There are recent and numerous consumer complaints regarding Taste of the Wild pet food posted on Facebook and ConsumerAffairs.com. This is concerning – however, without regulatory investigation, we don’t know if this is a pet food problem.
The ConsumerAffairs.com website has 27 Taste of the Wild dog food complaints from consumers posted just in the month of July (2017). Most complaints report similar issues – lethargy, vomiting and diarrhea. Facebook has numerous complaints posted as well – consumers reporting the same issues directly on the Taste of the Wild Facebook page. So many complaints were posted on Facebook that Diamond Pet Food – manufacturer of Taste of the Wild issued a statement. In part it says…
Taste of the Wild family – We want to address some misinformation that’s been circulating and calling into question the quality and safety of our food. We have received calls and emails from concerned pet parents asking if Taste of the Wild is causing any of the following: (a) bloody diarrhea, (b) vomiting, (c) elevated liver enzymes or (d) pancreatitis. The answer is “No.” Veterinarians frequently see these conditions in pets and the causes for each syndrome are almost always unrelated to their food.
While we certainly do not want to minimize the illness of anyone’s pet because that is a very stressful and worrisome time, we do need to look at overall incidence of pet illness-specifically vomiting and diarrhea. At any particular time over 2% of the United States’ dog population is experiencing vomiting and/or diarrhea.
It is unknown where Taste of the Wild pet food obtained the statistic of 2% of dogs in the US are “experiencing vomiting and/or diarrhea”. The Taste of the Wild statement also encouraged consumers to report any pet illnesses to them (but they did not ask consumers to report the illness to authorities).
At this point – we do not know if the many pet illnesses (both cat and dog) are directly related to the pet food. We need an FDA and/or State Department of Agriculture investigation to know the answer. It is unknown if FDA or State Department of Agriculture has received any complaints and/or is investigating. Questions have been sent to FDA (if they have received consumer complaints on Taste of the Wild) – when information is received it will be posted here.
To get an investigation – we need consumers to report pet illness or death linked to ANY pet food to authorities.
If your pet gets sick or dies that you believe is linked to a pet food or treat:
- Report the illness or death to FDA. Complaints can be reported online or by calling a FDA Complaint Coordinator. All information can be found here: https://www.fda.gov/AnimalVeterinary/SafetyHealth/ReportaProblem/ucm182403.htm
- Report the illness or death to your State Department of Agriculture. You can find your state pet food/animal feed authorities here: http://www.aafco.org/Regulatory
- Report the illness or death to the pet food manufacturer.
If your pet dies you believe is linked to a pet food, have a necropsy performed. Save all packaging and labels. Save any unused pet food; double bag it and if possible store in the freezer.
Yes – it takes more time to fill out detailed complaint forms with FDA than it does to type out a message on Consumer Affairs or Facebook. But…if you want a potentially dangerous pet food to be taken off the market so that other pets don’t get sick, it has to be reported to authorities.
Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,
Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
Association for Truth in Pet Food
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Hannie
August 4, 2017 at 2:49 pm
Thanks for posting this heads up. I know I can always count on you………Hannah says “woof”……
Sam12587
August 4, 2017 at 2:55 pm
I used that brand for probably over a decade. Then suddenly one day I opened a new bag & the dog wouldn’t touch it. It sat there all day long into the next morning.
Took it back to the pet parlor it came from thinking it was a bad bag & they exchanged. After doing this with three bags, different flavors and starting to notice my food allergy cat having issues with the new bag of cat food ( she’ll eat anything even if it makes her sick.
I went asking detailed questions cause this made no sense to suddenly happen, the pet parlor owner told me ToTW had been bought out & she’d noticed quality diminished with recent recipe changes 🙁 Took over a year to find another brand my allergic cat didn’t react to.
Stacey
November 17, 2017 at 5:24 pm
Do you mind if I ask you where you bought the bag of food your dog wouldn’t eat? I myself feed both my dogs & our cat TOTW & now I’m nervous. I have never had any problems with any of my animals but I do know of people that have. A friend of mine was buying TOTW on amazon & what she was getting looked nothing like what was in the bag I got from the pet store. I’m wondering if some of what’s out there could be a knock of version or something.
