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No Need To Panic.....

I have been happily surprised that I had not encountered anyone affected by the pet food recall.  Like many pet owners I have checked the recall list a few times, but felt confidant that what I feed would not turn up on the list....  So, Murphy's Law being what it is I received a call yesterday that the canned food I have been adding to the dry for several months had turned up on the list.  Ironically I have never been one to feed canned food to my dogs, but have been VERY impressed by the positive changes I have seen in other dogs eating this particular food. 

While this whole recall issue is obviously very serious, it does not warrant panic.   

My first reaction was to go online looking for the brand on the list.  FYI, not all the lists are complete!  But diligence pays off and you may also want to check the 'not on the recall list' lists available.  Keep in mind that while 'surfing' I was watching my perfectly happy, healthy dogs bounding around gleefully in the back yard, COMPLETELY fine and oblivious to all the drama.  Clueless to the fact that their treasured canned food was in jeopardy.....

Since the food in question was created locally, I next called a friend who works for the company.  Interestingly, affected rice protein MAY have been added to the food by the manufacturer without the company's knowledge or consent.  But since they can not be sure, my friend and her husband spent the day driving around and picking up the flavors affected and contacting everyone they could to be safe. 

The food in question is Mulligan Stew Pet Food, specifically the chicken and turkey flavors.  Of course, I feed the turkey....  The beef and salmon flavors are not on the list.  I recommend going to mulliganstewpetfood.com and reading the letter from the President of the company.  FYI, there is a band called Mulligan Stew...so if you go to mulliganstew.com you will not see any pet food info....

 Bottomline, I would never suggest disregarding the recall list and, of course, I encourage vigilance for the safety of your pets.  Certainly contact your veterinarian immediately if your pet seems ill.  Just be sure to look at the whole picture and act instead of react.  Get the information you need and proceed accordingly.  FWIW, I guess my dogs will be trying the beef and salmon flavors while we wait for the turkey flavor to make it back to the shelves.....

 Any questions or concerns?

Published Saturday, April 28, 2007 10:56 PM by ChristieDVM

Comments

 

Diane P. said:

Thank you Dr. Laughery for your blog posting regarding the recalled pet foods and specifically, Mulligan Stew.  I have included a letter from our Developer, Kevin Meehan, who many of you know from home town Jackson.  Please find his letter following my message.  

We are a small independent pet food company with a sincere commitment producing a healthful and beneficial pet food for our local and national best friends.  The FDA has NOT tested Mulligan Stew.  And, as a result, we have sent our chicken and turkey stews to an independent lab for testing.  I will post back with the results upon our receipt.  We remain confident our chicken and turkey stews are safe.  

If anyone has any comments or wishes to return product, please email me directly.  Everyone at Mulligan Stew thanks you for your confidence and continued support.

Diane Peterson

National Sales and Marketing

Mulligan Stew Pet Food

dpeterson@bresnan.net

April 27, 2007

Dear Mulligan Stew Customer,  

I wish to inform you that American Nutrition of Ogden, Utah, the manufacturer of Mulligan Stew Pet Food, has notified our company of their decision to voluntarily recall a few of their pet food brands, which include two of our Mulligan Stew flavors – Chicken and Turkey.  American Nutrition has stated they added very small quantities of rice protein to our chicken and turkey formulas in order to increase the protein levels.  This rice protein introduction is a direct violation of our patented formula and was done without our knowledge or consent.  Mulligan Stew Chicken and Turkey flavors are the only Mulligan Stew flavors included in this category.  Mulligan Stew Beef and Salmon flavors are NOT affected and remain available for sale.      

The FDA, who is initiating this recall, has not tested Mulligan Stew.  They are assuming all products manufactured by American Nutrition which include the rice protein are adulterated products.  American Nutrition states they introduced rice protein into our formula to achieve the protein levels as required by AAFCO, (American Association of Feed Control Officials).  American Nutrition has also stated that their testing facility, Midwest Labs, found no detectable toxic levels in the rice protein ingredients used by American Nutrition.  It is my concern the FDA is reacting without factual support and without testing our products.

I developed Mulligan Stew out of the desire to provide pets with longer and healthier life styles.  My patented formula contains only meat proteins, poultry liver, whole grain brown rice, fresh cabbage, horseradish, carotenes, selenium and amino acids all formulated to stimulate both cellular health and detoxification.  I cannot stress how important it is that our product be formulated to the strict guidelines I put forth.  It is the foundation of our product and our company.    

Thank you for your patience during this situation and appreciate your support of our company and product.  If you have any questions at all, I am available to speak with you.  My primary goal is to insure your confidence and continued satisfaction with Mulligan Stew.  

Warm Regards,

Kevin J. Meehan

Developer and President

Mulligan Stew Pet Food

307-734-7839  (office)

kmeehan@bresnan.net

April 29, 2007 2:27 PM
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