UPDATE: 02/11/10: Someone started a petition asking Petag not to sell tainted formula Stop selling Petag's tainted formulas I did not start the petition. Someone sent it to me to warn me about the product. I wish Petag had warned me last year.

UPDATE: 02/10/10: I sent Petag a cease and desist letter. They sent an email to all consumers, distributors and stores stating there is no investigation, the FDA said my complaint was "spurious" and there is nothing wrong with their formulas. They even said the FDA approved of their letter. I spoke with the FDA. They hadn't even seen it and do not approved. They never said those things. The COO of the company admitted that her own formula was bad and should not be used. Something is very wrong for a company to make such huge lies.

UPDATE: 02/08/2010: ACTUAL FDA INVESTIGATION REPORT!!! Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 The FDA redacted some "confidential" information. This is what the FDA gave me. I deleted my phone number.

UPDATE: 02/05/2010: Petag lies and says there is no FDA investigation. Read big lie here. I saved a copy as I know they will edit it or delete it. They also lie and say the FDA told them the complaint was "spurious." There was an FDA investigation which was completed January 29, 2010. See links above. The result was "manufacturer" was "responsible." They never said it was "spurious." What's odd is the company claims they make their own products but this report states they are made somewhere else in Kansas. Petag doesn't want people to know who makes their products? Menu Foods has a plant in Kansas. I wouldn't put it past Petag to use that plant that was involved in the huge recall and class action lawsuit.

UPDATE: 02/08/2010: I uploaded my FOIA request here and their response here.The report said the manufacturer was responsible for the problem with the formula.

UPDATE: 02/02/2010: FDA finds Petag responsible in tainted infant formula

UPDATE: 01/29/10: I just received the FDA Complaint #98535. The FDA stated that the manufacturer Petag is the responsible party for the problem with the formula. Oddly enough Petag told the FDA that their manufacturer is in Kansas. Their website says they manufacture it themselves in Illinois. Co-owner George Gill is the one who made the statements to the FDA. He stated they had no other complaints about their products except mine. I have copies of other complaints made to the company. I even sent them to the FDA. If this company will lie to consumers, distributors, and the FDA, they can never be trusted. I will never use or recommend their products ever again. There is no way to tell what's in the product without spending $600 and running your own tests.

UPDATE: 01/15/10: I sent in a Freedom of Information Act request in October 4, 2009 which the FDA confirmed. File number is 2009-8723. The original investigator referred it to the CVM Department and the Chicago District office. The Chicago District office has not yet completed the investigation because they are running behind. I will post it here when I receive it.

UPDATE: 12/29/2009: Petag announces they have just changed how they manufacture KMR. I hope this means that KMR won't be rancid and fatal any more. KMR manufacturing changed

UPDATE: 12/29/09: eWildagain updates their report on problems with KMR and Esbilac. They've been covering this since the beginning.

UPDATE: 12/28/2009: Audio interview with CEO of PetSense pet stores on link below. This company checked out the product, found that it was rancid and pulled it from all 31 of their pet stores. They told Petag to give them new formula that is not rancid. This is the same interviewer from the below interview. She said that she felt the COO of Petag Darlene Frudakis was doing "corporate ballet" in her last interview. Darlene was dancing around the questions not answering them. She was upset that companies such as Tylenol recalled their product when they found someone had tampered with it. Why didn't Petag? My opinion is that Darlene does not care about animals, only money.

UPDATE: 12/17/2009: Audio interview with COO & President of Petag Darlene Frudakis by Sunny Aris of 575 Magazine. Darlene is not honest in this interview. She states she has not heard of any kittens dying because of the formula. She said she had no complaints, untrue. Petag states they told pet stores to remove their KMR. Untrue. The pet stores removed it on their own when they realized it was rancid. Consumers told the stores it was rancid. Interviewer thinks it wasn't Petag's fault. Bull. They changed KMR and Esbilac processing again to deal with the problem. Expiration 5/11 is the bad lot. Rancid corn oil. COO stated the "formula can only give them diarrhea. It won't kill them." Interviewer said "diarrhea can kill a kitten." "As of this morning, the pet store checked all powdered KMR and it was rancid." She's in New Mexico. Interviewer asked "how will you notify the consumer that the bad product is still on shelves?" COO "we'll get back to you on that." COO Darlene Frudakis lies to interviewer on tape

