Woman says a newly recalled dog food gave her dog listeria

On the heels of another dog food recall for possible listeria contamination, comes a new recall made last week on Vital Essentials Frozen Beef Tripe Patties and Frozen Beef Tripe Nibblets. The two products were distributed in a dozen states. They are produced by Carnivore Meat Co., in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Although nothing has been confirmed, these products have the potential to be contaminated with listeria monocytogenes. Early this week the Food and Drug Administration reported that an independent lab detected the bacteria samples during a recent review of the products. The company says it has not received any reports of human illness yet.

The affected products were distributed in Ohio, Illinois, California, Washington, Georgia, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Florida, Vermont, and Rhode Island. The patties have UPC number 33211 00809, lot number 10930, and a best-by date of 20160210. The niblets have UPC number 33211 00904, lot number 10719, and a best-by date of 12022015.

Vital Essentials CEO Lanny Viegut made a public statement saying that the FDA notified the company of the two limited batches of beef tripe products that tested positive for listeria. He also stated that, according to the FDA, even when present, listeria rarely causes illnesses in canines. However, the company still decided to err on the side of caution and withdraw the product from store shelves.

What Viegut failed to mention in his statement was that the recall came after one pet owner reported her dog sick. Donna Bertko contacted a news station after her dog contracted listeriosis and the news station quickly reached out to Carnivore Meat Company. The woman’s veterinarian alleges that the disease attacked her dog’s bone marrow.

Bertko, from Rio Rancho, New Mexico, says that she confirmed the illness came from the beef patties when the New Mexico Department of Agriculture tested them and found they were contaminated with listeria. Carnivore had already withdrawn the products from store shelves, but it wasn’t until after the news station contacted them that they issued the voluntary recall.

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Bertko is happy that the products are no longer being sold, but is also hoping the company will pay the $18,000 in vet bills that she has incurred with her dog over the last couple of weeks. Viegut says they are willing to pay her bills and are extremely sorry about the situation with her dog. He also said that the cause of the dog’s illness is still being reviewed, since listeria rarely causes illness in dogs.

Stella & Chewy’s also issued a large recall recently due to listeria contamination. Check out our news article Stella & Chewy’s Issues a Large Voluntary Recall for more information.

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