HONOLULU — The Hawaii Department of Health's Food and Drug Branch issued an alert Friday for a voluntary recall of products by Lystn, LLC for certain lots of raw dog food products, because of potential salmonella and listeria monocytogenes contamination.
These products are sold online by Lystn, LLC and through local boutique pet stores with the “ANSWERS Pet Food” label. The DOH is notifying local pet stores to ensure that the recalled products are no longer available for sale, according to a news release.
Salmonella and listeria monocytogenes can cause serious and sometimes fatal infection for pets.
Pets infected with salmonella do not always display symptoms, but signs can include vomiting, diarrhea (which may be bloody), fever, loss of appetite or decreased activity level. The DOH recommends that anyone who has a pet showing these symptoms contact a veterinarian. The DOH also warned that infected pets can shed bacteria in their feces without showing signs of being sick.
Listeria monocytogenes, if consumed through food, can cause listeriosis, a serious and sometimes fatal infection for pets. Listeria monocytogenes illnesses in pets are rare. Infected pets may display symptoms including mild to severe diarrhea, anorexia, fever, nervousness, muscular and respiratory issues, miscarriage, depression, shock and death. Pets who consume contaminated food can be asymptomatic, while still being carriers and transferring listeria monocytogenes through feces and saliva to people and other pets in the household. Anyone who has a pet that has eaten the recalled products should contact a veterinarian immediately.
People can become infected by handling contaminated food, having contact with pets who have consumed contaminated food, or having contact with surfaces that touched contaminated food.
Risk of illness increases if people do not thoroughly wash their hands after handling the food or having contact with their pet, or by not thoroughly cleaning contaminated surfaces. People who are very young, very old, or have weak immune systems are also more at risk of illness.
As of Thursday, the DOH said no one has reported illness or adverse events from the recalled products.
The DOH advised consumers to check for the products listed below by the “best used-by date” and do not feed the recalled product to pets or other animals. The DOH also instructed people to use gloves — do not touch the food product with bare hands — and seal the contaminated food in a plastic trash bag and dispose of it to make it inaccessible to children, pets and wildlife. Lastly, the DOH said to sanitize areas that may have touched the contaminated product.
For a refund, the DOH said to submit a receipt, product pictures, and the retailer’s information to info@answerspetfood.com.
