Pet owners are being urged to check their cupboards after a popular kitten milk replacer was urgently recalled.
The products, sold nationwide under the Shelter's Choice and Breeder's Edge brands, were found to have low levels of potassium, copper, folic acid, choline and/or vitamin B6 – deficiencies that can be particularly dangerous for newborn kittens.
The US Food and Drug Administration warned that kittens are a 'very vulnerable population' because their organs are still developing, they grow rapidly and, in their earliest days, can be completely dependent on milk for their nutrition.
That means a nutritional deficiency that might have a relatively minor effect on an adult cat can become much more serious in a tiny kitten.
The FDA warns that kittens given milk replacer lacking sufficient levels of these nutrients could face potentially devastating problems including anemia, neurological dysfunction, liver failure, kidney damage, skeletal disease and heart complications.
Signs of deficiency can appear within days or a few weeks, and severe cases could result in permanent developmental or organ damage – or even prove fatal if not recognized and treated.
The news has sparked an angry and emotional reaction among some kitten foster carers online, many of whom rely on milk replacer to care for newborn animals that have been abandoned, orphaned or separated from their mothers.
However, the FDA has not confirmed any illnesses caused by the products, but Revival said it is investigating nine complaints involving potential gastrointestinal and bone-development problems.
The products, sold nationwide under the Shelter's Choice and Breeder's Edge brands, were found to have low levels of potassium, copper, folic acid, choline and/or vitamin B6 – deficiencies that can be particularly dangerous for newborn kittens
The concern is particularly acute among shelters and rescue groups, which can use large quantities of milk replacer while caring for litters of vulnerable kittens
The recall, announced on August 26, began after Revival received third-party test results suggesting that one lot of its Feline Milk Replacer could have a nutrient deficiency.
The company then conducted its own testing across multiple lots, with the results analyzed by an independent animal nutritionist on August 12.
Those tests led Revival to voluntarily recall the products, with the company blaming inconsistencies during manufacturing by a third-party contractor.
Revival based in Orange City, Iowa, has since discontinued its relationship with the contracted manufacturer.
For anyone with a young kitten at home, the advice is straightforward: check the product before feeding it.
Owners who have one of the recalled products should stop feeding it to kittens immediately and contact Revival Animal Health to arrange a full refund.
Anyone whose kitten has consumed an affected product and is showing signs of illness should contact a veterinarian as soon as possible.
