Diamond Expanded Recall

[gazehund]

It looks like the current bag of Diamond Naturals Lamb and Rice that Luna has been eating out of is not a part of the recall.

 

 

Just out of curiosity, for those of you who feed these foods to your dogs but do not have affected products, are you still planning on throwing it out and switching to another brand?

 

Throwing it out no, switching, yes.

[JJNg]

I found the press release copied in the first post here to be a bit unclear. The sections about the production codes was confusing. And the information about Kirkland was buried at the bottom of the page, with no mention of Kirkland in the initial list of affected pet foods. So someone who feeds Kirkland might have stopped reading at that point and not continued scrolling down. Good thing Costco was proactive and apparently made automated calls to everyone who had purchased the food.

 

Anyway, I just checked the official Diamond recall site again, and it looks like they've made a couple minor corrections today to the info in that press release which makes the affected production codes (both for Kirkland as well as all the other brands) a bit clearer. Doesn't look like they've announced these changes, so I wanted to make sure everyone was aware of them. Here's the link to the updated info (look closely at the production code details).

 

My dogs (4 of my own, plus a foster) have all been eating Kirkland food that was part of the recall for at least the last 2-3 months, and we've had no problems. We're at the very end of the last bag from that lot (we usually get 4 bags at a time), and my new bags don't fall in the expiration date range given, although they fit the production code criteria. I plan to keep feeding what I have unless I see any problems, as my dogs have always done well on this food and I like the ingredients. Don't feel like trying to find another food at this time. I've researched foods extensively in the past and nothing else compared to Kirkland in terms of quality of ingredients and cost (other than a few other foods made by Diamond). But that's just my personal decision, given the information I've seen and my personal assessment of the potential risks. And you can bet I'll be watching my dogs closely for any problems (and making sure to wash my hands after feeding, which I always do anyway).

 

Also, here's an FAQ from the AVMA website with more info on Salmonella and dry pet food.

[winnie]

DH and I have been feeding Diamond Naturals chicken & rice for years. We have 2.5 bags. He just checked them and they don't fall under the current recall notice. We have no plans to change food either. Hopefully they'll be back to producing our brand when our current supply runs out.

[Guest sirsmom]

Just my opinion that no one should be buying a Diamond product again. They should be run out of business. Many foods are being recalled from their plant.

[retread]

Just my opinion that no one should be buying a Diamond product again. They should be run out of business. Many foods are being recalled from their plant.

 

They are the only dog food maker that admits they had a problem.

Do you think other manufacturers never have problems you don't hear about?

[Batmom]

Just my opinion that no one should be buying a Diamond product again. They should be run out of business. Many foods are being recalled from their plant.

 

They are the only dog food maker that admits they had a problem.

Do you think other manufacturers never have problems you don't hear about?

 

But they didn't admit it -- they got caught. They didn't find it themselves. Add the previous recalls, and quality control / sanitation at this plant appears to be consistently lacking.

[Guest Profgumby]

I just talked to a the owner of a local feed store here about the recalls. He has been in touch with Diamond and was told that two of the three extruders at the Gaston, SC Diamond plant had shown some salmonella bacteria. They know which lot of food came from which extruder and on what date, so they are recalling the lots that came from those extruders. Also, no dogs have been reported sick and supposedly no actual food batches have tested positive, but there have been around a dozen or so people who got salmonella from handling the dog food and the particular salmonella strain was traced back to the Diamond plant through some DNA testing. There have been no human fatalities, but 5 people of the people were hospitalized for treatment but have since made full recoveries. Healthy adult dogs don't usually get salmonella, but puppies or older dogs with compromised immune systems could be at risk. The bigger risk here is people contracting it from handling the food or from close contact with a dog who has eaten the food. Healthy adults may get an infection but it's not life threatening. It's the very young, the very old, and anyone with a compromised immune system that is at significant risk. Just passing this along as it was told to me.

 

This makes me wonder, 2 of 3 extruders....about 17 brands of dog food from these 2 exrtruders...can this mean there is really only one or two formulas with 17 different wrappings? Does this make all dog food Diamond dog food and therefore the same? Or are different foods done in production runs? And if that is the case arent the machines cleaned between runs? or is it a source product used in the foods that is tainted?

 

 

 

Lets just say I feel we dodged a bullet with 0nly 1/3 of a bag left and all are fine...

 

It looks like the current bag of Diamond Naturals Lamb and Rice that Luna has been eating out of is not a part of the recall.

