Claim: Several cats have fallen ill and died from consuming Purina Cat Chow.
Example: [Collected via Facebook, November 2014]
I'd like to start this post off by telling all my friends and family that loved our precious kitty Killian he passed away last evening.. I would like to tell everyone the story so that you can be aware of these dangers, as Killian and I were not quite so fortunate..
Last night I bought Killian a new bag of Purina cat chow indoor cat formula in a green bag. I fed him his normal 1/4 cup scoop, about
We came back home and I took a good
I was able to pull some blood samples, and obtained some oral swabs. I am also having the bag of cat food analyzed.. If these things point to irresponsibility on Purina's part nothing will be able to save them from me.
Origins: On
The complaints referenced by the poster in her status update appear to be from a
I purchased the large bag of Purina Cat Chow Complete. Says it is new shape same taste. My cat became very sick and started vomiting after feeding for a couple of days. I gave it to my daughter thinking it was just my cat but her cat became sick and started vomiting also. I am going to throw it away - but I thought someone should be aware of it.
More than 700 complaints have been lodged on the Purina page,
but the submitted content spans a number of different Purina products. It's important to note Purina and related brands (such as Friskies) are consumed by millions of pets across America on a daily basis, and pets who become ill are likely to have consumed that brand's products simply due to their ubiquity in stores and pet food bowls nationwide.
While the plea from a grieving pet owner has caused concern among cat owners on social media sites, her warning was expressed as a suspicion that was under investigation, not as something that had been definitively proved. On Twitter, an official account linked with the Purina brand addressed concerns about Purina Cat Chow's safety:
We assure you there are no product issues with Cat Chow or any Purina product. Safety and quality are our top priorities.
While the Purina Cat Chow warning has spread across sites like Facebook, the original poster has not yet issued an update stating whether a cause of death for her cat was ever confirmed. And although a large number of pet owners have ascribed their cats' or dogs' illnesses to recent consumption of Purina products, no illnesses or pet deaths have recently been positively linked to the brand. Many of the pet owners reporting cat illnesses surmised Purina products were to blame, but no causal connection between Purina Cat Chow and pet illness has been documented despite the brand's widespread consumption by American cats.
Last updated: 12 November 2014