’s in SA was a precautionary measure, as it hadn’t appeared to affect cats there.Dr Guy Fyvie, spokesperson for Hill’s in South Africa, is quoted on the news24 website as saying that the potentially affected product had never been released from the warehouse for South African vet shops and all food sold in that country is safe.The US Food and Drug Administration said tests indicated the food was contaminated with the industrial chemical melamine.Recently, Woolworths in South Africa had to recall all of its dry dog and cat food due to contamination of certain products.Additional reporting by news24