Friday, May 21, 2021

Natural Balance Limited Recall of Cat Food

FDA page click here

Summary

Company Announcement Date:
FDA Publish Date:
Product Type:
Animal & Veterinary
Food & Beverages
Pet Food
Foodborne Illness
Reason for Announcement:
Potential Salmonella Contamination
Company Name:
Natural Balance Pet Foods, Inc.
Brand Name:
Natural Balance
Product Description:
L.I.D. Green Pea & Chicken Dry Cat Formula

Company Announcement

Natural Balance Pet Foods, Inc. of San Diego, CA, is voluntarily recalling the cat food products listed below due to possible contamination with Salmonella. This was discovered from a routine state surveillance sample from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture.

Products were distributed nationwide in the U.S. via both retail and online distribution. No customer complaints or illnesses have been reported to date, and no other Natural Balance Pet Foods, Inc. products are impacted by this recall.

Salmonella can infect cats eating a product contaminated with Salmonella bacteria. Symptoms of Salmonella infection in cats may include vomiting, diarrhea, decreased appetite, fever, or excessive salivation. If your pet has consumed the recalled product and has these symptoms, please contact your veterinarian. Some cats may not appear sick but can spread infection to other animals and humans in the household.

Salmonella can spread to humans from handling contaminated pet products, especially if they have not washed their hands after having contact with their cat's foods, surfaces and/or cats that have been in contact with the contaminated product. Healthy people infected wit Salmonella should monitor themselves for some or all of the following symptoms: nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Rarely, Salmonella can result in more serious ailments, including arterial infections, endocarditis, arthritis, muscle pain, eye irritation, and urinary tract symptoms. People exhibiting these signs after having contact with this product or a cat that has eaten this product should contact their healthcare provider.

Product Name

Retail UPC Code

Lot Code

Best If Used by Date

5 LB Bag, Natural Balance L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets Green Pea & Chicken Formula Dry Cat Food23633062341008080 06:42N811202:2010-Mar-2022
10 LB Bag, Natural Balance L.I.D. Limited Ingredient Diets Green Pea & Chicken Formula Dry Cat Food23633002351008080 06:42N811202:2010-Mar-2022

If pet parents have matching products in their possession, they should stop feeding it to their cats and dispose of it immediately or return it to their retailer for a refund. (See product photos below.) This information can be found on the back panel of each 5 LB and 10 LB bag. Natural Balance Pet Foods products are 100% guaranteed and all returned product will be refunded.

Pet parents who have questions or would like to report adverse reactions should call 1-833-558-0908, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. PST or visit www.naturalbalanceinc.com/contact-usExternal Link Disclaimer.

The health and well-being of the pets that enjoy our Natural Balance pet foods is our priority. Our company and our team take seriously our responsibility to provide safe, wholesome, nutritious pet foods for dogs and cats.

Natural Balance Pet Foods, Inc. is conducting this voluntary recall in in cooperation with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration.


Company Contact Information

Consumers:
 1-833-558-0908

Product Photos



Wednesday, May 12, 2021

Pet Parent Tips

Pet Parent Tips From Life’s Abundance Employees

from the Life's Abundance Blog 5/10/21


The past year has brought about lots of new pandemic pets and we are all for it! As pet parents ourselves, we understand that getting a new pup or cat can come with a lot of work. From getting all their essentials to training them, it can sometimes get a little overwhelming. So, we asked our very own Life’s Abundance employees for their top tips on having a furry friend.






Want more? Here’s additional tips and tricks we felt you just had to know!

Nail clipping is so much easier with a second person holding an enticing treat level to the floor. It's a wonderful distraction to help keep the dog in place and distracted. Who knew they could love a pedicure?! - Arin

I try to get creative and make fun games for my dog, Tucker, to keep his mind busy. Like putting his food in a puzzle. - Alyssa

Establish pack leadership, pack mental health, and boundaries for the pack inside the house. - Jennifer

Don't free feed, give 2-3 small meals a day and always plenty of water. - Stephen

Entertain them when away at work. Lots of toys and I have an interactive camera so I can say hi to her and send her a treat. I also use a treat holder and I leave that in the morning before I leave to keep her a little entertained. - Denise

Make sure your dog is microchipped and has a collar on with his or her name and a phone number to call if they get lost. - Rocky

Do not start feeding your dog table scraps. It will be very hard to resume pet food after your vet yells at you for doing something you know you shouldn’t have started to begin with. Just don't do it. If you must, keep a bag of high quality dog treats around and toss one out every so often. - Sasha


Whether you’re a new pet parent or an experienced one, we hope you learned something new!


