PLEASE READ THIS IF YOUR DOG HAS GOTTEN SICK FROM EATING NUTRO DRY FOOD LARGE BREED FORMULA!!!!
74Symptoms, Treatment and what to do
My 5 year old Weimaraner became very sick from eating the Nutro Large Breed Adult formula. He started experiencing extreme lethargy, drinking excessive amounts of water, was vomiting, had diarrhea and also progressively stopped eating less food, until he refused to eat anything at all. I took him to the vet for blood tests and it was confirmed that he was very sick, he had acute pancreatitis. He almost died. He had to be placed on IV fluids/antibiotics for a week. He is now home, and of course eating very healthy food, but it still very tired and his personality is much more subdued. I don't know if he'll continue to battle health problems for the rest of his life, we are just in the beginning stages of his health recovery.
If your dog has gotton sick from this food, it is extremely important that you file a complaint with the FDA. Until they receive enough complaints, they will not look into the problem and force Nutro to pull this food from the shelves, in addition to taking responsibility from their negligence. I filed my complaint this morning. The number in Maryland is 410-779-5713. You must press 0# if you get the recorded message so that you can file your complaint with a live operator. If you get a voicemail, your message may not be processed for several days. Here is also a link to the complaint line for every state:
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/complain.html
Most importantly, if your pet has any of the symptoms listed above, take them to the vet immediately. If I would have waited a few more days, he may not have made it. The IV treatment and other meds were truly a lifesaver!!!
Also, after all this was over, I was extremely concerned on where I should get my dog food. I found some really great organic dog food places in Maryland. One is Bark in Olney and the other is The Whole Pet Central in Rockville on Gude Drive. He is currently on "Timber Wolf." I am very impressed with their formula and all the great things that have been added to this food. Another option is feeding them a raw food diet. This was one of my biggest concerns after all this happened, what do I feed him? I thought about cooking chicken and hamburger and mixing it with rice, but the only problem is that there are several vitamins/minerals and enzymes that they must get and not being a chemist, I can't configure the best mixture for him. After extensive research, I found the food mentioned above and I am thrilled with the results. Please feel free to Email me if you have any questions or need help.
Also, I think it's important to note that Nutro claims are being handled by an insurance company. If you have experienced problems from this food, are dealing with hefty vet bills, or God forbid, a death, make sure you get this information to file a claim so that your bills will be covered. They will request the vet bill records and proof of purchase from the Nutro. If you don't have it, go to the store where you bought it and have them pull up your receipt by the credit card used. They will also be settling a class action suit sometime over the next year. If you were affected by this, make sure to put your name on the list so that your pet will be covered in case they continue to have health problems over their lifetime due to this very unfortunate situation.
CommentsLoading...
My 2 yr. old pit rescue was starving and dehydrated when rescued and I thought she had a "sensitive" stomach. After getting her in good condition she frequently had very loose bowels and her basic diet was Nutro dry food. I will NEVER feed her a Nutro
product again. Executives in the Nutro company should be jailed!
Since starting on Nutro Both my dogs have been extremely thirsty and they sound as though they have upper respiratory infections. I cannot believe what I have been reading!
Have a 7 year old golden retriever, feed her dry nutro within about a week she started being lathargic, drinking a great deal of water sleeping no energy. She also has no appetitie past two days has eaten very little, just constantly drinking water.
My lab died after experiencing the symptoms associated with Nutro. She had been on it for the summer months, and died in October. I had the food tested. The results were: Copper - 13; Zinc - 300. I will be giving these results to her vet, but does anyone know if this is enough to cause toxicity in an older (13 y.o.) dog?
I just took my dogs off Nutro, been on it all their lives and starting in Sept 2008 they got sick, my 10 year old Golden lost 35lbs and vomitied and diarreah and no energy, I switched to Halo and he is acting again like a puppy . $100s of dollars in vet bills later. One thing for many years he has had the worse breath, smelled like a dead animal and smelled the whole house up, Im not kidding here, he now has puppy breath, its amazing, Im so upset I subjected him most his life to illness that was not necessary. Im sick about it.
