Hundreds of dogs and cats still being sickened by dangerous pet food

CLEVELAND - Dave Gibson loves his border collie, Marley. But Gibson didn't know what to think when Marley started getting sick a few months back.

"He was exhibiting, you know, gastric distress, diarrhea, and some vomiting," said Gibson.

So he gave Marley water and more food. Marley got sicker. That's when Gibson decided to change the food.

"He immediately began to improve once I switched what brand I was feeding him," said Gibson.

A few days later, Gibson heard a news report about a recall at Costco, where he bought Marley's food.

"A recall had been out there a week before i even knew about it.  So I know there are people out there that may not even be aware this recall has been made," noted Gibson.

Marley had been feasting on Kirkland signature dry food, one of a dozen brands made by Diamond Foods now on a recall list for salmonella. (Update: Kirkland pet food is only in Eastern and Southern states, and all recalled food has now been removed from store shelves.)

Dr. William Bean, who has seen several dogs with similar symptoms, said the problem is so many brands are affected.

"There's more than one brand that's under the Diamond Foods label, and so it's important to look at your label carefully to see if it falls under the largest diamond foods."

Dr. Bean said what's tricky is that symptoms of poisoning come on slowly. "They can have symptoms that don't show up until 3 to 5 days after they are exposed and people themselves can get ill from handling the food."

The Centers for Disease Controls said more than 20 people have become sick from touching the salmonella infected food. So you should check the following brands of dry dog food.

- Diamond
- Canidae
- Chicken Soup for the Pet Lover's Soul
- Country Value
- Premium Edge
- Professional
- 4 Health
- Taste of the Wild

Dave Gibson worries many people are still using these. "Somebody might have a 50 pound bag and be using just a small amount, so they might be using this bag of bad dog food in their cupboard."

If you have any of the above foods, contact your store or Diamond Pet Foods and stop using it immediately.

The bottom line - be alert when buying pet food of any notices in the store about a recall. Your dog will thank you.