Good luck with your animals❤️
Stacey from Massachusetts
Pacific Sun
August 4, 2017 at 3:26 pm
If you suspect the food is to blame (including any brand for that matter) SAVE exactly what the pet has been eating!! But also SAVE the unopened cans! If it’s kibble … always save the bag itself, even if you pour the contents into a container (which you shouldn’t). If you’re trying to get a refund, do NOT return ALL the PF to the manufacturer or the store! They want the evidence to disappear! But if you have a decent Retailer, and a receipt, you should get a refund no matter what! If not, you can release a token amount. If the food needs to be tested, consult with Susan as to the best recourse. She is an expert!
And finally, no pet should ever be having loose stools and throwing up from it’s diet. If so, (even if it’s not the brand in question right now) you still need to switch to a compatible diet! There are dozens of possibilities in PF. The ingredients on the label have 6 months in which to be changed. Curing a pet’s chronic IBS or an inflamed stomach (or triggering pancreatitis) is going to be a LOT more expensive at the Vet, than the cost of the food! (Trust me, I know this for a fact).
Jan
August 4, 2017 at 3:37 pm
I just found out that TOTW is produced by Diamond Pet Foods. Unless that has changed. Susan, I am so grateful for all you do. God bless you.
Jan
August 4, 2017 at 3:45 pm
I apologize. I miss the Diamond mention above. Arrgh.
Ms. B Dawson
August 4, 2017 at 4:19 pm
Diamond co-packes many brands of food but TOTW is their own brand.
Pacific Sun
August 4, 2017 at 8:39 pm
Who makes a Taste of the Wild dog food?
“Made by Diamond Pet Foods, Inc., owned by Schell and Kampeter, Inc., Taste of the Wild is a family owned, privately held business. As a relatively new brand of dog food made only since 2007, Taste of the Wild was created to meet the market’s growing demand for a natural, grain-free dog food.”
https://diamondpetcompany.com/#home
Denise
August 4, 2017 at 4:42 pm
Diamond pet foods has been recalled so many times. I refuse to feed my pet any brand this company makes, I have too many animals to feed and can’t afford trips to the vet because of a pet food I purchased. There are many cheaper and better quality pet food that haven’t been recalled ever…
Hannie
August 4, 2017 at 9:35 pm
I didn’t want to say that publicly so I thank you for posting that. I totally agree which is why I try to find out where a food is made before I ever feed it to my dog…….
Paula
August 4, 2017 at 7:15 pm
Diamond Foods, ’nuff said. Sad that TOTW did not shift production to their own facility. I thought they planned to do so — I think they may have for one “flavor” but stupidly not for the rest. I used to buy their product and liked their ingredients before I learned about co-packers, the product was recalled, etc….. At this point the only co-packed product I buy is AnnaMaet. They answered my interrogation and follow-up questions in great detail and I was satisfied.
Yes dogs do get digestive upset. Many resolve very quickly. If that doesn’t happen, could be something else; could be the food…. Very important to find out. If multiple folks report a problem with the same food in a short timeframe suggests a food issue.
I feed 8 foods at any point in time – 4 kibble and 4 freeze dried or dehdyrated – 50% kibble and 50% “raw”. This way no one food constitutes more than 1/8 of their diet. Maybe I am crazy but this way if there is something “wrong” with one of the foods the effects are likely to be limited. Human foods have all sorts of issues but humans typically don’t get critically from a food issue but dogs often do since we don’t eat the same thing meal after meal and many of our dogs do.
Regina
August 8, 2017 at 5:38 pm
I also feed my pets a mixture of foods. It is just not feasible for me to make all of my pets’ foods, so I do the best I can by finding the best pre-made foods, and giving them variety means that I don’t have to ever “transition” if the store doesn’t have the one flavor that my pets would usually get. In the wild, they would get variety, why wouldn’t I give them variety also!?
I’m always on the lookout for a bargain, and sometimes I get lucky and get a really good deal on a product I don’t always get, so I just add that into the mix. One time a store was selling a big bag of Sold Gold for a ridiculously low price (packaging was changing) and I snatched that up. Luckily, my pets don’t have any allergies to anything I’m feeding them,
I have a large air-tight container that holds all of the bags I am currently using, because it’s not good to mix them prior to putting them out for my babies, and plus, I don’t have to keep washing the container!
