A 10-year-old Goldendoodle, named Maya, died and a Lake Forest family blames Blue Buffalo’s dog food with leading to her death. They have since filed a class action lawsuit in federal court. | Provided Photos
By Sam Borcia | Lake & McHenry County Scanner
A Lake County family has filed a class action lawsuit against Blue Buffalo Company alleging that their dog died from a serious heart disease linked to grain-free dog food that the company sold.
The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois by The G Law Group, along with co-counsel Florek Law, on behalf of plaintiffs Ryan Walsh and Diana Walsh, of Lake Forest.
The suit alleges Blue Buffalo’s grain-free products have repeatedly been linked in scientific studies and FDA investigations to diet-related dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and other adverse cardiac conditions in dogs.
Dilated cardiomyopathy is a disease of the heart muscle that reduces the heart’s ability to pump blood effectively, often leading to heart failure and death.
The lawsuit complaint references multiple complaints to the FDA regarding the link, as well as research showing that grain-free diets, such as those containing peas, can interfere with taurine absorption.
Taurine is an amino acid that is essential for myocardial health. The plaintiffs’ attorneys say research shows that dogs’ heart function improved after switching from grain-free to grain-inclusive diets and receiving taurine supplementation.
The lawsuit said Blue Buffalo continued to market its products as “the healthiest food possible” made with “the finest natural ingredients” despite thousands of FDA complaints and research linking grain-free dog food to DCM.
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