Evanger’s Pet Food Class Action Says Dogs Poisoned by ‘Premium’ Food

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A Washington couple says one of their dogs died and the other four became seriously ill after eating Evanger’s pet food laced with pentobarbital.

Defendants Evanger’s Dog and Cat Food Co. and Nutripack LLC are both based in Illinois and are both owned by members of the Sher family. Evanger’s makes premium pet food at its two facilities in Wheeling and Markham, Ill.

The company markets its own products under the Evanger’s and Against the Grain brands, and it also manufactures products sold by other companies under brands like Party Animal.

Plaintiffs Nicole and Guy Mael allege Evanger’s pet foods fall far short of the company’s representations. Evanger’s allegedly represents its pet foods as premium products, with ingredient indicators like “100% beef” and “human grade, USDA inspected meat.”

The products don’t match those advertisements at all, the Maels claim. What’s more, they allege some Evanger’s pet foods actually contain pentobarbital – a drug that the Maels say is used to euthanize animals, execute humans and to conduct physician-assisted suicide.

The Maels say that for four years, they purchased Evanger’s pet foods for their five dogs. Nicole says she made such a purchase on New Year’s Eve 2016, including cans of Hunk of Beef and Pulled Beef. Shortly after the dogs ate the Evanger’s dog food, they all began showing acute neurological symptoms, the Maels allege. They rushed their dogs to a veterinarian for emergency care.

One of their dogs, Talula, died the next day. The other four dogs recovered but required ongoing veterinary care. Their dog Tito continues to require anti-seizure medication, the plaintiffs say.

Not content to accept Talula’s death sitting down, the plaintiffs contacted the FDA and arranged for a necropsy to be conducted at an Oregon State University facility. The necropsy could not rule out neurotoxicocis as the cause of death until the contents of Talula’s stomach could be tested.

The FDA then requested testing of Talula’s stomach contents and the remaining food in the can of Hunk of Beef at a Michigan State University facility. That testing confirmed that both samples contained large quantities of pentobarbital, the Evanger’s class action states.

Later, FDA testing of the other cans of Hunk of Beef also revealed an “abundant amount” of pentobarbital. The plaintiffs claim that the same drug was also discovered in Evanger’s-manufactured pet foods sold under the Against the Grain brand.

In addition to losing Talula, the Maels say they have incurred more than $6,000 in veterinary expenses. They now spend $100 per week making their own pet food at home to avoid putting their remaining dogs in danger.

Further investigation by the FDA allegedly revealed that, contrary to the representations in Evanger’s promotional materials, the company has been using ingredients that were designated unfit for human consumption. The FDA also confirmed that none of Evanger’s facilities are registered for USDA inspection.

The Maels seek to represent a plaintiff Class composed of all persons who purchased the defendants’ pet foods within the U.S. between June 16, 2013 and the present.

They are seeking compensations for their own and other Class Members’ losses, including coverage of the cost of veterinary care and future monitoring, the value of any animals that have died and any costs associated with their deaths. They also seek a court order barring the defendants from continuing the allegedly false advertising at issue.

The Maels’ attorneys are Beth E. Terrell and Jennifer Rust Murray of Terrell Marshall Law Group PLLC.

The Evanger’s Dog and Cat Food False Advertising Class Action Lawsuit is Nicole and Guy Mael v. Evanger’s Dog and Cat Food Co. Inc. and Nutripack LLC, Case No. 3:17-cv-05469, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

UPDATE: On Feb. 20, 2018, a judge determined that a class action lawsuit alleging Evanger’s dog food is poisonous will continue in court.

UPDATE 2: On Oct. 18, 2019, Evanger’s Dog and Cat Food Co. agreed to pay $545,500 to end class action claims that its pet food is dangerous to animals despite being advertised as “human grade.” 

UPDATE 3: February 2020, the Evanger’s toxic dog food class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.