Deb Binder
August 4, 2017 at 9:35 pm
I am hoping that there is no problem with TOTW. I feed my 4 dogs the Pacific Stream ‘flavor’ I would love to know if a certain flavor is responsible for the illness. My dogs have been fine, the youngest 3 years, the eldest 10 years. Prayers that they stay healthy…..
Peter
August 5, 2017 at 8:23 am
I would confirm this… my cats suddenly refused to eat a couple of different types, including those made both by Diamond and Evanger’s (before I understood the curved Evanger’s demarcation). Both are enthusiastic eaters: when I get a complete “refusal,” I know the food is “off” in some way. Frankly, there are so many problems with co-packing it barely makes sense to complain, especially to the manufacturer. I’ve done so, to more than one, and the consumer ordinarily gets nothing, except excuses. Manufacturers will even readily acknowledge (and shrug off) common issues as “end of run” problems, that they expect you will just tolerate (and, for example, that you’ll accept a can nearly full of “water,” or, cross-contaminated with different ingredients). Manufacturers will also generally want to confine to phone conversations, that is, not writing.
At this stage, I do not trust TOTW and won’t buy it any longer, regardless of the specific co-packer (I’m not certain which has been selected to stand in for the Evanger’s-made types).
Debbie Perkins
August 5, 2017 at 4:42 pm
Sounds like a little too much protesting (and too many excuses) on Diamond’s part to me. They jumped right on the offensive, it’s the fault of everything else but their food. Hmmm.
Marcy
August 7, 2017 at 2:44 pm
I’ve been feeding my dogs TOWT for some time now. They have never had any negative reactions to the food. But after reading this article and the comments I’m not willing to play Russian roulette with my dogs’ well being. I have Susan’s list of trusted pet foods but not a big enough budget. I know kibble isn’t ideal but if readers could offer some good alternatives to TOTW I would be grateful.
Pacific Sun
August 7, 2017 at 4:10 pm
How many dogs, and how much does each one weight?
Marcy
August 8, 2017 at 9:59 pm
4 dogs. Weight range 13-24#.
Pacific Sun
August 8, 2017 at 11:06 pm
You have 4 dogs (20 lbs. avg.) @ at about 4 cups of dry a day, if augmented with whole food.
On the 2017 List you have, count down to the 16th entry for a basic kibble option. You can rotate that one along with a more affordable brand. An Independent Pet Supply store usually offers more trustworthy sources (at least mine does). They also have a frequent buyers program.
But I stay away from any formula that includes peas, legumes, etc.. Susan had an article once about peas and I’ll find it, if you’re interested. I like Sweet Potato as a binder, and not grain, because of storage issues. I can add other things, like a probiotic myself (Kifir) or cottage cheese for flavor, and add hard boiled eggs and cooked (extremely lean) ground turkey, beef, or baked boneless chicken thighs. There is good value from Costco.
I never feed canned PF, because of how much each can costs. Up to $3+ apiece! Would rather put the money into whole foods. Canned food is just gross and dogs I board refuse to eat it when offered my whole food alternatives!
While raw can be expensive all of the time, I would rotate it in like, once or twice a week. It offers bio-availability (enzymes) to help dogs be able to continue digesting any food. You can also add a natural goat milk (like Answers) occasionally for additional nutrition. Just don’t mix kibble and raw on the same day. because of different rates of digestion.
Besides what Susan recommends, I like Fromms Duck & Sweet Potato, and Vital Essentials Raw. Orijen is just so overpriced and way too rich for my dogs (because there’s no binder). For that much money, I just buy the fresh protein and whole food. For juice (a liquid over the kibble) I use Progressive Low Sodium Chicken Broth, probably the only one without onion flavoring. By the time those warmed over flavors are all mixing, dogs can not resist! http://www.foodfacts.com/ci/nutritionfacts/soups/progresso-chicken-broth-32-fl-oz/46548
Let me know if there are more questions!
