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Pentobarbital, a powerful and potentially deadly sedative, has been found in small quantities in dog food brands manufactured by the J.M. Smucker Company, according to a FDA news release earlier today.
“ Pentobarbital is a barbiturate drug that is most commonly used in animals as a sedative, anesthetic, or for euthanasia, ” the FDA said in the news release.
“ The low level of pentobarbital present in the withdrawn products is unlikely to pose a health risk to pets ," the FDA said. “However, pentobarbital should never be present in pet food and products containing any amount of pentobarbital are considered to be adulterated.”
A voluntary recall has been issued by J.M. Smucker, the FDA revealed, for popular brands such as Gravy Train, Kibbles 'N Bits, and Ol’ Roy. The complete list of tainted food brands is contained in the news release.
The FDA explained that they have already launched an investigation to uncover the potential source and route of the contamination.
If your dog consumed food containing pentobarbital, it may develop nausea, vomiting, dizziness or loss of balance, as well as a condition known as nystagmus (eyes darting side to side in an erratic fashion). This could lead your pet to have difficulty standing up and walking in a straight manner. Ingestion of toxic amounts of pentobarbital can depress respiratory drive, leading to elevated levels of carbon dioxide in the bloodstream, resulting coma and possibly death.
It goes without saying that you should not feed your dog any withdrawn lots of the potentially tainted food, and contact J.M. Smucker about directions for disposal or return of the product.
While the FDA contends that the amount of pentobarbital present in the withdrawn products is very small and not expected to be put the majority of dogs at risk for adverse health outcomes, any signs of unsteady gait, excessive drowsiness or vomiting should be evaluated by a veterinarian immediately if your pet ate any of the brands listed in the recall.
Exactly how pentobarbital can get into dog food occurs by the process known as rendering, whereby euthanized animal products are turned into animal feed. An FDA investigation in 2002 suggested that cattle may be a potential source of the pentobarbital when they are euthanized.
"Rendered products come from a process that converts animal tissues to feed ingredients. Pentobarbital seems to be able to survive the rendering process. If animals are euthanized with pentobarbital and subsequently rendered, pentobarbital could be present in the rendered feed ingredients," according to the FDA investigation.
