UNITED STATES INSPECTOR GENERALS REPORT -
MAY 2010 - USDA
COMMERCIAL DOG BREEDING INDUSTRY - NEWPORT BEACH CITIZENS WANT BAN ON USDA PET
STORE PUPPIES
documented case study: contaminated food
EXACT PHOTO--At a
broker facility in Oklahoma with 525 adult dogs, we observed and the inspector
reported “an excessive number of insects/ cockroaches” crawling on walls, the
floor, and the ceiling. Food bowls were also infested with dead and live
cockroaches (see figure 6).
Figure 6: Cockroach-Infested Food
The inspector required the broker to correct the contaminated food within 5 days. However, by not designating this as a direct violation, the inspector will not know if the correction occurred since she will not return for a re-inspection for a year.
The inspector cited the violation as an indirect, even though contaminated feed and heavy vermin infestation in storage or feeding area are classified as direct violations in the Guide.46 She told us that “cockroaches in the feed [do not necessarily pose] immediate health concerns . . . anima
44 AC Policy No. 3 (July 17, 2007).
45 7 U.S.C §2143(a) (January 3, 2007) and 9 CFR §2.40 (January 1, 2005).
46 Dealer Inspection Guide, ch. 7.6.1 (April 2000).
Audit Report 33002-4-SF 20
can eat cockroaches and other bugs with no harm observed to their health.” The inspector’s supervisor supported the inspector’s assessment.
We contacted the directors of the Shelter Medicine Programs at three veterinary schools in California, Massachusetts, and New York to determine if the above situation constituted a direct violation.47 All three directors disagreed with AC’s conclusion. The director of the Shelter Medicine Program at the University of California at Davis told us that “cockroaches have been linked to transmission of [parvovirus and] Salmonella and could be a physical . . . carrier of the disease. While it might not be harmful for the animals to eat a bug on occasion, having such a number of cockroaches in a food container (and in the environment generally) would potentially spread serious diseases . . . constituting a threat not only for animals but also for humans.”
Figure 6: Cockroach-Infested Food
The inspector required the broker to correct the contaminated food within 5 days. However, by not designating this as a direct violation, the inspector will not know if the correction occurred since she will not return for a re-inspection for a year.
The inspector cited the violation as an indirect, even though contaminated feed and heavy vermin infestation in storage or feeding area are classified as direct violations in the Guide.46 She told us that “cockroaches in the feed [do not necessarily pose] immediate health concerns . . . anima
44 AC Policy No. 3 (July 17, 2007).
45 7 U.S.C §2143(a) (January 3, 2007) and 9 CFR §2.40 (January 1, 2005).
46 Dealer Inspection Guide, ch. 7.6.1 (April 2000).
Audit Report 33002-4-SF 20
can eat cockroaches and other bugs with no harm observed to their health.” The inspector’s supervisor supported the inspector’s assessment.
We contacted the directors of the Shelter Medicine Programs at three veterinary schools in California, Massachusetts, and New York to determine if the above situation constituted a direct violation.47 All three directors disagreed with AC’s conclusion. The director of the Shelter Medicine Program at the University of California at Davis told us that “cockroaches have been linked to transmission of [parvovirus and] Salmonella and could be a physical . . . carrier of the disease. While it might not be harmful for the animals to eat a bug on occasion, having such a number of cockroaches in a food container (and in the environment generally) would potentially spread serious diseases . . . constituting a threat not only for animals but also for humans.”
The AC supervisor
told us that if several inspectors evaluated the same situation, some would
document the violation as a direct and others would not. This demonstrates AC’s
lack of standardization on how animals and violators are treated. To ensure that
inspectors cite direct violations consistently, AC should provide more detailed
guidance on direct violations and provide more training to the inspectors in
identifying them.
