More thoughts About Poisoned Pet Food.
In last Wednesday's Lewiston Tribune there was a story about the pet food recall. The founder of an Internet group, Veterinary Information Network (VIN) reported results of a member survey in which more than 471 cases of kidney failure and 104 deaths in dogs and cats were reported by 10-20% of VIN members. He seemed in the article to imply these were all due to contaminated pet foods and that if 100% of VIN members had responded numbers would have been proportionally higher.
Whether this was what he intended to say or his remarks were misinterpreted by the journalist who wrote the article, it is misleading and almost certainly not very near the truth.
My clinic subscribes to VIN. It is a good forum for veterinarians to exchange information and opinions, and the group includes many good specialists who often provide consultations at no charge. But we email VIN if we need information, or if we have important information to share. We have had no suspected cases of pet poisoning by the recalled food and did not email VIN with that data. I suspect veterinarians who've seen cases were much more likely to report their experience than those who have not seen cases. It is wildly irresponsible to imply that because 10-20% of VIN members reported 471 cases and 104 deaths, that you could "do the math" and conclude there were actually 2000 to 4000 cases of sick pets and 500 to 1000 deaths.
Furthermore, kidney failure is a common disease; there are many kinds of kidney failure, and many possible causes. While there are pieces of circumstantial evidence that may implicate poisoning by the recalled food, I know at this point of no specific test that will confirm that or rule it out. They have only found trace amounts of aminopterin in food. That testing for pets is not readily available, would be very expensive, and probably unrewarding. Since this story hit the news, we have diagnosed at least two cases of renal failure in pets that had not eaten any of the recalled food.
Today, as I write this column, I received an email from the ASPCA casting doubt on the finding that aminopterin is to blame for the poisoning. Dr. Steven Hansen, veterinary toxicologist and manager of the SPCA Poison Control Center, says though aminopterin in high doses can cause renal failure, it should result in other symptoms - bloody diarrhea, bone marrow suppression, a low white blood cell count, and other symptoms that have not been reported.
The ASPCA email also said "reports are coming in from all over the country" and I'm sure there are going to be many lawsuits filed. To make a good legal case for poisoning by a menu foods product will require a good diagnostic workup and documented history of exposure. I suspect if there is good evidence of renal failure, other causes of renal failure are shown to be unlikely, and documentation of exposure is presented (an empty can or pouch that is on the recall list) the company will settle.
Given the proclivity of some people to file lawsuits, the expense of legal defense, public image considerations, and likely sympathies of juries towards grieving pet owners, I surmise Menu Foods will settle a lot of questionable cases out of court.
By the time you read this things will probably have changed. You can get current information at the following websites:
www.avma.org/aa/menufoodsrecall/default.asp
www.aspca.org,
www.ACVIM.org,
www.menufoods.com/recall
If you or your veterinarian want to report a suspected case of food contamination, go to www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/complain.html.