Complain about a product or service

Canidae Pet Foods

A statement from Canidae:

September 2008
We apologize to all who have voiced their concerns with our new formulation. Canidae distributed letters to retailers, breeders, updated packaging, and provided in-store signage, however it appears that this message did not reach all of our customers.

The new formulation, with increased levels of meat protein, lowered carbohydrates, and an increased overall complex carbohydrate quality, provides the most nutritious, all natural, palatable products. Canidae never uses soy, corn, wheat, by-products, grain fractions, or fillers in our food.

If you believe your pet has experienced challenges related to the new formula we suggest feeding smaller portions multiple times a day. Adding warm water can decrease the chance of pets eating too quickly and not chewing thoroughly. It’s not unusual for pets to experience some digestive issues when transitioning, but if your problems persist, contact your veterinarian to rule out any underlying health concerns. For more tips, visit canidae.com/transitioningfromorig.html.

Due to increased commodity costs, we’ve changed our packaging sizes, reducing the overall weight by approximately 3-5 pounds per bag. The new sizes are more consistent with other brands and allow for easier handling.

We are committed to bringing quality products to pet owners and in June that commitment led us to Diamond’s manufacturing facility. Diamond facilities have rigorous quality control processes, utilizing a 141-point ingredient test protocol. All products are subject to a 10-point final product safety review and Canidae has also implemented hourly testing to confirm quality and product safety in our onsite laboratory. All Canidae products meet or exceed AAFCO nutrient profiles in USDA and FDA approved facilities.

At Canidae, we are committed to providing you and your pets the highest standard of excellence for product quality, palatability, and customer satisfaction. Please call 800-398-1600 or visit www.canidae.com to let us know what we can do to serve you better.

Canidae
Scott Whipple and John Gordon
Owners
PO Box 3610
San Luis Obispo, CA 93403

Chris of Placerville, CA July 16, 2010

We have 3 dogs (two 7 yr old boxers and a 13 yr old McNab mix); all have been on a raw diet until just 2 years ago. We began feeding Canadae to all of them one meal (breakfast) daily.

The past 2 years the boxers have gone bald in the saddle back areas above their behinds. We moved to just a few meals of raw meat (chicken)during the week and now the 13 yr old McNab has bloody loose stools and blood clots in her urine. Took her and the boxers to the vet to be given no clue or explanation to their condition. Blood tests and physical examination show no apparent disease, bladder or urinary infection to explain the illness. She has been put on antibiotics.

Noreen of Winchendon, MA June 13, 2010

After noticing for months that my 6 dogs had very loose stools, and after there having physicals (all clean bills of health) and worm checks (all negative), I decided today to check and see if there was any mention of Canidae on-line. After reading the complaints, I realize that Canidae: Platinum canned and dry, for my 4 older dogs and Chicken and Rice Formula, canned and dry, for my 2 younger dogs,must be the cause. I am with my dogs 24 hours a day and they never eat anything without me knowing it. They have a fenced in yard and I am always out there when they are.

I have been feeding my dogs Canidae for years and never had a problem. Today, I will throw out 2 just opened 30 lb bags and try to return 1 unopened 30 lb bag to where I got it. As a senior citizen on a fixed income, this really hurts. But my dogs are my life and I will not compromise their health. I wish I had checked on Canidae months ago! They have lost a very good customer who was buying 60 lbs a month.

Christine of Danville, IN May 21, 2010

I had put my 199 lb Mastiff/Dane on this product. After three years of dealing with horrendous skin issues, he cleared up. For three years anyway. Then, last year, he started breaking out again. We, along with our vet, could not figure it out. I was finally told by our local pet supply store, that Canidae changed their formula. I emailed the company and in return received a very snide email. I was shocked. We have started him on other food, he has cleared up completely. I rescue dogs, foster dogs and attend a lot of adoption events. I used to be told I should be a spokesman for the company. That is how much I sang their praises! Now, it is the opposite! I let them know what happened to Bobo and I let them know how I was treated! Customer service doesn't exist any more!

LC of Camas, WA April 25, 2010

I am SO glad I found this site. I recently changed my dry catfood to Felidae & recently my 4 yr old cat is demonstrating behavioral issues. He's been agitated with his tail, biting & chasing it, looks like he's watching ghosts, & just not his normal self. I removed his Felidae this morning & hopefully I will get my happy cat back again!

Geneva of San Diego, CA March 2, 2010

My dog has had seizures, vomiting, lethargy, etc.

