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LAKEWOOD, Colo. – As the pet food recall develops, we want to keep veterinarians as current as possible. Information for clients and veterinarians is continually updated at www.avma.org. It is important for our colleagues to be as current on this information as possible and reassure their clients as to the safety of the pet food they are feeding their pets. The American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) is providing the following information for veterinarians:

• We as veterinary professionals need to reassure our pet owners during this time of ever changing news. Veterinarians need to discourage the perceived simple solution of home cooking and stress the importance of consulting the family veterinarian regarding diet and pet health. Recommendations for health screens have not changed for pets that may have consumed a recalled diet.
  
  
• Acute renal failure remains the primary problem being treated in response to consumption of the recalled food. Clinical presentation varies. Some of these pets are quite azotemic and ill whereas others may present only with polyuria and polydipsia, dilute urine and blood work which shows mild azotemia or no significant changes. Some pets that have consumed recalled food remain asymptomatic but in fact have significant changes on their blood work and/or urinalysis. Therefore, the best recommendation for pet owners remains to consult with a veterinarian if a pet has eaten the recalled food in all cases, but particularly if the pet is showing any illness including anorexia, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, polyuria, or polydipsia. Recommendations still include doing a general blood test (CBC, biochemistry panel) and urinalysis. Crystalluria is being found in many of these cases and veterinarians should request a urine review for crystal morphology from their diagnostic laboratory. These crystals have been described as round and yellow with radiant striations and appear similar to uric acid or urate crystals. Veterinarians should contact their diagnostic veterinary laboratory if they have further questions. Fluid therapy and symptomatic treatment tailored to the individual pet, the existing protocols of treating pets affected by the recalled food, are still the best courses of action. Many pets are responding well to treatment. Recheck blood work in 3 - 4 weeks may be advisable when minor disease is present.
  
  
• Veterinarians with animals that were exposed to the suspect food and subsequently died from kidney failure should perform complete postmortem examinations. A full complement of tissues (not just kidney) should be fixed in formalin and submitted to a veterinary diagnostic laboratory for complete histopathology evaluation. Please include any pertinent history including any history of consumption of the recalled foods. Also, a full complement of fresh tissues should be collected, frozen and held in the clinic for possible future toxicological analysis (serum, blood, urine, liver, kidney, stomach content [vomitus], brain, fat, etc.) when the causative agent is definitively identified. In live pets, urine and serum can be collected and frozen for future toxicological testing. Opened cans of suspect food should be put in plastic bags and frozen and can be held by the owner. The Toxicology Laboratory of the California Animal Health and Food Safety Laboratory (CAHFS) has assisted the FDA with the analysis of pet food related to the recall. If a veterinarian feels that a pet fits the case definition for illness due to consumption of recalled food as provided by the FDA, the CAHFS Toxicology Laboratory can be contacted at 503-752-6322 for testing options. Please see www.cahfs.ucdavis.edu for more information.
  
  
• On Friday March 30th, the FDA announced they had identified melamine in tested samples of recalled pet foods from Menu Foods. Melamine is primarily used in Asia as a fertilizer but it is not approved for that use in the US. It is used to make plastic such as kitchenware and whiteboard substances in this country. Melamine was identified in urine and tissue samples taken from sickened cats.
  
  
• Data are lacking concerning melamine toxicity in animals, particularly dogs and cats and the FDA cannot be certain that melamine is linked to the illnesses or deaths of pets eating the recalled food. Tests are ongoing. A summary of information regarding melamine can be found at www.vin.com.
  
  
• It is important for owners to know that pets are being presented during the recall with other complaints and veterinarians are treating diseases other than that attributed to the pet food recall. Many, many pets are healthy. Because of the recall, veterinarians and owners together are assuring pet health by general physical exams and blood screens in healthy pets and detecting some diseases earlier in asymptomatic but ill pets.
  
  
• In a press release dated April 2nd, 2007, researchers from Syntrix Biosystems, Inc. and The University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey (UMDNJ) announced that there was no evidence of Aminopterin in the tissues of animals who had died from consuming food from Menu Foods. Using a highly specific and sensitive test for Aminopterin, investigators at UMDNJ documented that there was no evidence of Aminopterin in the tissues of affected animals. "Aminopterin persists in the liver of animals for months at levels that are readily detected," said Barton A. Kamen, M.D., Ph.D., Professor of Pediatric Oncology at UMDNJ. "Whatever is causing the renal failure, it is not Aminopterin." These results are completely consistent with the findings of the FDA, who announced today that they found no evidence of Aminopterin in food samples.
  
  
• Pet owners who are concerned that their pet has been adversely affected by the consumption of recalled food should contact their state Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Consumer Complaint Coordinator. For a state-by-state list of Coordinators, go to http://www.fda.gov/opacom/backgrounders/complain.html. Please include as much information as possible, including the specific product name, lot numbers, veterinarians' report and diagnosis, etc.
  
  

ACVIM is the national certifying organization for veterinary specialists in large and small animal internal medicine, cardiology, neurology and oncology. Established in 1973, ACVIM's purpose is to advance the knowledge of animal health and diseases, and to foster the continued development of specialty veterinary care. To find an ACVIM Specialist in your area, please visit www.ACVIM.org.

Prepared by Sandy Willis DVM DACVIM
ACVIM Communications Committee Chair