Denise
August 9, 2017 at 7:43 am
Thanks for the info.
choclabgal
August 28, 2017 at 3:54 am
What is your opinion of Brother’s Complete Lamb & Egg allergy? Small company out of Florida…Dog food advisor’s gives it 5 stars. Thank you
Megan
August 13, 2017 at 1:02 am
Fromm Family Foods is a great alternative! Fromm 4-Star line has grain-in and Grain free recipes. Acana and Orijen are also great kibbles. Hollywood Feed (and their online store) sells Fromm, Orijen and Acana! AllProvide raw and Stella & Chewy’s freeze dried are both great too!
tberica@yahoo.com
August 7, 2017 at 3:59 pm
Thank you Susan! I heard about the health issues and people feeling TOTW may be to blame. I don’t put a ton of stock in rumors until I get the facts from you, in spite of my own bad experience with TOTW making my cats sick during a 2012 recall that resulted in a class action settlement with consumers. Please keep us updated as I’m sure more information will come out about this
Regina
August 8, 2017 at 5:22 pm
The website consumeraffairs.com is just a site where people can type in whatever “complaints” they want to. I don’t put much stock in anything I see on that site, because I spent some time reading a lot of comments that had been posted, and some of the stories were obviously false. Someone would complain about a certain brand’s certain product – and that product didn’t even exist. Plus, some of the stories were obviously false, given the time-line in their stories. And, on top of THAT, some brands actually have a relationship with the site, and are able to “work with consumers” to clear up problems, so their reviews will be improved.
And soooo many false claims are circulated via Facebook that I don’t put much stock in them until I can verify the information from a reputable third party.
And just recently I was talking to someone who was sent a link about a “big class action suit” against a certain food, and took that to mean that there was in fact a problem with that food. It turns out, there’s a website that just lists all of the class action suits that have been filed, whether there is merit to them or not.
That being said, I am in no way sticking up for TOTW, but from what I have seen of “complaints” about food making a dog sick, some people are not good about realizing the need for transitioning slowly from one food to the next, or knowing whether they NEED a high-protein diet or not.
There is so much misinformation spread through social media, and some people don’t bother to even try to verify something before passing it along.
Susan’s advice to report problems to the proper authorities is very important. “Venting” on a website will not resolve anything. It might make you feel better temporarily, but if every “complaint” is forwarded to the FDA and State Departments of Agriculture, they can track problems, and hopefully look into them, with documentation and facts, not just anecdotes.
Pacific Sun
August 8, 2017 at 10:13 pm
Some dogs will eat anything (mine do) but others have an instinct for variety! Nature’s way of insuring a full range of nutrients. Rotation is good. Keeping mind to incorporate fully bio-available food as well (like raw). Otherwise a pet can lose its ability to adequately process dry food. Mixing brands in a single dish makes it harder to identify or control specific reactions. Stores put food on “sale” for a reason. And it’s never to take a loss. Sometimes to attract consumer attention. But they’re likely passing along a discount the distributor provided, because it’s nearing end of shelf life, the recipe is changing, or packaging. Remember, ingredient labels have 6 months to change. Otherwise the formula has been subjected to some other “issue” and the manufacturer is trying to clear the inventory.
Consumer Affairs (because it’s so easily accessible) can be confused with “reporting” a product to an official agency (FDA, State Agriculture departments). While there’ve been problems with manufacturers taking advantage of the site for the purposes of slamming the competition, it can also be an indicator of a problem on the rise! Because people seek out the internet to research, and then complain, about common problems. The issue with CA has been allowing certain manufacturers (it’s said, for a price) to offer a rebuttal. But not all pay or choose to do so. Keep in mind (and obviously speaking) not all PF issues rise to the deadly level of “pentobarbital” cases. There is a LOT that can happen in between. So trending consumer comments can be a possible indicator, and shouldn’t discourage more investigation or caution among consumers. There are hundreds of products on the market from which to choose. And my hunch is, to skip any with attached controversial issues, to err on the side of caution.
Look for brands with no recall history. Truly family run, and fully accountable. Better yet look at Susan’s 2017 List for well vetted products, control over sourcing, and excellent transparency. At worst, no company should be waiting to defend itself on Consumer Affairs, but should meet a controversy head-on with facts and proven assurances. Customer Service and proactive out reach suggests a company need not feel defensive.
