What was recalled
This page synthesizes five H5N1 raw pet food recalls spanning the 2024-2026 H5N1 panzootic period. The December 2024 Northwest Naturals event covered Feline Turkey Recipe raw frozen cat food after a domestic cat in Oregon contracted H5N1 from the product and died; testing confirmed genetic match between the product and the cat’s viral isolate. The 2024 Wild Coast Raw event in Washington state and the 2024 Monarch Raw event in California expanded the recall surface to additional small-brand raw cat food manufacturers. The 2025 RAWR event involved a raw raw-meat-and-bone formula for cats; the 2025 Savage Cat Food event covered raw chicken and salmon recipes.
The events shared common operational characteristics: small-batch raw cat food production sourced from regional U.S. raw poultry supplies during periods of high HPAI circulation in the same region. The Pacific Northwest cluster (Oregon, Washington) coincided with the largest U.S. HPAI commercial poultry depopulation events in 2024. Some recalls were initiated by FDA after consumer pet illness or death; others by USDA after backward-traced viral isolates from sick cats matched commercial product samples. The recall pattern accelerated the industry-wide reassessment of raw poultry sourcing during HPAI circulation, with major retailers in 2025 imposing additional supplier-attestation requirements on raw cat food vendors.
Why it was recalled
H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza is a viral pathogen with a well-documented mammalian-spillover risk profile: cats infected via raw poultry consumption show severe respiratory, neurological, and ocular disease with high mortality, and the virus can theoretically transmit cat-to-human (though no sustained human-to-human transmission has been documented as of the 2024-2026 panzootic). Raw pet food production lacks the kill step that dry kibble extrusion or canned food retorting provides — both processes denature influenza viruses through heat. Frozen raw pet food preserves viable virus on the meat surface unless an additional treatment (HPP, freeze-drying with virus-validated parameters) is applied.
The 2024-2026 events all traced to raw poultry ingredient streams sourced from commercial U.S. poultry suppliers during periods of regional HPAI circulation. USDA testing programs at the slaughter level were not detecting all HPAI-positive birds in the early panzootic period, allowing some contaminated meat into the broader supply chain destined for raw pet food. The December 2024 Northwest Naturals event was the trigger for the FDA to publish guidance recommending raw pet food manufacturers either (1) source poultry only from suppliers with verified HPAI testing or (2) apply a virus-inactivation kill step. The FDA HPAI guidance on cats and the CDC HPAI situation summary document the ongoing risk picture.
Health risks for your pet
H5N1 infection in cats produces a distinctive clinical pattern: severe respiratory disease, neurological signs (ataxia, seizures, blindness), conjunctivitis, anorexia, and high fever. Mortality in confirmed cat cases has been documented at approximately 50-67% across the 2024-2026 events, with most surviving cats requiring intensive supportive care. Diagnostic confirmation requires PCR testing of nasal/oral swabs or post-mortem tissue. The zoonotic transmission risk to humans is the major regulatory driver: H5N1 in mammalian hosts has documented genetic adaptations (PB2 mutations) that increase mammalian infectivity, and cat-to-human transmission of avian influenza is well-documented in the veterinary literature. Pregnant women, infants, the elderly, and immunocompromised adults face the highest severe-disease risk. Owners of infected cats face exposure risk through close contact, scratch/bite injury during seizure events, and respiratory droplet contact during ICU care.
What to do if you bought affected product
If you currently feed raw pet food, check whether the manufacturer documents HPAI testing on incoming poultry or applies a virus-inactivation kill step (HPP, freeze-drying with virus-validated parameters). Manufacturers without these protocols carry elevated H5N1 exposure risk during periods of regional HPAI circulation. If your cat develops sudden respiratory distress, neurological signs, or high fever after consuming raw pet food, contact your veterinarian immediately and disclose the raw-food feeding history; H5N1 is treatable with intensive supportive care if diagnosed early but mortality remains high. The 2024-2026 events did not affect dry kibble or canned food — both formats include kill steps that inactivate influenza viruses. Households with immunocompromised members, infants, or pregnant women should consider switching to a kill-step-included pet food format during periods of high regional HPAI circulation. Report suspected pet H5N1 cases to your state veterinarian and the USDA APHIS Veterinary Services.
How this affects KibbleIQ’s grade
None of the five H5N1-affected brands are in the KibbleIQ scored database; our methodology v15 covers commercial dry kibble, fresh cooked food, and selected raw-coated kibble per our published methodology. Standalone raw frozen is a distinct format that the rubric does not yet specifically score. The 2024-2026 events reinforce a structural principle for future Raw Pet Food Rubric design: kill-step documentation (HPP, freeze-drying with virus-validated parameters) and supplier HPAI testing attestation belong in any raw pet food quality evaluation alongside ingredient quality and microbiological controls. Recall-history scoring under our planned methodology v2 will weight the 2024-2026 H5N1 cluster heavily for any future-included raw pet food brand whose historical lines tied to the panzootic events.