FDA Still Baffled Why Pet Treats from China are Poisoning Dogs…Again
The poor beleaguered FDA and the equally befuddled CVM once again has issued a notice warning consumers of the dangers associated with feeding dogs chicken jerky treat products imported to the U.S. from China.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) continues, despite mounting reports of serious illness and deaths of dogs from their owners or veterinarians associate with consumption of chicken jerky products, to merely caution consumers of a potential association between the development of illness in dogs and the consumption of the products. The products may also labelled as chicken strips, chicken tenders, chicken chews, chicken chips, chicken breasts or chicken you-name-it treats for dogs or cats.
Reports began to surface in 2006 of the serious health dangers associated with the chicken jerky products for pets manufactured in China. FDA issued a cautionary warning to consumers in September 2007. Yet the FDA has continued to allow them to remain on the market, despite years of reports of serious illness and even the deaths of dogs associated from being fed chicken treats originating from China. 
The FDA’s feeble attempt to protect consumers is to issue yet another stale, worn-out notice about the possibility that the chicken jerky treats from China may be toxic. The notices are seldom read by anyone, let alone the average consumer, and are buried deep in the FDA’s colossal website.
Those who do manage to read the FDA’s notice will be enlightened by the sage advice that those “who choose to feed their dogs” this shit, pardon me, chicken jerky treat is to…and I quote, “watch their dogs closely for any or all of the following signs: decreased appetite; decreased activity; vomiting; diarrhea, sometimes with blood; increased water consumption and/or increased urination. If the dog shows any of these signs, stop feeding the chicken jerky product.” Well, duh. 
Oh, but wait, here’s the real bummer in the notice, “Blood tests may indicate kidney failure (increased urea nitrogen and creatinine). Urine tests may indicate Fanconi syndrome (increased glucose). Although most dogs appear to recover, some reports to the FDA have involved dogs that have died.” Gee, that’s comforting.
Hmmm, let’s see… I’m struggling to comprehend why on earth would anyone in their right mind would suggest you may “choose to” do so? Oh yeah, I want to give my dog something that could make him puke blood, cause kidney failure and might even kill him? What, are they kidding?
The FDA manages to horrify and reassure the public simultaneously by confessing in the notice that the, “FDA, in addition to several animal health diagnostic laboratories in the U.S., is working to determine why these products are associated with illness in dogs. FDA’s Veterinary Laboratory Response Network (VLRN) is now available to support these animal health diagnostic laboratories. To date, scientists have not been able to determine a definitive cause for the reported illnesses. FDA continues extensive chemical and microbial testing but has not identified a contaminant.”
I don’t know which is more of a tragedy – the FDA failing to take the sh*t off the market or failing to discover, in four years, just what it is in the chicken jerky treats that is making dogs deathly ill.
I hate to say it, but OK, here goes: for Pete’s sake, how long does it take to test chicken jerky? How can the best minds in laboratory science come up with absolutely nothing in four years?
Finally, as the FDA is aware of the products danger, why have they allowed it to remain on the market for four years? It is a disgrace that our government is so completely incompetent in protecting the American public and the pets they care for. 
FDA Continues to Caution Dog Owners About Chicken Jerky Products (FDA, Nov 18, 2011)
Fanconi Syndrome in Four Non–Basenji Dogs Exposed to Chicken Jerky Treats (Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, JAAHA, Nov/Dec 2011)
Chicken Jerky Pet Treat Alert (Phyllis Entis, eFoodAlert, Nov 19, 2011)
Fanconi Syndrome (Applied Veterinary Clinical Nutrition, By Andrea J. Fascetti, Sean J. Delaney, Feb 1, 2012)
Wal-Mart 2007 (Chicken Jerky Treats) (Pet food politics: the Chihuahua in the coal mine By Marion Nestle, 2008)
Dog Treat Warning – Yup, it’s True! (Snopes.com)
Nasty Treats from China Associated with Severe Illness in Dogs – Again (molliemorrissette.wordpress.com)
Somewhat Related Articles
Merrick’s Doggie Wisbone Pet Treat for Dogs Recalled for Salmonella Contamination (molliemorrissette.wordpress.com)
FDA Unveils New PETNet System to Track Pet Food Related Incidences (molliemorrissette.wordpress.com)
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38 Comments
trish
This IS a great website for many reasons; most of all it presents info which most of us don’t have time to dig up ourselves – if you want to verify anything, no one is stopping you, but Mollie does the ground work! Also, Mollie speaks her mind (refreshing!), but is humble enough to acknowledge when someone presents an intelligent, valid response (see the very 1st comment on this post from foodbuglady about microbiology and then read Mollie’s response). This site gets people talking and sharing info. These are just some of the reasons that this is a great site. Keep up the good work, Mollie.