Pacific Sun
August 13, 2017 at 11:25 am
A lot of people who make comments here, looking for good PF alternatives, might be interested. We had a speaker the other evening at the Independent Pet Supply store. They introduced us to Mary’s Pet Food (poultry raw PF products). Mary’s claim to fame is in being local to us (Fresno), offering completely organic chicken, which is fed organic, non-GMO, gluten-free, and humanely raised. (In California, there are regulations). The chicken is also air-chilled, not bathed in water for a cleanse so you’re not paying for added water in the product. It’s HPP processed, and they are obsessed with testing. Because the company sells their products (for human consumption) to retail and restaurants. Because they had such a good reputation with clients, they were asked to offer a PF. And have been doing so for several years. I was shocked to find out that their size bag, comparable to other brands (I use) which don’t have as many of the added values, costs the same. (My hunch is, that won’t last much longer as more of the public discovers the product!) And our Pet Supply store is going to be adding yet more freezers to accommodate their inventory. Our PS store (of which I am only a customer) offers one of the largest selections of raw PF options (as well as traditional) in this region, possibly the State. If you’d like more information let me know.
No, I do not sell anything, nor receive compensation for endorsements. Or profit in any other way.
Kimberly Siebert
August 27, 2017 at 12:32 am
canine caviar… check it out. Ziwipeak. check them out…
Christa Wagner
August 30, 2017 at 10:49 am
175 Complaints about TOTW. I have friend that feeds TOTW. She just opened a new bag and now both of her dogs are sick! There are hundreds of complaints on Facebook about how sick their dogs are from eating TOTW.
https://www.consumeraffairs.com/pets/taste-of-the-wild.html
Lynn
November 6, 2017 at 3:14 pm
My dogs also became very, very sick after opening a new TOTW bag towards the end of October.
Joy Wallen
November 17, 2017 at 12:09 am
Same here-my dog refused to eat it-I went to the pet store and asked-are you getting complaints on TOTW Pacific Stream? The manager said no. I continued to feed it to her with meat added to perk up her appetite-now she has a dangerous level of acidity in her bladder and an e-coli infection of the bladder that no antibiotic will kill.. Thousands of dollars of vet bills and tests and now I see it was the food that made her so sick.- She is 15-my be-loved dog and now may have to put her down.-
I wish I had never heard of this dog food. She was fine until I read it was good for dogs with anal gland problems and put her on it. She was fine on it for a year and now she is not fine and may not make it.
Phoebe Siefken
December 15, 2017 at 11:41 am
I myself was worried about feeding my dogs TOTW,i have been feeding my dogs this food for some time now with no problems.just opened a new bag finished the old bag,the complaints made are saying it’s from the food.was tests done on the food .i know when my dogs go out i don’t watch them the whole time could something gotten in the yard.i do know for a fact that Squirrel’s carry food around .had my grandkids eating lunch on our patio this summer and my neighbor told me he found a peanut and jelly sandwich in his front yard.my grandkids ate lunch on my patio in my back yard .anything is possible .i will not believe anything until tests come back that it is the food.
Adi
March 8, 2018 at 8:49 pm
I live in a country which people who have dogs maybe only 0.1% from total population, so hard to find a good dog food here. And because the shipping cost, the price in my country twice more expensive compare to in the US.
In my city, there’s a big distributor of TOTW, and Acana. So those are my only option.
At the first time, I didn’t trust TOTW, because many reviews at consumeraffairs.com. But my friend is husky breeder, his dogs who eat TOTW exclusively have bigger body and very healthy, never sick, compare to raw food, the dogs looks very cool too 🙂
I was afraid to give my dog TOTW, even though the seller give my a guaranteed, if my dog got sick, I can complain to him and he will give me responsibility.
And then after doing a research, I like TOTW, they’re transparent to their customers, people saying that Orijen and Acana are more better compare to TOTW, but those company doesn’t has a page at consumeraffairs.com, so who knows if their review are more worst compare to TOTW. And TOTW take responsibilities by admit and recall their bad batch.
I have an experience with science diets, my dog got itch and keep rubbing his body, I went to the vet, and they told me it because one of ingredients. And those are the second batch I bought, at first batch, my dogs is fine, so I believe it’s a bad batch. After I change it to TOTW, my buddy very healthy, active, never sick.
