- Has any new information about nephrotoxins become available since the IDEXX Pet Food Webinar was aired?
Yes. The current thinking is that the chemicals melamine and cyanuric acid alone are apparently nontoxic, but when combined they form polymers in the animal. The resulting crystals cause physical or other damage, primarily to the kidneys. Two other melamine-related substances, ammelide and ammeline, may also play roles and are under investigation.
- Where can I find a complete list of recalled pet foods?
New pet foods continue to be added to the recall list. For the most recent, updated list, please go to the AVMA Web site.
- How should I collect samples for toxicological testing?
The AAVLD provides suggestions for sample collection on its Web site. 
- Are there any labs that are testing for the renal toxins in recalled pet foods?
The California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory System is testing samples in association with the pet food recall. Please visit its Web site for more information about submitting samples and contact information for the laboratory.
- How many animals have been affected by the recall?
Though many brands of pet foods have been recalled, pet owners and veterinarians should be aware that 98 percent of pet foods are still deemed safe and haven’t been recalled. The number of affected animals is unknown at this time.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received over 18,000 complaints, but confirming that these cases are truly a result of the pet food recall has not happened. The reason is the FDA does not have a surveillance network to rely on to confirm pet food recall cases and must investigate each complaint individually to confirm whether or not the pet food was involved.
The Veterinary Information Network (VIN) is conducting a survey to help determine the number of animals impacted by the pet food recall. Please visit VIN to take the survey and review preliminary results.
The American Laboratory of Veterinary Diagnosticians is gathering scientific data related to the recent cases of pet food-induced nephrotoxicity. Take the survey on their Web site.
A pet owner public Web site, www.petconnection.com, has its own pet owner-reported database. It has received more than 14,600 reports with more than 4,700 pets reported as deceased. These cases are not confirmed, but this is the kind of information that pet owners will have easy access to.
- Should I test nonclinical pets exposed to the food source?
Absolutely yes. Even though our ability to detect renal disease through simple laboratory testing is relatively insensitive, the objective data collected with this testing, especially if there was a baseline of similar data collected prior to this exposure, is more sensitive than our ability to detect underlying renal disease with a thorough physical examination. Clinical signs and physical changes associated with renal disease are difficult to detect until the disease is quite progressed.
[Dr. Dennis DeNicola, clinical pathologist and chief veterinary educator]
- What should I test in an exposed nonclinical dog and cat?
A complete urinalysis with detailed microscopic examination of the urine is critical. Melamine appears to be associated with the formation of distinctive crystals that may serve as a marker of potential renal tubular injury. With significant loss of renal function, increases in creatinine, urea and phosphorus may be seen as well as electrolyte (Na, K, Cl and tCO) disturbances with possible acid-base changes; therefore these parameters should be evaluated.
Collection of a baseline data set of a complete blood count (CBC), a general clinical chemistry health profile and complete urinalysis is recommended to be able to follow both clinically ill and healthy animals. This data can be used to monitor disease progression or as objective data points for early detection of future disease. Serial data evaluation provides more sensitive indicators of disease status. This is especially important with renal disease, where enzyme changes are only elevated outside of the reference range with considerable loss of renal function. See the IDEXX letter to our veterinary customers. [Dr. Dennis DeNicola, clinical pathologist and chief veterinary educator]
- How do I report an illness that I suspect is caused by the contaminated food?
You should file a report with your state’s Food and Drug Administration complaint coordinator. Contact information for each state can be found at: http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/complain.html.
Recent developments concerning the pet food recall can be found at the AVMA, the ACVIM, and the AAHA Web sites. [Dr. Michelle Frye, Epidemiology]
- What food/type of food should I recommend?
For pets that have been clinically affected by the recalled pet food, we are recommending any of the prescription renal diets, depending on the stage of their disease. At this time, none of the prescription-brand renal diets have been included in the recall, although veterinarians are encouraged to continue to check for updates to the list of affected foods before prescribing any new diet. Although additional foods have been added to the recall lately, these have been a precautionary expansion to include all diets that contain any wheat gluten, contaminated or not, purchased from the specific supplier of the contaminated lots. This comprehensive recall should help to ensure that the foods remaining on the shelves are safe. In general, dry diets have been minimally impacted by the recall, while savory cuts and gravy-style canned or pouch style foods have been the most impacted. Concerned owners may consider these factors when choosing a diet for their pets. Despite the recent recall, commercial diets remain preferable over homemade diets for long-term feeding. Homemade diets need to be specifically formulated and supplemented by a nutritionist to ensure adequate nutritional content. In addition, unformulated homemade diets may carry their own inherent risks (e.g. pancreatitis from high-fat content). [Dr. Alexis Seguin, internal medicine]
- What are your testing recommendations in clinical versus nonclinical dogs and cats exposed to recalled food?
We are recommending the same testing regardless of clinical presentation. Because the clinical signs associated with renal disease are often subtle, vague and usually seen only after significant renal function loss, testing is critical in all exposed pets. In the clinically ill pet, we need to monitor disease progression (or regression) and in the clinically healthy patient, we want to screen for any underlying or developing problem. Moreover, a complete database allows you to screen for many disease states, not just renal disease—as well as establish a useful baseline for future testing. Until we know more about this problem, we cannot be sure that renal disease is the only disease state associated with the contaminated foods. See the IDEXX letter to our veterinary customers. [Combined response - Dr. Robert Hawthorne, White Rock Animal Hospital, and Dr. Fred Metzger, Metzger Animal Hospital.]
|
This symbol indicates PDF-formatted materials. To view, you may need to 