Salmonella Confirmed in Two Dogs Fed Recalled Pet Food
BY PHYLLIS ENTIS | MAY 17, 2012

Two dogs can be added to the list of clinically confirmed infections in the Diamond Pet Foods Salmonella Infantis outbreak, according to FDA's Laura Alvey, Deputy Director, Communications Staff at the agency's Center for Veterinary Medicine.  Both dogs lived in the same house as an outbreak victim, and were fed one of the recalled dry dog food products. 

At last report (May 11, 2012), there are 15 outbreak-related confirmed human cases of Salmonella infections in the USA and one Canadian case. Five people have been hospitalized.Outbreak cases have occurred in nine states, including Alabama (1), Connecticut (1), Michigan (1), Missouri (3), North Carolina (3), New Jersey (1), Ohio (2), Pennsylvania (2), and Virginia (1). The Canadian outbreak victim is from the Province of Québec.Once the outbreak investigation confirmed a link between the illnesses and samples of dry dog food manufactured in Diamond Pet Foods' Gaston (South Carolina) production plant, the company voluntarily shut down the facility "to clean and implement additional procedures," according to Alvey.  FDA inspected the facility while production was halted. The agency posted its Investigational Observation report(483 report) on the FDA website yesterday. 

Finished product samples were tested as part of the inspection process; FDA found Salmonella in a sample of puppy food, which was then recalled by the company.  The investigation is still "open and pending," Alvey added in her email to me earlier (Wednesday), which limits the information that FDA can release to the public at this time. 

One important piece of missing information is the scope of international distribution of the recalled pet food products. So far, Diamond Pet Foods has not responded to my email request for a list of affected countries outside of the USA and Canada.Here are some things consumers in Canada, the USA and elsewhere can do to protect themselves, their families, and their pets from becoming statistics in this outbreak:-

• Check your supply of pet food to see whether it is affected by the recall. If it is on the recall list, either throw it away or return the unused portion to the retailer. 
  
• Do not assume that your pet food is safe if your state or country was not mentioned on the recall distribution list.- 
• If you have handled one of the recalled products and you develop symptoms of Salmonella (stomach ache, diarrhea, etc), seek immediate medical attention and mention the possible link to pet food.- 
• If your dog or cat was fed one of the recalled products and develops symptoms of gastrointestinal illness (vomiting or diarrhea), seek immediate veterinary attention. Ask your veterinarian to test your pet for Salmonella. If the test is positive, you or your veterinarian should contact FDA immediately to have the unused portion of the pet food tested. Direct your veterinarian to the CDC web site for information on how to proceed.- 
• Review the FDA Tips for Preventing Foodborne Illness Associated with Pet Food and Pet Treats, and follow its recommendations to keep your family and your pets safe.- Monitor eFoodAlert's Diamond Pet Foods, Etc. Recalls - 2012 page. It will be updated as more information becomes available.

Above all, be aware that dogs may be infected with Salmonella - and may shed the bacteria in their stool - without showing any outward symptoms of illness. If your pet has consumed a Diamond Pet Foods dry dog food, be especially careful to wash your hands after handling the animal, and supervise closely any interaction between children and your pet.

-----------------------Reposted, with permission, from eFoodAlert. "Salmonella Confirmed in Two Dogs Fed Recalled Pet Food was originally published on May 16, 2012.


http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2012/05/salmonella-confirmed-in-two-dogs-fed-recalled-pet-food/#

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) — While many retailers are struggling with inflationary pressures and downtrodden consumers, it looks like some are benefiting from consumers making few sacrifices when it comes to their pets.PetSmart Inc., the largest U.S. specialty retailer of pet goods and services, saw its shares surge 5.9% to $45 on Thursday after it reported a better-than-expected first-quarter profit and raised its full-year outlook for the year. Its stock has risen 13% this year, outpacing the 5.7% of the S&P Retail Index.

“In the face of gasoline prices going up, it’s a fairly protected business,” said Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. analyst David Schick in an interview, adding that the company has done a good job managing its business. “People like to take care of their pets. It’s a family member.”

PetSmart said first-quarter comparable transactions rose 2.7%, a fourth straight quarterly increase. Sales of services — which includes dog training, pet grooming, pet hotels, day-care services and pet-adoption services — jumped 9%, above the company’s sales-growth rate of 6.8%.

Its PetsHotel business, for instance, saw its same-store sales rising a double-digit pace, continuing a trend from last year. Pet-adoption rate also turned positive after a decline in 2010.

Retailers including Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Target Corp.  and Lowe’s Cos. recently have said they are seeing higher fuel costs and other inflationary pressures affecting consumers’ shopping behavior and making them more cautious in spending. 

In contrast, PetSmart executives said late Wednesday they haven’t seen much negative impact from the higher fuel costs. “There’s somewhat of a bifurcated economy out there, and our core demographic is more in the space that may not be as challenged as those that gas prices are impacting today,” said Chief Financial Officer Lawrence Molloy.