What are your best tips you use for your furry friends? Comment below!

If you found this interesting, check out these related stories:


Dog Training Tips: The Secret To Canine Cooperation


Tips For Improving Kitty Behavior


-----  If you are currently in the Pet Industry I highly recommend checking out our opportunity to earn income from recommending our wonderful products to your clients, click here

Saturday, May 1, 2021

Cannabis, your pet and your veterinarian

Why Your Vet Isn’t Talking to You About Cannabis

Courtesy of Life's Abundance Blog 4/26/21 by Dr. Vogelsang

beagle


In just a few short years, Cannabis has gone from that thing college kids spent too much time thinking about, to the mainstream belle of the ball. Powered by an interest in natural medicine, a distrust of traditional pharmaceuticals, and some strong word-of-mouth talk of results, everyone from your neighbor to your buttoned-up grandmother is comfortable talking about CBD oil and what it can do for your health. Naturally, the topic also extends to our loyal furry family members.


I get asked about Cannabis more than almost anything else: does it work, what should I use, where’s a good place to start. And like most other veterinarians I know, we have very little guidance to offer. Trust me, we are just as frustrated as you are. There is nothing I want more than to be able to provide the best, safest information for pet owners about this or any other medical concern. There’s just one problem: the law may or may not forbid it.


It’s not that we aren’t talking about Cannabis and learning: every continuing education conference I’ve been to has multiple lectures about Cannabis use in pets and how to do it safely. Those lecture halls are packed. The second we’re legally allowed to discuss it, we’re ready.


THC vs CBD

Without going too far down the chemical rabbit hole, most of the legal wrangling and debate comes down to tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the hallucinogenic component of the Cannabis plant. This is concentrated in the flowering buds, leaves, and resin. Other parts of the plant are much lower in THC but still contain cannabidiol oil (CBD), which provides the purported medicinal benefits without the psychoactive ones. CBD oil products are not intended, nor should they be, to get a pet “high.”


“Controlled” substances are those drugs with a potential for abuse. Those are controlled on a federal level by the DEA, and those regulations supersede any state law.


0.3 is the magic number to be classified as controlled. If the plant parts used in a product contain less than 0.3% THC, it’s considered industrial hemp. The DEA doesn’t care about industrial hemp. This is where most CBD oils marketed to pets are derived from.


Anything over 0.3% THC is classified as a Schedule 1 substance by the DEA, and we aren’t allowed to possess, administer, dispense, describe, or discuss it under risk of prosecution.



Click to enlarge


The Legal Ramifications

The next question seems obvious: if the DEA doesn’t care about industrial hemp and that’s where most veterinary CBD products come from, what’s the problem?


Confusion, mostly.


While the DEA doesn’t care about industrial hemp products, they still fall under federal regulation- ie, the FDA.

CBD oils are not FDA approved for use in pets, and while their official positioning is still under review the current rule is “not legal for vets to prescribe.

Veterinarians are also subject to state regulations, which are just as confusing and perhaps directly contradictory to federal ones.

Just last year, California became the first state to pass a law expressly allowing veterinarians to talk about Cannabis with pet owners. Not sell it, not distribute it, just answer the question “do you think CBD oil is worth a try in my dog with cancer?” In 49 other states, vets aren’t even sure they can legally answer that question, nevermind recommend anything.


No one really knows what could happen when a veterinarian does something as simple as help guide a client through safely choosing a product without actually selling it him/herself. A few brave souls are out there testing the waters, but most of us are waiting for the legal OK.


So Now What?

The law will eventually catch up with reality. As a consumer, you can advocate for your pet by calling your state representatives and encouraging them to pass a law similar to California AB-2215. In the meantime, please be patient with us as we do our best to advocate for your pet within the constraints of the law.


As you can imagine, non-veterinarians without the worry of DEA prosecutors hanging over their heads and livelihoods are saying and doing all sorts of things about CBD. Some of them have your pet’s best interest in mind, while others are looking out for their pocketbooks. Like all supplements, some manufacturers take quality control much more seriously than others. Published research is scarce, but people are working on getting factual, science-based information out there.


As a pet advocate, I sometimes have to get creative when it comes to getting the word out there about pet health. There are some really science-minded, ethical veterinary professionals who have great information. In fact, they’re the ones teaching us at veterinary conferences. In my accompanying infographic, I’m sharing the same great information and resources that veterinarians are hearing at conferences.



If you found this interesting, check out these related stories:


5 Meds That Are Toxic To Pets


Why Is My Dog So Nervous?