[Betsy Iole]

Multiple brands of jerky treats manufactured in China have been making pets sick, reports the American Veterinary Medical Association. No deaths have been reported, but symptoms include vomiting, diarrhea and lethargy.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently testing the treats for a contaminant, but melamine - one of the chemicals responsible for the massive pet food recall earlier this year - has been ruled out.

Although no brand or product list of affected treats is yet available, all contaminated products can be categorized as jerky treats from China. AVMA cautions pet owners to use their best judgment.[/b]

Source

 

[Betsy Iole]

Update: December 19, 2008

FDA Continues To Receive Complaints about Chicken Jerky Products for Dogs and Cautions Consumers

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continues to caution consumers of a potential association between the development of illness in dogs and the consumption of chicken jerky products also described as chicken tenders, strips or treats. FDA continues to receive complaints of dogs experiencing illness that their owners or veterinarians associate with consumption of chicken jerky products. The chicken jerky products are imported to the U.S. from China. FDA issued a cautionary warning to consumers in September 2007.

Australian news organizations report the University of Sydney is also investigating an association between illness in dogs and the consumption of chicken jerky in Australia. At least one firm in Australia has recalled their chicken jerky product and the recall notification stated the chicken jerky product was manufactured in China.

FDA believes the continued trend of consumer complaints coupled with the information obtained from Australia warrants an additional reminder and animal health notification.

Chicken jerky products should not be substituted for a balanced diet and are intended to be
used occasionally and in small quantities. Owners of small dogs must be especially careful to limit the amount of these products.

FDA, in addition to several veterinary diagnostic laboratories in the U.S, is working to determine why these products are associated with illness in dogs. To date, scientists have not been able to determine a definitive cause for the reported illnesses. FDA has conducted extensive chemical and microbial testing but has not identified any contaminant.

FDA is advising consumers who choose to feed their dogs chicken jerky products to watch their dogs closely for any or all of the following signs which may occur within hours to days of feeding the product: decreased appetite, although some may continue to consume the treats to the exclusion of other foods; decreased activity; vomiting; diarrhea, sometimes with blood; and increased water consumption and/or increased urination. If the dog shows any of these signs, stop feeding the chicken jerky product. Owners should consult their veterinarian if signs are severe or persist for more than 24 hours. Blood tests may indicate kidney failure (increased urea nitrogen and creatinine). Urine tests may indicate Fanconi syndrome (increased glucose). Although most dogs appear to recover, some reports to the FDA have involved dogs that have died.

The FDA continues to actively investigate the problem. Many of the illnesses reported may be the result of causes other than eating chicken jerky. Veterinarians and consumers alike should report cases of animal illness associated with pet foods to the FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinator http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/complain.html in their state.[/b]

 

[Boomer's Mom]

Bumping, as the FDA is still warning about chicken jerky treats as of November 18, 2011.

FDA Continues to Caution Dog Owners About Chicken Jerky Products

 

[Wworm]

Oh no! thanks Boomah for the bump-- i had no idea there were concerns about this. Me eats lotsa chicken & ducks jerky alls the time
--Worm

 

[Barney'spal]

You would think that after the dog food, baby formula, drywall, etc. etc., they would learn.

 

[Kirska]

My vet posted this info today. Must be somewhat serious.

 

[Annie714]

Hoping it doesn't pertain to Duck Jerky also since I just bought a 2.5lb bag at Costco! LOL...that would be just my luck...

 

[Red Velvet Dolly]

Glad I read this.. I was going to go buy Dolly some jerky today.. I'm trying to find treats for her that would not affect any allergies she has..

 

[paisleysmom]

We really have to remind ourselves when purchasing treats to make sure they are made in the USA or Canada -- many many treats out there are made in China or other countries where things are not inspected.

 

[Wworm]

Hey Pais, you are so right!!

me so sad. found out that my duck jerky treats (duck wrapped yams)-- hopefully, not the same as yours, Annie-- are made in China!! no offense or anything, except that after everything that happened w/baby formula & pet food, I don't think i should eat anything made in China.

had no idea, until i read this thread.

incidentally, coupla weeks ago, we bought 2 bags of what seemed to be good salmon treats from a good local pet store. I think the company is "Pet Botannicals" which sounds very natural & healthy. There was a little packet of silica to preserve it, but it had Chinese letters on it. That tipped us off & when we read the back, it's made in China! no, bad! so we returned them just last week and exchanged them for salmon strips from Paisley's Canada

but-- hello people!!
why are there still dog food & treats being sold here that are made in China????