As far as the Chicken Treat issue goes, it is true that you have to be very careful about where these treats come from, even if the package does say “Made in USA”. I know that you (Mollie) don’t recommend or review any particular products, and I will understand if you want to delete this part of my post, but I would be happy to give anyone the recipe/procedure for making their own chicken treats, or I will make them for you. I do have a company called To Shea – American Made Pet Products. I make ALL of our chicken and beef treats MYSELF. And anyone is welcome to contact me directly – not too many pet treat companies out there where you can talk to the cook! (Yes, all of our treats are fully cooked before dehydrating – eliminates possibility of bacterial contamination sometimes found in raw meat). We have all of our permits, and license to produce our products, and I only buy fresh, human-grade quality chicken and beef sourced from NORTH America (USA). [note: sometimes products will say ‘made in america’, but this can be made in SOUTH America, ie: Brazil, Argentina, etc.] I agree that if you are not sure of the source of pet treats, better to pass on them altogether or make them yourself. But if you want to speak with me or read about our treats, please go to our website – to-shea.com, and please read the history of why I started making my own treats – the story of how ‘Shea’ – my neighbors dog lost his life due to chicken treats from China. I will never get over that. I want people to know they have a choice.
Mollie Morrissette
Bless you my child. Queen Mollie will give you a special post in her cabinet.
site
Re: Whoever created the statement that this was a great website truly needs to possess their brain evaluated.
Mollie Morrissette
Aw, you gonna hurt my feewings, you ol’ meanie.
Lucky L
Are pets still getting sick Mollie?
Mollie Morrissette
Does a bear sh*t in the woods? Is the pope Catholic?
Rose Mee
last year i lost 4 of my puppies to poisoning. They wewe fine when i went to work at 9am that friday morning when my husband got home from his morning job he called me and ased me why 2 of the babies were dead in the middle of our bedroom floor? and the other 2 were puiking blood and had diareah…I rushed home it was about 7pm and the only thing open was the er vet…they might as well been from china also. without 1500.00 in blood work they wouldnt touch my babies. needless to say, they died in my arms in the ER Vets office within 20 mins…..I don’t understand why we get our “food Products”, so to speak from China anyway…comeon it cant be that much cheaper!!!!!!!
Trish
Do a Google search for “American Made Pet Treats”. There are many other choices. Yes, the treats from China are always the least expensive, but at what real cost? We are losing our loved ones. If you feel you need to provide chicken treats, please buy American Made. It’s worth the extra cost. My neighbor was one of the first to lose their 5 month old puppy to the treats from China (about 3 years ago) and I don’t think I’ll ever completely get over it. Just heartbreaking.
Mollie Morrissette
That would be great advice if the laws regarding COOL would force manufacturers to tell us the real source of their ingredients. So, “Made in the USA” can mean all the ingredients from China and Timbucktoo but because they were gathered together and mixed here in the US, it is now an American product. Not only that, but pet treats and processed meats are exempt from COOL laws. Frankly, I’m surprised ANY of the treat manufacturers (in this climate) even say it’s from China when legally they don’t have to.
Your best bet is to make your own, buy local or do your research and find out whose products contain ingredients from China and whose don’t.
mary ann mario
Is the poison dog treets in raleys, petco & petsnart?
Mollie Morrissette
You better believe it. ALL chicken “jerky” treat products are suspect. It does not matter where the package says the product was made – they do not have to say “Made in China”. DO NOT feed them to your pets. They are highly toxic!
Bill Ferris
What about the Walmart Ol’ Roy Grilled Strips? No mention of where the product originated or no mention of Chicken Jerky but the pkg says
“these fun, savory treats are made with real chicken” I believe this product used to be called Grilled Chicken Strips but the chicken is now hone.