I have been have exactly the same problem with my dog- I want to know about how/where you get the number for the insurance claim. We have over 1000 in vet bills for a still unknown illness. until I read about this just now I had no idea this is what has been making her sick for the past 7 months. Thank you so much
feed your dogs Blue Buffalo if you are dissatisfied with putrid Nutro
I have to Shelties - a 2 yr. old who has been on Nutro for two years, he has always been fine, but always just picked at his food. I just bought a new Sheltie puppy a few months ago and after being on nutro for two weeks he came down with diahhrea and then frequent urination. He was tested for parasites, etc., but came up negative. I am horrified at the thought that this could be making him sick. I took my adult Sheltie off Nutro and my puppy is on a prescription food and am weaning him over to Science Diet which seems to be working wonders. As soon as I stopped Nutro, his symptoms went away. There has to be something wrong with the formula!
To anyone feeding their pets Nutro products, please go to this site:
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/
There is an article on the front page, dated 4/22/09, about an on-going investigation into the company while many pets are still getting sick and dying from this pet food. For the love of your pets, PLEASE do not feed them this crap and give them something else ASAP! I would safely bag up this food, receipts and any vet bills as proof should you have the opportunity to come forward in a lawsuit.
To Michele W,
Please forgive me for saying this but, though Science Diet may be better than Nutro, it isn't a good product at all. Please look at the ingredients, they are the absolute worst for your dear Shelties. I am guessing your veterinarian recommend Science Diet and sells it at the office. If so, please read this article titled, "Veterinarians and Pet Food" at:
http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/Spring04/Perhach/P
My veterinarian personally told me she would never feed her pets Science Diet, nor would she recommend it. She said "it's bad stuff".
Also, I hope this link works:
http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/dog_food_reviews/sh
Please look at the reviews on this site, on all the Science Diet products. They are not recommended at all. www.dogfoodanalysis.com is a very popular pet food review site. You will find other dogs foods (if you click onto 'reviews') that have a 4, 5 and 6 star rating. Hill's Science Diet has a 1 star rating and is found on page 15 of the "1 star" rated pet foods. Please reconsider using this product, it's just no good. I am so sorry for those who lost their pets over poisonous pet food- it IS a crime and no one is being charged. It blows my mind that these products continue to be shelved in stores nationwide, probably worldwide. We need to educate ourselves and NEVER trust a pet food company without first researching them. Even then, please don't get too comfortable with a company you trust by not checking up on them frequently for any "bad" news whatsoever. Call me paranoid because I am. I wish all the best for the pets fortunate enough to have a second chance. I have been extremely cautious of the irresponsible, money grubbing, pet food industry since '07 and I will never let my guard down as long as I have pets.
If the second link didn't work, please search "Veterinarians and Pet Food" in any search engine and look for that title. Also, please read through the other articles on this site, it is truly an eye-opener.
My husband brought home a box of Nutro Natural Choice Large Breed Adult Lamb & Rice Meal Formula biscuits this past weekend because the store was out of Blue Buffalo biscuits. In the past two days, two of my dogs have now had small seizures - eyes rolling, head twisted to one side, stumbling, tremors, and wetting themselves.
I can't prove it, but my best guess is that their seizures are linked to this particular product. It is the only thing different that has been added to their diet and environment.
I think my husband knows now to stick to Blue Buffalo food and treats. And I know now to not give in to "Give Me A Treat" dog hypnosis.
I did call the Nutro 800 number but was basically told that the seizures could not possibly been caused by the bisquits. So I thought I should post this somewhere because Nutro probably won't take any action.
To Melinda,
I am so sorry to hear what happened to your dogs, I pray they are ok now. Imagine how many dogs are going through the same symptoms while eating these dog biscuits! Have you considered calling the store where your husband purchased them to warn them they may be contaminated? It baffles me to no end how companies, like Nutro, are getting away with making our pets sick and even killing them while their products continue to be sold. Nutro will NOT admit to this. I would look into having the dog treats tested for poisonous chemicals, if you still have them. Reading what your dogs experienced makes me furious. Nutro needs to be shut down ASAP! There is a recent article on this website about Nutro:
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/
Please go to this link (below) to file a complaint because Nutro won't take any action, you have to be the one to take action on your dogs behalf. If pet owners don't come forward these evil people at Nutro will continue to make our pets sick and die as long as they can get away with it:
http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/complain.h
If the link doesn't work, you can go to the top of this page and find it there after the second paragraph... the whole article above, if you haven't read it, is very informative.