We now will have to check where everything's made before we buy them, which we never thought to do before. Ummm, i guess we assumed all the treats from China were not being sold here anymore, but we were wrong.
--Worm

 

[dreamons]

Maggie and Daisy love Yummy Chummies Treats. These are wild Alaskan Salmon. Made in Alaska. SHOP - Yummy Chummies dog treats made with Wild Alaska salmon
We got them at a fundraiser in Las Vegas.

 

[paisleysmom]

Its not just imported from China -- take a look ---a lot of "beef" products come from Brazil and Mexico to mention a couple. I've also seen pigs ears from these places too.
North Americans probably consume more pork and beef than many of these countries put together so it gets me wondering if: a) we are exporting beef by- products (hooves, skin and ears etc.) for processing and then re-importing these to sell in the USA and Canada or b) we are just importing inferior products to feed our well-loved pets and wondering why they are getting sick. I really doubt that these imported "treats" and "food" are really federally inspected and if they are it is probably just for sight issues as bug infestation and mold. I wonder why when Canadian and Americans spend so much of thier disposable incomes on their pets that American and Canadian pet food companies don't invest more in the making of these products..... take a good look at some of the stuff you see in stores for your pets (I don't mean the Petsmarts or specialized Pet Food stores) like grocery stores and discount stores and you will be surprised at what is made where!!! That is just another reason why I started to feed Pais Origen!

 

[Herzo]

I just posted on another thread about a dog food recipes thingy. Since I have two dogs with problems with allergy's, most of the time I cut liver in strips put on aluminum foil sprayed with none stick oil and put in oven on low for an hour or more turn over and another hour to dehydrate. My dogs love these.

 

[Herzo]

You were posting while I was. I have not bought treats for a while now. I make my own. I think it is so hard to produce something in this country because of the regulations that have been made, our own government has forced our company's to ether shut down or go elsewhere. It makes me mad they make all these regulations to be safe then let other country's import for free where it is not regulated. This is a no brainer to me.
I want to scream WAKE up people.

 

[Boomer's Mom]

Annie, check the bag and if it's made elsewhere, print off the warning and take them back to Costco.

I am seriously considering making Boomer his own treats, as I like to bake anyway. I really like the idea of making dehydrated liver strips.

 

[BassetBasti]

Thank you for the warning! There is another product that my dog eats before which was contaminated with salmonella. I'm lucky that my dog never got sick.

 

[Hound Mom]

My guys LOVE sweet potatoes, so instead of spending lots of money getting the dried yams from the pet store or Fosters and Smith and wondering if there were any bad ingredients, I got a dehydrator and make our own yam slices or fries! I think they like them better anyway. They also like apples and bananas this way as well as chicken and other meats! Treats we can all share!

 

[thedovesoars]

i cannot believe what is going on nowdays.

 

[M. K. Clinton]

I made the mistake of buying a treat from one of our "Dollar" stores. Yes, I should have known better but I thought it'd be ok. It wasn't! They gave both my boys tummy problems. I threw them away & swore off any cheap treats ever!! News like this makes a person scared to buy anything from China that is ingested.

 

[Beaukirton]

duck jerky,diabetes, and cancer

I have been feeding my bassetts Duck jerky- Golden Rewards. It's like Dog crack a man called it. they love it. I remember checking the bag to see if it said China and it didn't... Then.. It said Purina. Then I noticed the other day a Big "Made in China" I'm gonna try and make my own if I can find a real dehydrator. i don't want a 7 in 1 oven or any of that crap just a plain dehydrator. I have 8 Bassetts. My oldest was diagnosed with cancer ln february.I was giving him Pup-a-roni treats when he got sick, right before they recalled them.( They never took them off the shelf). It has taken everything I have to keep Beau going. The vet wanted to put him to sleep immediately. He does great, runs,plays bites me if I make him mad, But it's the diarrhea that is gonna take him.I give him pepto, a nausea pill and pepsid twice a day. Some days he eats great , Others he doesn't. He loves poptarts and a couple pnut butter m&m,s.At this point I feed him what he wants. What is it with all the cancer and diabetes. I keep a 4 month old german sheppard who was diagnosed with Diabetes a month ago and has since lost his eyesight, he has cataracts over his eyes. In a few months his owner is taking him to a NC Vet. Hospital to have his eyes operated on,replacing the lens like a human. I think it is fairly new. I changed my dogs treats to Marro Bones. Why does The US keep dealing with China. They have nothing to lose killing all our animals. I think vets are too quick to put pets to sleep. Mine is anyway.