Dear Dr. Larkins,

We wish to inform you of heartless, cruel behavior exhibited by CVM veterinarian, Renate Reimschuessel.  An investigation of two cat deaths linked to Royal Canin Veterinary Formula cat food was initiated after the filing of a consumer complaint.  Dr. Reimschuessel contacted the pet owner and summarily dismissed the investigation by stating that the FDA “wouldn’t know what to test the pet food for”.  She then followed up by saying “if your 2 other cats die, send us their bodies – FDA will pay for shipping”.

This statement by Dr. Reimschuessel contains some of the most heartless words ever spoken to a grieving pet owner.  It would be unheard of for an FDA investigator to tell the parent of a child that died from food poisoning “The FDA can’t investigate because we wouldn’t know what to test for.  But if your other children die, send us their bodies.”  Who at FDA has determined that these are acceptable words to speak to a consumer seeking help from the agency?  The fact that the complainant was suffering from the recent loss of her pets makes this doubly intolerable.

We demand that Dr. Reimschuessel receive a formal reprimand from the agency insomuch as she has failed to satisfactorily perform that job for which she has been hired.  She should submit a full explanation as to why, when aided by the pet owner’s evidence and by the witness of two treating veterinarians, she did not continue the investigation into the deaths of two cats mentioned earlier.  These unfortunate cats went through great pain, extensive testing and veterinary treatment; as a result, both the regular and specialist veterinarians in the case firmly believe that the pet food was the link to the cats’ illness and subsequent death.  The FDA, however, did not even consider testing the remainder of the pet food still in the owner’s possession.  In point of fact, the agency refused to accept any pet food at all for testing.  This is inexcusable.

We further demand that Dr. Reimschuessel give the complainant and her family a sincere apology.  Moreover, pet food consumers deserve a public apology from the FDA and a promise that the agency will no longer continue its current mindset that pets are disposable property.  Until there is a grand paradigm shift in the FDA, consumers will never be convinced that the agency is protecting their interests.  Thank you.