 

 

Just out of curiosity, for those of you who feed these foods to your dogs but do not have affected products, are you still planning on throwing it out and switching to another brand?

 

I am really thinking about it. it just seems to me Diamond has had too many issues vs other foods. Heck even the lowest of the low quality foods haven't had as many recalls (or any)! Now is it becasue Diamond is being VERY proactive and the others could care less?

 

I am definitely thinking of finding 2 foods, from different production companies and feeding them both at the same time so if #1 goes kaput, the dogs are used to #2 and can eat that without starting a new food point blank and us (and the girls) having to deal with the dietary unrest from a new food all at once. 3 dogs with gastric issues at once is not fun!

 

If I go this route I want to find another food of similar quality to the "Chicken Soup" stuff and similar price. And since our girls did not do well on premium foods there is no reason to try any of the holistic flippity flop brands that caust 45 dollars an ounce.

 

It is funnier than ever to me that our whippets made it 14 years on Science Diet and Nutro and my first whippet was healthy till the day she went across the bridge eating Purina High Pro...but use quality food from Diamond with the greyhoundies and....well...

Edited May 6, 2012 by Profgumby

[JJNg]

Salmonella isn't a new problem, and Diamond isn't the first dog food manufacturer to have recalls because of it. It seems that reported human cases have triggered most of the recalls. The connection between exposure to pet food and human salmonellosis was first recognized in 2006. Since then, there have been multiple recalls of pet food and treats due to Salmonella in the past 5-6 years. These recalls have involved a number of popular brands like Nutro, Purina, Iams, Eukanuba, and Merrick, although most of them were more limited than the current Diamond recall (with the exception of a big Mars recall in 2008 that included Pedigree and Ol' Roy).

 

Salmonella is an inherent risk of producing any dog food (see the AVMA FAQ linked in my previous post). It is also a risk that people who feed their dogs raw take every day. Salmonella is really more of a public health risk for people. Most dogs don't get sick from it. If they did, dogs that are raw fed would get sick a lot more often.

 

Anyone who feeds commercial dog food should be aware that Salmonella contamination is a potential risk, and it would probably be a good idea to practice basic hygiene after handling dry dog food (washing hands). I don't see how switching brands will necessarily ensure you're getting a safer product. Problems can occur and mistakes can be made in any plant. A company that has experienced problems will be more likely to take more precautions to prevent the same thing from happening again in the future.

 

I don't think we can necessarily make the generalization that Diamond had poor quality control/sanitation at their plant due to them having had 2 major recalls. As far as I'm aware, the only previous recall was in 2005 due to aflatoxin, which is found in corn. As the salmonella is more likely to come from meat ingredients, this is a completely different issue.

 

Regarding the question of only 3 extruders at the plant and multiple brands of food...I don't have any knowledge of the Diamond plant itself. But from conversations with food manufacturing reps, I believe most plants use the same machinery to make different production runs. Sanitation and sterilization protocols between runs probably differs between companies. This seems to be the case even with human food products - most of us are probably familiar with all the snack/candy products that don't contain peanuts themselves, but the label includes a warning for people with peanut allergies because they were made on the same production lines as peanut-containing products.

 

It is funnier than ever to me that our whippets made it 14 years on Science Diet and Nutro and my first whippet was healthy till the day she went across the bridge eating Purina High Pro...but use quality food from Diamond with the greyhoundies and....well...

IMO, there's nothing wrong with Science Diet, Nutro, or Purina. What problems have you had with your greyhounds from Diamond?

[Guest sirsmom]

Salmonella isn't a new problem, and Diamond isn't the first dog food manufacturer to have recalls because of it. It seems that reported human cases have triggered most of the recalls. The connection between exposure to pet food and human salmonellosis was first recognized in 2006. Since then, there have been multiple recalls of pet food and treats due to Salmonella in the past 5-6 years. These recalls have involved a number of popular brands like Nutro, Purina, Iams, Eukanuba, and Merrick, although most of them were more limited than the current Diamond recall (with the exception of a big Mars recall in 2008 that included Pedigree and Ol' Roy).

 

Salmonella is an inherent risk of producing any dog food (see the AVMA FAQ linked in my previous post). It is also a risk that people who feed their dogs raw take every day. Salmonella is really more of a public health risk for people. Most dogs don't get sick from it. If they did, dogs that are raw fed would get sick a lot more often.

