Nutro Wants Us To Tell Them What We Think...

This was my Mum's "restrained response" to Nutro's request for comments:

"Want to thank you and Menu Foods again for putting my 10 yr old Bulldog into hospital for a week (3 days on 24 hour IV fluids to flush his kidneys). And, not to mention the cost of quarterly* bloodwork to monitor his kidney values and special prescription dog food for the remaining 1 1/2 years of his life. Ours was one of how many vet documented cases forwarded to the FDA from around the country? Oh, that's right--the FDA never released that info..."

*Edit: Dad reminded Mum that for the first NINE months after the poisoning, WIN had MONTHLY bloodwork to check his kidney function. After that, he went to quarterly.

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Mum worked as a manager at PetCare, PetSmart and Petco for many years. She regrets the many times she recommend Nutro wet. One dog in particular haunts her to this day--the Friday before the Menu Foods scandal hit, she recommended the canned Nutro Ultra to a couple with an ailing dog as a way to possibly stimulate the appetite. She wonders what happened to that dog.

I think Nutro will be surprised that our memories are still so vivid and visceral. But then again, they shouldn't be, really. Our furs are more than "property".

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Since this was posted, we've heard from several Nutro demo reps offering their assistance if we were to seek restitution. The offers, and the kind comments, are appreciated.

The saddest thing was the reporting to the FDA was in the tens of thousands, but the FDA/Nutro held that "confirmed" deaths were only in the teens. OK, "confirmed" IMMEDIATE deaths, but what is the REAL number of deaths from the recall? The number of cats and dogs put into renal failure that didn't pass immediately, but lived a much more shortened life with compromised kidneys and died in renal failure? Nutro might have killed 17 outright, but also tens of thousands over the course of the next couple of years.

Yes, we have documentation of the vet diagnosis and medical bills, and at the time of the recall we had our Nutro receipts and actual trays from the cans to provide lot numbers. That's why our vet felt it was a reportable case directly attributable to Nutro. At the time there was a process to submit claims to Menu Foods/Nutro. But with the FDA backing them on such a limited number of "confirmed" cases, we decided it wasn't worth the heartbreak to submit everything and to be told no.

Thank you all for your continued support. It means a lot to our family.

Barked by: Chester (Dogster Member)

March 23rd 2010 at 6:41 pm

Barked by: Flicka ~ CGC (Dogster Member)

March 23rd 2010 at 8:35 pm