Pet food recalled for bird flu contamination after house cat dies

Raw and frozen pet food that tested positive for the bird flu is being recalled after a house cat consumed it and died.

Northwest Naturals’ two-pound Feline Turkey Recipe was found to be contaminated with the H5N1 strain of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) virus, according to the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) on Thursday.

An indoor cat that ate the food died, and testing by several agencies including the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Veterinary Services Laboratories confirmed a genetic match of the viruses in the feline and the product.

‘We are confident that this cat contracted H5N1 by eating the Northwest Naturals raw and frozen pet food,’ stated ODA State Veterinarian Dr Ryan Scholz.

‘This cat was strictly an indoor cat; it was not exposed to the virus in its environment, and results from the genome sequencing confirmed that the virus recovered from the raw pet food and infected cat were exact matches to each other.’

The cat’s owners are being monitored by health officials for bird flu symptoms.

‘This case reminds us that feeding raw meat products to pets or consuming them yourself can lead to severe illness,’ stated the ODA advisory.

No human cases have been linked to the incident so far.

The Oregon-based pet food maker is voluntarily recalling the product that came in plastic bags with best by dates from May 21, 2026 to June 23, 2026.

It was sold in a dozen US states – Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Washington – as well as British Columbia in Canada.

Customers are advised to throw away the product and contact Northwest Naturals for full refunds.

The recall comes just weeks after dog food manufacturer Carolina Prime Pet, Inc, recalled 400 bags of its Hollywood Feed Carolina Made Chicken Chips over Salmonella concerns.
The contamination could spread to humans, the US Food and Drug Administration warned.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Arrow MORE: Pet turkey accompanies owner to 5km Parkrun

Arrow MORE: Cat reunited with family after disappearing for nearly a decade

Arrow MORE: I followed killer whales in Antarctica – they aren’t the villain you think