In the first of probably many to follow, a lawsuit was just filed against Midwestern Pet Food for failing to properly test their pet foods which resulted in numerous pet deaths.
On January 19, 2021 “Stephanie Romero, David Starnes, Staci Foote, Ashley Lill, and Crystal Fabela, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated – v. Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc.” was filed in Indiana District Court.
This lawsuit includes heartbreaking stories of pet deaths.
“On December 25, 2020, Christmas day, after Ms. Romero had been feeding her two dogs SPORTMiX pet food, the two dogs became seriously ill consistent with symptoms of aflatoxin poisoning, and Ms. Romero was forced to make the decision to euthanize them.”
“After feeding three of his dogs SPORTMiX, Mr. Starnes’s three dogs died on December 4, December 6 and December 10, 2020, after becoming suddenly ill and appearing jaundiced. His dog that did not eat as much SPORTMiX is the only survivor.”
“After feeding her two dogs SPORTMiX from a bag purchased in October 2020, one of Ms. Lill’s dogs began vomiting and when she switched her pet food, the dog recovered. Her other dog continued to eat SPORTMiX, became jaundiced, had diarrhea, and died on December 20, 2020, on the way to the veterinarian’s office.”
The lawsuit also emphasizes the misleading information provided by this manufacturer on its website – which were removed AFTER the company realized there was a serious concern with their pet foods (bold added):
“Furthermore, prior to the Recall and before Plaintiffs alerted Defendant to its potential violations of law, to further bolster the image of its pet foods as healthy for pets, Midwestern touted only selecting the highest quality ingredients and testing and re-testing to ensure the health and safety of pets eating Defendant’s pet foods. Midwestern stated that it relied upon testing by the suppliers of its ingredients, its own testing of ingredients upon receipt at its facilities and testing of the final products. After Plaintiffs alerted Defendant to these misrepresentations, they were removed from Defendant’s websites.”
And the lawsuit addresses concerns that Midwestern Pet Food attempted to pay owners of sick pets for their silence:
“Defendant’s omission of critical information from the Class members is further demonstrated by its insurance claims process that attempts to “buy off” certain Class members through a faulty, burdensome claims process that requires evaluation by a veterinarian and toxicologist and substantial documentation. This attempt to buy silence has likely negatively impacted other consumers and Class members.”
The lawsuit mentions test results of this pet food performed by a veterinarian, finding “525 parts per billion (ppb)” and “380 (ppb)” aflatoxin in samples. “The samples were between 19 and 26 times the FDA’s threshold limit of 20 ppb.“
To read the full lawsuit complaint, Click Here.
For more information about this lawsuit pet owners can contact:
Jessica J. Sleater
ANDERSEN SLEATER SIANNI LLC
1250 Broadway, 27th Floor
New York, New York 10001
Telephone: (646) 599-9848
jessica@andersensleater.com
Wishing you and your pet(s) the best,
Susan Thixton
Pet Food Safety Advocate
Author Buyer Beware, Co-Author Dinner PAWsible
TruthaboutPetFood.com
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lyn
January 21, 2021 at 5:01 pm
When money rules, ethics are gone. They only speak money, so these lawsuits are the only way to fight back. Their reputation and future earnings will suffer, as it should be.