All These Raw Food Recalls..

1 bruce 1

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I already use EZComplete but have thought about trying Alnutrin, too, for more variety.

And yes, our freezer also has lots of various kinds of cat foods and meats just waiting! There's raw meat to be cooked for homemade with EZ, portioned-out containers of Rad Cat and Purr, and pre-made cooked EZ meals. I'm definitely into thaw 'n' serve, too! I was very happy with myself last week for amassing a three-week supply in the freezer. Tomorrow's grocery day so if there's anything marked down that the cats like (usually a good bet--there's almost always something with a short expiry date), I'll make more food over the weekend. We really know how to have fun around here! :D
LOL, fun here is catching a good find on elk and stocking up! We save some for us, some for them, and everyone has elk.
Our freezer was stuffed last fall and within another 2 months or so, we'll start re stocking. It's like it never ends, but no one goes hungry!! =D
 

missmimz

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I loath the FDA. They're wasting time chasing up raw pet manufactures while they're being paid to turn a blind eye to the mold infested rotting kibble sitting on the shelves in stores that is full of rendered meats that is actually making pets sick and killing them. Bacteria in raw meat? Cats are designed to handle that kind of thing.
 

Ladewyn

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Honestly, one recall isn't something to worry about imo. Recalls happen for even the most reputable companies. As long as there isn't a recall frequently, it means they're probably fine and just got a bad batch from a supplier that got missed during random sampling, or of the samples used to initiate the recall, there was something that had happened after production (such is inappropriate handling in transit or something along those lines). I'd be a bit more concerned if there was a second recall in the next couple of years.
 

mojomom

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Thank you for starting this thread; it has been an interesting read so far. (Especially re: raw milk! I once read a pregnancy nutrition book that suggested a fertility diet comprising 1+ quarts of raw milk a day. Being lactose intolerant, I couldn't try it, but would have easily been reeled in.)

I was affected by the recall as I feed Rad Cat to one of our cats nearly exclusively. I thought listeria wasn't a huge deal for cats? However, he came back to us with a $3500 vet bill earlier in March, we fed the Rad Cat again, and he is ill again. That said, it doesn't seem like we can easily (and most importantly after this bill, inexpensively) say the RadCat is responsible.

We have fed raw for six years without issue, and I felt good feeding it to him. He is in such excellent health! I will have to look into other options.
 
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Neo_23

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Thank you for starting this thread; it has been an interesting read so far. (Especially re: raw milk! I once read a pregnancy nutrition book that suggested a fertility diet comprising 1+ quarts of raw milk a day. Being lactose intolerant, I couldn't try it, but would have easily been reeled in.)

I was affected by the recall as I feed Rad Cat to one of our cats nearly exclusively. I thought listeria wasn't a huge deal for cats? However, he came back to us with a $3500 vet bill earlier in March, we fed the Rad Cat again, and he is ill again. That said, it doesn't seem like we can easily (and most importantly after this bill, inexpensively) say the RadCat is responsible.

We have fed raw for six years without issue, and I felt good feeding it to him. He is in such excellent health! I will have to look into other options.
How is your cat doing and what were his symptoms/diagnosis?
 

mojomom

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How is your cat doing and what were his symptoms/diagnosis?
On March 10 he started vomiting foam, hiding, and gagging (sometimes 5 times an hour, sometimes not gagging for hours at a time). We brought him to the ER on Monday March 12 - he received fluids and got x-rays, an ultrasound, bacterial culture, and daily blood tests as his creatinine levels were elevated (he is usually at 1.6 but was at 2.2). I believe he also had slightly elevated white blood cell counts, but hasn't shown any symptoms of infection and nothing showed on the urine culture.

We brought him home on the evening of March 15 without a clear diagnosis. We adopted a kitten in February who had an upper respiratory infection, but Mojo didn't show any signs of that. They thought he might have gotten into some lilies, which I somehow managed to convince myself was possible as they were in the house for a little bit before we threw them away. I was uncertain about feeding him the Rad Cat he was eating before he got sick, so we threw away those portions. He did start a container of chicken on March 17. Then we opened a new 24oz container of Turkey flavor on March 25 and that night he got sick all over again. No gagging this time, but lethargic, refusing to eat or drink, hiding again.

On March 26 my regular vet had him on oxygen, gave him an antibiotic, something to reduce his fever, and an appetite stimulant, but his blood test came back great. Since then I've been blending wet food with some water and feeding him via syringe five times a day. He licked a spoonful of Weruva on his own today before turning his head, so progress?

Again, I don't know that it was the Rad Cat for sure. It was my understanding that this kind of reaction would be highly unusual. I'd rather it was the food, because at least I can control his recovery by not feeding it again. If it's something else.. :(

(eek, sorry that was so detailed!)
 
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Neo_23

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On March 10 he started vomiting foam, hiding, and gagging (sometimes 5 times an hour, sometimes not gagging for hours at a time). We brought him to the ER on Monday March 12 - he received fluids and got x-rays, an ultrasound, bacterial culture, and daily blood tests as his creatinine levels were elevated (he is usually at 1.6 but was at 2.2). I believe he also had slightly elevated white blood cell counts, but hasn't shown any symptoms of infection and nothing showed on the urine culture.

