What to Do When Pet Food Is Recalled

Source: 8

1. Match the exact package

• Exact product name and variety
• Package type and size
• Lot number
• Best-by, use-by, or expiration date
• UPC or barcode
• Purchase date and location
• Full recall notice reviewed

The brand name alone is not enough.

A recall may apply only to certain products, package sizes, lot numbers, or dates. Compare the information in the recall notice with the information on the package in your home.

Match the package, not just the logo.

The lot number is especially important. It can help identify the specific batch and may help identify where and when the product was made. Save or photograph it because it may be difficult to find or read later.

If the information does not match exactly, do not assume that your package is included or excluded based only on the brand name. Read the full recall notice and check for updates.

Sources: 5, 1

2. Stop, separate, and save

• Stop feeding or using the affected product
• Secure it away from pets and children
• Photograph the front and back of the package
• Photograph the lot number, date, and UPC
• Save the receipt when available
• Record where and when it was purchased
• Review the official return or disposal instructions

If your exact package matches the recall, stop using it and keep it away from pets and children.

Before returning or discarding the product, photograph all identifying information.

If illness or contamination is suspected and the product can be stored safely, keep the remaining product in its original package, secured away from pets and children, until your veterinarian, FDA, the manufacturer, or the recall notice tells you whether it may be needed.

Then follow the official return or disposal instructions.

A follow-up investigation may sometimes involve collecting food, treats, packaging, or diagnostic samples. The original package may contain information needed to identify the product, production batch, and manufacturing details.

Do not keep recalled or potentially contaminated food where a person or animal could accidentally reach it.

Sources: 1, 5

3. Put the pet first

• Identify which pets ate the product
• Record how much was eaten
• Record when it was eaten
• Record symptoms and when they began
• Note whether another pet ate it and remained well
• List other foods, treats, supplements, and medications
• Record how the product was stored and handled
• Save veterinary findings or records
• Contact a veterinarian when the pet is ill or symptoms are concerning

When a pet becomes ill, it is natural to want an immediate explanation. But many conditions can cause similar symptoms, and timing alone does not prove that a food caused an illness.

Write down:

• which pet or pets ate the product
• how much each pet ate
• when it was eaten
• when symptoms began
• what symptoms you observed
• whether another pet ate the same product and remained well
• any other food, treats, supplements, or medications given
• how the product was stored and handled
• whether a veterinarian was consulted
• any veterinary findings, records, or test results

FDA requests many of these details when reviewing pet-food complaints.

The pet comes first. The investigation comes second.

A veterinarian can examine your pet, document what is happening, recommend appropriate testing or treatment, and consider other possible causes.

A recall page, company statement, social-media post, or consumer guide cannot do that.

Sources: 1, 8

4. Check for updates

• Read the complete company announcement
• Check FDA Animal and Veterinary Recalls and Withdrawals
• Check FDA Animal Health Outbreaks and Advisories
• Look for added products, lots, sizes, or dates
• Look for revised return or disposal instructions
• Record the date the information was last checked

The first notice you see may not be the last update.

A recall may later be expanded, corrected, or updated with:

• additional products
• new lot numbers
• different package sizes
• additional best-by dates
• more retail locations
• revised return or disposal instructions

Check:

• the company's full recall announcement
• FDA Animal and Veterinary Recalls and Withdrawals
• FDA Animal Health Outbreaks and Advisories
• later updates from the company or FDA

FDA maintains separate pages for veterinary recall announcements and for public-health advisories. Some advisories involve recalls, while others provide separate safety information.

A recall may begin through a company's initiative, an FDA request, or an FDA order.

The word voluntary alone does not tell you who first discovered the problem or everything that happened before the announcement.

Sources: 3, 4

5. Report the right information

• Contact a veterinarian when the pet is ill
• Submit the product concern to FDA
• Notify the manufacturer or distributor
• Notify the retailer when appropriate
• Contact the applicable state feed-control official when relevant
• Save confirmation numbers, emails, or other reporting records

A useful report contains specific product details and a clear timeline.

You can report a suspected pet-food product problem even when an animal has not become ill. Product problems may include an unusual odor or color, leaking or swollen packaging, or a foreign object.

When reporting a concern:

1. Contact your veterinarian when your pet is ill.
2. Report the product concern to FDA.
3. Notify the manufacturer or distributor.
4. Notify the retailer when appropriate.
5. Contact the appropriate state feed-control official when relevant.

Telling the store or manufacturer does not replace reporting the concern to FDA.

FDA recommends submitting a report even when the store, manufacturer, distributor, or another responsible party has already been notified.

A report is not a declaration that a company or product caused an illness.

It gives regulators information they can compare with:

• other reports
• product details
• laboratory findings
• veterinary findings
• possible patterns

FDA reviews reports to decide whether follow-up may be possible or needed. Even when no testing follows, a report may remain part of product-problem or adverse-event surveillance.

Sources: 1, 2, 6

Sources: 1, 2, 5

Official Resources

Report a concern

1. FDA: How to Report a Pet Food Complainthttps://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/report-problem/how-report-pet-food-complaint

Explains how to submit a report and what product, purchase, storage, symptom, and veterinary information may be useful.

2. FDA: Pet Food Safety Reporting Portal Frequently Asked Questionshttps://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/report-problem/pet-food-safety-reporting-portal-frequently-asked-questions

Explains who may file a report, what information is requested, and when a product problem may be reported even without an affected animal.

Check recalls and advisories

3. FDA: Recalls & Withdrawalshttps://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/safety-health/recalls-withdrawals

Lists veterinary recalls and explains the main ways a recall may begin.

4. FDA: Outbreaks and Advisorieshttps://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/news-events/outbreaks-and-advisories

Provides FDA notices involving pressing animal or public-health concerns.

Save identifying information

5. FDA: Save Your Pet Food Lot Number!https://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/animal-health-literacy/save-your-pet-food-lot-number

Explains why the lot number matters and why photographing it can help.

Find state assistance

6. AAFCO: State Informationhttps://www.aafco.org/state-information/

Provides a directory for finding state feed-control contacts and information.

Review additional public records

7. FDA Center for Veterinary Medicine: CVM FOIA Electronic Reading Roomhttps://www.fda.gov/about-fda/center-veterinary-medicine/cvm-foia-electronic-reading-room

Provides selected publicly available Center for Veterinary Medicine records and resources. It should not be treated as a complete, real-time complaint database.

Pet emergencies

8. FDA: Who Do You Call if You Have a Pet Emergency?https://www.fda.gov/animal-veterinary/animal-health-literacy/who-do-you-call-if-you-have-pet-emergency

Explains when to contact a veterinarian, emergency animal hospital, or United States animal poison-control service.

Better, not perfect

You do not have to solve the entire story at once.

Start with the package in front of you.

Match the product.

Save the identifying information.

Put your pet first.

Check for updates.

Report what you know.

Better, not perfect.

Sources reviewed August 2026. This guide summarizes publicly available United States resources. Recall information, reporting procedures, and official links may change. Check the linked official sources for the most current information.

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