On Monday, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alerted pet owners and veterinary professionals that at least 11 different brands of dog food are recalling their products and that people need to check before feeding any dry food to their dogs.

“Testing found that samples of the dog food contained excessive, potentially toxic amounts of vitamin D,” the FDA said in a notice on its website.

Recalled brands include Nutrisca, Natural Life, Sunshine Mills, ANF, Inc., Lidl, Evolve, Sportsman’s Pride, Abound (sold at Kroger), and Nature’s Promise (sold at Giant and Stop & Shop), as well as others, the FDA said.

The agency also cautions that this may not be a complete list, as it’s common for retail chains to buy products from a contract manufacturer and sell them under various brand names. The FDA says it’s working with the manufacturer in question to provide a comprehensive list of affected brands.

The affected products include grain-free, chicken, lamb, rice, and other flavors, and lab test results indicate that some of the products contained as much as 70 times the intended amount of vitamin D.

Excess vitamin D in the diet can cause vomiting, loss of appetite, increased thirst, increased urination, excessive drooling, and weight loss. Vitamin D at toxic levels can cause kidney failure and death.

The FDA is urging pet owners whose dogs have been eating the recalled brands and are showing these symptoms to contact their veterinarians immediately.

Meanwhile, the FDA is encouraging veterinarians who are treating dogs for vitamin D toxicity to be aware that vitamin D toxicity in dogs may present as hypercalcemia, similar to dogs who have consumed rodenticide. In those cases, the agency suggests that you confirm diet history to verify whether the dog has been eating any of the recalled products.

The FDA also welcomes case reports, especially those confirmed through diagnostics.

Veterinarians can submit those reports either electronically through their safety reporting portal or by calling their state’s FDA Consumer Complaint Coordinators. For an explanation of the information and level of detail that would be helpful to include in a complaint to the FDA, please see How to Report a Pet Food Complaint.

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