Northwest Naturals recalled their 2lb Feline Turkey Recipe raw and frozen pet food due to H5N1 bird flu contamination after a Washington County cat’s death. Tests confirmed a genetic match between the virus in the pet food and the infected cat. The recall affects products nationwide.
Portland-based pet food company
Northwest Naturals
recalled their pet food on Tuesday after a
Washington County cat
died of bird flu. Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) said that the company is recalling its Northwest Naturals 2lb Feline Turkey Recipe raw and frozen food as the tests confirmed a contamination with the H5N1 strain of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI).
In a Facebook post, WSDA said, “Morasch Meats is recalling its Northwest Naturals 2lb Feline Turkey Recipe raw and frozen pet food after tests confirmed contamination with the H5N1 strain of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI), which led to the death of an indoor cat in Washington County, Oregon. Genome sequencing revealed an exact match between the virus in the pet food and the infected cat, prompting the recall of products with “Best if used by” dates of 05/21/26 B10 and 06/23/26 B1 distributed nationwide.”
The pet food was sold nationwide through distributors in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Mississippi, Minnesota, Rhode Island, and Washington, as well as British Columbia in Canada, according to the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA). The company urged pet owner to check their pet food supplies and dispose of the product.
“We are confident that this cat contracted H5N1 by eating the Northwest Naturals raw and frozen pet food. This cat was strictly an indoor cat; it was not exposed to the virus in its environment, and results from the genome sequencing confirmed that the virus recovered from the raw pet food and infected cat were exact matches to each other,” Dr. Ryan Scholz, an Oregon Department of Agriculture state veterinarian said in a release.
No human cases linked to this incident have been reported to date, the ODA said.
WSDA has recommended people follow some guidelines to avoid the spread of the disease.
- Avoid consuming raw or undercooked meat products
- Avoid consuming raw dairy
- Limit contact with sick or dead animals
- Wash your hands after handling raw animal products or contact with sick/dead animals
- Report sick or dead birds to ODA at 503-986-4711
- Keep pets or poultry away from wild waterfowl
(Pic courtesy: iStock)
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