Kibbles ‘n Bits Dog Food Contains Euthanasia Drug, Class Action Claims

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A New York woman says Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food contains dangerous pentobarbital, echoing similar claims recently filed over other dog food brands.

According to plaintiff Rosemarie Schirripa, a recent investigation concluded that Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food contains pentobarbital, a sedative drug that is now most frequently used to euthanize dogs and cats.

She accuses defendants Big Heart Pet Brands and The J.M. Smucker Co. of failing to alert consumers to the pentobarbital content in Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food.

Schirripa says ingestion of pentobarbital by a pet can cause many adverse side effects. She claims that pets may suffer from vomiting, salivation, stool changes, decreased appetite, lethargy or depression, neurologic abnormalities, difficulty walking, and possibly even coma or death.

No amount of pentobarbital in dog food is small enough to be considered “safe,” according to this Kibbles ‘n Bits class action lawsuit. Any presence of pentobarbital in dog food makes that food adulterated, Schirripa claims.

Schirripa says the pentobarbital allegedly found in Kibbles ‘n Bits is present in the product’s meat ingredients. The meat was allegedly sourced from animals that were euthanized using pentobarbital, she claims.

“Pentobarbital is routinely used to euthanize animals, and the most likely way it could get into dog food would be in rendered animal products,” according to this Kibbles ‘n Bits class action lawsuit. “Rendered products come from a process that converts animal tissues to feed ingredients, including tissues from animals that have been euthanized, decomposed or were diseased.”

Pentobarbital used to euthanize these animals allegedly survives the rendering process, Schirripa says, and it can show up in the final dog food product.

Schirripa says in February 2018, television station WJLA reported that an independent investigation revealed pentobarbital in Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food. The investigation ran over seven months and was conducted using two different labs.

Yet the labeling for Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food shows no indication that it is tainted with pentobarbital, Schirripa says. On the contrary, photos of the labeling included in her complaint show it bears indications like “100 percent complete and balanced nutrition” and other assurances of high-quality nutrition.

This Kibbles ‘n Bits class action lawsuit comes shortly after three other actions raised similar claims over Gravy Train dog food, also made by defendant Big Heart Pet Brands. In one of those actions, plaintiff Nancy Sturm complains of a lack of regulation of the use of euthanized animals in pet food, as opposed to animals raised and slaughtered for their meat.

Schirripa proposes to bring her claims on behalf of a statewide plaintiff Class that would include all New York state residents who from Feb. 1, 2012 through the present purchased the Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food at issue for their own household or business use and not for resale.

She seeks a court order barring the defendants from selling any more Kibbles ‘n Bits dog food until it is free from pentobarbital and from continuing to market its dog food as “healthy, pure, quality, and safe for consumption.” She also seeks awards of damages, restitution and disgorgement, plus reimbursement of court costs and attorneys’ fees.

Schirripa is represented by attorneys Paul B. Maslo and Salvatore C. Badala of Napoli Shkolnik PLLC and by Anne Andrews of Andrews & Thornton.

The Kibbles ‘n Bits Contaminated Dog Food Class Action Lawsuit is Schirripa v. Big Heart Pet Brands Inc., et al., Case No. 1:18-cv-02345, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.