Sorry for my bad grammar 🙂
Dr. Deborah Kelloway
April 27, 2018 at 6:45 pm
Clinically, I see dogs with diarrhea more frequently on Taste of the Wild than any other brand. I let clients know it’s the #1 diarrhea diet at the moment.
Peggy McCarty
June 7, 2018 at 11:56 pm
My dog has been on a Taste of the Wild for 3yrs with no problem. But this new bag, he refused to eat for 3 days. I thought maybe because I’d left him a couple wks. After opening the new bag with rejection for 3 days, he ate. The next day for the ONLY time in 7yrs, there was diarrhea and vomit all over my house. Two days of that. I then boiled chicken and rice. Fed him that for 3 days. Last night put maybe 25 kibbles of dry food in with his chicken and rice. Sick again today. THAT FAST! It finally hit me, it’s the food:( Back to chicken and rice until I find a food I feel safe with. If he was maybe 12yrs old, I feel he may have died???
Denise
June 9, 2018 at 7:49 pm
I used to feed my dogs Taste of the Wild then switched because I couldn’t afford it anymore. Due to all the recalls Diamond foods had, switching dog food was the best thing I did. There are times when I would like to go back to TOTW because it’s a five star dog food but due to all the recalls, I just can’t.
Stephanie
August 5, 2018 at 12:46 am
Hi, Peggy!
See my post dated August 3rd. Unfortunately, what you and your dog experienced is happening more frequently than people know. Look at Taste Of The Wild reviews/complaints on Amazom.com and Chewy.com (just to name a few) as well as complaints reported on ConsumerAffairs.com and you will find numerous posts that are very similar to what you described.
Please file a Pet Food Report with the Center for Veterinary Medicine and also contact your state’s Association of American Feed Control Officials Bureau Chief (see the instructions included in my August 3rd post).
Thanks!
Denise
June 10, 2018 at 7:47 am
If you can’t afford the more expensive dog foods; Victor Grain Free dog food or Sportsmix is another food that has never had a recall. Victors is made in Texas and gets their ingredients within a 200 mile radius of the plant.
Lisa
July 29, 2018 at 7:16 am
Has anyone had issues with TOTW Southwest Canyon? My dogs is refusing to eat this formula… never have had the problem before. Wondering if it a problem with the bag of TOTW.
Stephanie
August 5, 2018 at 12:59 am
Hi, Lisa!
See my post dated August 3rd.
I hope your dog continued to refuse to eat the TOTW dog food and that you tried a different brand.
Do you still have the Southwest Canyon bag of food? If so, do not throw it away. Even though you didn’t post about your dog eating the food and getting sick, the Center for Veterinary Medicine will still want to hear from you.
Please file a Pet Food Report with the Center for Veterinary Medicine and also contact your state’s Association of American Feed Control Officials Bureau Chief (see the instructions included in my August 3rd post).
Thanks!
Stephanie
August 3, 2018 at 11:57 pm
After two feedings from a newly opened bag of TOTW dog food in June, my two dogs became extremely ill…vomiting, bloody diarrhea, lethargic, stomach pain, nausea, drooling. They were diagnosed with clostridium perfringens and are still trying to recover.
There is definitely an ongoing issue with TOTW dog food. Many complaints have been, and continue to be, reported of dogs in numerous states getting sick with the same symptoms after eating TOTW dog food. At this point in time, TOTW refuses to admit that there is an issue with their dog food.
Thankfully, this issue is on the radar of the proper organizations. I can’t go into a lot of detail, but the Center for Veterinary Medicine needs the parents of these sick dogs to file a Pet Food Report via their Safety Reporting Portal at http://www.safetyreporting.hhs.gov. The CVM wants as much detailed information that you can provide such as breed, age, weight, current on shots, ever outside alone, vet records, test reports, picture of the production code on the bag, a picture of the ingredients listed on the bag, etc. The CVM also wants to know if you still have the food and, if so, how much and if you will make it available for testing.
You also need to contact your state’s Bureau Chief with the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO). You can find the contact information of your state’s Bureau Chief at http://www.aafco.org/Regulatory/State-Information. The Bureau Chiefs are reporting issues to and working with the FDA Complaint Coordinators and both organizations need as much information as possible.
