By Nicholas Roman, CVM Class of 2018 Candidate

The FDA is asking veterinarians and pet owners to help investigate a nine-year-old mystery: reports of illnesses associated with consumption of chicken, duck, or sweet potato jerky treats involving more than 6,200 dogs (including 1,140 canine deaths), 26 cats, and three people since 2007.

The FDA has issued repeated consumer warnings, and the media have followed the investigation, an interview by WENY News with a Cornell toxicologist from 2013 and an article on the topic appearing in the July 1, 2016, issue of JAVMA News.

Raising tensions in international trade with China, already strained because of earlier instances of adulteration of pet foods with melamine, is the observation that reports of illness have been most often linked to jerky treats sourced from China. However, China produces much of the jerky pet treats on the market. In the collaborative spirit of public health, the FDA has inspected production facilities in China, hosted Chinese scientists at their veterinary research facility, and met with the Chinese regulatory agency responsible for pet food to facilitate scientific and investigatory cooperation, information sharing, and awareness of US requirements for pet food safety.

Although the exact cause of illness has yet to be identified, reported cases nonetheless appear to be tapering off, or at least to have stabilized at less than 100 per quarter since mid-2014. Interestingly, reports from the public have tended to increase each time the FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine has issued updates about its jerky pet treats investigation.

Dr. Richard E. Goldstein, DVM, DACVIM, Chief Medical Officer at The Animal Medical Center in New York, New York, who began investigating animal illnesses linked to jerky-style pet treats when he was a faculty member at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine Department of Clinical Sciences in 2007, makes a number of suggestions to help keep pets safe:

• Eliminate imported jerky treats from your pet’s diet.
• Feed a commercially prepared diet carrying the the Association of American Feed Control Officials adequacy statement to ensure it provides “complete and balanced” nutrition.
• Watch for signs of illness such as decreased appetite, decreased activity, vomiting, diarrhea (which may contain blood or mucus), and increased water consumption and urination.

You can read more about this topic on the FDA’s product safety information page. Reports of jerky treat-related illness can be made to the FDA’s Safety Reporting Portal or to the FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinators.