Diamond pet food recall expands to cat food

When I first heard about the recall of certain brands of Diamond Pet Foods dog kibble due to potential Salmonella contamination, I went to the company’s website to look at the list. Even though I don’t have any canine companions, I still wanted to find out what was going on and help to spread the word to my dog-loving friends.

My concern for dogs quickly evolved into a worry about the dangers cats could be facing. Many of the brands affected by the dog food recall also come in cat food. “How long will it be before Diamond starts recalling cat food, too?” I wondered.

About seven weeks, apparently.

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I probably wouldn’t have found out if it hadn’t been for one of my fellow cat bloggers, who shared a link to a May 20 Christian Science Monitor article that discused it. As the article’s author pointed out, Diamond hasn’t done anything to raise general awareness about the potential cat food contamination beyond a barely noticeable edit to the statement on its recall website: "Diamond Pet Foods has voluntarily recalled some brands of dry dog and cat food that it manufactured in its Gaston, S.C. facility between December 9, 2011 and April 7, 2012 due to potential Salmonella contamination."

The cat foods added to the recall include:

• Kirkland Signature Super Premium Maintenance Cat Chicken & Rice Formula
• Kirkland Signature Super Premium Healthy Weight Cat Formula

Well jeez, guys, thanks a lot! It’s not as if cat lovers would care whether their companions’ food might be toxic or anything!

On Thursday, May 17, the Montreal Gazette reported that two cats at a Montreal shelter died and one is very sick after eating some Diamond Pet Foods products. But it’s not just dogs and cats: people are getting sick, too. Fourteen people in the U.S. — and, it seems from the Gazette article, one Quebec resident as well — got sick after handling the food.

This is ridiculous. And it’s sad, too. Diamond produces a number of previously well-regarded brands of premium pet foods. I’ve even fed some of these brands to my cats and recommended them to fellow cat caretakers. But the way the company seems to be keeping its cat food problem on the down-low makes me very wary about buying their products again.

According to Diamond Pet Foods, the recalled food was most heavily distributed all over the eastern U.S., from Maine to Florida, and in the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario and (in one western anomaly) British Columbia. Go here for information about the production codes included in the recall and the distribution of those foods.

Right now, the recall is limited to kibble produced at one plant. If you’re feeding these brands in canned food, you’re probably safe: Canned food requires entirely different production and packaging. But do keep an eye on any updated recall notices just to be sure.

As of May 21 at 7 p.m. ET, there’s very little information about just what brands and batches of cat food beyond the Kirkland Signature products could be affected. But here are the brands of dog food involved- if your cat eats one of these brands, I’d strongly recommend that you contact Diamond Pet Foods to check the product code on your bag of kibble:

• Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover’s Soul
• Country Value
• Diamond
• Diamond Naturals
• Premium Edge
• Professional
• 4Health
• Taste of the Wild
• Apex
• Kirkland Signature/Kirkland Signature Nature’s Domain
• Canidae (the feline version is Felidae)