Big recall of pet food has owners scrambling

Pet owners worried Saturday that the pet food in their cupboards could be deadly after millions of containers of dog and cat food sold at major retailers across North America were recalled.

Menu Foods, the Canadian-based company that produced the pet food, said Saturday that it was recalling dog food sold under 48 brands and cat food sold under 40 brands including Iams, Nutro and Eukanuba. The food was distributed throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico by major retailers such as Wal-Mart, Kroger, Safeway and PetSmart.

An unknown number of cats and dogs had suffered kidney failure, and about 10 died after eating the affected pet food, the company said.

On Saturday night, Nestle Purina PetCare Co. and Hill's Pet Nutrition Inc. announced that as a precaution they were voluntarily recalling some products made by Menu Foods.

Many stores that sold the affected brands quickly pulled packages off shelves.

The recall covers a style of food the company calls "cuts and gravy," which consists of chunks of meat in gravy, sold in cans and small foil pouches from Dec. 3 to March 6.

A complete list of the recalled products along with product codes, descriptions and production dates is at www.menufoods.com/recall.

The company also designated two phone numbers to call for information -- (866) 463-6738 and (866) 895-2708 -- but pet owners kept the lines busy for much of Saturday.

At a PetSmart store in Union, Pa., Silviene Grzybowski became worried when the four types of Iams products she buys for her cat, Smokey, had vanished from shelves. The cat was sick and had not been eating for days, she said.

"The vet told us to buy her her favorite food, but I'm going to call the vet right now," Grzybowski said, looking at an announcement PetSmart had taped to shelves announcing the recall.

Ron Finegold of Boynton Beach, Fla., said he noticed about a week ago that his family's 3-year-old cat -- who was regularly fed a variety of Iams food -- had stopped eating and did not appear well.

He took the animal to the veterinarian, who determined she was in renal failure.

He said he heard about the recall on the radio Friday night. He checked his trash and discovered he had given his cat some of the affected food.

"That's when I realized [the illness] had to be related," Finegold said. "She won't be eating that stuff anymore."