 

Anyone who feeds commercial dog food should be aware that Salmonella contamination is a potential risk, and it would probably be a good idea to practice basic hygiene after handling dry dog food (washing hands). I don't see how switching brands will necessarily ensure you're getting a safer product. Problems can occur and mistakes can be made in any plant. A company that has experienced problems will be more likely to take more precautions to prevent the same thing from happening again in the future.

 

I don't think we can necessarily make the generalization that Diamond had poor quality control/sanitation at their plant due to them having had 2 major recalls. As far as I'm aware, the only previous recall was in 2005 due to aflatoxin, which is found in corn. As the salmonella is more likely to come from meat ingredients, this is a completely different issue.

 

Regarding the question of only 3 extruders at the plant and multiple brands of food...I don't have any knowledge of the Diamond plant itself. But from conversations with food manufacturing reps, I believe most plants use the same machinery to make different production runs. Sanitation and sterilization protocols between runs probably differs between companies. This seems to be the case even with human food products - most of us are probably familiar with all the snack/candy products that don't contain peanuts themselves, but the label includes a warning for people with peanut allergies because they were made on the same production lines as peanut-containing products.

 

It is funnier than ever to me that our whippets made it 14 years on Science Diet and Nutro and my first whippet was healthy till the day she went across the bridge eating Purina High Pro...but use quality food from Diamond with the greyhoundies and....well...

IMO, there's nothing wrong with Science Diet, Nutro, or Purina. What problems have you had with your greyhounds from Diamond?

 

This is not even debatable anymore. Dogs have gotten sick recently, people have gotten sick as well.

[winnie]

I respectfully disagree sirsmom. We've been feeding Diamond Naturals for years. Our dogs like it and have done well on it. Our current bags are not part of the recall. I suspect quality control is going to be better than ever following this recall too.

[Batmom]

I don't think we can necessarily make the generalization that Diamond had poor quality control/sanitation at their plant due to them having had 2 major recalls. As far as I'm aware, the only previous recall was in 2005 due to aflatoxin, which is found in corn. As the salmonella is more likely to come from meat ingredients, this is a completely different issue.

 

 

Both recalls result from failure to properly test their product. I would call that poor quality control.

[Guest sirsmom]

I respectfully disagree sirsmom. We've been feeding Diamond Naturals for years. Our dogs like it and have done well on it. Our current bags are not part of the recall. I suspect quality control is going to be better than ever following this recall too.

 

Most people want happy healthy, dogs and not have to take a chance on what they are feeding. They also want their families safe. Major recalls 2005, 2007 and some in between now. No thanks.

[Finnsliz]

I have two open bags that my dogs have been eating and no one has gotten sick. I do nit know the dates since I put the food in containers and throw the bags away. I don't know what to do.

 

I just returned mine to Costco in a trash bag.... I had my slip so no problem.

 

In the same boat as Jennifer, plus I don't have my receipt. They did call me today though so it isn't like they don't know I bought a bag recently. I'm going to call them and see what they will do.

 

If they called you they have a record of your transaction and can look it up on their computers. You should have no difficulty returning the food with or without a slip.

 

 

 

 

[Guest Profgumby]

Salmonella isn't a new problem, and Diamond isn't the first dog food manufacturer to have recalls because of it. It seems that reported human cases have triggered most of the recalls. The connection between exposure to pet food and human salmonellosis was first recognized in 2006. Since then, there have been multiple recalls of pet food and treats due to Salmonella in the past 5-6 years. These recalls have involved a number of popular brands like Nutro, Purina, Iams, Eukanuba, and Merrick, although most of them were more limited than the current Diamond recall (with the exception of a big Mars recall in 2008 that included Pedigree and Ol' Roy).

 

Salmonella is an inherent risk of producing any dog food (see the AVMA FAQ linked in my previous post). It is also a risk that people who feed their dogs raw take every day. Salmonella is really more of a public health risk for people. Most dogs don't get sick from it. If they did, dogs that are raw fed would get sick a lot more often.

 

Anyone who feeds commercial dog food should be aware that Salmonella contamination is a potential risk, and it would probably be a good idea to practice basic hygiene after handling dry dog food (washing hands). I don't see how switching brands will necessarily ensure you're getting a safer product. Problems can occur and mistakes can be made in any plant. A company that has experienced problems will be more likely to take more precautions to prevent the same thing from happening again in the future.

 

I don't think we can necessarily make the generalization that Diamond had poor quality control/sanitation at their plant due to them having had 2 major recalls. As far as I'm aware, the only previous recall was in 2005 due to aflatoxin, which is found in corn. As the salmonella is more likely to come from meat ingredients, this is a completely different issue.

