Tuesday, September 4, 2007

Canidae Dry Dog Food tests positive for Acetaminophen in Private Test

EDITED: The original dates posted were incorrect, showing July instead of June. Correct dates are below.

A composite of two different Canidae Dry Dog foods has tested positive for acetaminophen in tests done by Expertox. The food was sent in by a pet owner - samples from opened bags were sent to Expertox in ziploc bags. Additional tests on samples from sealed bags are expected to be done shortly. A copy of the test results can be found at http://www.petfoodrecallfacts.com/lab.html.

The two foods are:

Canidae All Life Stages Dry Dog Food
RM 6/7/07, use by 6/7/08
http://www.canidae.com/dogs/all_life_stages/dry.html

Canidae (All Life Stages) Lamb and Rice Formula Dry Dog Food
RM 6/6/07, use by 6/6/08
http://www.canidae.com/dogs/lamb-and-rice/dry.html

Both bags were purchased in early July, 2007. It is not known at this time whether one or both of these foods contain acetaminophen.

A total of 6 NON-recalled pet foods that we know about have tested positive for acetaminophen in tests done by Expertox, they include:
  • Innova Dry Dog Food
  • Hills Science Diet Light Adult Dry Cat Food
  • Hills Science Diet Sensitive Stomach Dry Cat Food
  • Pet Pride Turkey & Giblets Canned Cat Food
You can get more information on these results at http://www.petfoodrecallfacts.com/lab.html
  • Another non-recalled Dry Dog Food also tested positive for Acetaminophen, that company has NOT gone public with this information. (An earlier post on that is here)
You can see a summary list of all NON-Recalled foods that we know about that have tested positive for contaminants HERE. (This file has been added to the Download section at the top of this blog)

35 comments:

Unknown said...

It appears there are some questions around the authenticity of this report. Here's a story from itchmo's site -

"Expertox, a Texas lab, claimed they found acetaminophen in a mixed sample of two different dry dog foods. Internet reports claim that the two dog foods that were sent to Expertox were Canidae.

We spoke to a Canidae spokesperson this morning. He said they received the Expertox lab results yesterday.

This morning the company sent out samples of the dry dog food kibbles in question, and individual supplements in their food to various independent labs for testing.

The Canidae spokesperson said the original email from the woman who tested the sample said the production dates of the two dog foods were July 6 and July 7. Canidae said they did not have any pet food with a production date of July 7 because it was on a Saturday after the July 4th weekend.

Yesterday, Canidae received a picture bearing the production codes on the tested bags of food to Canidae. The spokesperson said the production dates of the food tested were actually June dates instead of July dates as she originally said.

The Canidae spokesperson also said the tested sample is from Wyoming, and there is only one Canidae distributor in the state of Wyoming. He said the last shipment of Canidae to that Wyoming store was on May 29, so that means the lot codes that the store would carry would be in the mid-late May time frame and not in June or July.

He suspected the food sample was actually purchased in Colorado.

The Canidae spokerperson said no one has reported a pet getting sick from eating any of the company’s pet food.

UPDATE: We contacted Mary, the woman who originally posted about Expertox’s results. She is a friend to the woman who sent in the mixed sample to the lab. She declined giving us the woman’s contact information."

Anonymous said...

Bill,

Were you able to get those numbers that they copied and sent in? I have a bag of food at home and I would like to check it against the bags I have at home. Thanks!
Courtney

Kim said...

As posted in my blog, the original report of July dates was incorrect. The correct dates are JUNE.

Anonymous said...

http://www.itchmo.com/canidae-releases-statement-canidaes-pet-food-tests-negative-for-acetaminophen-2868

I believe Canidae's test results and will continue feeding Canidae with confidence..

What I'd like to know, is why one Lab (Expertox) and *only that one Lab, has found trace amounts of acetaminophen in several brands of dog foods. If the stuff is really in there, why can't other Labs (including UC Davis) find it too?

Maybe something not quite right with Expertox testing?

Kim said...

I find it interesting that Canidae refused to allow *their* test results to be posted.

They said "no detectable level of acetaminophen was found down to the 1 part per million level."

Expertox seems to be the only lab capable or willing to detect ANY levels.

Given how toxic acetaminophen is to pets, I don't want mine getting ANY.

And I still find Canidae's lack of concern for their customers and their response to the sitation chilling.

Anonymous said...

So Canidae is saying that no Acetaminophen was detected down to 1 part per million ... so I'm curious ... did the Expertox Lab ever say how much acetaminophen was found in the samples that they tested?

I looked at the Lab report posted on Don Earl's site, but all it says is that acetaminophen "was detected". I can't find anything on the report (unless I'm just missing it) that states to what level (ppm) their tests are reported.

