A massive pet food recall that saw more than 90 brands of dog and cat chow yanked from shelves sparked widespread concern from pet owners last week, but until Monday no cases had been linked to any Canadian critters.
The first Canadian victim of the massive pet food recall may in fact be a dog from
Orillia
.
A beagle named Susie (pictured) was put down in January after she became sick with kidney disease. Her owner was feeding her one of the brands pulled from the shelves by Mississauga-based Menu Foods.
"We changed her food in the fall, so it's very coincidental that she got sick," said owner Sue Mallatratt.
"I brought her in to the vet thinking it was just old age, and he called me back about an hour later and said it was full kidney disease."
At least 10 animals died after eating the tainted food in the
United States
, and many more are suffering kidney failure.
The recalled products were made between
Dec. 3, 2006
and March 6 at two of the company's American plants.
Menu Foods officials say they've conducted tests, but can't figure out what the problem could be.
"We're not entirely sure what has happened," said CEO Paul Henderson.
"We've undertaken a battery of technical tests ... and all of those tests have failed to identify any issues at all with our product."
In the meantime, veterinarians suggest pet owners should look for a few signs and symptoms.
"Often with dogs and cats they'll become quite lethargic right off the bat," said Dr. Scott Bainbridge,
Queen
West
Animal
Hospital
.
"Some animals will go off their food as well. Others will vomit and, sometimes you'll see with kidney problems, you'll see them drinking a lot and urinating a lot more than normal as well."
Concerns grew in December, when the company was first hit with complaints regarding their "cuts and gravy" style food.
As of Monday more than 60 million cans of food had been recalled.
If you feed your pet Menu Foods products and you're concerned about their health, the company has set up a hotline at
1-866-895-2708.
For more information about recalled products, visit the Menu Foods website by
clicking here
.