Hill’s Pet Food is recalling multiple styles of prescription and Science Diet dog food.
Hill’s Pet Nutrition is voluntarily recalling select canned dog food products due to potentially elevated levels of vitamin D. While vitamin D is an essential nutrient for dogs, ingestion of elevated levels can lead to potential health issues depending on the level of vitamin D and the length of exposure, and dogs may exhibit symptoms such as vomiting, loss of appetite, increased thirst, increased urination, excessive drooling, and weight loss. Vitamin D, when consumed at very high levels, can lead to serious health issues in dogs including renal dysfunction. Pet parents with dogs who have consumed any of the products listed and are exhibiting any of these signs should contact their veterinarian. In most cases, complete recovery is expected after discontinuation of feeding.
In the United States, the affected canned dog foods were distributed through retail pet stores and veterinary clinics nationwide. No dry foods, cat foods, or treats are affected.
Pet parents who purchased the product with the specific lot/date codes listed should discontinue feeding and dispose of those products immediately. To have discarded products replaced at no cost, please contact Hill’s via our website or at 1-800-445-5777.
Hill’s Pet Nutrition learned of the potential for elevated vitamin D levels in some of our canned dog foods after receiving a complaint in the United States about a dog exhibiting signs of elevated vitamin D levels. Our investigation confirmed elevated levels of vitamin D due to a supplier error.
We care deeply about all pets and are committed to providing pet parents with safe and high quality products. Hill’s has identified and isolated the error and, to prevent this from happening again, we have required our supplier to implement additional quality testing prior to their release of ingredients. In addition to our existing safety processes, we are adding our own further testing of incoming ingredients.
For further information, please contact Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. at 1-800-445-5777 Monday-Friday during the hours of 9am-5pm (CST) or at contactus@hillspet.com. Information can also be found at www.hillspet.com/productlist
This voluntary recall only impacts canned dog food and primarily in the United States. It is being conducted in cooperation with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Impacted products outside of the United States will be subject to separate notices on the country-specific website. If you are outside of the United States, please check your own country’s Hill’s website for more information.
SKU and Date Code/Lot Code Locations on Impacted Canned Dog Food Products
| Product Name | SKU Number | Lot Code/Date Code |
|---|---|---|
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® c/d® Multicare Canine Chicken & Vegetable Stew 12.5oz | 3384 | 102020T10 |
| 102020T25 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® i/d® Canine Chicken & Vegetable Stew 12.5oz | 3389 | 102020T04 |
| 102020T10 | ||
| 102020T19 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® i/d® Canine Chicken & Vegetable Stew 5.5oz | 3390 | 102020T11 |
| 112020T23 | ||
| 122020T07 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® z/d® Canine 5.5oz | 5403 | 102020T17 |
| 112020T22 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® g/d® Canine 13oz | 7006 | 112020T19 |
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® i/d® Canine 13oz | 7008 | 092020T30 |
| 102020T07 | ||
| 102020T11 | ||
| 112020T22 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® j/d® Canine 13oz | 7009 | 112020T20 |
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® k/d® Canine 13oz | 7010 | 102020T10 |
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® w/d® Canine 13oz | 7017 | 092020T30 |
| 102020T11 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® z/d® Canine 13oz | 7018 | 102020T04 |
| 112020T22 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Metabolic + Mobility Canine Vegetable & Tuna Stew 12.5oz | 10086 | 102020T05 |
| 102020T26 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® w/d® Canine Vegetable & Chicken Stew 12.5oz | 10129 | 102020T04 |
| 102020T21 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® i/d® Low Fat Canine Rice, Vegetable & Chicken Stew 12.5oz | 10423 | 102020T17 |
| 102020T19 | ||
| 112020T04 | ||
| Hill’s® Prescription Diet® Derm Defense® Canine Chicken & Vegetable Stew 12.5oz | 10509 | 102020T05 |
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult 7+ Small & Toy Breed Chicken & Barley Entrée Dog Food 5.8oz | 4969 | 102020T18 |
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Puppy Chicken & Barley Entrée 13oz | 7036 | 102020T12 |
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult Chicken & Barley Entrée Dog Food 13oz | 7037 | 102020T13 |
| 112020T23 | ||
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult Turkey & Barley Dog Food 13oz | 7038 | 102020T06 |
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult Chicken & Beef Entrée Dog Food 13oz | 7040 | 102020T13 |
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult Light with Liver Dog Food 13oz | 7048 | 112020T19 |
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult 7+ Chicken & Barley Entrée Dog Food 13oz | 7055 | 092020T31 |
| 102020T13 | ||
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult 7+ Beef & Barley Entrée Dog Food 13oz | 7056 | 092020T31 |
| 112020T20 | ||
| 112020T24 | ||
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult 7+ Turkey & Barley Entrée 13oz | 7057 | 112020T19 |
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult 7+ Healthy Cuisine Braised Beef, Carrots & Peas Stew dog food 12.5oz | 10452 | 102020T14 |
| 102020T21 | ||
| Hill’s® Science Diet® Adult 7+ Youthful Vitality Chicken & Vegetable Stew dog food 12.5oz | 10763 | 102020T04 |
| 112020T11 |
Thomas Burgess
February 1, 2019 at 2:58 am
Thank you very much. I really appreciate it 😉
Kathleen Coyne
February 1, 2019 at 7:53 pm
Question. Would this “error” extend to cat food?