Anonymous said...

I emailed company after reading your blog since I use 40lbs of dog food and 10lbs of cat food a week, this was there response.

" We received unconfirmed information about a week ago that a particular laboratory that tested a sample of dog food submitted by a consumer reported that the sample was positive for acetaminophen at the limit of detection of 1 part per million. The consumer identified the dog food as a Canidae product and provided to us the lot number of that product. We submitted samples from the same lot to an independent laboratory for testing. The independent laboratory could not detect any acetaminophen in the product down to the same level of 1 part per million. We also submitted to the independent laboratory a sample from a second lot and it was negative as well. We do not believe that Canidae pet products contain any acetaminophen and are confident that that there is no safer or more nutritious pet food available today."



Sincerely,

Canidae Pet Foods

Anonymous said...

Here's some news for you all. My sister had two dogs. Her Purebred 130 pound Mastiff passed aaway 3 weeks ago. Her bulldog is clinging to life. He has been treated for the past 2 1/2 weeks and the the bill is now pushing $4000.00. The vets are sure now both dogs have died from the same thing. The ONE common denominator - Canidae Dry pet food!!!!!!!! My sister called Canidae and they were the most unhelpful company and very defensive. She called another pet food company to find out where she could have the food tested and they spoke with her for over an hour and a half. She has never even fed her dogs their product. What a difference. I too have 4 dogs and will NEVER feed the Canidae products too my loved ones and neither will my sister. The food we are currently using and the most helpful of all "Origins" out of Alberta, Canada. Unbeleivable Company and Product line!!!!!!!

Susann,
Pitt Meadows, BC
Canada

Anonymous said...

I find all of the negative comments towards Canidae Pet Foods very uninformed. If you would look alittle deeper into all of this you find some very unsubstatiated claims. This lab has been linked to several other questionalble testings. Tests that UC Davis found to have no merit. Also what is said that people can say anything they would like to about any one on the Internet. My dogs have been eating Canidae ALS & Lamb & Rice for almost 10 years. With no ploblems whatsoever. Maybe this woman from Canada should done a post-mordom on her dogs to confirm the problem. Dogs die every from unknown things just like people do. I am sorry about her animals, but don't blame the food or get on some band-wagon.I have always belived that it it smells funny, follow the money... Just food for thought..

Anonymous said...

Have any of you considered that the acetaminophen was put in the sample by the lady who sent it in!

Maybe you are looking in the wrong place for blame.

Anonymous said...

I'm a little concerned about my recent Canidae food. I purchase bulk from a dealer in TX. I get 5/40lb bags at a time delivered to my home and my dogs had done very well on it. All my dogs now have terrible gas. It's so bad my housedogs are making my house reak! Now in my pom kennel,(separate building) none of the dogs are eating much of the food. Then my great dane has experienced 2 seizures this past month with no explanation. Has anyone had any experiences like this happen just of lately??

Anonymous said...

I used to give my beloved dogs Canidae snap-biscuits until I discovered they put garlic in the biscuits. It's listed pretty high up in the ingredients, right after Rolled Oats. Garlic is not good for dogs. Don't they know that???!! They also include unground flax seeds, which is useless unless its ground. I'm not prefect, but my dogs are. Seems to me they need to do more nutritional research.

Anonymous said...

I recently lost my cat to a non-kidney related syndrome/disease. After the melamine findings I trusted only Felidae and Merrick food. Now this acetaminophen finding in the Canidae has horrified me. I will be getting a kitten soon, and will have no safe food to feed it. That was the only food I found through your and Petsitusa's research that was made in the USA with no glutens or unnecessary grains. What else meets that criteria?

Anonymous said...

http://www.sojos.com/garlicarticle.html
Regarding small amounts of garlic in pet foods such as the Canidae snap biscuits mentioned in an earlier post. It is actually good for dogs in the small amounts formulated by pet food companies.

Anonymous said...

The woman that sent in the samples sent it in Ziploc bags. I would be highly suspicious of this, as there are people that do these things for non-ethical purposes. Remember the finger in the Wendy's chili? Canidae/Felidae is a highly respected premium food, and they use much better and more stringent requirements than many of the well-known manufacturers. Why would a manufacturer deliberately add acetaminophen to their formula? This would increase their costs and wouldn't provide any financial benefit to their bottom line, unlike some of the fillers used in well-known pet foods sold in grocery stores, or manufacturers that add grain to cat food. The only grain in Felidae dry cat food is brown-rice, and it's used to help bind the kibble so that it doesn't fall apart.

