Class Action Reporter - Headlines

Lawyer Jennifer Thomaidis filed a class action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado on behalf of cat owner Emily Tompkins, whose cat, Grover, died in March after eating contaminated pet food, The Denver Post reports.

Named defendants in the 23-page lawsuit are:

• Menu Foods Midwest Corp.;
• Menu Foods Income Fund;
• Menu Foods Limited;
• Menu Foods Inc.;
• Menu Foods Holdings, Inc.;
• Proctor & Gamble Co., The;
• Iams Co., The;
• Safeway Inc.;
• Kroger Co., The;
• Petco Animal Supplies, Inc.; and
• Petco Animal Supplies Stores, Inc

Ms. Tompkins accused the chain stores of selling the allegedly tainted pet food, which the Canadian manufacturer recalled because it was suspected of causing death or sickness in hundreds of dogs and cats.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified punitive damages for pet owners in Colorado.

"Colorado pet owners want justice served," Ms. Thomaidis said. "They want companies that allowed this to happen to take responsibility."

On March 17, 2007, Menu Foods issued a North American-wide recall of 48 brands of dog food and 42 brands of cat food in response to reported deaths of cats and dogs in the U.S.

The nationwide recall includes popular brands such as Iams, Nutro, and Eukanuba and private-label brands sold by retailers Wal-Mart, Safeway, Petsmart, and others.

Veterinary professionals estimate thousands of pets across the nation will die of kidney failure or become very sick with similar symptoms as a result of consuming the contaminated products.

To see complete list of recalled products:
http://www.menufoods.com/recall

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