Indeed, the company may be more insulated because shoppers buying at specialty retailers tend to have a higher than average income, according to analysts.

As food retailers struggle with how to pass on increased costs to their customers, PetSmart said it was able to pass on rising food costs to its consumers and expects to continue to do so, noting it hasn’t seen any resistance so far.

Within its different product categories, consumers also are buying the higher-priced items, instead of trading down. Its super-premium foods (the priciest products within the food segment) as well as the most expensive nonfood products, such as GNC supplements and Martha Stewart line of pet gear, have been among the fastest-growing, executives said on a conference call.

Grooming tools and supplies such as shampoo also were strong, the company said.

“Both internal and external trends appear to be heading in [PetSmart’s] favor,” Deutsche Bank analyst Mike Baker wrote in a report.

PetSmart said late Wednesday that its first-quarter profit rose to $71 million, or 61 cents a share, from $56 million or 46 cents a year earlier. Sales rose 6.8% to $1.5 billion, with comparable sales increasing 5%, the operator of more than 1,192 pet stores said. The most recent result topped the 55-cent average estimate of analysts surveyed by FactSet.

The company raised its full year outlook to profit of as much as $2.42 a share from a previous projection of as much as $2.35 a share. It sees second-quarter profit of 47 cents to 51 cents a share and expects profit to be driven primarily by consumers trading up and buying pricier items within product categories.

Gross margin widened by 0.6 percentage points to 29.6%.

Article By Andria Cheng , MarketWatch

It is wonderful to know that in the midst of a bad economy, people still want to take good care of their pets.  It's also good to know that as a Life's Abundance Field Representative, we can offer the best premium dog food and cat food available.  This is the perfect "right time, right place" opportunity.

If you would like to learn more about becoming a Life's Abundance Field Representative please visit our opportunity section and contact us today.  We want to expand in your area.

I am truly saddened to hear of the current pet food recall concerning possible salmonella contamination. I have seen firsthand the devastating effects of this kind of infection in dogs and cats. Our hearts go out to the pet parents who are right now sitting on “pins and needles”, worrying about the health of their companion animals.

As part of our unwavering commitment to the health and well-being of all companion animals, we want to take time to alert you about this unfortunate situation.

Here’s what we know so far. According to the FDA, Diamond Pet Foods and other brands produced at their Gaston, South Carolina facility between December 9, 2011 and April 7, 2012 have voluntarily recalled dry dog and cat foods due to potential salmonella contamination. This recall affects the following pet food brands:

4Health
Apex
Canidae
Chicken Soup For the Pet Lover's Soul
Country Value
Diamond
Diamond Naturals
Kaytee Fort-Diets (a rat and hamster feed)
Kirkland
Natural Balance
Premium Edge
Professional
Taste Of The Wild
Wellness Complete Health®
Super5Mix®

The scale of this recall is massive … products were distributed to customers in 41 states (Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, DC, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Vermont, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Wyoming) and may have been further distributed to other states through various pet food channels.

Symptoms of salmonella infection in pets include decreased appetite, fever (possibly quite high), lethargy and abdominal pain. If left untreated, dogs and cats may experience vomiting and/or diarrhea (sometimes bloody), and they may refuse food or water. If you know a pet exhibiting any of these symptoms, please contact a veterinarian immediately.

Keep in mind that infected – but otherwise healthy – pets can still be carriers of the disease, potentially infecting other companion animals and humans. You should always thoroughly wash your hands after handling your pet’s food and touching surfaces that might have been exposed to the contaminated products. Since these bacteria can also be present in the feces of your dog or cat, you should dispose of it carefully. According to the Center for Disease Control, 14 people in nine states have been infected with the outbreak strain of Salmonella Infantis.

For complete information on these recalls, we encourage you to visit the FDA’s web site at http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/default.htm.

Please be assured that this recall does not affect any of our Life’s Abundance products. We are fully confident that our products are completely safe. As you know, we employ numerous safety and quality controls to ensure the highest quality of our products.

When a recall occurs, many pet food companies rely on the media to inform consumers. However, people lead busy lives and often they are not aware of news reports or articles, which can lead to an extremely unfortunate situation for affected pet parents and their companion animals.

The good news for Life’s Abundance customers is that we employ an unparalleled, quick-response system. If we need to share information about a product with our customers, we can do it quickly and effectively. Thanks to our unique distribution system, we are able to pinpoint the lot numbers which identify the individual products shipped to each of our customers. Because we maintain databases with our customer's contact information, we can email them immediately about any issues with their products, should they arise. Also, through our automatic Interactive Voice Response system, we are able to call hundreds of our customers anywhere in the country within just a few hours. At Life’s Abundance, we believe informed consumers make for healthy pets!

Thank you for taking the time to read this important post, and thank you for all that you do to make the world a better place for companion animals.

   Dr. Jane Bicks

http://blog.lifesabundance.com/post/2012/05/09/Competing-Brands-Announce-Recalls.aspx?realname=20055040