As to the gastric problems reported on one of the earlier posts, this can happen with any change in diet, and it doesn't mean that there's a problem with the food.

If you own felines, you should be feeding canned food that contains no grain if possible, as cats are true carnivores and cannot process grains as omnivores can due to their short digestive tract and inability to process the grain. Carbohydrates are also a known no-no, so avoid foods that are high in carbs. Since most cats do not consume enough water, the added moisture in canned food is beneficial to them and can help prevent urinary tract problems down the road, so I would recommend using dry food sparingly with cats, if at all.

If you own a cat, there is an excellent website regarding cat food at www.catinfo.org/commercialcannedfoods.htm

Anonymous said...

Canidae dog food is a type of dog food that many people are familiar with. While people may have heard of the name and even bought this type of food for their dog, what they may not be aware of is that this dog food company has had some problems in the past. Because of the issues that this company has had, you may want to question whether or not you really want to feed your dog food that has come from this company. So, let's take a look at some of the problems that have surrounded this particular type of dog food.

For more details visit the above link Gates(Canidae Dog Food)

Anonymous said...

It's interesting that when you click on the site, it is a site that promotes cooking for your dog and raw diets. Again, there is no proof that I can find that Canidae is a danger to dogs. I've seen a drastic improvement in my dog. That's proof enough for me.

Anonymous said...

This is excellent information. I post a link to this site for people to reference on my website. However, where is the 2008 data?  I know the recalls on pet food are still going on. We are not totally safe yet. What happened to Blue Buffalo food? And what about artificial Vitamin K3 (Menadione Dimethylpirimidinol Bisulfate or Menadione Sodium Bisulfite)in many cheap and premium dog and cat foods. That is outlawed by the FDA for human consumption so why are we allowing our pets to die for it?  You have started a wonderful website that is helping everyone who cares about what is in pet food fight back. Please continue the fight and put the data  up for 2008.  Keep the good fight going.

Unknown said...

I see a company trying to C.Y.A. (Yeah that Covering Your Ass!) I am on my 5th bag of Chicken & Rice. Here's what I know. I'll tell you first hand that the 1st 4 bags were good. My 2 dogs loved it. It was that 5th bag that looked different and smelled different. I gave it to them anyways. I have been cleaning up barf, and cleaning up the messiest diarrhea from both of my dogs. My dogs now itch themselves all the time. I told this story to my friend who turned my on to Canidae originally. She said her Great Dane was have similar symptoms. Run from this product. If you have it right now--dump it on the step of your pet store and tell them to give it to there Canidae Rep. the next time they see them. This product went form great to the awful in one bag. They couldn't win my business back even if they tried. Done with Canidae forever. Hopefully my dogs get back to themselves. Google Canidae Dog food. Don't wait like I did. Yes I'm upset. I can't believe Canidae statements from there spokesperson. Just Google. I just printed 70 pages of info to show my pet store & vet.

Unknown said...

We switched our German Shorthaired Pointer to Canidae around 1 yr. old ( May 2006 )with no problem except a little gas from time to time until Oct. 2007 when we purchased a new bag. Symptoms started within 24 hrs. vomit, diarrhea, then skin problems with scabs and scratching followed. ( This dog had just finished testing as a NAVHDA UT Prize 1 dog a week or so before.) We switched to a new bag of Canidae thinking maybe something was wrong with the first bag and symptoms continued to get worse. Within 2-3 wks. this field conditioned dog had lost 10 lbs. from bloody diarrhea. We switched to a new brand of food and started cooking chicken and rice after 3 wks. but the damage had been done. We made many trips to the vet with no idea what was causing the problem since he had been on Canidae for a long time before with no problems and Canidae said nothing was wrong with thier foods during the recalls. After testing and treating for anything the vet could think of, plus us home cooking for months, he started to recover after about 4 mo. but the recovery was slow.

About 6 mo. from the time this all started he was almost back too 100%

We kept feeding him high end foods for a couple more months and then switched back to new bag of Canidae over a 2 wk. period with a little gas and soft stool but nothing serious. After 2 wks. had past and he was back to 100% Canidae with no major problems other than gas, we started mixing and feeding some of the remaining amount of the BAD Canidae from 1 yr. before and within 1 wk. his symptoms started to develope all over again same as before. Remember this was only a small portion of the original food that caused the problem mixed in with the new bag we had been feeding. After confirming Canidae was problem. We switched to a Purina brand feed others where feeding with no problems and all his gas is gone with stools starting to firm up again. How much proof do you need ?

We feel this was proof that Canidae almost killed our dog after swearing nothing was wrong with thier food when we called about the problems.