 

Regarding the question of only 3 extruders at the plant and multiple brands of food...I don't have any knowledge of the Diamond plant itself. But from conversations with food manufacturing reps, I believe most plants use the same machinery to make different production runs. Sanitation and sterilization protocols between runs probably differs between companies. This seems to be the case even with human food products - most of us are probably familiar with all the snack/candy products that don't contain peanuts themselves, but the label includes a warning for people with peanut allergies because they were made on the same production lines as peanut-containing products.

 

It is funnier than ever to me that our whippets made it 14 years on Science Diet and Nutro and my first whippet was healthy till the day she went across the bridge eating Purina High Pro...but use quality food from Diamond with the greyhoundies and....well...

IMO, there's nothing wrong with Science Diet, Nutro, or Purina. What problems have you had with your greyhounds from Diamond?

Oh we've had Zero problems from Diamond. The girls love the Chicken Soup food they eat. I was referencing how brands that I have fed dogs over the years, get consistently low ratings from those who rate foods. But a very good food line, that gets good reviews is under a recall. I really don't want to find a new food. I also have no real desire to stop feeding the girls their current food. After reading and thinking a while, they had a voluntary recall. I am usually not in the practice of starting or joining in a witch hunt over a recall. If the company shows common sense, pulls a lot of product and corrects the issue without being forced to I guess I am fine with it.

 

I did reference that it seemed like Diamond had a lot of recall issues but I was speaking early and probably should have held my tongue. Er, sat on my hands.. before commenting. I also posted yesterday I have always been a big fan of feed your dog(s) the best you can afford as long as it is good for them and they are healthy.

 

As to other foods with our Greyhounds, with Nutro our greyhound girls did good but were, shall we say "gassing it up" And Beauty tended to re-feed herself with Nutro. In posting yesterday I cam across the genius Idea that I will find another 1 or 2 foods and blend them all when the girls are fed. As long as the feeds come from 2 or 3 different producers. This way if a food has a problem, it gets yanked from the blend and the girls continue on with one less food in the blend. No stomach issues, no abrupt changes etc..

 

With the ultra premium foods I tried the girls all had trouble so we are staying in the middle ground ratings wise since they do well here and my wallet likes it.

 

I also wanted to add, yesterday there was 2 customers (different times of the day and unrelated) that loaded their carts with 3 or 4 - 40 pound bags of dog food. One had a cart full of the standard Green Bag Purina Chow and another was partial to Old Roy. I see lots of this at work and figure it must be working for some folks...apparently with a lot of dogs!

Edited May 6, 2012 by Profgumby

[winnie]

I respectfully disagree sirsmom. We've been feeding Diamond Naturals for years. Our dogs like it and have done well on it. Our current bags are not part of the recall. I suspect quality control is going to be better than ever following this recall too.

 

Most people want happy healthy, dogs and not have to take a chance on what they are feeding. They also want their families safe. Major recalls 2005, 2007 and some in between now. No thanks.

 

Anyone that has actually met me and seen my dogs knows that they are very happy and healthy. From what I've read, the problems are only in the SC plant - not all plants - which is why some bags are being recalled and others not. Ours are not on the recall list - we checked and will continue to check. I just don't see the point in discontinuing a food that my dogs do well on because of this particular incident.

[stlgrey]

I saw this on the news yesterday. I feed Diamond Naturals Chicken and Rice. I dumped the rest of the supply and headed out and purchased a bag of Pro Plan Salmon for my girls.

[Burpdog]

I suspect quality control is going to be better than ever following this recall too

 

That's what I thought after their last recall. Because they manufacture so many different brands, it's going to have a larger affect than some of the other foods that are manufactured elsewhere.

[Guest bett]

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/video/7178571-diamond-pet-foods-expands-its-recall/

 

this is an interview i just did last night. trying to get folks to come forward who had a dog get sick from any diamond product. it would really help if you can go to cbs page, and either email hazel sanchez or asa aarons and report you story. diamond should not be allowed to continue to disregard out pets.

thanks

bett

[carronstar]

Thanks for the clip, I hadn't seen that here. My girl's food -- Canidae Platinum Senior -- is on the list. She is fine, I, however, have Salmonella. I didn't put together what has been going on in my body for the past 5-6 weeks -- I thought it was just a really long IBS flare up -- until I saw her food on the list and was able to pinpoint at least two incidents where I fed her and then was almost immediately...sick. Spoke to my doc yesterday who said Salmonella doesn't last 6 weeks -- then said it does when you are constantly exposing yourself to the contaminated food.

