Nanjing’s JOC Great Wall Corp. Ltd. is set to be honored by the presence of US federal health inspectors to determine whether the chicken jerky pet treats produced and supplied by the Chinese company are responsible for illness and deaths in hundreds of dogs in the US. The products in question Waggin Train and Canyon Creek Ranch, are sold in America by Nestlé Purina Pet Care.
Officials will visit a number of plants in China after at least 600 reports of illness, such as abrupt kidney failure, reached the authorities. It has been suggested that these problems occurred following the pet’s intake of chicken jerky treats originating in Nanjing.
The investigation was put into action after msnbc.com reported the high number of complaints made by pet owners and veterinarians in reference to the two aforementioned products and amid growing pressure on the FDA from consumers and lawmakers who demanded an inspection.
Robin Pierre, 49, from Pine Bush, N.Y., is one of the consumers urging the FDA to find out whether it is the Nanjing products that killed her pet. She is convinced that the disputed Waggin Train chicken jerky treats are responsible for the death of her 2-year-old pug Bella, who developed kidney failure out of the blue after Ms. Pierre fed her some treats. As a co-founder of Animal Parents Against Pet Treats Made in China, she has collected over 7,000 signatures pressuring the FDA into action.
“While I am happy that the FDA is in China investigating now, it never should have taken this long. Too many of our innocent and voiceless companions suffered horrific deaths and many will forever be dealing with the repercussions of falling victim to corporate greed. No animal should have ever had to die because of a ‘treat'”, she said.
Three warnings about the treats have already been made within the last five years by the FDA. Ever since, the products have undergone constant testing by agency scientists with the goal of finding dangerous toxins, including heavy metals, melamine, melamine analogs and diethylene glycol chemicals used in plastics and resins.
To the disappointment of the angry pet owners, the answer does not seem as obvious as they might have hoped. So far, no materials that would lead to the kind of illness affecting the animals have been found in the thoroughly tested treats.
