It has been quite a month for dog food recalls, with many brands yanking their products off the shelves due to high levels of vitamin D in their food.
Just yesterday, the FDA put out a recall alert for Elm Pet Foods after it issued a voluntary recall of its Chicken and Chickpea Recipe dog food due to elevated levels of vitamin D being detected.
This is just the latest in a series of recalls pertaining to vitamin D. In November alone, there has been eight different dog food brands that have notified customers of potentially concerning levels of vitamin D.
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The brands that have issued recalls reported on the FDA website are: ANF Pet (Lamb and Rice dog food), Evolve (Puppy, Sportsman’s Pride Large Breed Puppy and Triumph Chicken and Rice dog food) Natural Life (Chicken and Potato dry dog food), Orlando (Grain Free Chicken and Chickpea Superfood Recipe dog food), Nutrisca (Chicken and Chickpea dry dog food).
But there is more. These two brands have also issued recalls but have not been reported on the FDA website: Abound (Chicken and Brown Rice dog food), Nature’s Promise (Chicken and Brown Rice dog food)
If dogs ingest too much vitamin D they could vomit, have increased thirst and urination, lose their appetite, have excessive drooling and weight loss. Extremely high levels of vitamin D may lead to kidney dysfunction and other series issues.
“Elevated vitamin D causes an excess amount of calcium to circulate in the body, and can eventually cause mineralization or calcium deposits to form in the kidneys, muscles and other tissues,” says Dr. Ruth Roberts, an integrative veterinarian, holistic health coach for pets and founder of Crockpet Diet. “The kidney deposit are the biggest concern, as they can destroy kidney tissue and cause acute kidney failure.”
Dr. Roberts expressed her concern about the chicken commonality among all the recalls, believing there are many companies tied to the same supplier for the protein.
“This happen often in recalls of pet food. The recalls start with one company, then as the FDA starts to look at where the ingredients came from, they go back to the supplier and find out that other companies got the same product,” she says. “As the recall expands, more pet food manufacturers are impacted and have to recall food. We, the consumer, see various ‘quality’ levels from high to low impacted but don’t realize that they are using the same ingredients.”
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Dog parents who have fed their dogs any of the above brands should discontinue immediately. If your dog is exhibiting any of the above signs, contact your veterinarian. You can also directly contact the companies for further information.
Elm Pet Foods: customerservice@elmpetfoods.com or 607-859-2227
ANF Pet: mwhite@anf.com or 936-560-5930
Evolve: rwitcher@sunshinemills.com or 256-356-9541 x3210
Natural Life: consumerservices@nutrisca.com or 1-888-279-9420
Orlando: William.Harwood@lidl.us or 703-408-2961
Nutrisca: consumerservices@nutrisca.com or 1-888-279-9420
Abound: 1-800-705-2111
Nature’s Promise: customer.service@sunshinemills.com or 1-888-814-4268
Keep your eyes on the FDA page for other possible recalls.