Pet Food Recalls and Pet Food Contaminants in Small Animals

Most pet foods are safe, but incidents of chemical contamination occur and lead to illness and recalls. There were 11 major pet food recalls in the United States between 1996 and 2010 that were due to chemical contaminants or misformulations: 3 aflatoxin, 3 excess vitamin D-3, 1 excess methionine, 3 inadequate thiamine, and 1 adulteration with melamine and related compounds and an additional 2 warnings concerning a Fanconi-like renal syndrome in dogs after ingesting large amounts of chicken jerky treat products. This article describes clinical findings and treatment of animals exposed to the most common pet food contaminants.