UPDATE: 10/21/09: Today Petag posted a new notice on their website. The notice states that their KMR and Esbilac have no preservatives. They must be stored in a cool, dry place. They test their product before it leaves the plant. It could be exposed to high temperatures in transit and go bad. If it smells, looks bad, don't use it and call them. 10/21/09 update One, the label states the products have copper sulphate which is a preservative. Two, if their product is that perishable, they should use temperature controlled trucks.

UPDATE: 10/16/09: They have since deleted this news item from their website. I saved a copy as a pdf file. Click hereThey also now state that Esbilac is not meant for wildlifeThey also deleted this notice. Here is a jpg image of their original main page which shows both notices. Original Page.

UPDATE: 10/07/09: Since our investigation into Esbilac the company admits on their website that their KMR formula is bad and should not be used. Do not use KMR!

UPDATE: 10/07/09: Petag admits KMR formula is bad. Check out the comments.

UPDATE: 09/27/09: Petag's Esbilac formula contains heavy metal copper. Check out the comments.

Sunday Sep 27th, 2009 12:49 PM

Independent lab tests of Petag's Esbilac puppy milk have revealed it contains twice the maximum allowed of heavy metal copper as per government standards, 20 ppm vs 10 ppm max. Results also revealed that the contents are 17.6% fiber while the label states it has "0% crude fiber." A report was filed against Petag with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration on 9/15/2009.

Over the last few months wildlife rehabilitators across the nation have been complaining about problems with "new" Esbilac. Raccoon, skunk, opossum, squirrel, bear and bunny babies were getting severe diarrhea and dying.

Various organizations contacted Petag headquarters and complained about the problems over many months. They were told by Judy Polanowski that Petag merely changed their manufacturing process to "spray drying." The product was now supposedly more "digestible." Petag refused to refund unopened bags of Esbilac stating there is nothing wrong with the product.

9/10/2009 Animal Advocates sent a sterile sample of Esbilac straight from the Petag factory to an independent lab in California. September 24 they received the results which showed the contaminant heavy metal copper and large amounts of fiber. These results were forwarded to the FDA.

The significant lab results are as follows:

Petag's label states a "guaranteed analysis" as follows:

The actual protein and fat in Esbilac is less than the minimum guaranteed by the Petag label. The fiber is far greater than the maximum guaranteed. The lab has stated that even though the product contains 17.6% fiber, there is no fiber source listed in any of the ingredients on the label. Copper poisoning is fatal causing diarrhea and organ failure. Excess fiber causes diarrhea, dehydration and emaciation. The dead babies looked like they were starved to death even though they were fed the recommended amount of Petag's Esbilac formula.

Melamine was tested but only to the 2.5 ppm level and found to have less than 2.5 ppm. The maximum allowed for infant liquid formula is 1.0 ppm. A new melamine test has been ordered to test to the 1.0 level as the original test equipment was not capable of going to 1.0.

The FDA regulates pet foods and treats. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) requires that pet foods, like human foods, be safe to eat, produced under sanitary conditions, contain no harmful substances, and be truthfully labeled.

Animal Advocates Animal Advocates rehabilitates ill, injured and orphaned wildlife for release back to the wild. They are licensed by the California Department of Fish & Game and are located in Los Angeles, California. http://www.AnimalAdvocates.us

Petag As per their website Petag produces the number one selling puppy milk Esbilac and the number one selling kitten milk KMR in the world. Their manufacturing plant has been located in Hampshire, Illinois for over 50 years. http://www.Petag.com 800-323-6878

Supposed comment from Petag and others here.

New article about problems with KMR killing kittens and Petag admitting their KMR formula is bad and should not be used. Click to learn more about the founder of Animal Advocates