Moo C
September 9, 2018 at 1:33 am
There’s a class action lawsuit filed against Taste of the Wild 8/28/2018. Private owners had bags of TOTW kibble sent to an independent lab and results came in showing the kibble contained lead, mercury, bps, pesticides, acrylamide, arsenic.
https://truthaboutpetfood.com/taste-of-the-wild-pet-food-class-action-lawsuit/
Link to the filed suit: https://truthaboutpetfood.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/2018-08-28-Taste-of-the-Wild-Complaint.pdf
Kristie
November 7, 2018 at 9:49 am
Just purchased a bag of totw puppy formula on 10-31-18. I have been feeding my 10 month old puppy this dog food all his life. Well my puppy threw up 4 times the day after feeding him from this new bag. My other 4 year old dog sneaks and eats the puppy’s food if he leaves any in the bowl. The 4 year old dog threw up the same day too! I also buy the bison formula for the 4 year old but he had been eating on it for weeks with no problems, so it was most likely the new bag of puppy food. Thinking back now, last year I had to take my 4 year old dog to the ER vet because he was throwing up so badly. He was in the ER for 3 days. Wonder if it was the Taste of the Wild. It really is a shame we can’t trust dog food companies. Now I need to find a different brand.
Pet Owner
November 7, 2018 at 8:26 pm
You are to be commended and thanked for sharing your story. I fear the only thing general PF consumers pay attention to anymore, are real life experiences of other pet owners. It has been one thing to convince consumers about questionable “brands” and manufacturers. But quite another to convince them that even “lots” (or batches) of PF from the same manufacturer (brand) can vary wildly. Such food can be incidentally contaminated with a (pest or sanitation) chemical erroneously applied. Or through the use of tainted rendered ingredients. Or mishandling during processing. Diarrhea AND vomiting should never be ignored as symptoms. ESPECIALLY in puppies with more fragile systems. The food needs to be discontinued, and replaced with a bland, controlled meal. And if worse, checked by a Vet. For one thing, so the pet’s intestines and stomach can recover from upset and inflammation. And another, so that a pet returning to normal (on a bland meal) diet will prove that batch of PF was at fault. No $40+ bag of PF is ever worth the risk to your pet. Report the issue back to the PF supplier, the manufacturer and FDA. That’s why an original bag with “lot.date” batch number should always be kept (even if the food is transferred into a container). Be sure to share with people on Social Media. It could save another pet from unnecessary distress (and possibly danger) at worst.
Stephanie
November 8, 2018 at 12:02 am
Kristie –
TOTW Pacific Stream Canine Formula with Smoked Salmon, Prairie Puppy Formula, and High Prairie Canine Recipe with Roasted Bison & Roasted Venison are three formulas that tested positive for arsenic, cadmium, mercury, lead, pesticides, acrylamide and bisphenol A (“BPA”).
See my post dated August 3rd. My two dogs were on the Pacific Stream formula for years until June, when they became extremely ill following two feedings from a newly opened bag of Pacific Stream. It took four months and several thousands of dollars in Vet bills before they recovered from the damage that was done to them by TOTW. They are now on Royal Canin Veterinary Diet Selected Protein Adult PW Moderate Calorie Dry Dog Food and have been doing well on it.
If you haven’t already, I recommend that you file a Pet Food Report via their Safety Reporting Portal at http://www.safetyreporting.hhs.gov.
Tina
July 16, 2021 at 8:55 am
My dog has been eating taste of the wild for close to 2 years and for the last 8 months has been vomiting and going diarrhea after he eats it. I switch foods every so often because he’s so picky but I stuck with totw bc it was the only dog food he’s consistently ate and I mix this in with other food too. Maybe it’s just this last bag (the biggest bag) but I felt it was such a waste to just throw away but after reading reviews it makes me so sad to think it’s this that is making my dog so sick.
Erica Johnson
July 16, 2021 at 12:52 pm
I had this same issues several years back with 2 of my cats. Bloody Diarrhea, vomiting. My husband use to handle to cats food during that time and he also got sick with the same symptoms.
I switched foods and everything cleared up. Found out a couple months later , their was a huge recall happening with TOTW
I’m so fed up with crap pet food manufacturing!