Thank you for your concern. My dogs have had no further seizures. I did report the incidents to Nutro and they did (after 3 contacts - one by phone, one by email, and then another by phone) send 2 collection bags so they could test the product although the woman I spoke to said the episodes could not have possibly been related to their product. I sent off all that I could stuff in their bags on May 7. I have my doubts about whether the bisquits will even be tested and doubt that they would even tell me if that particular box of bisquits was contaminated. I think my husband finally got "the picture" and will never buy the Nutro brand (or any associated brands) again. It's Blue Buffalo for us and homemade treats. We did inform the store where the box was bought (Petco) and I also informed the specialty animal food store down the hill from our home about our experience. The owner was very concerned as they did have some Nutro products in their store - not the large dog lamb & rice bisquits but the lamb & rice chops. I just won't buy any of their products again and will be vigilant at reading every word on a box or bag to find who the parent company is of the brand name it is being sold under. Gotta always read the fine print.....
I am a rep for science diet, funny thing is the nutro reps I work with claim by-products are bad and corn are fillers yet thier food is making animals sick. It's all marketing BS.
Melinda,
Nutro is in the news relentlessly denying they are at fault for the hundreds of complaints against them. Somebody is lying and somebody is telling the truth. How could hundreds of strangers be in a conspiracy against Nutro, what would be their purpose? For every complaint Nutro receives and sends collection bags to confiscate the proof (that's how I look at it) the better off they are. I highly doubt they are testing the product you sent them, they will most likely repackage these products to sell again. The FDA, and any other so-called regulatory group, are asleep at the wheel... they hardly do the job when it comes to the safety of human products so I believe our pets are at the bottom of the totem pole. It's a real shame and so very frustrating. I'm glad your dogs are doing well now... always research, research, research!
To Kara,
Please forgive me for saying this, no disrespect to you personally, but, although Nutro is tainted and causing pets to fall ill and die in some cases... the ingredients in Science Diet are truly no better when it comes to the health of our pets. My veterinarian told me she would never feed her own pets S.D. and would never recommend it to her patients (and it's in her office to push on patients like they are suppose to do). The ingredients are very bad and she called it garbage. You're exactly right... it IS all marketing BS! Please go to this site (below) to learn about pet food ingredients.
I have been feeding my dog Nutro since he was a puppy, because that's what the breeder fed him. He has had allergies year after year but just in the last few days, he started with diarrhea, drinking lots of water, breath smells like dead animals, won't eat much, and started to vomit today. I feel awful that I have been giving him Nutro dog food not knowing that it was making him sick. I will definitely be filing a complaint. I pray he will be okay after seeing the vet. This is maddening to say the least! Our poor pets!!!
I've also had the exact same experience as Kathy and others while feeding my 8 month old dog Nutro Natural for Large Breed Puppies and Nutro snacks. He started vomiting early last week, would not eat, and then wouldn't drink, etc as others have said. We took him to the Vet and after 2 days of tests they were sure that he had ate something that was blocking his intestines even though x-rays were inconclusive. Had I know about these issues with Nutro, I would obviously not have proceeded with the surgery and left him on the IV. He's been now taken to the Animal Hospital and had to have a second surgery because of complications, etc. He is barely hanging on now.
There are many more details that would better convey how certain I am that Nutro was at fault here, but the main the reason I wanted to write is to help someone else that may be in the same situation.
Michelle RI 4 years ago
I am so disturbed by this whole ordeal. My 2 year old Golden Retriever has never been on anything but Nutro dry food since she started eating whole food and around March 2007 she start vomiting almost everyday. I continuosly brought her to the Vet where they could not determine what the cause was. When I heard about the pet food recall I was assured by Nutro that it was not their dry food, regardless when my Golden threw up blood I wasnt going to take their word for it anymore. I switched her immediately off the Nutro Large Breed formula and put her on Wellness formula and this was in May 2007 needless to say she has not thrown up since. Nutro still continues to argue that their dry food is safe despite all the evidence to the contrary. PLEASE DO NOT BE FOOLED, PAY ATTENTION. There are too many of us experiencing the same symptoms for their not to be a serious problem here. Contact your local FDA and file a formal complaint-they need to be held accountable for their negligence in handling this matter.