Warning - Cat food recall linked to 209 deaths - details here

[Chihuahuacat]

Hi all,

I just wanted to share this Facebook group:

www.facebook.com/groups/806871953557080/?ref=share

I had my darling cat pass away a few weeks ago completely out of the blue due to low blood count.

The vet mentioned there had been an upsurge in cases and this group suggests it is linked to grain free / hypoallergenic food.

Please please share so now one else has to go through this x

Thanks so much for posting this- DCat does have Applaws chicken but we got it from the EU where we live and it's apparently not affected. The online store we got it from have confirmed their products are bot affected, it's only the UK. DCat only gets a small part of his diet from the dry food, but I'd been hesitant about it for a while (also its role in obesity and dehydration). This might be what pushes me over the edge to cut it out altogether. iThought at least getting a good brand of grain-free dry would make it ok. Apparently not.
Wishing all your cats well, and condolences to those who've lost precious cats.

The vet didnt get back to me, so I may have to bug him again. I know I'm challenging his diagnosis (of Warfarin poisoning) but at the time it was the only conclusion he could come to.

@Grumpyoldpersonwithcats

All the recalled foods are made by a company in Boston (Lincs) called Fold Hill Foods Limited. Their code (visible on packets they have produced) is GB218E5009.

Worrying that it could be some contamination?

Bumping this, since duplicate threads are appearing.

Just had a long phone call with the vet and he confirmed Col had Pancytopenia that he thinks was linked to the food. He originally thought it was Warfarin poisoning as well, what else could they think, no one knew

He asked for our permission to report his records to RVC, he's quite shocked by it all and was a bit taken aback when I told him of lots of families loosing 2/3 cats

It's all quite horrific really

Oh that's dreadful @Oldraver so sorry to hear that :(

Oh @Oldraver, I am sorry

My cat eats James wellbeloved dry food, am hoping that's okay 😕

I'm so sorry to hear about so many cats dying 😢

I had an email from Zooplus to say that I had received a bad batch of applaws - about 3 weeks after we had finished the packet - and we would receive a full refund.

Cat is currently biting my feet under the duvet and seems fine but I'm sorry to hear of others affected

I'm so sorry to those of you who have lost your cats.
Ours has been to vets today to have a precautionary blood test. Keeping everything crossed that she is ok

I hope this doesn't sound silly, but with the symptoms listed these cats sound as if they have died of covid. My 4 month old had it last year, went into vets with diarrhoea, tiredness, 41 degree temperature. He survived after spending 4 days on a drip. I don't know whether they done bloods on him, but with people here saying about low white blood count, covid would seem a possibility.

I think if it were Covid there would be more cats who would if died, who had eaten food from various sources

With these cars ALL their red blood cells have gone along with white cells and something else, hence PAN-CYTO-PENIA

I know nothing can be ruled out but theses cats are dying a horrible death, where they effectively bleed to death internally as their blood is not clotting due to lack of red blood cells.

The few that are surviving are having very invasive treatment which sometimes includes blood transfusions and some very very expensive drugs

Bump to ensure more people are aware of this. The factory linked to the deaths is producing many different brands of cat and dog products

@Tootsey11 Not to scare you, but if you look on the facebook page a number of cats had no symptoms at all until it was too late. I think if at all possible it's best to get blood tests done as a precaution

Also the official death toll is now much higher tuan 209

than*

@XelaM

Bump to ensure more people are aware of this. The factory linked to the deaths is producing many different brands of cat and dog products

How do we find out which brands ? I have a dog, no cats at the moment, but I am still concerned. It is terrible for all of you with cats, such a worry.

Has this been publicised at all on any tv/radio news? If not, why? I haven't heard anything about it other than on MN and an email from our vet.

There have been a few things on TV- this morning did a piece, I think it was on the news and in a newspaper. Some radio stations too. Really not much though!

@SirVixofVixHall I think any brand that has factory code GB218E5009 at the back should be avoided. At the moment, it's AVA, Applaws, Sainsbury's, Wilko, Aldi, Lidl that have products from this factory

I'm sticking with my covid theory. My kitten had all the same symptoms, I got him treated fast. He survived. Humans can pass it to cats. Those who are double vaccinated probably won't even know they have it and can pass it on to their cat. I did. Covid causes low platelets in people, why not cats.

If this is food, then what has changed in the ingredients in those brands now compared hto say 2 years ago. What has been changed or added. It really shouldn't be that difficult to work out if it is food. But yet they still don't know. Hmmmm.

It will be pretty terrible if it is Covid. Terrible for cats and humans, as more opportunities for mutations in ways we can’t predict.

@Tootsey11 If it was covid, it's odd that it's not linked to a wider circle of deaths than the food produced by 1 factory. The RVC believe the food is the common link and that factory had bad press in the past. People think it may be deliberate contamination by someone at the factory

I really hope that they get to the bottom of it soon.

There is also a theory of not what has contaminated the food but what could of been depleted by the manufacturing process or lack of b (I think) 12