We almost lost our highly trained GSP / family pet and spent 6 mo. and a lot of money doing everything we could to help him recover. Canidae was not willing to test the food or do anything to help. I'm sad to say we proved Canidae food was killing our dog and wanted to make sure others were warned.

This was a very short explanation of what happened and I have all the dates recorded, along with treatments. There is no doubt in my mind Canidae is responsible. If a class action is filed against them I will be happy to sign up but can't afford to fight them myself.

We will never purchase another Canidae product.

Unknown said...

We've been feeding Canidae to our five Siberians for couple of years now. Can't say when the problems started exactly but a while ago, at least several months,. all the dogs have had really bad gas, bouts of diarrhea, and blood in their stool. After hearing about problems with Canidae we immediately took them off it and replaced the dry Canidae Chicken and Rice with home cooked rice, we've always mixed Mackerel and Oma's Pride raw food into their meals. Within a week all dogs have normal stools again, no more terrible gas, and what we called 'evil tummy' (very loud stomach grumblings) have all disappeared. Obviously not a controlled study but drastic change from all the problems while on Canidae to having no problem off Canidae is enough to convince me it was their product. It's a shame that a product that was good for many years now can't be trusted.

Anonymous said...

Used Canidae for years with excellent results. Unexpectedly, the dogs won't even eat any of this last bag. one of them sniffed it and turned away and the one who ate some of it (less than 1/2 a cup) had diarrhea and vomiting. It even has a different smell. There is absolutely something wrong with it and I won't be feeding it to my dogs again.

Anonymous said...

I agree somethings not right...our two large dogs would not eat one or two bags out of 5 last year (i mixed it with other stuff and they picked around it...I was thinking about getting somemore and my husband reminded me.

Anonymous said...

Those who are reporting that Canidae is bad, and will never again purchase it, and that the bag smelled funny or different, did you know that they reformulated it at least a couple of times in the last 5 or so years and that the latest formula smells way different than the one before it? The newest formula DOES contain more vitamins and protein (fish, etc) and it has a different scent. In fact, it smelled so strongly of vitamins and more like fish than the formula before it, that I felt a bit sick when I fed my dog. I am more sensitive than most people to smells, so go figure. However, I got used to it and I do not think it smells as bad and no longer feel a bit sick due to the scent.

Tacea said...

I've been feeding Canidae to my 7 dogs for many years with no problems.
My poodle is developing seizures, but I'm doubtful that the food is to blame.
So...what is the best food? I always thought that Canidae was the best out there. Now what? I really don't know what to believe and I don't want to gamble with my furbabies lives.

Tacea said...

I've been feeding Canidae to my 7 dogs for many years with no problems.
My poodle is developing seizures, but I'm doubtful that the food is to blame.
So...what is the best food? I always thought that Canidae was the best out there. Now what? I really don't know what to believe and I don't want to gamble with my furbabies lives.

Anonymous said...

I have been feeding Canidae to my 10 dogs for 3 years now. They range in age from 16 weeks to 10 years of age. I have had no problems at all with the food. In fact the chronic ear problems my one female experienced have entirely disappeared after switching to the Canidae. If there was a problem with the food.. someone like me who feeds it to all 10 dogs.. Puppies born and raised on Canidae... Surely I would be having problems. I don't believe this woman that sent in the samples for testing is an honest person.. and don't trust a testing company that seems to find acetaminophen in everything they test.
People buy unhealth dogs, from bad breeders, and they tend to run around and blame everything but the dog's background.

Anonymous said...

I have fed my 7 furbabies Canidae for the past 8 yrs.
One of my poodles had chronic Staph infections which cleared up a few weeks after changing to Canidae and adding fish oil.
My other poodle has an extremely sensitive stomach, vomiting easily on different foods. This also changed when we switched to Canidae. He's no longer suffering stomach upset.
The other dogs ranging from age 5-13 have shiny coats, are very healthy and active, and my 13 yr. old acts like a puppy.
I think Canidae is a wonderful product that has helped my fur-family out tremendously. I had researched dog foods for months and settled on Canidae.
My dogs are my life and I'm not changing dog food b/c of an unproven rumor. I trust this company.

Anonymous said...

Consumeraffairs.com/pets/canidae tells it all as hundreds of dog owners tell what the food did to their pets. SEIZURES, absolutely one of the many consequences of the NEW AND IMPROVED Canidae formula. As of June 2009, horrible experiences still pouring in to the consumer affairs site. People sharing information so owners will recognize their EXACT same experiences with symptoms. The most common are licking paws, vomiting bile, lack of energy, dull and dry fur, extreme shedding, yellow stool and diarrhea, and weight loss. My dog had been so healthy until Canidae changed their formula. PLEASE GO READ THE INFORMATION AT THIS SITE. IF YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR DOG, YOU WILL!

