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UPDATE 6/2/2014: Nestle Purina and Waggin’ Train have agreed to settle three class action lawsuits alleging their jerky treats made in China have caused pets to get sick and/or die. The companies have agreed to create a $6.5 million settlement fund to compensate Class Members who believe their pets were harmed by the jerky treats. Click here for more information: http://www.topclassactions.
UPDATE 2: Instructions on how to file a claim for the Waggin’ Tails, Canyon Creek Ranch dog treat settlement are now available! Click here or visit www.DogTreatProductsSettlement.com for details.
UPDATE 3: An appeal to the dog treat class action settlement was dismissed on Dec. 10, 2015, meaning that checks may soon be mailed to Class Members who filed valid claims.
UPDATE 4: On Mar. 21, 2016, Top Class Actions readers started receiving checks in the mail from this class action settlement worth as much as $300.
A grieving pet owner has filed a $5 million class action lawsuit against Nestle Purina and Wal-Mart, claiming his dog died after eating Waggin’ Train “Yam Good” dog treats.
Dennis Adkins claims in the Nestle Purina class action lawsuit that he purchased the Waggin’ Train brand treats from Wal-Mart in March and fed the chicken jerky treats, which are made in China, to his 9-year-old Pomeranian. After three days of eating the treats, his dog became sick. She later died of kidney failure 11 days later.
“Waggin’ Train has spent millions of dollars in promoting trust and confidence among consumers in its pet food products,” Adkins says in the class action lawsuit. “The product was not wholesome, was not nutritious and was unhealthy.”
Adkins says he didn’t give the dog more than the recommended one treat per day, and that, other than feeding her the treats, he didn’t change her diet. He also says his other dog did not eat the treats and did not get sick.
This is not the first time that Chinese-made chicken jerky treats have come under fire.
The Food and Drug Administration has been investigating a possible link between dog illnesses and chicken jerky treats made in China since 2007, and has urged pet owners to use caution when feeding dogs these products.
The latest warning came last November when the agency warned consumers that some pet owners and veterinarians have reported cases involving dogs falling ill after eating Chinese-made chicken jerky treats. While most dogs have recovered, some deaths have been reported.
According to the FDA’s website, the illness affects the kidneys, and symptoms include decreased activity, vomiting, diarrhea and increased water consumption and urination.
None of the products were recalled, and no specific brands were mentioned in the FDA warning.
In light of these repeated FDA warnings, Adkins says Nestle Purina and Wal-Mart knew that the dog treats posed a substantial health-risk to pets yet still manufactured and sold them. He alleges Nestle Purina knew of more than 500 cases of pets falling ill after consuming chicken jerky treats imported from China.
“Thousands of persons purchased the dog treats at issue, and hundreds of dogs died as a result,” Adkins says in the class action lawsuit.
He is seeking compensatory and punitive damages for a proposed class of anyone who bought Nestle Purina or Waggin’ Train-brand dog treats containing chicken imported from China in the past four years, and a sub-class of those who made the purchases from Wal-Mart.
The seven-count class action lawsuit claims breach of warranty, unjust enrichment, negligence, product liability and failure to warn.
The Purina Waggin’ Train Chicken Dog Treat Class Action Lawsuit case is Adkins v. Nestle Purina Petcare Co., Case No. 12-cv-2871, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Chicago.
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102 thoughts onDog Died from Waggin’ Train Dog Treats, Class Action Says
Finally removed from market. How do I get info on this suit? Autoimmune disease at 9. Just to young for a pom.
I have been feeding these for years. I have a dog with Kidney Failure/disease and I have to administer fluids under her skin each night. These things are killing my dog and I want them to pay me back the thousands of dollars I have spent. The package says “wholesome” my butt! Shame on you Waggin’ Tail for killing our beloved pets. I truly believe that you all will be held accountable and I for one will help bring you down. My vet has been told to keep everything on my dog and there is a paper trail.
Oh wow my japennese chin loves the the chicken sticks for a very long time I haVe been giving them to him I had no idea of all of this going on he is fine no problems but I STOPPED buying them because we could not purchase them in the store recently and this is the story the guy in the store said its the quality of the chicken sick called FIDDLESTIK wrapped in chicken .I heard about the chicken JERKY quit awhile back but nothing of the CHICKEN STIX itself he begged us constantly for them he loved them well guess what folks NO MORE CHICKEN STIX FOR HIM !! I am not going to chance that happening . I just hope he is alright to this point he is not sick or they did not make him sick I’m just hoping it is something that is not built in his body now and he stays healthy GEES!! NO MORE SNACKS FOR HIM FROM CHINA I give him fresh pumkin out of the can I spread it on a cookie sheet and freeze it take it out and crack it up an put it in a bag an keep it froze and give that to him for a snack . he loves it !
Sorry I was in tears as I wrote my comment… and didn’t proof read it… I’m sad and angry….
My dog willy a retired seeing eye dog, passed away last week and they told me he has kidney failure, A total shock to me.. He was having bouts of bloody diarrhea, and vomiting, the vet asked me if he ate something toxic, Well I can’t believe that the treats I was giving him, was killing me.. Now he is gone.. He was my child,, I hopeless and sadness and I feel guilty.. the worst part is I trust dog food/treat makers.. Now I make my other dog human food, I can’t go through this again… I want justice for my dog.. Waggin Tails pull your items, from the shelf.. Every time I go to the store, I leave a note with my dogs picture next to waggin tails and tell the customer,, If you love your pet don’t buy waggin tails….
I am as outraged as you that this product is still on store shelves. However, I found out too late. My beautiful German Shepherd, Heidi, perished on May 28, 2012 as a result of eating two pieces of Waggin’ Train Jerky Tenders.
I launched a campaign to get these products off store shelves, coincidentally on the same date you wrote this article (September 5, 2012). Thank you for your efforts in spreading the message and warning the public about the dangers of jerky pet treats.
You can read Heidi’s story and join over 69,000 supporters here >>>
http://www.change.org/petitions/restore-our-trust-take-dangerous-dog-treats-off-the-shelves
I bought a bag of Wagon Train Chicken Jerky treats at Sam’s Club in Hagerstown, Md for my dogs. I ususally never have any extra money so they don’t normally get treats. Since I had a few dollars extra that day I was at Sam’s Club I decideded to buy treats for my guys. I THOUGHT I was doing something special for them. Well, I fed them pieces of the treats, very sparingly (because I wanted them to last since I normally can’t buy them treats). All of my animals are caged when we are not home…including my cats. I had set the bag of Chicken treats on top of the food bin that was on the large dog crate that I use to crate my cats when we are not at home. Somehow, the cats got to the bag of treats. My Cora was the only one of my cats that likes to chew plastic. Well, I came home and she had been eating the treats….chewed her way through the bag. She died less than a day later. I didn’t have an autopsy done on her because I just figured that she was old and had just passed away. I took her to the pet creatorium and had her cremated (this was in July 2012). I still have not completely paid for the cremation services ($172.00) but she has already been cremated. I wish I knew then, what I know now! I have no doubt that it was those damn “treats” that caused her death. She was in perfect health and an indoor only cat her entire life! My dogs would tend to get sick bellies for a while….I’m thinking that it could have been from the treats also. I just never connected the two. I feel HORRIBLE, even though I had no way of knowing! I hope those people rot for what they have allowed to happen to so many good animals….and what they are STILL allowing to happen! SHAME ON THEM! It may be an “American owned company”….but the treats are “Made in China!” I wish I could get in on the lawsuit as well….but I have no way to prove that it was the treats since she was cremated….
On 9/20/2012, I gave my dog Biscuit a Waggin Train chicken jerky tender treat and during the night she urinated on the floor, which she never does, and also at the door when I was letting her out for the morning. I also noticed that she was unusually thirsty. The next day she defecated on the floor and again urinated at the door. As the day progressed she became increasingly lethargic and listless; she didn’t want to walk or move about, she just sat around. I noticed that her stomach was bloated and tight and she seemed to be in pain and didn’t want to be touched; her anal area was swollen as well and she had a vaginal secretion with a very strong odor. I scheduled an appt. with her vet for the next morning. That evening she began vomiting constantly and when she drank water it came right back up; her breathing became labored, she began shivering and was glassy eyed. At bed time she defecated once again, without even attempting to go outside. I took her out to see if she would urinate and she seemed to be wanting to squat but couldn’t and she just stood still; so I carried her in and took her to the ER at approx. 3:00am (PT) on 9/22, and they ran a blood panel, did x-rays and an ultrasound of her abdomen. All test came back negative. The Dr. said she clearly was ill but he couldn’t really determine the cause. However, he did detect traces of what appeared to be an abdominal and vaginal infection in her blood panel. She was diagnosed with and treated for a bacterial infection; she was administered an Ampicillin injection, fluids, anti-nausea medication and prescribed Clavamox drops for 7 days. When I got her home it was as if she had no strength at all. I put her to bed and she stayed in the same position the entire night; she urinated on herself but didn’t move. I turned her over to clean her up and she yelped and vomited water but didn’t even lift her head from that. She hasn’t moved at all and when I lift her, her body seems totally limp. It is now 12:07am (PT) on 9/23/2012 and her state hadn’t changed and she was beginning to convulse frequently. Biscuit began violently convulsing at about 2:30am (PT) on 9/23/2012, so I rushed her to the ER where she went into cardiac arrest and died at approx. 4:00am. Her vet determined the cause of death to be kidney failure resulting from high levels of metal debris found in the Jerky treats that settled in her kidneys and caused them to fail. She said there was no other explanation for such a rapid decline in her health less than 72 hours of consuming the treat.
I had fed these to my dog & she just kept loosing weight wouldn’t eat much of her food or drink water then vomit it all back up. She was sleeping all the time had a fever and never wanted to play. All this time I thought it was her dog food, changed the type of food started adding water to her food gave her cephalexin per her Dr. after about 6 months she is just starting to get back to herself. Thank You for all your coments and sorry for all your losses. I will take Lilly to the vet and have her tested I have already had my other 2 dogs die and they both had been fed these treats. I am very angry that these treats are still being sold and this company needs to pay!
Waggin Train chicken jerky treats were my two greyhounds and my little lab rescues favorite treat. They are all “Dead” The two greyhounds two days apart and the little lab 3 months later, If only I knew! All three died of renal failure and I had an autopsy done on one of them to be sure it was in fact renal. All three dogs renal counts went through the roof. If you have any of these treats, toss em and do not give them to your pets. The greyhounds ate them for five years and the pup for less than one. This was so very costly, thousands of dollars trying to save them all, but to no avail. Trust me, toss em!! It was the only treat they all ate in common.