Could it be rat poison that's killing the nation's dogs and cats?
That's the conclusion of the New York Department of Agriculture and Markets, which announced today that the recalled Menu Food pet foods contained rodent poison.
State Agriculture Commissioner Patrick Hook identified the toxin as Aminopterin, which is used to kill rats in some countries. The poison is not registered as rodent killer in the United States, although it is used as a cancer drug.
According to a report by MSNBC, the poison may have been used on wheat imported from China.
The Food and Drug Administration has focused its investigation on wheat gluten in the pet food, which is blamed for causing kidney problems in dogs and cats across the country and the deaths of at least 16 pets -- although officials expect that number to rise.
The FDA says wheat gluten by itself would not cause kidney failure, but the common ingredient could have been contaminated.
New York officials aren't sure how the rodent poison got into the recalled pet food. But they apparently don't believe it was deliberate.
The New York Attorney General Office says it's not aware of any criminal investigation involving the tainted food. And FBI spokesman Paul Holstein in Albany said Friday that he was not aware of any FBI involvement in the case.
"I don't know where we'll go from here," he said.
Menu Foods of Canada announced its massive recall on March 16, 2007, after receiving complaints of kidney failure in pets that ate the food.
The recall involves 60 million cans of "cut and gravy" style cat and dog food -- sold across North America under 95 brand names. Those brands are carried by Wal-Mart, Kroger, Safeway and other large retailers -- and also sold under other private labels like Iams, Nutro and Eukanuba.
A complete list of the recalled pet foods is available on Menu Food's Web site: www.menufoods.com/recall The company has also set up two phone numbers pet owners can call for more information: (866) 463-6738 and (866) 895-2708.
Pet Owners Haunted
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A Manchester, New Hampshire, woman is haunted by recurring guilt surrounding the recent death of her beloved cat, Lily.
Her 16-year-old Siamese-Domestic Shorthair became seriously ill -- and had to put to sleep last week -- after eating five cans of Iams Flakes cat food, one of the 95 brands of "cut and gravy" style cat and dog food involved in Menu Food of Canada's nationwide recall.
"If I'd just kept feeding her the pt cat food and not switched to the Iams Flakes of salmon and tuna, then she'd still be around," says Lily's grieving owner, Deborah J. "But when I saw the cans of salmon and tuna, I thought she might like a change."
Deborah says her "best friend" was in good health before she became ill after eating the contaminated cat food on March 8, 2007.
"She was an active, healthy cat. But after I fed her the Iams salmon and tuna, she threw up and started going downhill. She stopped eating and starting hiding. We took her to the vet and learned she was in renal failure." Deborah says her veterinarian gave Lily IV fluids for four days, but the cat's condition continued to deteriorate.
"When our vet re-tested Lily's blood, her toxicity levels were still off the chart," she says. "He told me Lily was not going to pull through. That's when we both made the decision to put her to sleep. It was a horrible decision to make. I loved that cat so much. I'd had her since college."
Deborah's veterinarian put Lily to sleep on March 16, 2007.
The next day, Deborah learned about Menu Food's recall of 60 million cans of wet cat and dog food. She checked the food she'd given Lily and made a shocking discovery.
"When I looked at the cans of food I'd fed to Lily -- and the product codes of the cans being recalled -- I realized they were the same numbers. I thought 'Oh my gosh, these are the same ones.'"
The discovery also made Deborah worry about the safety of her other three cats, who had also eaten some of the tainted food.
"I was very concerned and we had all of them tested," she says. "And they're all OK." Deborah says she's not only had to deal with the emotional pain of losing Lily, whom she describes as "a very special cat."
Lily's death -- and the circumstances surrounding it -- also caused a financial strain on Deborah's family.
"Our vet bills are now close to $700 because we had to pay for all of Lily's care and the testing of our other cats," she says. "I think someone should reimburse people for their veterinarian bills. For those of us who have lost a pet, nothing can be done to bring them back . . . but someone should help people recoup the cost of their vet bills."
