To check dog food, cat food, treats, or other pet food, match the exact product name, recipe, package size, UPC, lot code, and best-by or expiration date against the FDA notice. Stop feeding a plausible match while you verify the package and contact the veterinarian when an animal is ill. A brand match alone cannot identify the affected batch, and a complaint is not proof that the food caused an illness.
FDA animal-food pages cited here were reviewed August 26, 2026. New entries and terminated-status fields can change, so preserve the notice URL and recheck it before disposal or a remedy request.
Freeze the package identity before the food is moved
Keep the original bag, can, pouch, tray, case label, or treat container. Photograph every panel, the barcode, stamped codes, ingredient panel, size, and date mark. If the food is already in a bin, do not mix in another package. Record when the current batch entered the bin and whether older food remained underneath.
| Package field | Example form | What it can establish |
|---|---|---|
| Product identity | Brand, recipe, life stage, dog or cat, wet or dry | Finds the correct notice row |
| Lot or production code | Stamped letters and numbers near a date | Links the package to a plant and batch |
| Date mark | Best by, best before, use by, expiration | May narrow scope but is not always the lot |
| UPC and size | Barcode digits, weight, can count | Separates retail variations |
| Purchase and feeding history | Store, date, amount fed, animals exposed | Supports complaint and household inventory |
FDA advises saving the original packaging because it carries the product, manufacturer, UPC, lot, and best-by evidence. If kibble must be stored in another container, keeping the bag inside the bin preserves those identifiers and avoids combining production lots.
Use the animal-food list before general news search
Open FDA’s Animal and Veterinary Recalls and Withdrawals. Search the brand and product description, then open the complete company announcement. The table distinguishes animal food, animal drugs, recall reason, firm, date, and terminated status.
The announcement can specify one recipe, package size, lot, date, UPC, and distribution channel while other products under the same brand remain outside scope. Compare every limiting field. The FDA food recall guide explains the same lot-level logic for human food, but the animal-food list is the correct first route for pet products.
- Confirm the notice names food or treats for the same animal category.
- Match recipe, flavor, package form, weight, and count.
- Compare the lot and date mark character for character.
- Use UPC, distribution, and purchase channel as additional limits.
- Copy the company’s exact feeding, return, disposal, or contact instruction.
Lot, UPC, and best-by date are not interchangeable
FDA’s pet food lot-number guidance explains that lot codes can appear near the best-by date and may contain letters and numbers. A company may use a date as all or part of a lot, but the owner should report every printed code rather than decide which one the firm intended.
A UPC identifies a retail product configuration, not necessarily a single production batch. A best-by date generally speaks to company-determined quality timing, while the lot traces manufacturing. When the recall notice names two or three of these fields, all must agree. Preserve ambiguous characters with photographs instead of silently changing B to 8 or U to V.
Map exposure by animal and package rather than by brand. One dog may eat the adult recipe while another receives a veterinary diet; a cat may share treats but not meals. Record each animal, food form, package lot, first and last feeding date, amount remaining, and whether any other animal ate the same batch without signs. Keep toppers, chews, supplements, and refrigerated rolls as separate products. This ledger helps a veterinarian and FDA understand exposure without implying causation. It also prevents the household from discarding an unaffected package merely because its logo matches a recalled one, or continuing to feed a transferred portion whose production code was lost.
For subscription deliveries, the order page can repeat one product title across changing lots. Photograph each arriving code before the old bag is finished and do not overwrite the prior batch in a single note.
If the bag is missing or several lots share one bin
Recover package photographs, online orders, store receipts, autoship records, and the manufacturer’s code from any remaining case or individual can. Ask other household members when food was poured and whether the bin was fully emptied and washed between bags. Do not assign the newest bag’s lot to older food left in the bottom.
Mixed or unidentified food remains unresolved. Keep it separated from other feed while obtaining the firm’s instruction, and document why an exact exclusion is impossible. If a retailer substituted a size or recipe, use the label received rather than the order title.
Illness history belongs in a veterinary and FDA complaint record
Contact a veterinarian when a pet is sick or injured; do not use a recall article to diagnose the cause or choose treatment. Preserve the package, feeding timeline, amount consumed, symptoms, other foods and medicines, veterinary findings, and the number of animals that ate the product. Follow professional advice on retaining a sample.
FDA’s pet food complaint instructions request the exact product, container, storage condition, lot, date, UPC, weight, purchase, handling, and animal details. A submitted complaint supports surveillance and possible investigation; it does not guarantee testing, reimbursement, or a recall decision.
The commercial remedy and exposure record close separately
Follow the company announcement for return, refund, replacement, disposal, or contact. Photograph identifying fields before any permitted disposal and save the claim number. The recalled-food evidence guide helps organize package and remedy records without changing FDA or company instructions.
Finish every household location: pantry, feeding station, refrigerator, freezer, travel bag, automatic feeder, and another caregiver’s supply. Mark each package affected, excluded, or unresolved. Absence from the list does not prove food is safe or explain an animal’s illness; it means only that the recorded identifiers did not establish a match in the sources checked on that date.