Missouri Company’s Dog Foods Sicken 16 People
On behalf of Brown & Crouppen, P.C. posted in Defective Products on Monday, May 14, 2012
A Meta, Missouri, dog food manufacturer has expanded its recall of several of its dry dog food brands after 16 pet owners became ill due to exposure to a strain of salmonella. The cases of illness due to the contamination occurred in nine states, including Missouri. No fatalities have been reported, though five people required hospitalization.
The dog food was manufactured at a plant owned by Diamond Pet Foods. It somehow became tainted with salmonella Infantis, an unusual strain of the bacteria. According to government investigators, the first case of a human becoming sick happened on Oct. 8, 2011 and the most recent incident was on April 22. It is believed that the victims contracted the illness after handling the contaminated dog food or a pet that ate it.
Salmonella poisoning generally causes symptoms within 12 to 72 hours of infection. Sickened people may experience stomach problems such as diarrhea and cramping, as well as fever. Patients usually recover within seven days, but severe cases may require a hospital stay.
Of the 16 reported cases, three were in Missouri. The majority of the rest occurred in Mid-Atlantic and southern states.
Diamond announced the recall on May 4 and later expanded it to include more lines of dog food. Among the recalled lines are store brands sold at Costco, Kirkland Signature and Kirkland Signature Domain. A complete list of affected brands is available at a website linked to in the article below. Anyone who purchased any of Diamond’s affected brands and suspects their bags are subject to the recall should stop using that food immediately and throw it away.
Source: MSNBC, “16 now sick from salmonella in dry dog food; recall expands,” JoNel Aleccia, May 11, 2012