Mollie Morrissette
Ol’ Roy is bad news. Don’t buy any jerky treats at all until this whole mess is sorted. Made in the USA means nothing. If you want more specific advice – like which brands to avoid and which brands have been vetted – join the Facebook group Animal Parents Against Pet Treats Made in China. There are some great people in that group.
Dee
I just found “Made in China” in tiny letters hidden in a sentence. How do we know which ones are making Pets sick?
Mollie Morrissette
Nearly all of the jerky on the market is from China. Some will not say it is Made in China! I have written many articles about this problem. My advice – is do not buy ANY poultry dog treats until the poison is discovered. Read the “Made in the USA don’t mean diddly squat nowadays“…there are probably 10-20 articles on my site alone talking just about these problem treats.
Dee
What is the Brand name of these Chicken Jerky Strips? I have some my dogs have been eating for a long time and really like. I am curious to know the name brand so I can stop letting them have them if these are indeed made in China. I cannot find China on the package. They are Happy Hips and supposedly made from Cage Free Chicken Breast with no fillers,no BHA/BHT, antibiotics, hormones or by products,, no corn, flour, soy or sugar and on and on. They are not cheap either. We think we are giving our pets healthy food and we aren’t. One thing I just noticed is that the SKU or scan tag starts with an 8 which most always means GMO or Genetically Modified Organisms. Now I am really concerned. They have been eating them for a long while now.
tuffasagong
Thanks for the post, my girlfriend and I recently got a small maltese from my mother who breeds them. She was adamant about us not purchasing any jerky treats or dog foods from China. At first I thought she was just being a bit whacko (since she is :P) but apparantly she has been speaking the truth. Thanks again.
Mollie Morrissette
What is it they say about paranoid people? Can’t remember at the mo – something to the effect – they just might be right after all. Spooky.
alimos
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rooftop
hello!,I like your writing so a lot! proportion we keep in touch extra about your article on AOL? I require a specialist in this area to resolve my problem. May be that’s you! Having a look forward to see you.
Mollie Morrissette
Who are you, exactly? Are you the owner/writer of strocel.com? I haven’t written an article for AOL. Sorry, but I’m a bit confused…
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foodbuglady
HI Mollie,
I’m told by FDA’s Laura Alvey that the reason there has been no recall is that (a) FDA has not yet found any contaminants in the jerky treats, and (b) the illnesses – unlike the situation in Australia a couple of years ago – have not been associated with one single product.
Phyllis (aka foodbuglady)
Mollie Morrissette
I know, I read your post. It’s so refreshing to know that you have a dialog with them. That’s one of the many reasons I pay close attention to your blog. Not to mention of course, that you are one of the rare handful of dedicated, selfless, and passionate food & product safety bug ladies on the net – who also happens to be smart as a whip. I admire your work so much and glad you took the time to write to me. Boy, the FDA must think I’m a real sh*t. Fortunately, I am just a speck in the vast universe of numb-sculls on the blogosphere.
foodbuglady
Mollie, having worked in a microbiology lab for many years, and having spent several years working for the Canadian government, with close contact with some very talented food chemists, I can tell you that the hardest thing to do is to find something when you don’t know what you are looking for. FDA labs have been checking for all “known” potential problems, both microbiological and chemical. But how do you find the unknown, when you have no idea what to test for?
You might disagree with the wording of the Alert, but the technical folks are far from hapless. JMHO.
Phyllis (aka foodbuglady)
Mollie Morrissette
I know, I was pretty rough on those poor folks. Thank you for the inside scoop – I certainly defer to your vast knowledge of all things microbiological.
I was coming from the perspective of the hopelessly naive typical consumer, of who I am for the most part. I imagined the average person would not be aware of the difficulties involved in searching for an elusive microbiological or chemical culprit, and would simply rail at the wording of the notification that has remained virtually unaltered for the last three or four notices.
Your opinion is greatly valued and most humbly acknowledged and accepted. Shortly after posting my frivolous article, I was suddenly ashamed after reading your well researched post on the very same subject. Realizing that, at least I had the good sense to include a link to your article in the post. Mercifully, there are people, such as yourself, who take a more thoughtful and balanced view.
Perhaps I should put a disclaimer in my blog – da stuff written herin iz written by a complete idgit. I’m serious. I am nothing more than an uneducated consumer, who could do more if I recognized that the miniscule platform I stand on would be better served if I bothered to do more research.
Your work is invaluable. Thank you.