 

Really ticks me off though, I've always heard how Salmonella makes you lose a ton of weight quickly. I haven't lost a darn pound!

 

Aquitaine is thrilled, instead of a third of a can with kibble, her meals are now all canned until the new delivery of kidney diet kibble arrives. At least she is happy!

[Guest bett]

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/video/7178571-diamond-pet-foods-expands-its-recall/

 

my 3 dogs got very ill. kirkland chicken and rice. after the first dog, i was reassured that it was only the lamb and rice. i finished off the bag, bought a new one and the second dog got very ill. only when recalls started did i put it together. my vet agrees. they didn't have salmonella as it 's harder for dogs to get it. i have tried to be in touch with diamond and they are not returning my calls or answering my email. after my third dog was bleeding , i brought the opened bag back to costco, no a questions asked. it's pulled off the shelves now that they've recalled god knows how many foods (12, i believe).

they pissed me off, and offered me a coupon. really? so i got in touch with ch 2 news, cbs and in 4 hours they called me and 2 hours later were in my house doing the interview.

diamond is basically no good, covering up but now that 14 humans have salmonella from touching the kibble and not washing their hands.....c'mon . you guys have to complain and let cbs news know. go on their website.

next dogs , who have no voice and depend on us, will be dying. it's happened before.

 

all my dogs had intestinal stuff and bleeding.

[Walliered]

Both of my dogs got ill and stopped eating..one for 4 days. I took them to the vet. Took two bags back to the store and got a bag of California Natural Kangaroo. They seem to really like it. But, since I did not ease them into it, we really have the runs. Anymore crap from the manufacturers and I will start cooking human grade food.

[Guest SueG201]

I respectfully disagree sirsmom. We've been feeding Diamond Naturals for years. Our dogs like it and have done well on it. Our current bags are not part of the recall. I suspect quality control is going to be better than ever following this recall too.

 

Most people want happy healthy, dogs and not have to take a chance on what they are feeding. They also want their families safe. Major recalls 2005, 2007 and some in between now. No thanks.

 

Anyone that has actually met me and seen my dogs knows that they are very happy and healthy. From what I've read, the problems are only in the SC plant - not all plants - which is why some bags are being recalled and others not. Ours are not on the recall list - we checked and will continue to check. I just don't see the point in discontinuing a food that my dogs do well on because of this particular incident.

[JJNg]

my 3 dogs got very ill. kirkland chicken and rice. after the first dog, i was reassured that it was only the lamb and rice. i finished off the bag, bought a new one and the second dog got very ill. only when recalls started did i put it together. my vet agrees. they didn't have salmonella as it 's harder for dogs to get it.

If your dogs didn't have Salmonella, what was their diagnosis? How does this relate to the current recall, which is verified to be Salmonella from the confirmed human cases?

[Guest WhiteWave]

You know I feed Earthborn, but we ran out and I have to order the food and about a month ago we did a bag of TOTW Pacific puppy. My roommate and I both had what we thought was the stomach flu when were feeding it. Now I think we had Salmonella. We live in FL and our stuff comes from the SC plant. Dogs were all fine though, except Casper had diarrhea. It didn't occur to me till today. I missed 3 days of work. Thankfully the bag only lasted 10 days.

 

Also I know only a few Solid Gold stuff has been recalled, but I was watching My Mom's cat while she was in the hospital and I bought her Solid Gold, she ate it 3 days and vomited every day. I switched her off it and she stopped throwing up.

 

I knew TOTW, Chicken Soup,Professional, Premium Edge, 4Health and Costco's was made by Diamond along with Diamond labeled food, but didn't know they manufactured Natural Balance, Canidae, Solid Gold, Wellness and also read they made some Eagle Pack.

 

Canidae is supposedly buying their own plant and will start making their food. I hope so. But for now, I will not feed anything made by Diamond. My dogs were also affected the recall in 2005.

[Guest bett]

all three of my dogs had intestinal stuff-diarrhea, vomiting, bloody stool. it's harder for dogs to get salmonella that humans . that's why the humans who have reported it , got it from touching the kibble and not washing their hands. my vet, by the third dog, and knowledge of all the recalls, has agreed, that the tainted food made my dogs. sick.

diamond doesn't want to hear anything of it, unless the dogs have salmonella.

really?