(CBS News) NEW YORK Rat poison has been found in pet food blamed for the deaths of at least 16 cats and dogs, a spokeswoman for the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets said Friday.
The toxin was identified as aminopterin, state Agriculture Commissioner Patrick Hooker said in a statement. Aminopterin is used to kill rats in some countries, but it's not registered for that use in the United States, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
The officials did not say how they believe it got into the pet food.
Pet poison experts will be answering questions in a live chat on the ASPCA website at 3:00 p.m. EDT. Click here for a link to the website.
The substance was found at a level of at least 40 parts per million in tested cat food samples, according to Donald Smith, dean of Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine. Testing was done at the New York State Animal Health Diagnostic Center at Cornell and at the New York State Food Laboratory.
"Any amount of this product is too much in food," Hooker said.
The lab tested three cat food samples provided by Menu Foods, the manufacturer that produced all the recalled food. Aminopterin was found in two samples. The lab has not tested any dog food.
Hooker said the lab would be testing individual components of the pet food.
Aminopterin, also used as a cancer drug, is highly toxic in high doses. It inhibits the growth of malignant cells and suppresses the immune system.
The Food and Drug Administration has said the investigation was focusing on wheat gluten in the food. Wheat gluten itself would not cause kidney failure, but the common ingredient could have been contaminated by heavy metals or mold toxins, the FDA said.
State and FBI officials said they knew of no criminal investigations in the case.
The pet deaths led to a recall of 60 million cans and pouches of pet food produced by Menu Foods and sold throughout North America under 95 brand names. There have been several reports of kidney failure in pets that ate the recalled brands, and the company has confirmed the deaths of 15 cats and one dog.
Menu Foods last week recalled "cuts and gravy" style dog and cat food. The recall sparked concern among pet owners across North America. It includes food sold under store brands carried by Wal-Mart, Kroger, Safeway and other large retailers, as well as private labels such as Iams, Nutro and Eukanuba.
A complete list of the recalled products along with product codes, descriptions and production dates was available from the Menu Foods Web site.
The recall has led to at least three lawsuits against Menu Foods from pet owners who allege their animals got sick or died after eating recalled food.
Mourning turned to outrage after owners learned that Menu Foods waited nearly a month before notifying the public, reports CBS News The Early Show veterinarian Dr. Debbye Turner. This means that unsuspecting owners were poisoning their pets.
"To find out they knew about this weeks ago, and that the cats they tested died!" former cat owner Dawn Marjerczyk told CBS. Marjerczyk's cat died after eating some of the tainted cat food. "Why wasn't it pulled off then? Why do so many people have to suffer right now?"
The company's chief executive and president said Menu Foods delayed announcing the recall until it could confirm that the animals had eaten its product before dying. Two earlier complaints from consumers whose cats had died involved animals that lived outside or had access to a garage, which left open the possibility they had been poisoned by something other than contaminated food, he said.
Menu Foods also makes foods for zoo cats, but those products are unaffected by the recall.
A spokesman for New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said he was not aware of any criminal investigation involving the tainted food. FBI spokesman Paul Holstein in Albany said Friday he was not aware of any FBI involvement in the case.
"I don't know where we'll go from here," he said.
2007-03-23 08:20:51 · 9 answers · asked by Gianna M 5 in Pets ➔ Other - Pets
Go into:
menufoods.com/recall
There they list the pet foods involved. If you see your pets food listed click on that link, and it will provide the dates from production and the UPC codes.
2007-03-23 08:28:30 · update #1
Thanks Michael for providing a link
2007-03-23 09:33:34 · update #2
thanks for the info. it's sad to know they waited so long to report the bad batch. many people, especially older people have pets who are alone and their pets are their companions. my mom who is 67 went nuts when she herd the report. shes had old mecko for years.
2007-03-23 10:05:32 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Rat poison prevents the blot form clotting and is actually use in heart patients to keep the blood thin to prevent further heart problems. I don't have a medical background so I am not sure how it prevents the blood clotting. If the poison kills off platelets in the blood then over time they should build up as new ones are generated by the body but if the poison has somehow stayed on the system as heavy metals do then perhaps there is an ongoing effect. Personally I would be tempted to give them salty foods to get them to drink a lot and hope that all of the water will help to flush out any residual chemicals that may still be in their system. Perhaps you should contact the manufacturer and ask if they can provide some info about the chemicals in the product and what physical effect they might have so that you ca pass the info on to the vet as there may be more than one nasty causing the problem. As a last resort perhaps a doggie blood transfusion (exchange) this will ease the immediate clotting problem and drawing off some blood may help eliminate some unseen nasties. Perhaps try a vet from another area as even with doctors sometimes a second doctor spots something the other missed, or even ask a medical practitioner what do you recommend is someone has taken too much of their anticoagulant medication and see what they suggest. Sorry couldn't be of more help.
2016-03-17 01:20:56 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I do believe it. When I was young 'lead' was an issue and the use of lead in anything was deemed unlawful as being unsafe. Yet in these past few years we have had lead in gum machine toys and children's lunch boxes. Banned in the US, yet such things slip in via venders (suppliers or product) in foreign countries; foreigners at our Ports allowing such things in.
Yet the fail safe is with the company 'Menu Foods'; no one checking the laws in the country supplying this wheat glutten? no one testing samples from time to time? no one monitoring their foreign suppliers?
It's presumptuous of Americans to think that just because our government passed some 'safety law prohibiting (whatever), that every country on earth should do so also. Also assuming that major companies have our best interest or safety on their list of company goals.
America grows wheat, but why buy wheat glutten from an American Company when another country will do it 'so much cheaper' and buying from foreign countries is most encouraged.
The company is not soley responsible in this, our trade laws have much ado with this issue also.
2007-03-24 00:58:38 · answer #3 · answered by ganymedesgoblet 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Please cite where you got this story. I just went to the CBS News website, and the latest story they have about rat poison is from 2003. I also did a websearch for several combinations of "rat poison," "poison," and cat food," but came up with nothing.
Added 3/24:
Read in this morning's paper about the rat poison. Don't know why it didn't come up in my previous searches.
2007-03-23 08:32:45 · answer #4 · answered by Uther Aurelianus 6 · 1⤊ 1⤋
the question remains how it got into the food. There has to be an evil person out there who purposely did this. The poison didn't magically jump into the cans. Someone put it in the cans, to kill the animals.
2007-03-25 12:11:10 · answer #5 · answered by snafu1 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
you should work for a news cast...I don't watch TV to much.so i got a lot of info from you....thanks.
2007-03-23 08:56:14 · answer #6 · answered by beth j 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I wonder if it killed any rats
2007-03-23 08:26:46 · answer #7 · answered by Samantha 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
i know that is bull **** thay wait a while cause they wanna see pets died that are pet haters!!!
2007-03-23 09:19:52 · answer #8 · answered by Erika 1 · 2⤊ 1⤋
how about here - http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070323/ap_on_re_us/pet_food_recall
2007-03-23 08:52:15 · answer #9 · answered by Michael C 2 · 3⤊ 0⤋