Wondering what dog food is killing dogs? It has been in the news a lot since late 2019, the whole of 2021 and is still being reported in 2022. It is the Midwestern dry kibble that has killed over 200 dogs and gotten other 400+ ill.
Table of Contents
What caused Midwestern Dry Kibble to be Fatal Kibble.
Midwestern dog food recipes were found to have very high toxic levels of aflatoxins
Aflatoxin, which is a byproduct of corn mold, Aspergillus flavus is dangerous to dogs in large quantities. It can cause severe liver damage and even death. Many popular brands of dog food have recently been recalled because they contain high levels of aflatoxin, so it’s important to be aware of the risks.
Dog deaths by Aflatoxins – More than 2 dozen dogs died Initially
In 2020, over 20 dogs were reported to have died after eating a dog food recipe called Sportmix, a dry kibble. When it was reported back in early 2021, NBC indicated that Midwestern Pet Foods, Inc., the company behind Sportmix had recalled most of its corn-based kibble manufactured in their Oklahoma factories.
Another 70 dogs were reported to have died by the end of 2020
About 70 unconfirmed deaths were reported in connection to pets eating Sportmix and other brands of Midwestern corn-based kibble such as Pro Pac, Splash, Nunn, and Sportstrail labels.
More dogs die in August 2021 – 130 deaths
Late in August 2021, Today.com reported that Midwestern’s Sportmix brand had killed 130 pet deaths and more than 220 illnesses. The August inquiry led to FDA inspecting all manufacturing operations of Midwestern dog food brands.
Fatal Levels of Aflatoxins;
FDA took Samples of SPORTMiX that were later found to contain levels of aflatoxin as high as 558 parts per billion (ppb) against a set limit of 20 ppb of aflatoxin. In other words, the aflatoxins in SportMix were 27.9 times the maximum amount allowed and was enough to kill several pets – 70 to 80 in late 2020/early 2021, and over 130 in July-August 2022.
You can read more about Midwestern dog food recall here.
Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc, or its affiliates.
Hi there! My name is Ben Domb, an owner of two pets and I am one of the co-founders of OurPets HQ. I have several years of experience as a pet care professional in the New England region having spent time in various roles including a stint at a veterinary hospital in Upstate New York, Syracuse area. I am a certified pet care professional and mostly spend my time researching pet nutrition and sharing my thoughts in various blogs and columns. With quarantine and COVID restrictions, I have been spending a lot of time a lot with my dogs and cat and loving it! I also run a small consulting business providing advice to parents on pet nutrition, and especially safe homemade options to try. You can reach me at ben@ourpetshq.com
