PHILADELPHIA – A group of Pennsylvania dog owners is suing a dog food manufacturer alleging that high levels of vitamin D in its products caused their animals to become ill or die.
Lee Skoog, Michelle Black, Tiffany Miller, Barbara Wertman and Candice Howarth-Gadomski, on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated, filed a complaint on April 3 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania against Hill's Pet Nutrition Inc. alleging violation of the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, breach of express warranty, unjust enrichment, violations of Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law and other counts.
According to the complaint, the defendant sells varieties of pet food under the Science Diet and Prescription Diet lines and advertises the products contain a "'precise balance' of nutrients needed for a healthy dog."
The suit states the defendant announced a recall of canned Prescription Diet and Science Diet food in January, February and March of this year because of excessive amounts of vitamin D. The plaintiffs allege the level of vitamin D in the products was "toxic" and resulted in many sick and dead dogs.
The suit states that the plaintiffs purchased the defendant's dog food because of misrepresentations that the defendant had made about the high quality of the food, but instead their pets were caused to suffer and in some cases died due to the defendant's alleged false advertising.
The plaintiffs are seeking all reasonable sums due, attorney fees and court costs. They are represented by Charles E. Schaffer of Levin Sedran & Berman LLP in Philadelphia.
This case is part of a growing number of lawsuits against Hill's Pet Nutrition over the recall of the dog food. Cases have been filed in Florida, Rhode Island, New York and California.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case number 2:19-CV-01421