Anonymous said...

Does anyone know which Canidae formulas were changed? We switched our 3 dogs to the Grain Free formula about a month ago and they've been doing great - much improved from what they were eating before. Just bought two more bags and found this site - should I be concerned??????

Tami Boltz-Schmidt said...

I've been feeding my poodles, Chihuahua, and shepherd Canidae for 5 years. They're all healthy with no ill effects during their alleged dietary change.
My one poodle has a terribly sensitive stomach and has never been better!
Tami

Jen said...

I used to feed my lab Zoe Canidae for over a year until one day she turned up her nose up at it. I never had a problem but I switched to Innova which she has been on for over 2 years with no issues. I ran out of Innova over the holiday weekend and picked up a bag a Canidae to tide her over. Early this morning she started having severe diarrhea. I can only atribute it to the food as nothing else has changed and her health is excellent. Her stools were a little loose after the first couple of meals but I attibuted it to the change over in food. I was not aware that they had changed formulas but I will not be feeding Canidae to my dog again. I'm taking the bag back to the place I purchased it.

John Alexis said...

Wow thanks for the Pdf's, I have two dogs and I never feed the Canidae products, thanks for the information, no doubt you guys have good knowledge about dogs.

Tami Boltz-Schmidt said...

This link didn't work for me.
Consumeraffairs.com/pets/canidae
Is there another? Is there any more recent information on the Canidae issues? Something this year, updates on the findings?

John. What pdf's are you referring to? I must have missed that. Can you post the link?

I do still feed my furkids Canidae, dry and canned. As I said, I've seen no ill effects but if something could be building in their systems that can harm them I want to know more about this immediately.

Jen, nearly every time we change a dog's diet abruptly, without easing them into the switch by combining their previous food with the new food and slowly weaning them off the old, they will have stomach issues - typically vomiting and diarrhea. I am not defending Canidae. Just mentioning that it happens with the very best of foods.

Please get back to me on this folks! If I do need to get my pooches off this food I will do it in a heartbeat. I just know how rumors go. I live in a small town. :)

I know we want what's best for our furbabies. Let's keep trying to get to the bottom of this and figure it out with as much certainty as we can. I believe that time is critical if there are harmful ingredients in Canidae and we continue to feed it to them.

My dogs do love this food and I hate to change it if this info. is false, but if it's not I'll be changing food at once.

So, how do we know what's the truth?

Tami

Anonymous said...

I used to buy Candidae and thought it was superior until I opened cans of wet food with plastic inside! When I called they confirmed it had gotten into the cans and offered a coupon for free food. I told them to go to hell. If I hadn't noticed the plastic and my dog had eaten it he would be dead, per my vet.

Volunteers Needed! Get food off shelves...

howl911.com, itchmo.com, thepetfoodlist.com, petconnection.com, petfoodtracker.com and spockosbrain.com have joined together to ask for your help.
Update 6-10: Recalled food was purchased from a
California store on 5-29th – this stuff is still out there!
We need Volunteers to help get recalled food off store shelves. Read this post at Spocko’s Brain for instructions. Print a list (or two) on this site. Visit stores, then report safe stores here at Itchmo.com.

Printing Information:
1. Print the main FDA Pet Food Recall page http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html – this will be handy to show retailers who haven’t heard anything about the recall. (3 pages)

2. Print the list of 14 Major National Brands - it includes flavors and date information where applicable so you can tell if specific products for these brands have been recalled. The brands are: Alpo Prime Cuts, Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul, Doctors Foster and Smith, Eukanuba, Gravy Train, Hill’s Science Diet, Iams, Jerky Treats, Lick Your Chops, Mighty Dog Pouches, Natural Balance, Nutro, Pounce, Royal Canin. (It’s 7 pages and includes FDA contact information.)

3. Print the List of All Brands – it will remind you what products have been recalled - but it does not give you date and flavor information, there is just too much to put in one document. (7 pages, but the 7th page is links to more detailed information so you don’t need to print it)

If you want, and are going to a store that you know has store brands that have been recalled (such as Walmart), go to that recall information at the links on the summary or at the FDA site and print it out. Some of the information is formatted in ways that make it difficult to read (one of the main reasons for this site), but it’s better than nothing.

Note: The FDA is the official source for all recall information and recalled products. This is an unofficial volunteer effort to help get the word out and get recalled foods off of shelves. We’re doing the best we can but can’t guarantee these lists are completely accurate. Again, here is the official recall site: http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html