We brought him home on the evening of March 15 without a clear diagnosis. We adopted a kitten in February who had an upper respiratory infection, but Mojo didn't show any signs of that. They thought he might have gotten into some lilies, which I somehow managed to convince myself was possible as they were in the house for a little bit before we threw them away. I was uncertain about feeding him the Rad Cat he was eating before he got sick, so we threw away those portions. He did start a container of chicken on March 17. Then we opened a new 24oz container of Turkey flavor on March 25 and that night he got sick all over again. No gagging this time, but lethargic, refusing to eat or drink, hiding again.

On March 26 my regular vet had him on oxygen, gave him an antibiotic, something to reduce his fever, and an appetite stimulant, but his blood test came back great. Since then I've been blending wet food with some water and feeding him via syringe five times a day. He licked a spoonful of Weruva on his own today before turning his head, so progress?

Again, I don't know that it was the Rad Cat for sure. It was my understanding that this kind of reaction would be highly unusual. I'd rather it was the food, because at least I can control his recovery by not feeding it again. If it's something else.. :(

(eek, sorry that was so detailed!)
I'm so sorry your kitty is going through this. As you said, it could be Rad Cat but there's no way to know without testing the Rad Cat and testing your kitty directly for the pathogens. It is my understanding that it's highly unlikely that a cat would get sick from the pathogens in raw meat unless their immune system is already highly compromised. I really doubt it is the Rad Cat but I would probably be just like you and try to avoid it just in case. Sending positive thoughts and wishes for your kitty. :vibes:

I feed Rad Cat every day and I wouldn't if I thought it was bad food. It does seem that the FDA is on a bit of a "witch hunt" with raw pet food, but the reality is that most raw pet food companies take more measures to ensure their foods are safe than kibble food companies, mainly because of the level of "big brother" inspection that's placed on them by the FDA. I think some raw food that comes from commerical companies is probably even safer than the human-grade raw meat you can buy at the supermarket. Raw meat from the supermarket usually doesn't involve a kill step, the kill step is supposed to be the person taking it home and cooking it. A lot of raw pet food undergoes HPP.
 

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I agree with a lot of what has been said already, but wanted to throw my two cents in as well. My field of work is pet nutrition, and as such I am immediately informed of recalls and I am kept in the loop regarding statements issued by manufacturers as well. I was pretty surprised by the Rad Cat recall, especially since I feed it to my raw eating cat. However, I still stand by Rad Cat.

Most of my reasons have already been discussed, but I think it's important to give kudos to brands that issue recalls so swiftly. The fact is, pet food brands are not legally forced to recall food- even if pets are dying. They do this of their own accord.

About 5 months ago Taste of the Wild was having major issues with the Wetlands dog food. Hundreds of dogs were getting sick. After a few months TotW issued a statement that they would not recall the food and said that there could be dozens of common health problems causing all of the dogs to get sick. It was a crappy move on their part.

By contrast, Rad Cat batch tested their food, nothing was positive. Then the FDA tested it and it comes up positive. Rad Cat immediately issued a recall and pulled it off the market. They also sent a lot of info about their testing process, Listeria, etc with their statement. I feel pretty confident feeding Rad Cat knowing that they are open about their food.
 

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I agree with a lot of what has been said already, but wanted to throw my two cents in as well. My field of work is pet nutrition, and as such I am immediately informed of recalls and I am kept in the loop regarding statements issued by manufacturers as well. I was pretty surprised by the Rad Cat recall, especially since I feed it to my raw eating cat. However, I still stand by Rad Cat.

Most of my reasons have already been discussed, but I think it's important to give kudos to brands that issue recalls so swiftly. The fact is, pet food brands are not legally forced to recall food- even if pets are dying. They do this of their own accord.

About 5 months ago Taste of the Wild was having major issues with the Wetlands dog food. Hundreds of dogs were getting sick. After a few months TotW issued a statement that they would not recall the food and said that there could be dozens of common health problems causing all of the dogs to get sick. It was a crappy move on their part.

By contrast, Rad Cat batch tested their food, nothing was positive. Then the FDA tested it and it comes up positive. Rad Cat immediately issued a recall and pulled it off the market. They also sent a lot of info about their testing process, Listeria, etc with their statement. I feel pretty confident feeding Rad Cat knowing that they are open about their food.
:yeah::yeah:
Also why brands that "have never had a recall" can be looked at as a very good thing, or a very bad thing.
 
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Neo_23

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According to TAPF, the FDA also doesn’t have to provide these companies with information about handling before the meat was tested and they don’t even have to provide them exact results.
 

Klee27

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According to TAPF, the FDA also doesn’t have to provide these companies with information about handling before the meat was tested and they don’t even have to provide them exact results.
This is another reason I'm not very worried about most of these recalls. That and the fact that most of the recalled lots are not very recent. The Tucker's and Steve's recalls are prime examples of that. The products the FDA said tested positive are not very widely available or well known. And yet their most popular products have so far been safe.
 

Ƀåstet

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I have been feeding my cats raw meat since I was a child. Back in my home country before we immigrated to North America we would feed the stray cats both cooked and raw meat. We often gave them raw chicken legs, thighs, and other parts of the meat that we didn't cook. These recalls don't scare me. I have been around stray cats all my life and I have seen the garbage they eat on the streets. They can handle a little bacteria in their meat. :wink:
 
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