Richard of Sherman, TX January 21, 2010

We had our Bulldog on grain free Canidae food because it had been highly recommended. I noticed that our dog's stool was often quite runny but because of the reportedly high quality of the food I did not think that it could be the culprit. After reading some of the complaints on this site about Canidae I decided to try something else. Research indicated that Taste of the Wild was good and it was locally available. After 2 days of weaning him off of Canidae with a half and half mixture the change in his stool is remarkable and I am about to eliminate the Canidae completely. I am amazed!

regina of Placerville, CA January 11, 2010

We recently switched to Felidae dry cat food. We have 3 cats - 2 of them had problems including yellow bile vomit and diarrhea/lethargy. I could not find contact info on the Canidae site. When I did finally contact them, they stated the ONLY problems were those in mid 2008, customers who used the old formula and then used the new formula.

She also stated that the information you read on the internet is not all true. They claim Canidae directly contacted many people and they retracted their stories. Also that many people posted lies about this food. This CS rep did not ease my worries about this food. If anything, they made me feel worse about it.

Heide of San Mateo, CA December 14, 2009

Merlin (3½ )looked real ill on Thursday 12/4, did not eat, drink or move so of to the vet we went on Friday. The vet found that he had a slight fever but really nothing wrong with him; she gave him antibiotics for a possible infection and 900 cc Lactated Ringers subcutaneously to avoid dehydration and recommended chicken and rice. He had lost 4 pounds since his last check-up in July. Saturday Merlin was fine, but did not want to eat his food. The rest of the gang was seemingly OK; but this Friday Jackie "O" (14 month) came in the kitchen walking in circles, her back arched and unable to lift her head. It looked a lot as if she may have had a seizure, then Sadie (ESS 16½) fell over unable to get back up. The puppy Charlie (BC 4 month) only wanted to lay around, as did Daisy (ESS 3½ ) both are working dogs, high energy and never lethargic. None wanted to eat, but luckily all did drink something. Then Jackie got diarrhea and vomited. The others followed one by one.

It is now Saturday early morning, we are on the ranch and a million miles from the nearest open vet clinic. Lucky for us we have a vet tech living on the ranch who takes care of the other animals and when Jeff came home he looked at the sick gang. He said that they had had several dogs with the same symptoms at the clinic all due to something they ate. The immediate solution was to give them all chicken broth and later a bit of rice and chicken. If it did not get better by afternoon he would open the clinic and administer Lactated Ringer's. They all got better and by Sunday afternoon everybody was pretty much back to normal. Looking back I should have wondered why their bowls are never empty; apparently they knew something was wrong with the food. My gang was on Canidae for the last three (3) years with no apparent ill effects. The two 40 lb bags we had went in the trash and we are looking for something new, but for the time being the gang gets only chicken, vegetables and rice.

Eileen of Hinsdale, IL December 4, 2009

I wrote in September 2009, to say how sick my two year old Westie was becoming on Canidae Dog Food. He was experiencing mucous laden stools and vomiting bile. We took him off of Canidae and put him on Chicken and rice for a short period of time. We began using Wellness with small amounts of chicken and rice mixed in. What a difference, he gained weight, his sparse hair filled in and he became much more active. I feel bad that we were slowly killing him. I wrote to the company and received a typical PR response. What is wrong with a company that would not want to investigate the problems with their product?

Robert of Reno, NV December 1, 2009

We have feed our English Bulldogs Canidae Senior for years, Right after Thanksgiving Mollie our white Bullie began vomiting clear gooey fluid. We thought she just had an upset tummy. We gave her a little Pepto Bismul, that seemed to help her through the night. The next day the vomiting had worsened! now, it was a yellow Bile color but still just little puddles about two inches in diameter. I was recently laid off from my job,. so there is not much money in my house hold right now. So we were really hoping that it would pass We still felt and hoped that she just had an upset stomach. After the third day with no improvement, we managed to find a vet that would work with people with little or no income. Our regular vet would not even think about seeing a dog without payment in full. There's just something wrong about that too! A loyal paying customer for years and you can't get a little help when you need it.

Anyway we finally took her in to see the Vet. She had a temp of 104. the vet gave her several shots of antibiotic and anti vomiting medicine, then one for alergies. After promising 360 We finnaly took her home about 3:30 pm. She seemed weak but better. Then about 2:30 am, It all started again, except this time she was vomiting profusly with bile and chunks of undigested food in it. We sat up with her the rest of the early morning. About 8 am. She looked better again, So we gave her some water just to see if she could keep it down. Two minutes later up it came, but this time it was a brown stool color. We got her to the vet at 10:30 when he opend. Now he says, he thinks it is Pancreatitus. He gave her some more meds and kept her to get some fluids in her. Aa I write this, we are waiting to hear from the vet. My other Bullie is just fine though! I hope she does not come down with it. I am taking them off Canidae, I just hope it's not too late for Bella. I wonder did they reformulate the Canidae Older dog formula too?

Report Your Experience

If you've had a bad experience -- or a good one -- with a consumer product or service, we'd like to hear about it. All complaints are reviewed by class action attorneys and are considered for publication on our site. Knowledge is power! Help spread the word. File your consumer report now.

Back to the top |