Kitten Food Recalled After Testing Positive for Salmonella

Blue Ridge Beef, a popular raw pet food company, has issued a recall for 1,350 pounds of cat food. After a customer complained that their cat fell ill, the Massachusetts State Public Health Laboratory tested a sample of the Blue Ridge Beef Kitten Mix. The sample tested positive for Salmonella, a bacterium that can cause cats to become dangerously sick.

The contaminated lot

Only one lot of the Blue Ridge Beef Kitten Mix is impacted by the recall: Kitten Mix products with the lot number N25-0716 and the Universal Product Code 854298001436. The lot number can be found on the clip at the end of the food bag, and the Universal Product Code can be found below the barcode on the food bag.

According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the bags were sold primarily in retail stores in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania. Connecticut, Massachusetts, and New York.

How to keep your cat safe

If you have purchased a bag of Kitten Mix from the affected lot, the FDA recommends you “return to place of purchase or destroy the food in a way that children, pets, and wildlife cannot access.” The food should not be sold, donated, or fed to pets.

They further recommend sanitizing any surfaces touched by the food, including pet food bowls, storage containers, surfaces, and your hands.

Cats who are infected with salmonella are often asymptomatic. In more severe cases, cats may develop fever, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and vomiting, according to the Swedish Veterinary Institute. In rare cases, the infection can spread to other organs and cause life-threatening complications such as meningitis. If you suspect your cat has salmonella, they should see a veterinarian immediately; a vet can prevent worsening symptoms, keep your cat hydrated, and help stop the spread of the disease.