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NewswireToday - /newswire/ -
Daytona Beach, FL, United States, 03/29/2007 - The beautiful pictures and tribute stories make the story all too real, as "forever moms" share the stories of pet deaths at the online Menu Foods Victims Blogspot.
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"I learned of the tainted food after his death. He ate Special Kitty pouches of tuna flavored cat food purchased at Walmart for over a year. As you can see he was extremely beautiful, and knew it, but also was very loving. I will miss him very much, and never be able to replace him," wrote a grieving pet lover about her Persian cat, Silver.
More than 2,000 self-reported deaths are connected to the Menu Foods Recall of 60 million cans and pouches of wet food, according to posts by "forever moms".
Here is an open letter from Ingrid E. Newkirk, president of PETA concerning steps to keep our dogs and cats safe, and ways to speak out about the horrific pet crisis created by Menu Foods.
How to Keep Your Animals Safe
Make sure you are not feeding your animal companion any of the recalled foods. You can find the full list of products that are being recalled by Menu Foods.
If you believe that your animal companion has fallen ill from eating a product manufactured by Menu Foods, immediately take the animal to your veterinarian. Symptoms of kidney failure include lack of appetite, listlessness, increased thirst, increased urination, vomiting, and diarrhea.
Please also report any animal illness or death to Menu Foods at 866-895-2708 and to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at 888-463-6332.
What PETA is Doing
The fact that animals are dying from tainted Menu Foods products is horrific. To make matters worse, the company's response is stupefying and infuriating.
It's our understanding that Menu Foods learned of animal deaths as early as February 20 but didn't issue a recall for almost a month.
PETA is urging government authorities in Canada and the US to investigate Menu Foods and file criminal charges if the company is found to have violated laws by waiting nearly a month before recalling contaminated food and intentionally feeding it to healthy dogs and cats in laboratories, killing several of them.
PETA Investigation
We know from experience that Menu Foods has never put the interests of animals ahead of its profits. Do you remember when a PETA investigator went undercover at a contract testing laboratory in Missouri that conducted cruel experiments on animals for Menu Foods and Iams? What PETA's investigator uncovered there was shocking; some dogs had huge chunks of muscle removed from their legs and were left to suffer for days. You can read more and view PETA videos of the investigation at iamscruelty.com. We took action then and changes were made, but now ...this!
Keeping Pets Safe in the Future
Each of us, as loving companions to the cats and dogs in our care, must stand up to corporations like Menu Foods and Iams and hold them accountable for the food they are selling. Please take immediate action:
Buy pet food only from companies that test their foods in modern ways, not by experimenting on animals. The list of cruelty-free companies includes PetGuard, Evolution, and V-dog. One of the surest ways to stop corporations like Iams and Menu Foods is by not purchasing their products until they are proved to be safe and cruelty-free. A list of manufacturers that do not test on animals can be found online.
Insist that the company take measures to ensure that this will never happen again, and ask Menu Foods to end its cruel and old-fashioned experiments on dogs and cats.
Demand that Iams (Menu Foods manufactured the recalled Iams food) immediately end all laboratory tests on animals.
PETA is the leading national animal advocacy organization working to hold pet food manufacturers accountable for their cruelty and callousness. PETA is actively calling for a thorough investigation of the tainted food scandal, and we need your help today.
You Are Not Alone
Rat poison was found in the tainted pet food, linked to the deaths of at least 14 pets, the New York State Department of Agriculture said in an announcement on Friday, March 23.
The toxin, identified in samples of pet food tested at Cornell University, is aminopterin, a derivative of folic acid, the department said. The substance is not approved for use in the United States.
You are not alone in dealing with the trama and grief of sick and dying pets. Please don't be alone. Our pet site is new and does not have a lot of posted messages in the Forums. But all of you are in my thoughts and prayers this morning, as I write this news brief. I have opened a discussion in our Forums at itsmypetclub.com. Please come and share your thoughts.
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