A Los Alamitos-based dog food company that touts its human-grade pet food has recalled three varieties of food after a batch bought by a customer tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes.
In a note to customers on its Facebook page, Just Food For Dogs said a customer alerted them to a sickened dog that had eaten its Turducken entree. The customer returned the food which tested positive for listeria.
“Honesty. Transparency. Pet advocacy. These are three of the core values that make Just Food For Dogs who and what we are,” the letter begins. “Most days living up to these standards is easy. We use only the best ingredients; we open our kitchens to the public; we treat every dog as if he were our own, and we regard every pet as family. This week has been more challenging.”
The company in its note suggests the contamination started with tainted green beans, so it recalled all of its products made with the vegetables.
Anyone who bought the company’s Turducken, Beef & Russet Potato and Fish & Sweet Potato dog food should throw it out, Just Food For Dogs said. The company will provide a full refund to those customers who request one. Purchases would have been made between Nov. 1 and Jan. 14. Customers also can email the company at support@justfoodfordogs.com.
The customer’s dog, Just Food For Dogs wrote, said the customer’s pet made a full recovery without veterinary intervention.
The company was founded by Shawn Buckley. In a profile in the Register in 2017, the entrepreneur told the Register he was inspired to create a healthier dog food as his dog Simon’s health declined from cancer. The company’s kitchens make up to 2,000 pounds of pet food made of premium meats, fish, rice and veggies each day.
“We make food out of food,” Buckley said in the interview. “Kibble is food out of material.”
Just Food For Dogs has grown from a small shop on PCH to a 10-store chain with locations in Sherman Oaks, Glendale, Manhattan Beach, Downtown LA, Long Beach, Anaheim Hills, Del Mar, Capistrano Beach, Costa Mesa and Mission Viejo. The company is building another of its prep kitchens in Santa Monica and is planning shops in San Diego, San Francisco and Seattle.
Staff columnist David Whiting contributed to this report.
