Pierce Mattie Public Relations New York & Los Angeles

UPDATE March 23rd: It has been confirmed that it was rat poison in the Menu Foods wet food. See the full story on CNN.

Rat poison found in recalled pet food. A chemical used in rat poison was found as the source of contamination in Menu Foods brands, officials say.

March 22, 2007: If you haven’t heard about the recall regarding Menu Foods and of many of the brands it manufactures it’s wet dog and cat food for, please be sure to pay attention as your pet’s health may be at risk. Menu Foods produces pet food for such brands as Iams, Eukanuba and Science Diet among many others. The recall is specific to their cuts and gravy variety in cans and foil pouches that were sold between December 6, 2006 and March 6, 2007. The recall involves 48 brands of dog food and 40 brands of cat food that are sold throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico by many major retailers.

While Menu Foods hasn’t been able to prove that it is their product causing kidney disease in the pets who have eaten this specific product, or the death of 9 cats and one dog, it is still looked at as more than coincidence that the common factor among these ailing and deceased pets is that they all ate the product in question. The recall is causing panic with pet owners and brings back memories of the recall in late 2005 by Diamond Pet Food Co. when mold contaminated dry dog food during the production process and resulted in the death of more than 23 dogs and sickening many others.

As our pets are becoming more like family, it is easy to question if top pet food brands really are as good or safe as its lower ranking competitors. Many may wonder about this since a large majority of the brands called into question are top shelf pet brands. Whether you give your pet wet or dry food, just as with food for humans, there is always a risk of being contaminated at some point and causing illness.

To see a complete list of all 88 brands being recalled, please see the Menu Foods website.