Laura Pennington  |  April 24, 2019

Category: Legal News

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Dog with food bowlPet owners have had their attention called to Hill’s Science Diet and Hill’s Prescription Diet as this dog food has been associated with potentially toxic levels of vitamin D. Excessive exposure to vitamin D could cause serious side effects and pain for pets, which could even lead to fatal complications. A total of 33 food types have been recalled so far.

What Are the Symptoms of Vitamin D Poisoning in Dogs?

Some of the symptoms that a dog is suffering from excessive vitamin D are increased thirst, increased urination, muscle tremors, abdominal pain, vomiting, excessive drooling and loss of weight.

What Are the Causes of Vitamin D Poisoning in Dogs?

Symptoms of vitamin D poisoning can be difficult to identify since they overlap with many other conditions, which is why it is important for a vet to know about any supplements that the dog is taking and details about the dog’s diet.

Some dog foods such as the Hill’s Science Diet and Hill’s Prescription Diet have been associated with excessive vitamin D exposure. For a veterinarian to determine the cause of a dog’s vitamin D overexposure, a physical examination with a complete blood count might be required. That blood count would look for abnormalities in red and white blood cells.

How is Vitamin D Poisoning in Dogs Treated?

A veterinarian will induce vomiting if the dog has only recently ingested the substance that has led to the treatment. If the substance has already been metabolized in the dog’s body, however, the primary treatment goal is to stabilize the dog in case it develops seizures.

If suffering from vitamin D poisoning, the dog could be placed on an IV to balance electrolyte levels and stay hydrated, which assists with the excretion of excess calcium through urine.

Many pet owners argue that the makers of the Hill’s Science Diet and Hill’s Prescription Diet failed to notify pet parents that this could lead to vitamin D toxicity for dogs.

What Is Vitamin D Poisoning?

According to Smithsonian Magazine, a common source of vitamin D poisoning happens when a dog accidently ingest rodenticides containing vitamin D. These include mouse bait and rat traps. Less common causes of vitamin D poisoning include tainted dog food or too much supplementation with vitamin D.

A poorly balanced diet containing high levels of fatty fish liver, milk or eggs could also lead to vitamin D poisoning.

What Should I Do If I Believe My Dog Has Been Poisoned with Excessive Vitamin D?

Getting immediate veterinary attention for your dog is important when you believe that he or she has been exposed to excessive levels of vitamin D. Some types of dog food including the canned Hill’s dog food has been associated with a higher than normal level of vitamin D. Some pet owners argue that their dog has passed away due to complications associated with this recall.

If you think that your dog could have been affected by the vitamin D canned food recall or if you lost your pet due to this issue, you could participate in a class action lawsuit investigation.

Join a Free Hill’s Pet Nutrition Dog Food Recall Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you purchased Hill’s Science Diet or Prescription Diet canned dog food, you may qualify to join this Hill’s dog food recall class action lawsuit investigation.

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6 thoughts onWhat Dog Food Is Recalled?

  1. Jen says:

    My 3 Chihuahuas got sick from this crap, twice. Vet prescribed this after being on Purina for their entire lives, which suddenly made them sick. They couldn’t complete their going potty #2, no eating, then suddenly lots of #2 but uncontrolled.

    This ended up starving my 15 year old, she had no medical issues prior. She had to be put to sleep. I had her laying in my lap, was feeding her other food with a syringe, it was Horrible.

    I took my receipt and all of this Hill’s Science Poison food back to PetSmart, since it’s prescription that is the only location that I could purchase it from. There were the “light” recalls, then this big one. I had a large bag of the $$$ dry food, and many cans of the wet food.

    PETSMART REFUSED TO TAKE HILL’S SCIENCE DIET BACK, DESPITE AN OFFICIAL RECALL.

    Yes, that’s right. They have their non-existent No Hassle Returns, even with no recalls, you can still return food to PetSmart, they will take it back, especially if it made your pet ill or they don’t like it. They are also Chewy.com, who do the exact same thing.

    Well not the Asst. Mgr., Chris, at the Roseville, MI store. I had to have a huge, embarrassing argument with him. Why was he not taking it back? I had the original receipt.

    Because it was HIS policy.

    Yep, Official Recall of this crap food, and PetSmart refused to take it back. I finally forced him to, he gave me the lowest sale price, NOT the price on my receipt, and said he was “doing me a favor even returning that”. He refused to credit my debit card too, he gave me a store credit, on the sales price.

    So be careful. I only had Hill’s because Purina made all 3 of my Chi’s sick and killed my neighbor’s dog, same wet food.

    PETSMART DOES NOT HAVE TO GIVE YOU YOUR MONEY BACK WHEN THERE IS AN OFFICIAL RECALL FOR THE FOOD THAT THEY SOLD TO US THAT CAN KILL YOUR PETS.

    Lawyers should go after these stores too, especially in this case, most pet parents bought Hill’s at PetSmart, they are also responsible. When I said to Roseville, MI PetSmart Manager Chris that this food killed my dog, his answer was “I don’t care.”

    Oh, and it was still on the shelves, out for sale, AFTER this recall began.

  2. WolfLarsen says:

    Thankful such an awesome sum for sharing this glorious information! I am envisioning see more posts by you.
    I like visiting you site since I always come across interesting articles like this one. Great Job, I greatly appreciate that.

  3. Happy Harrison says:

    I went to put my Dogs on this thankfully they would not eat it and returned it and had the full refund as promised, I later put them on chappie never looked back since

  4. Melissa Beason says:

    My dog ended up with acquired Fanconi Syndrome and was placed on Science Diet. She never got any better till I took her off this dog food. I ended up “doctoring” her myself and she’s well back to normal as normal can be for having Fanconi Syndrome.

  5. Tiffani C. Martin says:

    We fed our puppy this brand of dog food & she passed away a short time later. It was sudden & totally unexpected. My entire family was devastated behind it, but to hear about this just rehashes the pain. Please add me…

  6. LuAnn Rabenstein says:

    My dog ate this and was sick a few days and wouldn’t eat at all, he just laid around. We stopped giving him Hill’s and he was back to normal. Add me
    Contact me by email please.

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