Arabiannikki,  with all due respect, when there are problems with human food that a company knows is causing problems, dont they normally put this info thru the news and papers?  Once again, its lower standards for pets.  While Im glad they put it on their website, why isnt it being run on CNN and papers, you know, those places that most people get their news from?  Once again, this is the exact reason why pet food companies need tighter, stricter regulations.  This should be on the news, oh, maybe I will e:mail CNN myself!  And for the poor dogs who have become sick and had to go to the vets, is NV paying for those vet visits?   And it would be nice if they could be more specific on what the problem is or do they not really know?  Have they notifed FDA?  How long have they been receiving reports of sick pets?  Im sorry, but just putting some vague info on their website, one of the last places people will look, is not good enough.  Once again, our pets deserve better. OK, sorry, Im off my soapbox now.  Carol, Im very mad about this too.  

I might add that some dogs that eat this food probably eat it because of IBD and food allergies.  For those dogs, loose stools and vomiting can be alot more serious.  And for poor dogs like Carol's Harry who is fighting cancer, its even worse. 

And by calling it that, many of us of course are going assume they ARE calling it that because the truth is not good!! 

So are we right or wrong?  We won't exactly stop thinking this unless we really know what it is.  (obsessed pet food snobs that we are!)

I guess I'll post it again:
The only issue is the Instinct Chicken for dogs and its only the 2 date codes. They have no problem with any other products. It Had absolutely nothing to do with the quality of the ingredients. The formula was within their guidelines but turned out to be on the richer high side where the old plant had a less rich on the lower side of the guidelines. So as with any change in diet if its suddenly too rich the animal "may" have GI problem like loose stools or stomach upset. Even if the food was fed after knowing this the body would adjust to it being more rich. They decided to pull the product. Good job for them.

Please also note the website stated it was still within the quality guidelines. My guess its not on the news because its not a recall or a vet emergency. Its not poison or toxic. 

Kind-of like if we change our diet suddenly. With all due respect; Do you call the news and the FDA every time you get the runs from eating something that didn't right for your body ,Or do you call the news & FDA when you vomit from too much of something. Do you also call the news & FDA when you get excess gas and fart too much from eating something that just didn't agree with your body. Can we see how silly this sounds. I've seen more dogs and cats harmed in the last year due to people changing their food every few days or week because every time they tried something they heard something bad from someone. So the poor animal is going through GI hell because of all the changes. Not exactly smart and can cause permanent problems.

I know we are worried about the manufacturing companies but this is getting blown way out of proportion. They stated the problem on their website. What more do we want. The only thing a vet can do for loose stools is a drug or let it go away on its own which will happen when the body adjusts after a few days.

Trying to get perfection will not happen from any company or any food human or pet. Human involvement will always = no perfection. I'm really not trying to be sarcastic or mean but it seems to me any company involved in any pet food is damed if you do and damed if you don't. Of course as usual just my opinion.

Not really about Nature's Variety, but thing makes me really curious. You say a number of cats and dogs were harmed by people changing their diet every couple of weeks. I am familiar with guidelines for slow switching etc., however all that does not make much sense to me based on experience with my cats.

They get different flavor and/or brand of canned food for breakfast and for dinner. They don't develop GI upsets. I've been giving foods with significant variations in protein content (10-18%) and fat content (0.5-several %) for breakfast and for dinner, no diarrhea, no vomitting. In fact, if I give them the same thing for breakfast and for dinner, they will refuse to eat. Even foods they like very much, if they get too often they get tired of them and refuse to eat them for a while. Dry food is also rotated, and no GI upsets without slow switching from one to another. Since they eat different foods all the time, naturally the stools consistency will exhibit some variation, but within normal parameters.

So what I am trying to say is that while GI upsets can and do happen in dogs and cats who are normally fed same old, same old and then suddenly switched to something else. I do not think that this is normal and good thing for dogs and cats, and I do not think that they should be fed same thing all the time. Furthermore, if a dog or a cat who is normally fed varied food would develop GI upset, I would be very suspicious that there is something else wrong other than "too rich".

I would like to now why are many vets discouraging people from feeding varied diets saying it leads to GI upsets when this is not really true, and I would also like to know how often are GI upsets due to other more serious reasons dismissed as "new food issue". Do you think it would be perfectly normal for YOU to get diarrhea if you eat a dannish for breakfast instead of a bowl of cereal? If not, why should this be "normal" for cats and dogs?

I agree, alek0.  I rotate foods too, always have, and it never seems to upset my cats' stomachs.  I've always thought of this as more of a dog problem, but I don't have dogs.  Different vets will tell you different things.  Some say it is a myth that switching foods too quickly causes GI upset; others swear that it is true.  I've never understood why this should be the case, since wild canids and felids do not eat exactly the same prey (or scavenge the same foods, in the case of the dogs) every day.

I guess like anything else, it varies from individual to individual, just as with people.  I can eat most anything and not suffer problems.  My DH is up all night after eating certain foods.

I wonder if the NV problem is an excess of vitamins, or of a food ingredient such as the chicken meal.  I sure wish they would be more specific, since I use the cat kibble as one of my rotation dry foods.

Carol--I don't think they meant the statement about cooking with gas vs. electric to be taken literally.  I think it was just an analogy.  But I do think you have a right to a more specific answer about the problem, since you have noticed problems with your dogs.

I can not find a phone number---there is only the address on the bag-and I can't find it on the website---maybe I'm overlooking it---help me please!   (this is not a good week for even a hint of trouble with my pet food)

Wasn't Sammy from MI posting here as SMGMI?
Maybe that's also an alternate route to contact them?