I know recalls are regarding dog food
But Hills Science Diet also makes cat food dry and wet
I feel for the pet owner whose furbaby passed because of this “error”
Susan Thixton
February 1, 2019 at 7:58 pm
Only because all of the recalls are for dog food – my guess is no. It appears the error was only in the Vitamin D supplement for dog food or in the premix. But, if this is a manufacturing error at the pet food plant, then yes – it could result in cat food recalls too. FDA hasn’t told us – so we really don’t know what is going on.
Cannoliamo
February 5, 2019 at 7:09 pm
…. hoping for a class-action lawsuit. I contacted FDA numerous times in December expressing my concern about Vitamin D levels in pet foods insofar as there seemed to be deficient analytical monitoring for an ingredient that is so toxic at very low levels and they simply ignored my concern. Hope there is a congressional investigation into FDA with respect to their negligence.
Cannoliamo
February 5, 2019 at 7:17 pm
Here is the calculation that I made to support my concern …..
Let’s take a 20-lb dog that eats 1000 kcal per day (2.5 cups of dry food with 400 kcal / cup). AAFCO safe upper limit for Vitamin D for dry dog food is 750 IU per 1000 kcal of food. 70 times this amount is 52,500 IU per day. 52,500 IU X 0.025 mg / 1000 IU = 1.3 mg of Vitamin D per day or 0.14 mg / kg for a 9 kg dog.. This is 40% more than the minimum toxicosis symptomatic level but less than 1% of the acute fatal dose level. This level of Vitamin D intake is far more likely to result in chronic kidney damage than acute death. FDA does not say how long it takes for a daily intake 0.14 mg/kg of Vitamin D to cause irreversible kidney damage or renal failure.
G Willie
February 6, 2019 at 7:13 pm
Washington Post coverage Feb 5: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/a-dog-food-company-recalled-its-products-but-these-grieving-pet-owners-say-its-too-late/ar-BBTbAqi
(courtesy MSN)
Jeanmarie
July 15, 2019 at 7:35 pm
Hill’s said in the statement that ONLY canned dog food was affected by the recall (and the supplier error). Cat and dog food would be produced on separate production lines, at a minimum, if not completely different facilities. They wouldn’t just get mixed up.
Tina
August 28, 2019 at 6:31 pm
I have some information regarding the excess vitamin D that was put in dog premix packages for Hill’s. The supplier is DSM. A rep named Hugh Welsh wrote this to me via email after I submitted a question via DSM’s online contact form & made a few calls to some of DSM’s US offices:
“DSM made a Lot/Two Batches of premix for Hills Pet Nutrition on August 16, 2018 at our Fort Worth, Texas plant into which an operator mistakenly put too Vitamin D instead of Vitamin E. These two batches are the only batches that had too much Vitamin D and these batches were only shipped to Hills Pet Nutrition in Topeka, Kansas. No other DSM products or customers were in any way impacted by this one mistake. The Fort Worth plant’s Food Safety Plan has been updated and positive release controls such as daily inventory management have been put in place so that a mistake of this nature cannot happen again.”